Survival BullS**t Ep: 02 Batoning Raw & Unfiltered

[@midmojimmy]

Great video Mike, I have been preaching this to my friends for years!!! Keep up the great videos... Long live the Survival Bullshit series!

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

Thank you my friend, I appreciate it. I'm doing the best I can with what I got lol. And truth and knowledge are rare commodities in a company of fools. Thanks again for watching and commenting

[@trollpoetlaureate1953]

Easy does it, if they stop batoning, they`ll evolve to sticking knives in electrical outlets hahaha

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

and that would be a bad thing how? lol

[@jdevilist]

Love the Survival Bullshit series you've got going here...a MUST watch in my opinion ....Keep up the great work Mike n take care!

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

Thanks bro, you too!

[@dalbyonemanband]

Ill admit, if it wasn't for this video. Id be one of the misguided folks still batoning. Much appreciated!

[@harrisonblackwood2378]

HAHAHAHA!!! Freakin hilarious. Hey Mike I see other people on here are catchin onto the fact that batonning is BS to. Keep up the good work!

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

Thanks bro!

[@captainmarvel2058]

When I first started seeing videos of batoning, I was thinking to myself, where the hell is your hatchet? I just don't understand the mind set of wanting to use a knife for everything, especially for a purpose its not suited for.

[@froggergoat]

Awesome vid. I've never seen anyone on KZbin or thought about making a wedge. With everyone copying everyone else I was worried if I was ever going to find anything new to actually learn. You've restored my faith in actually getting quality content and finding new skills to try out.

[@jdevilist]

Agree and feel the same...I for one LEARDED something from Mikes video...Better way of doing things for sure.

[@mikeward2465]

chance favors the prepared mind. don't insult the caveman, 10,000 years ago, "primitives" used the same techniques to preserve their bone and flint knives. Throw a pocket saw in your kit and a bow saw blade ( you can make a handle).

[@jackg.7745]

Great video. I could not agree more. Thanks for calling these guys out.

[@Thes564]

I have been into survival nearly as long as you and i have to agree,beating ones knife is totally unnessary and is knife abuse .

[@JimmyGunXD556]

Excatly!! no need to baton. If I needed to baton I was planning on using my axe blade to baton.

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

Bingo!

[@JimmyGunXD556]

SchoolOf SelfReliance oops meant hatchet blade. keep the series going. one thing sick and tired of hearing is BOB pack wright. Just like you mentioned on the branches. a packs items can be discarded per the situation. if I had to get home I may not need a hatchet, e tool, cooking kit, ECT, which will lighten your load. to me the longer the scenario of survival the more gear that is needed. I think that might be a good vid to touch on even though you kind touched on it the first BS video.

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

Oh yes, that is a video for another time, we plan on covering more BOB info in the future. Some of our earliest vids were BOB and what to pack- the basics, not the entire house lol but yes, the longer the scenario the more gear you will need to keep life from being hell lol

[@davlinp2501]

Absolutely loving this series, the light is finally shining on fad that's "prepping/bush crafting" keep up the great work Mike!

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

Thanks for watching and commenting! More vids in the future!

[@cjbelgrave]

Love your channel and I learn so much from it. Thanks for sharing the knowledge to a stuck in the city New Yorker. LOL

[@bydeanmontague7479]

my dad showed me how to do that to and I do agree with you to many young people are doing stupid things with there tools and not respecting them I did the same thing when I was 5 and my dad corrected me and showed me the correct way to use them and now I am all most 50 and still remember the things he taught me and I pass them to my nephews hopefully they learn the correct way to use there gear

[@Ivanofkoshinkaisokanryu]

I just use my axe or snap it off like you showed

[@johan.ohgren]

I really enjoy your passive aggression, I really kinda feel the same some days..

[@nunayabiznezz5876]

Took the words right out of my mouth.

[@SmokeRingsPipeDreams]

Did you ever see Billy Bob Thorton as "Mr. Woodcock" in that movie? (and the way he said things when he spoke to idiots) :) Thumbs up!

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

Yep, one of my favorite impersonations to do lol

[@preparedsurvivalist2245]

You like your knife? Good. You like your girlfriend? That's good too. Now, would you beat your girlfriend with a stick? No? Then why do that to your knife? Haha. Anyway, I've had a need to baton very small pieces of wood for traps and projects, but never for fire making. To be fair, I think a lot of the youtube knife beaters actually do it because it is the only way they can show how tough a knife is, and it's more dramatic than just slicing paper.

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

Batoning small pieces to make tools like traps, snares, fishing gigs, or spears is what was true batoning before it devolved into splitting large logs with a knife for firemaking- which is unnecessary. True batoning has a real purpose- tool making, not clubbing a knife to death to prove who is the biggest cave man on YT lol. Thanks for watching!

[@michaelcanning2815]

"domestic violence "! Love it. Thanks for the series & the no BS tips.

