CHOOSING A BUSHCRAFT KNIFE

My guide to choosing & using bushcraft knives. I look at construction, uses and what is on the market. I hope you find it useful if you are in the market for purchasing a knife for use in the woods.

[@saymyname3097]

I didn't realise that I have a similar knife in the kitchen drawer. Glad to have run into this video. Learned a lot, thank you.

[@chrisgeoss2543]

Very well thought out, and very well delivered!. All the best

[@mesmogruvinski]

Thankyou very much. Most informative.

[@tonynapoli5549]

Thanks for sharing Interesting video

[@gavingaming123]

Excellent presentation and sound advice. I really enjoy your videos, no hype, no bs but honest with no product bias. Thanks for sharing. All the best from Scotland. Garry

[@rainbowhiker]

You always give excellent advice. Much appreciated seeing the gear you use. Beautiful spot. Thank you.

[@BushcraftCooking]

You helped me on some questions that i have about choice of blades. Thanks for sharing you knowledge.

[@midnightgreen8319]

Very good, no nonsense video on Bushcraft knives!

[@davidk6665]

Excellent video. Thank you for your efforts. The one thing I could add is blade steel and maintenance. Blade steel type probably is not a huge concern for most people. However, most people that prefer carbon steel may not appreciate how salt water and high humidity in some areas can easily cause rusting, even if you are not near the ocean's edge. In the Pacific Northwest of USA, strong prevailing winds bring huge amounts of salt ions (lofted in air) far inland (it is much higher here than anywhere else in the contiguous USA). I had few worries about knives rusting until I moved here. I prefer stainless now for that reason. (Note that most coastal areas do not have such strong prevailing sea winds, so those areas may have far fewer problems).

[@bobscar327]

Good video, good content, well presented and thorough. Well done.

[@TheGfhicks]

Great review. I enjoy the knowledge that you share. Sorry that sometimes people think that because you leave something out that you don't know what you are talking about. The primary purpose of a knife is to cut and yes you can do that with a fix blade or folding knife. I don't believe in just a one tool does all but the knives you listed in my personal use do get the job done. I love my swiss army knife and a good fixed blade when I go out. Often folks think of the area they live in and then base their opinion on their experience. Take up the topic baton of wood few do it and more talk about it. I can say that in the mountain area where I go that most of the wood is useless because they can be toxic to use or burn. In a snow storm once I had great difficulty finding usable wood because it was a high traffic area and so batting of wood did help the fire build to where it did not go out. When your cold and want a fire this was the only time that I had to do it because my hands couldn't do the fine details required with a folding blade. After a winter storm where you have freezing rain and lots of snow it is not as easy as many would think to keep a fire going. I wish people would understand that the knowledge you share is very useful to a lot of people. I agree that a good Mora and a swiss army knife or stockman knife can do most things. I don't listen to the so called survival experts as most of us will never be put into that situation and I like to prepare before I need those types of skills. I think that clothing is a more important choice than a knife in that situation but that is a different video. What would be some of your high end knives choices? Who does your leather work? Dirt Time is wisdom indeed. Looking forward to learning more from you in the future. Mors can make any knife look like a custom design because of his skill level. I would love to be 1/2 as good.

[@tomconway8881]

Like your videos very much. However please have closed captions available. To read your comments while watching is preferable. Thanks.

[@hedgecomber]

Really useful info as always Neil 😊

[@greencraft4783]

Thanks Janie! we really must sort out that "co-lab" (as the kids say!!)

[@Shawn-px3yz]

Another great video! Your always so informative and a load of knowledge for everyone. There are a couple Young knife makers I have dealt with myself and have been very very impressed with. Sam for Virtus Knives in Saskatchewan, Canada is Awesome. I got my first Custom knife from Sam. He is in his early 20's and makes quality knives beyond his years! The other is Davie Broc Crawford of Broc Knives in Ireland. Such great quality and a range of knife designs as well. Both of these guys go above and beyond for anyone looking for a custom knife. Their knives are very different and I use them in different situations.. Sam's I will take with me when I'm also carrying my Axe and Davies I carry when I want that one tool to do everything!! I don't spend much money on my kit. I'm a budget Bushcrafter/Outdoorsman.. so buying any expencive or even brand new kit is something I don't do often. I make or create alot of my kit myself. The decision to buy a Custom knife wasn't taken lightly by any means.. Both knives probably took me at least a year to a year and a half to finally pull the trigger and buy. As I said I use them in different situations. Between the two of them I don't need any other knives at all. Except when I'm doing some serious woodcarving.. but I do use both these knives at some point during my bigger carving projects. Thanks again for an excellent, informative video as usual. Cheers 🇨🇦

[@livingthedream7902]

Sound advice. Thank you for taking the time to pass on a common sense approach to choosing a knife. It is very easy to loose sight in what you are actually going to use it for and there does seem to be a push towards the idea that you have to have one knife that can do everything. I believe that a knife is a tool and it can't do everything it is a compromise and like you I do not think (even if I could afford it) you have to pay hundreds of £'s to get a knife that is right for you. It is reassuring that there are people like yourself, experienced and knowledgeable, who are willing to pass on good advice

[@greencraft4783]

Thanks for taking the time to comment (all are appreciated). It is the same for all things in bushcraft - yes we can go for the expensive, or we could use good, but basic items and back them up with sound knowledge & common sense.

