Buying a Backpacking Knife

Question

I am a first-time knife buyer.

What should I look for in an all-purpose, lightweight backpacking knife?

I aim to use it for cutting trail plants and fish. My top priority is a knife that doesn't need sharpening even if it's not used by the most skilled hands. I am willing to spend $$$.

Answer 1

A lot of factors go into choosing a backpacking knife, but I will break it down into four categories:

1. weight
2. cost
3. survival utility
4. your surroundings

Weight

There are a lot of high-quality knives out there in the 1-3 ounce range. The most experienced “ultra-lightweight backpacker” I know recommends the Spyderco Dragonfly ($50). With only a 2-inch blade this knife won’t be much good at slashing your way through the jungle, but it will serve well for meals and light work.

Cost

It is what it is.

Survival Utility

If you are stranded in the wild, a good knife might mean the difference between life and death. As such, backpackers frequently use “survival knives”. Survival knives might come with a lot of extra features (a compass, bandages, you name it), but I think two features are the most important:

1. The whistle. It might help scare away bears or coyotes, but this is primarily an emergency whistle. Imagine you have fallen and broken both your legs. Do you want to scream for help for hours on end? No. This will work better and be far less taxing.

2. The flint. If you’re stuck in the wild, fire is key.

The survival blade I like best is the Tool Logic SL3 ($20). This only has a 3-inch blade, but it weighs 2-ounces and I find it to be the best compromise between utility and weight.

If your plans depends more heavily on your knife, you will have to accept a little extra weight for a longer blade. Your best bet there will be the Gerber Bear Grylls-model survival knife ($40 and 11 ounces). This even has a built-in sharpener.

Your Surroundings

In the end, the knife you need depends on where you are going and what your plan is. If you are going to be slugging through deep jungle, get a machete. If you’re going to be fishing, maybe you need a Swiss Army knife or a Leatherman. Maybe all you need is a small, light knife to cut open your dried food packages. A knife can be a useful tool if you plan ahead, but the most important thing is that you have a plan.

A final note on materials

You will probably get a stainless steel knife. A knife made of 440 steel will be lighter and sharper. But a knife made of 1080 (or higher) steel is meant for more heavy-duty work and will keep its edge longer. Whatever the material is, all knives need to be sharpened eventually.

Answer 2

My money goes to a Mora knife for all around usage and cost. And very very sharp right from the factory. $12 - $20 is not bad at all.

I ended up buying the Mora Heavy Duty recently which is much thicker than the regular line up. One problem with the HD is that there is a very slight bevel on the back of the spine which makes it difficult if you are looking to use it to strike a fero-rod or fire steel. I ended up filling the spine down a little bit.

I believe the Robust has a true 90 degree edge on the spine so I think it should be worth the extra few dollars over the regular Mora knives.

But for the price you really can't go wrong with any of the Mora knives. They take a beating and are amazingly sharp.