i'm still wondering if this is a day to day situation or a survival situation.

if its day to day i actually could probably get away with just a folder.i dont need to chop fire wood day to day,i have a furnace.

if its survival a chopper is number one,must have

Less than three. A Fox River, or satin SAR5 and a satin NMFBM serrated along the middle of the spine are the only two blades I would need for general, kitchen and outdoor use.

Day to day and general use was what I was thinking. You could also have as many other knives as you want so long as they are under 25$. the idea was could you make do with "3 good knives"? A decent 25$ ,machete can do 90% of what a DFLE can.

Adam I take it you don't do a lot of cooking. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Gerber Evo 650 (multitool) SS4 and S6 (or Basic 7- it changes day-to-day!) for general use..

Evo 650, SS4 and DFCG for bad days <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> (If I didn't own the DFCG a Tramontina machete would be fine)

As you've probably gathered I'm not much of a cook either.. (The 650 has a good can opener!!) <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Choosing is pretty easy. Saying goodbye to the others is the hard part. Swisstool doesn't count as a knife, it's a multitool, thus i'm leaving it out.

1. CGFBM
2. M2K (maybe my koster bushcraft when that comes)
3. either spyderco UKPK or kershaw leek. too tough to choose.

I just used the carbon steel French peasants knife to cut some see through thin slices of fresh roast beef to put on some homeade buns.

I am really impressed with this 35$ kitchen knife but I would love a first rate one like a top of the line Henkels or that ZDP hattori. I also have the Spyderco which was about 70$ and some Victorinox pearing knives which were 5$ish.

If I had to choose three out of the ones I own right now, it would be the DFLE, the Muela Rebeco, and the Spyderco Endura straight edge. They cover the requisites that Unsub put out; a large chopper/kitchen knife (LOL!), a smaller utility knife, and a folder. All good, all useful, and all proven to be able to do what they're supposed to do.

There are some knives I am waiting on which might alter this choice but for now I would if picking three knives go with all straight blades and forget a folder. I also would not double up a kitchen knife and chopper. My middle size choice would handle the Kitchen.

The small utility knife would be the Bud Neally Khinzal...it's sheath options for carry enable this to always be with you unobtrusively and it takes a brilliant edge and is very good on meat/butchering/food prep as well because the blade is not too thick.



The middle size would be the Itou SOG...it has a cutting edge long enough for all Kitchen use and a blade thick enough for all bushcraft tasks. For defense it is superbly balanced and for survival would be the very best weight/size belt knife. I might get the finger guard ground down and polished flat....it interferes with using the edge for dicing vegetables or slicing cuts on meat or other food. The blade thickness is a perfect compromise for everything. The centuries of Japanese insight into steel embodied in a knife. My all time favourite.



And finally the "to hell and back" FFBM....what Bussekin do best...a big take on anything chopper. A knife that would build you a house if need be.



This choice might be the only area of change. It could also be a NMFBM LE or a DFLE or a fully convexed DFCG stripped and polished. Those knives are in the "delivery state".

I love that Itou SOG; simply gorgeous, and yet fully functional and useful in its size. Very nice!

As for not having a chopper for a kitchen knife.. Although I can see some people not wanting to have one, when you consider some of the foods like squash, turnip, pineapple, watermelon, coconut, etc. that you'd use a meat cleaver on (not to mention overly large cuts of wild game meat), a DFLE as a kitchen knife/chopper/cleaver doesn't seem so ridiculous. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif" alt="" />

I agree entirely....it is when you want to fell a tree with a Kitchen knife you might struggle....that's why I said it the other way round....but it is easily lost in translation. I may have miss understood what Unsub was saying....but I thought he meant using the large kitchen knife as a chopper as well.

If you like these knives you can find them here.

http://www.japaneseknifedirect.com/Page82.html

You will need to scroll down for the knife. ( I hope this is OK with the forum rules...if not my apologies....I would always say a Bussekin for a large knife though and my expected to be favourite is the DFLE.. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />)

Yes, I could, but would not be happy, lol

I have this great mental image of a person with a watermelon. They carefully feel its size and weight, turning it over in their hands, observing the skin. They set it down just so on the cutting board and take their Dogfather in hand. Closing their eyes and breathing deeply, then relax into stillness and THWACK! Two perfectly cut watermelon halves wobble to a stop.

<img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif" alt="" />


(more realistically it'd go SPLAT! and there'd be juice and pulp in a 10 foot radius, but...)