[@Andy-1968]

Good video Neil 👍

[@FGYT1]

Nice Job Neil

[@vinniesdayoff3968]

A lot of sense here. I see you have crossed swords with the much feared James Ritchie. Funny , he said pretty much the opposite when he had a go at me. Seems he has changed his mind about folders. You made an excellent reply 😈

[@margaretadler6162]

James Ritchie is an arrogant asshole that thinks he know's it all!

[@margaretadler6162]

I wouldn't have characterized James Ritchie as feared. He's just an internet bully that thinks his opinion is gospel and is the only opinion there should be! I guess the doesn't realize that you, I and other viewers think he a total pompous ass! I for one would be very content if he would just keep is negative crap to himself! ATB Sam Adler

[@vikingoutdoors8468]

Nice one neal very informative video 😁👍. Atb Tim

[@joekelly9369]

Yeah iv been plonked outdoors for months at a time and the worst possible blade for all round outdoor use is scandi grinde bushcraft knives . After months it was useless for cutting meat and food stuffs . I couldnt have fires so fire sticks were out .( abiut all a scandi blade is any use for ) i would reccomend looking at flat grind knives as an all round alternative to a so called bushcraft scandi . Seriously buy a knife with more purpose than a feather stick

[@peteswright]

I saw a video by an instructor who said "if its not carbon steel its not worth having" which can't be true but it swayed me on my first purchase of my Mora companion. The blade is tarnishing obviously. Anyone know what to do about cleaning it up?

[@greencraft4783]

I wouldn't worry about it too much. I think the contrast between the patina of the carbon stained sides of the blade and the highly polished bevel looks very good...

[@Ambushcraftnhunting]

hey buddy great video cornwall85 on instrgram sent me over to you stuff will check it out today have a great day a.t.b am bushcraft

[@greencraft4783]

Cheers Bud! Please look at the other stuff. Family permitting there will be more to come.

[@johndoes2434]

If I had to pick one knife and be the bearing maid companies F1 series outdoor survival knives that would be my dream knife but since it's like $2,000 it's unrealistic

[@stevanoutdoor]

Nice video. I kinda agree but for the round handle. A rounded off handle yes, but round will roll in your sweaty hands and reduce the power you are putting into the cut. I do prefer the broomstick handle like you see in a lot of USA made knives over the coke bottle handle you see in a lot of UK made knives including the woodlore. I stopped using the terms bushcraft and survival knives, because to me they are all camp knives. For the small camp knife you did not address stainless vs carbon. Since some 80% you do with a small camp knife is food prep I think it's important. A carbon steel knife will basically rust in the sheath and this micro corrosion will dull the edge so you need more field sharpening. This corrosion will also give a bad taste to your food. A carbon knife will demand a lot more field sharpening and care and all that adds weight and time. I'm still talking about the small camp knife you use for food prep. A scandi is nice for woodwork but a tru scandi is too fragile to use on hard wood. It will roll the edge. It's also to fragile for batoning. A rat tail is nice for carving and slicing, mostly in cold conditions, because your hand won't touch any metal parts but they are a lot more fragile. I've seen rat tails bend or break in harder use. There's a lot of broader stick tangs now that aren't rat tails but still stick tangs that are more like a cross between, some even protruding to the end to use as a field hammer. So, for example, a Hultafors RFR that's stainless and I keep scandi for food prep and a Hultafors GK that's carbon that I give a secondary convex for strength of the edge for the harder work is a good combination for me. You are talking less than 20 dollars for both knives. But even if you upgrade to more expensive knives this rule applies.

[@johnniewayneturner4604]

We're looking for a bushcraft knife that can craft a bush..dumdum

[@jamesaritchie1]

