Boot knives anyone?

[Samon]

Does anyone carry a knife of any kind in their boot these days? Never really spoken to anyone other than myself who has or does and my main question is why?

I know the name 'boot knife' might give you the mental image of a concealed knife designed for stabbing BUT I've actually found alot of use in keeping one or two of my knives in my boot when I'm out foraging low to the ground.

I wear a big old pair of doc martens that are half way up my shin on the outside of my jeans so I can keep a mushrooming knife in there so when I get down on my left knee I can pull out my knife from my right boot and get the cuts done without struggling to get it out my pocket or have a sheath and handle dig in my beer belly.

I think it would also work well during skinning and might reduce the mess on your upper clothes if water to wash your hands isn't at nearby.


Any thoughts guys?

 

[Large Sack]

without struggling to get it out my pocket or have a sheath and handle dig in my beer belly.

I know that feeling well enough
I usually have a necker when messing about on a camp which helps in much the same way.. I don't think my boots would take kindly to anything else being in them except my feet.

Sack

 

[Samon]

haha damn beer bellies!

A bonus to having a knife in the boot (if you have appropriate boots) is that you can keep your coat or jacket done up and not have anything dangling down.

Simply fixing a small sheet of leather on the inside of a tall boot to create a pouch is enough for a comfy sheath that'll fit most hand sized knives.

 

[Graham_S]

I used to when I was working offshore, Now, I tend to go with scout carry or baldrick.

 

[Retired Member southey]

I get put off simply by one slim chance of crippling myself while out an about by the one in a million chance of slicing an important tendon.

 

[3bears]

not so much a boot knife, but I used to wear a diving knife on my leg, when diving lol, I've now gone for a smaller blade I keep on my BCD- it never felt 'right' strapped to my calf ...

 

[Corso]

bit too Rambo for me - when i'm layered up in the winter i usually use a baldric sheath

 

[Xunil]

Assuming I haven't got a small folder in a pouch on the shoulder strap of my game bag or pack, Scout carry where possible for me, followed by neck carry, or on the belt dangler fashion if nothing else presents an opportunity.

I can't think of any small game or birds I might commonly hunt that I can't process without using a knife at all or, at worst, I may need one for a slice or two when breasting a pigeon, for example. Other than that, with rabbits, game birds and water fowl I can simply 'rip and tear' and the skin is off in seconds. Legs, feet, wings and heads can simply be twisted off if necessary.

I honestly think a lot of people find work for their knives to do rather than use one because they need to. I can understand this up to a point - after all, we all like our respective sharps and get a degree of pleasure from their ownership, care and use. In the past when I used to teach courses I would often suggest folks try to adopt a "only when required" approach to knife use and it usually surprised most people just how infrequently they ended up using their knife. Burn me at the stake for a heretic...

I also can't imagine being up to the eyes in gunk too often when processing even large game either. Messy game processing is a thing of the past once you learn how to do it right, and I wouldn't normally approach the task without making the relevant preparation for post-cleanup anyway.

Other than an unexpected opportunity where haste is required and post-cleanup hasn't been a consideration (fresh road kill for example) this just isn't an issue to me.

Boot knives are a definite no for me.

 

[sapper1]

I used to have a boot knife when working on trawlers,it was there for the sole purpose of cutting ropes or nets that had tangled around my legs and threatened to drag me overboard.Yes there was the possibility of the rope trapping the knife but the chances of hanging onto a knife whilst being dragged to certain doom was far less.Other than that Personally I think having a knife in your boot would be classed as concealed carry in a place that you wouldn't normally conceal a knife and leave yourself wide open to people getting the wrong impression.

 

[Samon]

So you guys don't find much of a use for them in your boots these days then.. I know it's a bit action man style but I do think it has some uses even if they are minimal and when a bit mucky and down on the ground and considering I'm a bit short on money it's cheaper and easier than buying extra carrying equipment.

Is the scout carry not a bit fiddley to get back in if it's on your backside?

 

[sapper1]

I don't normally carry my knife as a matter of course.It lives in my pack untill I actually need it.I've never been in a position where I need my knife NOW,apart from at sea.

 

[Samon]

I don't normally carry my knife as a matter of course.It lives in my pack untill I actually need it.I've never been in a position where I need my knife NOW,apart from at sea.

I know what you mean, some of us do find a need for our knife when we could just tear open our sandwich packets..but still if we are playing safe and not being a nuisance It's not a problem to try out different ways to use/carry your knife.

I bet a little gardening trowel on the side of a wellie boot would be usefull to a few old ladies I know

 

[santaman2000]

I know what you mean, some of us do find a need for our knife when we could just tear open our sandwich packets..but still if we are playing safe and not being a nuisance It's not a problem to try out different ways to use/carry your knife.

I bet a little gardening trowel on the side of a wellie boot would be usefull to a few old ladies I know

Backpackers often use a small plastic gardening trowel as a lightweight substitute for a shovel.

 

[Retired Member southey]

Backpackers often use a small plastic gardening trowel as a lightweight substitute for a shovel.

Cool, do they boot carry?

 

[santaman2000]

When you 1st say "boot knife" it brings to mind the short double edged Gerbers that conceal easily under your pants legs. I used to carry one as a back-up weapon when I was still a patrol deputy before I got my .380.

You qualified it as a bushcraft knife though which changed the semantics (not really a "boot knife" but an ordinary knife with "boot carry") Like someone already said, I've carried a diving knife that way when snorkling the Florida Reef but never any other time. The images that bring are quite a different thing from "boot knife." Now I think of the old Daniel Boone tv show from the 1960s where he had the sheath sewn to the outside of his moccasin boots.

 

[santaman2000]

Cool, do they boot carry?

LOL. Not that I've ever seen.

 

[Retired Member southey]

LOL. Not that I've ever seen.

I like oranges

 

[sandbender]

When I was a teenager I used to carry an 'AG Russel Sting 1A' in my boot top, probably because John Rourke from the 'Survivalist' novels had one. But I'm all growed up now and the sting sits on a shelf, unused.

One of the Failraven trousers, possibly the 'Greenlander' has a knife sheath pocket on the lower leg, that may suggest that it isn't an uncommon practice up there.

 

[FGYT]

not so much a boot knife, but I used to wear a diving knife on my leg, when diving lol, I've now gone for a smaller blade I keep on my BCD- it never felt 'right' strapped to my calf ...

your quite right calf carry is the worst place to carry a dive knife not only might you not be able to get it when tangled its probably the reason you get into a tangle

small cutter on the waist band next to the buckle is the best bet for not getting tangled or lost and being able to get it with either hand (you never know when one hand might be trapped or busy and unable to get it

ATB

Duncan

 

[Xunil]

your quite right calf carry is the worst place to carry a dive knife not only might you not be able to get it when tangled its probably the reason you get into a tangle

small cutter on the waist band next to the buckle is the best bet for not getting tangled or lost and being able to get it with either hand (you never know when one hand might be trapped or busy and unable to get it

ATB

Duncan

I used to carry a small set of modified metal cutting shears in an ambidextrously accessible kydex pouch next to my belt buckle. A knife is all well and good but as I'm sure you already know, if you get badly hung up underwater you may not have enough 'play' to generate cutting power towards or away from you. Shears or similar snipping tools can be used without requiring any opposing force and something that can easily cut a penny in half is easily able to handle netting and similar.

My diving days are now well and truly over - I look like an overgrown jelly baby in a neoprene suit...