[@mvksharpening8110]

Tell that to some so called knife designers no knife makers, knife designers (design on a paper towel) with some hundred thousand subscribers on you tube (money). Tell them that they design a Chinese made not useful piece of crap and because of the thousands of subscribers a low quality brand produces their crappy stuff just for selling. I saw in a video that 3cr13 steel is fairly good and I don't no (as a knife maker) because I haven't try it. Enough with those survival, prepper expert gods from their back yard. My grandfather was surviving with his bill hook a his pocket knife (slip joint) and a fire still In the top of mountain Olympus (along with his goats and cows)

[@XMetalChefX]

My favorite is when guys say "im not a fan, the back of the knife tears your batons up"..... Ummm dude, you're mad because the knife chews up thick pieces of wood that dont matter? WTF?

[@HuplesCat]

I am no bush crafter and relatively new prepper. I've seen the batoning videos and they always seemed daft to me. The chances of the blade breaking or slipping and cutting you seemed high. As you say I have no issue gathering kindling. Thanks for this. Refreshing to see my noob instinct was bang on with this 'skill'

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

Better to start out with good knowledge, good tools/equipment, and trust your gut instinct! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@johnlord8337]

OK Bring it on ! ... I'm going to be smiling and nodding all through this series .... DDDDDD Biggest stupid issue of batoning (just doing it - unless in total extreme survival needs) is taking on a huge tree limb or stump and halving the green or dry wood. If some non-emergency dumb a-- is going to do a batoning, then at least take little half circles around the perimeter of the log, ... and then continue to work toward the center with the other triangular or polygonal outer surfaces, ... until you get to a 1.5 - 2 inch stick. Knife goes easier through 2-3 inches of cambium and outer bark, than trying to beat the s--t out of your knife across 8-10-12 inches of solid and heart wood. Doing so wastes your energy, possibly hit your hand (another emergency), break your blade (holy fook, ahem! just like losing your ferro rod!) , or knife yourself with a wobbly stick (another emergency). For me, having a folding PUSH-PULL saw (my beloved Corona saw) of 11 years, cutting/pruning 66 fruit orchard trees, and wilderness brush and firewood, ... is far better than beating the s--t out of your knife. It deserves to break and give you a real SHTF event of survival - that you can't tap out from !! Even making a wire bow saw is better than batoning. And having a bucksaw, or my John-bucksaw model, and you won't be dong stupid stuff.

[@johnlord8337]

Someone made a great YT vid, and that is to diagonally firmly stick the knife into the wood. Then both hands free, you can put the cuttable wood onto the stump, and slide the wood into the blade, and then baton with a wood stick onto the cuttable wood through the blade, ... all safe ....

[@johnlord8337]

Other ways are making multiple side cuts along the LOG, with the folding saw, and then slice off smaller chunks off the main LOG. Far easier than splitting the long LOG, than smaller more burnable wood slices.

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

At this point if you are going to use a saw, you should just cut the whole log with the saw instead of using your knife to baton. There really is NO reason to baton a knife. Carry a small saw, or hatchet, or make a wedge. And unless you are making a dakota fire pit so you aren't visible to the enemy, there ultimately is no reason to cut firewood or baton anything. Nature gives us twigs, small branches and sticks for kindling and tinder. And it gives us larger logs and branches for firewood. Just put the end of the log in the fire, it will continue to burn and you can slowly push the log into the fire as it burns down, not cutting or splitting needed.

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

And thanks for watching and commenting! Make sure to subscribe and share our videos!

[@edwarddemouy1468]

Bravo!! Never understood the fethish for batoning?!

[@classof813]

as a mechanic one of the first things i learned is¨¸use the good tool for the right job¨ and i think it apply to all kinds of jobs!!!,finally someone telling the truth about batonning.a tool named ¨axe¨is made for splitting!! ...nice video!!!

[@ChrisC30]

Excellent video. I've always felt that the only reason you might need to baton wood is if you somehow lost your axe, saw, or whatever else you use to process the wood, and somehow can't find any thinner branches or chunks. Unrealistic situation to find in the real world. Batoning is just 'torture testing' for machetes and survival knives. It's 100% totally unnecessary as a survival skill in any situation I can see myself in.

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

You're absolutely correct and that is the point of both videos. There are NO survival situations anywhere on this planet that require batoning wood with a knife. Twigs and branches make kindling, and larger branches and logs can just be pushed into a fire as they burn down, no need to split them at all. Splitting wood was invented for home fireplaces and kitchen wood stoves for cooking. It was never a mandate of building a campfire in the bush. Thanks for watching and commenting! Make sure to sub up!

[@ChrisC30]

I did. I made sure to 'sub-bell', too.

[@baynerw]

Alright, message heard and agreed. Never Batoned with a knife. You had a saw of some sort to start the initial split, so...you did have 2 tools? Can you use the saw function of some knives spine to replicate a standard saw function? Just asking bud.