And none of those mind-blowing numbers make a good bushcraft knife, or a woodsman's knife, which should be the same thing. No fixed blade knife is worth spit as a carving knife. For carving, you need a woodsman's pocketknife that has at least two blade, and three is better. Professional woodcarvers all over the world use Stockman pocketknives. I've never seen one use a bushcraft knife. Woodsmen have always used pocketknives to do all their carving, and they still do. Unfortunately, fake "experts" on KZbin don't even know this much about woodsmen, and don't even seem to know such knives exist. It's lunacy. KZbin does have real woodsmen on it, but they're buried under TV "experts" and under ex-soldiers who can't stop playing Rambo, but who couldn't survive in their own backyard without air support. Fixed blade knives are for skinning large game and processing meat. That's it. Pocketknives, a Swiss Army knife for most of the world, and a Trapper or better, a Stockman in America, are for everything else, including carving, whittling, making things from wood. Why anyone would think a fixed blade knife with a single blade could possibly be as good as a pocketknife with three blades defies all common sense. Professional woodcarvers all over the world use Stockman pocketknives. None of them use bushcraft knives. People talk about Kephart and Nessmuk, Boone, Crocket, and a dozen mountain men, but apparently can't be bothered to read books by them or about them. And, no, you don't need a fixed blade knife to baton. There is never, ever a reason to baton, and no woodsman ever batoned with his knife. Woodsmen didn't invent batoning, and the desire for full tang knives had nothing at all to do with batoning. But, like I said, few people read. If they can't watch it, they can't learn from it. The desire for a full tang started because a few unscrupulous knife companies started selling knives with welded tangs, with hidden tangs as short as half an inch, and sometimes with no tang at all, just a blade epoxied to a handle. These knives broke with ordinary cutting tasks, and people started demanding full tangs because if they could see the tang, they knew it wasn't welded, and it wasn't half an inch long. The infamous Rambo knife had a welded tang, and you can still buy it from BudK and a few other places. It still has a welded tang. While the KZbin bushcraft and fake "survival" communities spends untol sums of money on silly, useless knives, the larger pat of the world that isn't on KZbin, including thousands of real woodsmen, just use a pocketknife with more than one blade. Most use a Swiss Army Knife. Many militaries use this, as well. This is soon to include our own military. We've always handed out small knives, but now it's going to be an actual Swiss Army Knife, and this is the knife that is best for any survival that doesn't including killing enemy soldiers. Batoning with a knife is as stupid as it gets, doesn't aid in building a fire, doesn't aid in survival, and just means the person doesn't know which tools to carry, doesn't know how to use his knife at all, doesn't know how to build a fire, and doesn't even know the woods. The best knife for bushcraft is a pocketknife that has more than one blade. The best knife for survival is also a pocketknife that has more than one blade. I've spent a month (monitored) in the wilderness with only a Ka-Bar twice, and a third month with the tools and gear the average hiker might carry. Then I spent almost a solid year alone in the wilderness just because I wanted to. I used my fixed blade knife three times during that year, each time when I skinned and processed a deer. I didn't need it then. You Tube does have real woodsmen making videos, woodsmen so far beyond me that I look like a ten year old. But KZbin is myopic, it follows fake woodsmen, fake experts, self-made experts who somehow gained fame despite knowing nothing at all about how real woodsmen spend their time in the woods, and it ignores anything and everything that doesn't come from the same around and around and around misinformation. It talks about woodsmen of old, such as Kephart and Nessmuk, and even Boone and Crockett, but apparently doesn't actually read the books they wrote, or the books written about them when they lived because nothing on KZbin goes along with what any of them said. The best bushcraft knife? It's the same as the best survival knife. It's the same knife real woodsmen have always used, and that most of the world still uses. It's even the knife militaries hand out for the same job. It's a pocketknife. A plain, old-fashioned, slip joint pocketknife with more than one blade. It's a Swiss Army Knife, or a Stockman, or a Trapper, or a Hunter. Most often it's a SAK in Europe, and a Trapper or Stockman here. The Trapper is best if most of your time is spent hunting and trapping. The Stockman is best if most of your time is spent carving. A fixed blade knife is a fine thing to have, but it's ALWAYS second best to a pocketknife, and always has been. Unless you think beating your knife with a club is a good idea, in which case you don't know anything about being a woodsman, and you don't know anything about survival. Or about buildinga fire, or about the woods all around you.

[@greencraft4783]

Thank you so much for your essay, I feel very enlightened now. I carry a Swiss Army knife (German issue to be exact) and for 90% of what I do it does the job. For carving the Mora knife has a better (scandi) grind, which is more suited to working wood. The longer blade is better for sweeping cuts used in bigger projects (spoons, kuksas, ladles, etc). I do use a little stockman blade for whittling - its OK, the German issue knife is way more useful as a general purpose knife. I have read Kephart, GW Sears, Calvin Rustrum, etc and Willy Sundquist, John Wiseman, Eddie Magee, Mors Kochanski, Cody Lundin etc and there is a huge amount of wisdom in their work. I feel though , you must be someone I could really learn from - I'll subscribe to your channel (can't wait - it must be full of great things) - I'm sure it will help me greatly at work in the woods everyday.

[@margaretadler6162]

Great reply to that selfrightoues arrogant know it all prick! Thank you Neil, ATB Sam Adler

[@margaretadler6162]

@James Ritchie, No one give a rat's ass about your bullshit negative opinions so please give us all a break and shut the hell up!

[@gwynjames2077]

I belong too a carving club, a stick makers club and teach scouts to whittle and never see anyone use or reccomend a stock knife! Moras yes, swiss army knives yes. But most proffessional carvers use, wait for it, chisels! So lets stop being snobby and just enjoy it. NIce one Neil go Greencraft Bushcraft great videos and please keep em coming.

[@howardvarley8795]

James Ritchie.. I'll have a pint of whatever you've been drinking, sounds like powerful stuff!