There are knives out there that have become “Classics”. These classic survival knives have been around, and used enough, that they have proven themselves over and over again. Companies still have these knives in production years after they were first introduced to the market.  They are well built and still sell extremely well. I will be covering a few of those knives, their strengths and weaknesses in this article.

Ka-Bar USMC Knife

The USMC fixed blade knife is the Granddaddy of all survival and tactical knives. Originally designed for the US fighting forces in WWII it quickly became a favorite.

It is technically a full tang knife because the tang goes all the way through the handle and the pommel is pinned to it. To me, a full tang knife means that I can see the tang in the back side of the handle and in the finger choils. This is more of a modified full tang. That being said, you can’t go wrong with this made in the USA knife. Just ask almost any veteran from WWII up through Afghanistan and they will have stories to tell about their Ka-Bar.

A lot of weight is given to destruction videos on YouTube and how much abuse a knife can really handle before it breaks. To be honest, you would never use your knife that way in a survival situation. You would figure out some other way rather than using your knife to cut that car in half that just has to be done because, after all, it’s survival!

This Ka-Bar knife has come a long way since it was first introduced and now comes in several different styles. You can get it with different handle materials, finishes, steels, lengths, and even with serrations. There are even Tanto versions and a replica of the original USN knife called the Mark 1.

The biggest drawbacks to the original knife is the stacked leather handle and the 1095 steel. The steel can rust in wet climates if not taken care of properly and the leather can rot in those same climates. However, with the different versions available those problems are easily avoided. For example, if you spend a lot of time in the woods in Washington state you probably don’t want the original version of this knife. I would go with the D2 Extreme with the Kraton G handle.

Any of these versions would give you years of service and could be handed down to the next generation. In fact, I hear stories all the time about some friend or relative who passed his knife along to them. They still use it today and you can tell it’s a cherished memory.

Buck 119 Fixed Blade Knife

Another WWII era knife, this knife was first introduced in 1942 by its creator Hoyt Buck. These knives saw combat as well and were sold in PX’s around the world. There are certainly better options today for a combat knife but at the time GI’s were thrilled to get their hands on one of these. I read one post about a Vietnam Veteran who saw the Buck 119 Fixed Blade and the 110 Folder side by side in the PX and had to have them both. They served him well for years.

This one is also a modified full tang design and comes in various steels, finishes and handles and are also made in the USA. In fact, you can go on Buck’s website and choose different options and get exactly the custom 119 knife you want. They will even engrave your name on it!

In my opinion, this knife is better suited to utility and hunting applications. I believe it’s slightly too short as a combat knife and as I said before, there are much better options out there now.

What about as a survival knife you ask? Well, if it’s good enough for Les Stroud, it’s certainly good enough for me. I know it was his “go to” knife for many of his survival adventures. I will tell you that he modified the tip on his by grinding it down and making it thicker and more blunt. He teamed up with Camillus to produce a signature line of knives so I don’t know if he’s still carrying the 119 “officially”.

SOG Seal Pup Elite

SOG has been around since 1986. Lots of people own these knives and absolutely love them. In fact, my brother has the Seal Pup elite strapped to his bug out bag all the time. The website says that it is a full tang knife and I’m not going to dispute what they say. The tang goes all the way through the knife handle and as I said before, technically, that is a full tang knife. However, I found an X-Ray picture of the Seal Pup Elite and the tang is slimmed down to accommodate the glass reinforced nylon handle. If you lay the knife flat on the table the tang is not as wide as the blade.

This knife has jimping almost all the way down the back of the blade that can be used for notching wood or possibly filing something although I can’t imagine what. I like the finger choil on the blade placed between the handle and the serrations. This allows you to grip it for more control during close up work. Since the blade is 4.75″ I wouldn’t suggest getting TOO close up, though. The tang of the knife goes all the way through the handle and it exits out the end. This gives you a solid piece of steel for breaking glass, hammering, putting knots on your buddy’s head because he keeps asking to borrow your knife, etc.

You’re going to want the Nylon Sheath for this knife. There’s not many good things said about the Kydex sheath. My main complaint about the Kydex version is that the holes to secure it are only on one side of the sheath.

This knife is better suited to combat rather than survival. It screams tactical. Back to my brother, he bought one of these for a kid that graduated and went into the Marines. That kid absolutely loved it. I certainly wouldn’t turn it down if I was in a survival situation but there are better knives out there for survival purposes.