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

I carry a Silky Gomboy saw, multiple knives, and a hatchet. I've made mention of this in multiple videos.

[@bushcraft_in_the_north]

I have been in the woods since i was born. Thats 40 years of wilderness .I got a knife when i was 2 years,an axe when i was 6. And i have never needed to batoon anything. I have never heard about it before i started to watch youtube. None in Norway have ever done it. Not my grandfather eather. It's just a stupid youtube myth!!!!! i am so tired of it. every time i see a knife review,and they start batooning. Sometimes they say they dont do it themself,but they have to do it,because they will not get any wiews if they dont do it. When i see batooning i dont bother to watch the vid. Great vid and a hello from Norway.

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

Hello Norway! One day I will get to visit! Yes, batoning became a KZbin fad a few years ago. I've never seen any survival instructors that I learned from or the military use batoning to get firewood. It is a ridiculous notion that the knife channels use to try and prove toughness, instead of actually using the knife for real wood work like it was intended. You have a good head on your shoulders if you take care of your primary survival tool and your gear! Thanks for watching and commenting!

[@SpiritofWildWings]

I teach and practice exactly what you just said and did in this video! 100% good on you! One other thing that I like to discuss when call Bull on batoning is that people who claim it is "an important survival technique" forget is that is you only have a knife, you will not have a flat end to drive a knife through. Try batoning a 13 foot long, three inch thick wind-broken branch.

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

Exactly. Most people forget that you don't really need to baton in the first place. Breaking up twigs and branches to start a fire and then putting branches on before putting big branches/logs on is all that is needed. There is no scenario where batoning wood is needed, and splitting wood into smaller pieces is really only needed in a dakota fire pit. Thanks for watching

[@Imightberiding]

Preach it brother!

[@jacktrollering7649]

I love it it's about time somebody had some common sense

[@kurtgoldston5532]

the good thing about the knife beaters, is when they die because they broke their knives, there will be more gear for us to divide up !!!!

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

LOL yes!

[@denicemariam7903]

I never could figure why anyone would baton wood unless they were shaping a large peice of wood for carving.

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

Check out the Batoning Is Stupid vid and some of the reply comments I gave, LOL. To me, batoning with your knife is like taking your rifle and beating a log with it. Never abuse your primary weapon/tools for survival! They are your babies and should be treated as such.

[@vvs3796]

lol. good one.

[@justinjordan8036]

nice saying on that I was telling my dad about that while ago he say what so I'll have to show him when I go camping

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

Awesome, thanks for watching!

[@thomasvosburg6926]

amen mike

[@JD1011010]

end the senseless violence! #blackknivesmatter

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

lol

[@stevenrobertson6656]

Another great vid sir. Keep telling it like it is !

[@johnjames218]

brilliantly done

[@JuhaAaltonen]

i'm looking your video serie's of "survival bull s..it" and laugh. you are so right on this matter. this woodwedge, i learn a new thing.

[@TactialWoman]

Well said

[@elizabethbroderick3762]

You rule and you are right... if it isn't for a wood burning stove or fire place, then you should come to reason when it's a simple campfire! No One needs to be splitting word for a campfire out in the woods period. Let alone with a knife that could break. Right tool, right task.

[@huejanus5505]

While you're at it... tell people not to tie their knife to a pole and use it as a spear. Arguably the second best way to bugger up or lose your knife.

[@thefamily_ak1863]

so rad

[@crazyirishmedic9535]

I have a fire hardened hard wood wedge that I made almost 5 years ago in my backyard, It worked so good that I still use it to split firewood in the winter. Granted I do not need a lot of firewood due to my warmer location but my point is a properly made wedge can last longer then needed. I must have split hundreds of logs with that wedge over the past 5 years and I am only now thinking about tossing it into the fire pit due to the fact that is has gotten blunt over time.

[@truehearted2295]

I understand that your trying to get through to some of these ppl that for some reason don't want to listen to common sense. If they don't want to listen and want to argue, then let them go. Instead focus on the ppl who's minds are wide open to learning and who will listen and not argue. Just remember you can lead a mule to water but you can't make it drink. Calm down and focus on the ppl who are listening to you. It's obvious you have a wealth of information to share.

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

It has to do with the KZbin algorithm. The more I respond, even to the trolls on here, the more YT boosts my channel in the search engine. Little channels cannot become big channels unless they get the algorithm to work for them. Which I what I am doing here and I get to flame trolls, so its a win-win.

[@akeeperofoddknowledge4956]

Reeeeeeefreshing !!!!!!!!!!! Thanks, Mike!

[@SchoolOfSelfReliance]

Glad to see the supporters commenting. The hater trolls are out in force today....bet they are also crying because the truth hurts....they obviously forgot the common sense of taking care of your property, not abusing it.

[@ericparton1232]

at last someone with common sense