What is the purpose of a BIG knife? You know, those huge, heavy, macho things that you expect Rambo and Crocodile Dundee to be packing. I’ve used a very big knife on occasion, though not often. I’ve used those machette-type knives for hacking away brush — not the kind of treatment that the plants like, but sometimes the expedient way to cut a path. In fact, I even have a few big knives somewhere in a box in the closet. I pull them out every now and then and show them off to visitors. But other than that occasional “showing off my big knife,” I just about never carry such devices into the wilderness. I’m a practical guy. I probably carry from five to seven knives at any given time, city or wilderness, and all of them are small and practical.
I don’t like the weight of big knifes. I find big knifes harder to handle. I don’t like to generalize, but big knifes are often used by men to impress their friends. A big knife is hefty and beefy and intimidating. It usually looks impressive and may have cost a lot of money. But when it comes down to the tools that I use day in and out, urban or wilderness, I like a knife that is comfortable to grip, that is well-made (not necessarily expensive), and is as light as possible.
I have large and small official Swiss Army knifes, both Wenger and Victorinox. I think they’re great. I have even used one for some of the fine work of cleaning a deer. I probably use the scissors as often as the blades on the Swiss knifes. (By the way, I strongly advise against buying the cheap Swiss Army knife knock-offs. You’re engaging in false economics when you try to save a few bucks on a cheap imitation that is poorly made and doesn’t stand up to hard use.)
Another cutting tool that I almost always carry is my pair of Florian ratchet-style garden clippers. Yes, garden clippers, the things you associate with pruning roses, hedges, and fruit trees. I use my garden clippers for cutting green and dead wood for tool handles, for wood for bows, for drills for fire-making, and it is much easier cutting yucca with clippers also.
For quality folding knives, I have a Buck, an Uncle Henry, a Condor, and many others. Don’t be taken in by appearances of the many knifes available. All that really matters is the quality of the material, the quality of the construction, and how it feels in your hand. I suggest you hold a few at a knife shop, ask many questions, and make up your own mind. For folders, you’ll most likely be buying stainless steel, but a carbon steel blade is better for your sheath knives.
When I choose to carry many knifes, I have them in my fanny pack, around my neck, on my belt, in my back pack, and in my pocket. But I never feel weighed down by them. They are just there.
Don’t get me wrong. Big heavy Rambo knifes could be good investments, and they really do pick up the conversation when the party is dying. They are probably excellent articles of trade should the coin of the realm be useless (or extinct if everything goes electronic). But for day to day use, I find that the lightweight comfortable knifes that I virtually always carry serve me best. Plus, I find that the older I get, the less I care about trying to impress my friends with how big my knife is. I don’t really think anyone cares, anyway.
