Sheath Knives
There is a huge market for Survival Knives in today's market. Many of these are well designed and function quite well for their intended use. Others, most in fact, are made for show and are not worth your money.
The following information is to give you an idea of what's out there and is NOT an endorsement or permission to use.
Note: Fixed Blade Knives are banned in many Scout Camps and by many Troops.
In fact, each Council, District and Troop and set their own rules on what knives may or many not be used and changes these rule anytime they like.
Recommendation:
Morakniv Companion
See Bushcraft Knives
BSA Sheath Knife Ad
Source: 1939 E. C. Simmons Keen Kutter Cutlery and Tools CatalogWhy a Sheath Knife
These can make for excellent wilderness survival tools.
Advantages:
Great utility
Longer blades allow for processing of thicker wood
Some are very durable
They do look cool
Morakniv Gerberg
with modded sheath and Ferrorod
Why NOT a Sheath Knife
These type of knives often incorporate a point designed for stabbing. This particular feature is generally not needed in scouting. Because of their design and really bad movies depicting them as weapons, the presence of these knives will upset certain parents unaccustomed to Scout Camping and Wilderness Survival. This is important to keep in mind and scouts should avoid flashing giant Bowie Knives at meetings or outings. Giant Bowie Knives are also impractical.
Disadvantages:
Use of giant knives is discouraged in scouting
May upset certain parents
Some of these are designed for visual appeal and may not be very durable
Requires a LOT of maturity to own and use
Generally banned at camp
Poorly designed knife/sheath combinations can be dangerous
Sheath Knife Safety
Like an Axe, Snow Saw or Camp Stove, a Survival Knife is an excellent outdoors' tool. Scouts should know how and be mature enough to use one before they age out.
Some knife designs are considered unsafe or inappropriate. Some Scouts are not ready for a fixed blade knife. Because of this, if a Knife or Scout's maturity raises concerns, we will confiscate the knife in question.
Avoid wearing or bringing a Survival Knife to Scout meetings at the Church unless we are doing special training that requires a knife. This will only result in problems.
Note: if you use a Fixed Blade knife, you MUST have an adequate sheath. Flimsy ones can be easily cut with a sharp knife and cause severe injury.
Sheath Knife Examples
Here are a few popular designs to give you an idea of the different types of knives out there.
Morakniv
These Sweedish made knives are excellent. The come with a nice Scandi ground blade designed for Bushcraft use. For under $20, this knife if hard to beat.
The Scandi grind makes the blade more durable for Bushcraft tasks such as battoning through wood.
We discuss these in our Bushcraft Knives Page.
Morakniv Companion HD
ESEE-RB3
High-end Bushcraft knife with 3.5 inch, Full-tang, 1095 High Carbon steel blade with Scandi Grind.
This is an excellent survival knife and priced as such. ESEE has several knives that are excellent Bushcraft Knives, such as the ESEE 4 with 4.5 inch blade.
Note that you don't need a 7 inch blade or aggressive look to be very functional.
Although an excellent knife, we recommend against purchasing expensive knives for Scouts as they get just as abused and lost as $20 knives. We are also not interested in stopping a trip and sending out a search party to recover a $200 knife.
Drop Point Hunting Knife
Robert Waldorf Loveless was an American knife maker who designed and popularized the hollow ground drop point blade in 1953. This blade design allows for easier cutting and better tip strength over the traditional Bowie Knife style Hunting Knives that use Clip Points. The drop point is also less likely to accidentally clip guts compared to a Clip Point with gutting game.
The hollow grind blade makes it easier to sharpen, but makes for a weaker blade when the knife is used for Bushcraft tasks such as chopping through wood. These blades can "wrinkle" with hard Bushcraft use.
Cold Steel SRK
SRK stands for Survival Rescue Knife. This knife was designed to be a functional knife for Navy SEALS and other Special Operations Forces. The 6-inch steel blade is designed for survival, combat and rescue use. The clip point is designed of deeper penetration when stabbing (not a design feature needed for outdoors use).
The SRK has gone through several generations and has used multiple types of steel. Some models use a hollow grind blade which are not ideal for Bushcraft tasks and may be damaged when splitting wood.
