lets face it, most of us here love our sharps, were often buying/making more and more until were up to our necks in sharp steel.
but what if you could only have one knife for everything??
descisions like this plauge my mind as i could never choose between all of them however if there was only one I personaly would take the following into account.
Ok then, there are 2 main types of knives used in the uk for bushcraft those being:
Stick tangs- moras, puukkos and most traditional scandinavian knives.
These knives are great, lightweight, versitile blade shapes, sharp, good grinds and sturdy enough to stand up to almost anything you can throw at them.
Full tang knives- woodlore's, fallknivens general "bushy" style knives and lots of different custom knives.
these knives are very popular in the uk, perhaps because Ray Mears uses a knife of this type, however im sure that its because you simply cant get anything stronger, the standard spear point blade is a good multi purpose shaped blade. these knives can stand up to alot more than stick tangs.
---------------------------------------------------------
ok so what should you look for in your ideal knife.
Blade size:
most people like a blade between 8-12 cm, i prefer a blade of around 8-9cm as it gives more control to the cut but is still large enough to effectivly slice through whatever your cutting.
the blade profile should not be too deep as this can prevent good carving nor should it be to narrow as the blade will be weak, i find a blade about 3cm deep ideal, the blade should also be strong i like a blade around 3.5 to 4mm thick as this provdes a good strength and coupled with a decent grind a superb cutter.
Grind:
in my opinion the most versitile blade is scandi, it provides a good comprimise between the strong conxex and the slicer specialist full flat. on a blade of 3mm or more its best to have a good deep scandi grind as this will increase cutting ability. wether you want zero ground or a micro bevel is personal prefrence, a zero grind will be more brittle but cut slightly cleaner, however a micro bevel will be stronger. for game work i like to have a small micro bevel on my knife as it prevents my knife from being damaged if it cuts bone.
Steel:
a big question, my prefrence is for high carbon however there are many stainless options that are also very good, these include D2, sandvik and RWL34. whatever your choice your knife should be of a good hardness 57-63rc and be easy to sharpen.
Tang:
whether you want to go for full tang and give it the best possible strength or go for a light weight stick tang, if i only had a knife and not an axe i would go for full tang as it will stand up to heavyer tasks better than a stick tang. when going for a full tang knife you may want to look into tapered tangs as they can greatly improve balance and handling.
handle:
anything thats sturdy and fits nicely in your hand would be great for a general purpose knife, it should also be comfortable in different types of grips. i like to go for some kind of wood
or other natural material as i like the idea of my knife being made from natural recources. however synthetic materials are also a good idea as they are more durable than most natural materials.
sheath:
aswell as your knife you should also take a look at the sheath. it needs to be strong and easy to carry dangler sheaths are good as they dont poke into your side when you sit down.
having said all that there is no perfect knife, knives are just as much a personal taste thing as food or music, whatever you choose from a £8 mora to a £250 custom knife may you have the best of luck with it, and try not to cut yourself to much.
josh
but what if you could only have one knife for everything??
descisions like this plauge my mind as i could never choose between all of them however if there was only one I personaly would take the following into account.
Ok then, there are 2 main types of knives used in the uk for bushcraft those being:
Stick tangs- moras, puukkos and most traditional scandinavian knives.
These knives are great, lightweight, versitile blade shapes, sharp, good grinds and sturdy enough to stand up to almost anything you can throw at them.
Full tang knives- woodlore's, fallknivens general "bushy" style knives and lots of different custom knives.
these knives are very popular in the uk, perhaps because Ray Mears uses a knife of this type, however im sure that its because you simply cant get anything stronger, the standard spear point blade is a good multi purpose shaped blade. these knives can stand up to alot more than stick tangs.
---------------------------------------------------------
ok so what should you look for in your ideal knife.
Blade size:
most people like a blade between 8-12 cm, i prefer a blade of around 8-9cm as it gives more control to the cut but is still large enough to effectivly slice through whatever your cutting.
the blade profile should not be too deep as this can prevent good carving nor should it be to narrow as the blade will be weak, i find a blade about 3cm deep ideal, the blade should also be strong i like a blade around 3.5 to 4mm thick as this provdes a good strength and coupled with a decent grind a superb cutter.
Grind:
in my opinion the most versitile blade is scandi, it provides a good comprimise between the strong conxex and the slicer specialist full flat. on a blade of 3mm or more its best to have a good deep scandi grind as this will increase cutting ability. wether you want zero ground or a micro bevel is personal prefrence, a zero grind will be more brittle but cut slightly cleaner, however a micro bevel will be stronger. for game work i like to have a small micro bevel on my knife as it prevents my knife from being damaged if it cuts bone.
Steel:
a big question, my prefrence is for high carbon however there are many stainless options that are also very good, these include D2, sandvik and RWL34. whatever your choice your knife should be of a good hardness 57-63rc and be easy to sharpen.
Tang:
whether you want to go for full tang and give it the best possible strength or go for a light weight stick tang, if i only had a knife and not an axe i would go for full tang as it will stand up to heavyer tasks better than a stick tang. when going for a full tang knife you may want to look into tapered tangs as they can greatly improve balance and handling.
handle:
anything thats sturdy and fits nicely in your hand would be great for a general purpose knife, it should also be comfortable in different types of grips. i like to go for some kind of wood
or other natural material as i like the idea of my knife being made from natural recources. however synthetic materials are also a good idea as they are more durable than most natural materials.
sheath:
aswell as your knife you should also take a look at the sheath. it needs to be strong and easy to carry dangler sheaths are good as they dont poke into your side when you sit down.
having said all that there is no perfect knife, knives are just as much a personal taste thing as food or music, whatever you choose from a £8 mora to a £250 custom knife may you have the best of luck with it, and try not to cut yourself to much.
josh
but mostly used the SAK saw 
