I batoned with a bowie recently and though it works I don't think that design is preferable either. Why not stick with the Battle Rat?

Any straight knife is going to be easier to baton than a khuk. A khuk is a specialty blade, no doubt about it, but it's REALLY AWESOME at that specialty. When I've got serious brush to clear or limbs to hack, there's no way my first choice would be a Battle Mistress or Dogfather. It's going to be a reasonable weight khuk (ie not the zilla).

And it's entirely possible to baton with a khuk, but I wouldn't carry one hiking for the same reason I wouldn't carry a Dogfather.

The NMSFNO is about the largest knife I see myself carrying in the woods for any length of time.

I had this one, but sold it for more Rats.

MM, what is the weight difference between a DFLE and an NMSFNO?

by bowie I mwan a battle rat or a ranger rd9. I prefer a spear point with a thick tip.

mustardman
thanks, I was wondering if anyone felt the same or if I was making poor assumptions.

What's a khukuri?? <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" />

If you need to Baton wood to get to the dry inner stuff for a fire and you have a long piece which needs splitting....such as the main trunk of a new established tree which is still "handleable" size wise and weight wise if you have had to cut it down or even a long subsidiary limb on a bigger tree...but in my experience the limb or log need to be of a significant size for this technique to work....you can instead of battonning use a saw to cut a slit half way down the length of the log and half way across it's width and then picking the log up if you bang the log down on another tree trunk or the tree stump...this causes the wood to split along the grain from the end which has "flexed" to the saw cut and performs a perfect split of the log. Turn the log around then and bang the end which did not "flex" and the other half of the trunk will then also split away....and leaves you in short time with a very useful long bottom section of the trunk which was not cut with the saw....and the two smaller half sections which were cut and which effectively were "bounced" into splitting away from the whole trunk to give the same result as halfing a log length wise by Batonning. Now this technique definately works with a saw....but it might also work with a khukri if you were to chop a deep but shallow "V" half way down the log instead of using a saw cut....I don't see why not.

For those of you who have the Ray Mears DVD's he demonstrates this technique very well and maybe it is available as a small "bite size" attachment from U tube....I have not found it though...but it is a great "time saver" technique for accessing dry wood for a fire in a wet environment. Prticularly useful in Scandanavian conditions of snow and fir trees where you need to cut down a tree for a survival shelter and need to use some of the main limb for tinder.

ted
I know you like the khuk. any advice?

I think I might pass along a few big blades and find a nice machete. Who makes the best machete?

The condors look pretty good. Tramontina's are supposed to be nice.

We (me and my surveying staff) like the Martindale blades the best right now.... Tramontinas have a good rep...but we still like the Martindale.... Horn Dog has gotten me interested in the Condors.... I am in the process of acquiring one for trial.... The one problem I see is length.... I haven't seen a Condor over 18" and I think anything less than 24" is just not enough around here.... certainly for surveying, 18" and less just doesn't hack it...(pun intended)....We are currently using 24" Martindale and the general consensus is the wooden handles.... they can be shaped and smoothed to suit.... one or two like the plastic handles.... but after using the wood with sweaty hands.... I like the wood....Years ago... the best around was Collins Legitimus.... plastic handles.... man they were sweet....razor sharp with a mill bastard file in seconds and hold an edge through dry Brazilian pepper....I have seen dry Brazilian peeper take out a hunk of metal in many a blade.... I would put this stuff up against ironwood....and its an invasive here...

my 2 cents...

Doc