At around $40, the full sized SRK with SK-5 blade is reasonably tough and makes of an affordable knife option. The 6-inch blade is unnecessary except for combat purposes.
The SRK-C (Compact) has a shorter 5-inch blade and flat grind and is likely better suited for all around Bushcraft use compared to the full size version. For around $35, this knife is hard to beat, except with a baton.
Air Force Survival Knife
The Air Force Survival Knife dates back to the 1950s. The final version has a 5-inch blade with Clip Point and a Saw Bladed on the spine. The full-tang blade ends with a hexagonal pommel that can be used as a hammer when the knife is sheathed.
The Clip Point and Saw are designed to stab through and cut open aluminum skins surrounding airframes of older combat planes to help in pilots self rescue. The saw also has some utility in survival situations.
Two holes in the hand guards allows you to tie the knife to and end of a spear.
Hollow grind blades are not ideal for Bushcraft tasks and may be damaged when splitting wood.
These were very popular knife with outdoorsmen in the past. This is an OK knife for a Scout, but there are better knife options available.
Marine Combat Knife
Classic combat knife used by the US Marine Corps. It features a Clip Point and blood groove like the traditional Bowie Knife. The 7-inch blade is designed for stabbing.
This was a very popular knife and used by many former Marines. It's length makes it great for splitting thicker wood.
Hollow grind blades are not ideal for Bushcraft tasks and may be damaged when splitting wood.
This is a popular knife style for Knife Hunting for Boars. This is of course NOT something we do in Scouts BSA.
Old timers who served in Vietnam will swear to its utility. Others see it as excessive.
There are sometimes sentimental reasons for using this type of knife, such as when it is passed down from a Scout's father or grandfather.
This knife has questionable utility in Scouting.
Traditional Hunting Knife
Since the time of Jim Bowie, a hunting knife with a Clip Point, blood grooves and cross guard has been popular. The blade is great for gutting and quartering large game and OK for skinning. It also has the "Traditional Look" of a hunting knife making it widely popular.
For Wilderness use, the long blade is great for splitting larger pieces of wood. The large blade also makes this type of knife more difficult to use for finer tasks, like making feather sticks. Hollow grind blades are not ideal for Bushcraft tasks and may be damaged when splitting wood.
For Scouts that grow up in a Hunting Family, this may be a traditional knife for them.
This knife has questionable utility in Scouting.
"Bowie Knife"
There is a long and exciting history behind the Bowie Knife that is worth reading about. The actual knife design used by Jim Bowie is still debated, but today's versions generally incorporate a long blade in the foot to foot and a half range with a clip point. Is is basically a shortened sword designed for stabbing.
This is what people think of when the term "Fixed Blade Knife" is used. This overall design has limited utility in Scouting.
Quality varies greatly and is generally poor since these are usually designed more for looks than for utility.
This knife is Inappropriate for Scouting use.
"Rambo Knife"
Popularized by the Rambo Movie Franchise, this knife features a huge blade styled after a Bowie Knife with the addition of a Saw Blade on the spine. The handle is hollow and is used to store survival gear. The back of the handle sometimes comes with a compass.
This is a TERRIBLE design for anything other than a weapon prop for an 80's Action Hero Film. The blade has just enough of a tang to secure it to the hollow handle. Any significant force applied to the blade will result in breakage of the blade where it connects to the handle.
The built in Saw is for looks and is generally non-functional. The overall quality of these knives is generally terrible and therefore dangerous to use.
This knife is Inappropriate for Scouting use.
Apocalypses Knives
Popularized by Zombie movies, these are designed to look really neat on a horror movie set.
Quality is generally on the low side as these are made for looks and not for true survival use. Some designs are actually dangerous to use.
This knife style is Inappropriate for Scouting use.
Knife Construction
The way a Sheath Knife is constructed plays a big part in how well it will preform with different tasks/uses. When choosing a good Outdoor's Knife, it is important to understand some basic concepts in knife construction.
A lot goes into making a knife in how the blade is shaped and ground, what metals are used and the overall quality of the knife itself. We discuss this on our Sheath Knife Construction Page.