Personally, I like a shorter, stouter fixed blade knife for when I am outdoors; it offers a lot of utility and durability and is good for just about every task I take on.

The options, however are many and solely determined by need and preference; here is a short summary of some of the most popular survival knives.

FOLDERS

Swiss Army Knife Adventurer

If they were good enough for MacGyver… right? The chief Swiss Army knife producer, Victorinox, still has the market cornered on variety and quality. The Adventurer model is a modern classic, offering a knife blade, a can opener, a bottle opener, three screw drivers, an awl, tweezers, and a toothpick. The stainless steel blade is almost 4½ inches long, and the overall weight is 2.9 ounces. If only those blades were better at carving wood.

Cold Steel Recon 1 Spear Point

This outstanding new folder is thin, light, sharp and tough. What more would you ask of a survival knife? The Recon 1 features a 4-inch blade that is 3.5 mm thick and is built from Japanese AUS 8A stainless steel with a black Tuff-Ex finish. The knife only weighs 5.3 ounces, and has a stainless pocket / belt clip, making it ideal for EDC duty.

FIXED BLADES

CRKT Ultima

The size and shape of this knife were patterned after ancient Bronze Age daggers dating back 4,000 years. The Ultima’s handle is one of its most interesting attributes. The injection-molded black glass-filled nylon scales feature more than 70 triangular grip segments, separated by sipes, or “ooze grooves” which channel away water, mud and oil.
The Ultima features a 4.95-inch full-tang blade of 1.4116 stainless steel with a black titanium nitride coating. It comes with CRKT’s patented* Veff™ serrations. The overall length is just over 10 inches and it weighs 8.4 ounces.

KA-BAR Full-Size Black, Straight Edge

The United States Marine Corps made this war-horse of a knife both famous and feared the world over. It weighs 10.4 ounces and has a blade length of 7 inches. The steel is 1095 chrome-vanadium, and the handle is made of Kraton G. I prefer the straight-edge KA-BAR, for easier field sharpening and better carving ability, but the full-size KA-BAR also comes with a partially serrated blade, too. Whichever KA-BAR you choose, you’ve picked a tool that is rugged, dependable and gets the job done. No wonder so many Marines call this knife their one and only.

Gerber LMF II

The Gerber LMF II may just be the best and most popular new survival knife in production today. The widely available Bear Grylls Ultimate Survival Knife owes a great deal of its design to the LMF lineage. The overall knife length is just over 10½ inches, while the partially serrated blade is a decent 4.84 inches in length. The knife weighs 11.67 ounces without the sheath. The 420HC stainless steel drop point blade sits in a TPV rubber skinned, glass-filled handle to reduce fatigue and insulate from electrical shocks. The pointed butt cap can be used to break glass.

Cold Steel Pendleton

The Cold Steel Pendleton Hunter is a nice knife for taking care of all the camp chores. It’s a sharp, high-quality butchering knife., plus it carves wood well enough. It’s also light weight and handles very easily. The knife only weighs 5.8 ounces, yet it has a 3½-inch blade made of VG-1 stainless steel. The 4¾-inch-long Kray-Ex handle is non-slip and very comfortable.

Helle Temagami

If you want the feel and function of Swedish steel in a higher end knife, then consider Helle’s Temagami knife. Designed in collaboration with TV’s Survivorman, Les Stroud, the Temagami offers a 4 inch blade of high-carbon, triple-laminated stainless steel, with a gorgeous curly birch handle and genuine leather sheath.

Spyderco Bushcraft G-10 Plain Edge

This knife follows the outdoor skills traditions of British bushcraft, with a blade that works wood and processes game with equal ease. The 4-inch blade of stainless 0-1 tool steel is made with a Scandinavian grind, which yields a tougher knife and reduces breakage due to twisting and racking. The full tang allows for a certain amount of abuse, such as baton work and chopping, while the edge angle is sharp enough to make whittling and slicing a breeze.

Ontario SK-5 Blackbird

This tough, no-frills knife is American made and ready for anything. The knife has a full tang 154CM high-grade stainless steel blade that is fitted with black Micarta handles. It is 10 inches overall, with 5 inches of sharpened blade and 5 inches of handle. At just under 3/16 of an inch thick, the knife is ideally suited to detailed carving, but also excels at tasks that involve splitting through wood.
Army and Air Force Issue Survival Knife

If you go with the gear that the pros use, then the Army and Air Force Issue Survival Knife should be right up your alley. This burly knife is made of 1095 carbon steel with a rust-resistant zinc phosphate finish. The leather handle with deep grooves provides a good grip surface, even when your hand is slippery. The butt end is strong enough to hammer with. The cross guard has two holes in it for lashing it to a pole to construct a spear. The overall length is 9½ inches, with a blade length of 5 inches. The sheath is leather with an integral belt loop and tie-down holes, as well as a pouch for the sharpening stone, which is included.

ESEE-4

The ESEE-4 is an incredibly durable knife made from high-carbon 1095 steel. This model is the longer, thicker “wilderness” model of the popular ESEE-3 tactical knife. The “Number 4” has 3/16-inch thickness, a full flat grind, and a rounded pommel. The Micarta handles seal the deal, creating a lightweight yet durable knife that can serve as your primary backpacking blade and wilderness survival knife.

Choosing the right knife for a survival or potential survival situation is one of the most important decisions you can make; in a survival situation, you will use your knife countless times each and every day.

To see more about your options regarding survival knives as well as to see reviews of other knives, please visit Outdoor Life.