Morakniv

We’re going to talk about newly manufactured Classic Mora’s rather than try to navigate the dizzying array of different versions of this knife that have been produced over the years. That’s an article for another day. If you’re looking for the Morakniv Classic there is the #1, #1/0, #2, #2F, and #3. The #1 has a natural birch handle, the rest have a red birch handle. The “F” for the #2 means it has a finger guard. However, they don’t make just wood handled knives. There are a bunch of knives on their website with different grips, steels, sheaths, you name it.

Personally I’ve never owned a Mora, the people that do, love them. They talk about things like how it fits your hand, how versatile they are, and the fact that they are inexpensive. I actually have Mora on my list to buy, I’ve just never gotten to that part of the list.

If you’ve ever watched the first seasons of Dual Survival with Cody Lundin you can see that he carries a Mora. It was produced by the KJ Erikkson factory about 30 years ago and it was called The Premier. The Classic #1/0 is probably the same knife today.

KA-BAR Becker BK Series Survival Knives

This series of knives from the Becker BK2 Companion to the BK62 was created by Ethan Becker. They are used all over the world from hunters, to campers, to military personnel.

You’re going to want to stick with either the BK2 or BK22. Becker does make bigger knives, like the BK9 Bowie for example. It has a HUGE nine inch blade on it and although it’s an awesome knife and I want one, you would be better suited to a more practical size.

I will tell you that the sheaths on these leave a lot to be desired. From what I understand Ka-Bar farms out the sheath making. You can certainly order a custom Kydex sheath. They are available from different makers online. However, be aware that you’re adding 30-40% for a sheath on top of what you spent for the knife.

The Becker BK3 Tac Tool is also in this line. And although I like the looks of it, it just doesn’t seem

like it would be a good hunting knife. However, as a tactical knife I can see this being a very good candidate for more urban environments. If I remember right, a few years ago almost all of these were made in Taiwan but now it looks like the manufacturing has been brought back to the USA.

 

Fallkniven F1

The Fallkniven F1 Knife has been the official survival knife for Swedish Air Force Pilots since 1995. These knives are absolutely loved by the people that use them. Be ready to let go of some of your hard earned cash to get one. These knives are NOT cheap but you do get what you pay for.

This is an excellent all around knife. The size makes it great for hunting and skinning game as

well as chopping your way out of a downed aircraft. The blade is 3.8 inches long so the overall length comes in at about 8.3 inches.

If weight is an issue, this knife is an astonishing 6.4 ounces which means that it weighs almost nothing strapped to your belt or pack. If you are looking for something larger than that then you probably need to check out the Fallkniven A1 knife.

 

The F1 has a full convex grind!! Yeah, I hear you, so what? Ok, let me try to explain. The more metal “meat” you have at the edge the more strength that edge has. So the blade is as fat as possible all the way to the edge. All of these knives have to be ground by hand to achieve that type of grind. A concave grind will make the blade thinner and rob it of some of its strength. Got it?

The biggest issue I’ve come across on these is the sheath. I’ve read in forums that the sheaths are farmed out and not made by Fallkniven so the knife rattles in the sheath. There are a couple of ways to fix it though with hot water or a heat gun. I would caution you that doing that will probably void your warranty. A smaller issue is the plastiky feel of the Thermorun handle. But it can take a beating and you’re the one who said you were looking for a lighter knife.

Gerber LMF II

This knife has been around for quite awhile and has proven itself time and again. You’ll find a few articles on this blog about this knife as it is one that I do own. In fact, here’s a good one.

I’ve used the Gerber LMF II as my survival knife for years. Most recently I used it at my brothers deer camp. We didn’t see any deer but he was impressed with the meals I could make with it. I would prefer a knife without serrations for camp chores but it was the only big knife I brought and it still worked great. It fits nice in my hand and it stays sharp. The serrations came in handy when I was cutting some rope for some things we had to tie down due to it being windy.

This knife is a workhorse and looks like it is still available in the Green ASEK, Brown Survival, and Black Infantry Fixed Blade versions. The sheath that mine came with has an integrated sharpener which is great for touching up the blade and it came with two leg straps.

Conclusion

These knives I’ve listed above are some of the best of the best and are proven in the field. Some are inexpensive and some… not so much. You certainly can’t go wrong purchasing any of these. I don’t own all of these knives yet but they are on my list to buy and you will see more articles on them as I pick them up. Just remember, the best survival knife is the one you have on you at the time you need it. If I’m ever caught in a survival situation I hope it’s one of these.

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