Outdoor Survival Knife Overview: When it comes to buying the best survival knife for your bushcraft adventure, there are a lot of things that you need to consider before making the final decision.
A survival knife is one of the most important tools that you need to get before going on a survival endeavor. Even if you are camping with your family, a durable and reliable survival knife can prove to be valuable for you.
But you need to know what to look for in a survival knife before you buy one. This way, you can make sure that you are not wasting your money on a low-quality knife that doesn’t get the job done.
Here are the 6 important things you need to Consider Before Buying an Outdoor Survival Knife
1. Blade Material
Most survival knives that you find out there are mostly made of either stainless steel or carbon. We are talking about the blades of the knives here in particular, rather than the overall build.
Don’t get a knife with a blade that is made with materials other than stainless steel or carbon. These blades offer long-lasting performance and give you the best value for your money. You can visit Bugout Bill to learn about the best bushcraft knives with great blades quality.
2. Blade Shape
A blade’s shape has a huge impact on its performance and functionality. Some blade shapes offer versatile performance. Whereas some are made to do specific tasks.
The common shapes for blades include drop points, dagger points, spear points, tanto, sheep’s foot, clip point, recurred, and kukri-style blades.
You need to choose a shape that makes it easier for you to perform the task that you want to perform with the blade.
3. Grip
You need to buy a knife that you can hold and use comfortably. If you get a blade that is painful for you to use, it is going to have a huge impact on the performance of the blade.
So, you should get a knife that has a comfortable grip. The grip should be strong so that you can use the knife for tasks that require force. When looking at the grip of the blade, you need to consider things such as the quality of the grip, the usage comfort, and the durability.
4. Blade Length & Thickness
When it comes to choosing the size and thickness of the blade of the knife, it depends on the task that you want to use the blade for doing.
For example, if you want a knife that is easy to carry, you should get the one that has a small blade with little thickness. But you won’t be able to use it for performing heavy-duty tasks.
If you want a knife for doing heavy-duty tasks, you’d need the one that is bigger and thicker. In this case, you’d have to compromise on the portability of the blade.
5. Tang
The tang is the part of the knife that goes down into the handle of the knife. You should get a full tang knife as it is the most durable and gets the job done in a much better way.
A full tang knife is one in which the blade extends to the end of the handle of the knife. Full tang knives are more powerful and sturdy. You can use them for heavy-duty tasks without the risk of breaking down or underperforming.
6. Sheath
The sheath is one of the most important parts of a knife that you should never overlook. The knife should have a durable and comfortable sheath which makes it easier for you to carry it around.
The sheath helps protect the knife when it is not in use. If you don’t use a sheath, the blade of the knife can get rusty because of environmental factors. This causes the knife to lose its sharpness and become dull in a short amount of time.
Wrapping Up
If you still can’t make up your mind about a survival knife, you should try asking for recommendations from your family or friends.
Instead of learning about the different details of a good survival knife, getting recommendations is a great way to get your hands on quality knives for occasional hobbyists.
If you are a hardcore bushcraft enthusiast, then we suggest that you keep the above points in mind to help make future survival knife purchases easier for yourself.