How to Select a Knife Or Multi-Tool for an Activity Ifferent Activities Require Differ- Lar in Skinning and Filleting Knives
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53 How to select a knife or multi-tool for an activity ifferent activities require differ- lar in skinning and filleting knives. Words: YAMKELA MKEBE. Compiled with the ent types of knives or multi—tools • The popular clip point blade runs straight help of Bruce Woodroffe of Awesome Tools, Rob and retailers have to take various from the handle until about halfway, then clips Beamish of Brentoni Distributors, Kim Romanis factors into consideration before away to form a thin and sharp tip, which can of Liteoptec, Patrick Franck of W.E.T. Sports and recommending a knife or tool for a be useful for cutting in tight places. the articles: Blade Boot Camp: A Buyer’s Guide To Dspecific activity. • The drop point blade is especially popular in Choosing Your Knife from http://gearjunkie.com; When selecting a knife blade for an activ- hunting knives. It has a slow convex curve to- How to Choose the Best Knife for Hunting from www. ity, the factors to take into account would in- wards the tip, which gives it a stronger point, less survivopedia.com; How to Choose a Hunting Knife clude hardness — edge/sharpness retention and likely to pierce organs, and a large slicing area. from www.adventure.howstuffworks.com; Hunt- the ability of the steel to resist indentation; • A gut hook blade has a sharpened semi-circle ing Knife Buyer’s Guide from http://1source.basspro. strength; flexibility; toughness — how much en- hook used by hunters to open the abdomen of com; What To Look For In A Diving Knife from www. ergy it will absorb before breaking; , corrosion the animal without slicing into the muscle. world-dive.com; Why Picking the Perfect Pocket resistance and wear resistance. • The sheepsfoot blade has a straight edge and Knife is So Damn Hard! from www.knife-depot.com; A fixed blade usually has a tang — the part of blunt back that curves towards the edge at the How to choose a pocket knife from http://ironandt- the blade that extends into the handle — which end. It is good for slicing where a point is not weed.com; Best Knife for Camping from www.best- makes it stronger than a folding knife. It is also needed. huntingknives.org; and How to Choose the Perfect more suitable for tasks that require a robust, • The pen blade is typically found on smaller Survival Knife from www.artofmanliness.com. hard-working, knife with a longer blade. Also, folding pocket knives. It is symmetrically where it must be immediately available. curved on both sides of the spine, but one side A folding blade pivots into the handle and has is sharp and the other blunt. one of various locking mechanisms to keep the blade from accidentally closing during use. It is Hunting Knives more compact and can fit in a pocket. It should Hunting knives are designed for skinning, cutting ideally be possible to open it with one hand. and general use and they usually have a single sharpened edge. Blade materials Blade: High carbon stainless steel blades, like Stainless steel is commonly used for outdoor 420HC or S30V, are popular amongst hunters be- knife blades because it resists corrosion and rust cause they are tough and do not require much and is easy to maintain, but, it is not totally care. rust-free and knives need to be treated with • Interchangeable hunting knife blades gives care to prevent corrosion. the user a variety of options when performing • In order to be classified as stainless steel, the different tasks. blade must at least contain 13% chromium — a • The drop point blade is ideal for skinning bigger shiny and brittle metal that is corrosion-resist- • The Sandvik series, especially the 12C27 and animals, as the blunt point minimises acciden- ant, but is less easy to keep sharp. 14C28N, is anti-corrosive thanks to the addi- tal cutting. The wider belly offers a good skin- • Carbon ensures a better cutting edge and is tion of chrome and requires no special main- ning sweep that helps in getting through thick easy to sharpen, but is more inclined to rust. tenance. Its carbon content gives an excellent layers. It is versatile and can also be used for Stainless steel blades contain different elements cutting edge. splitting ribs and pelvic bones. in different percentages that determine the • 154CM is a more affordable, high carbon • The clip point provides good control for detail qualities. A few examples are: stainless steel with very good edge retention, work and cutting in tight places, although it is • High quality CPM S30V is a premium stainless good toughness and fair corrosion resistance. less efficient for skinning, splitting and gutting. steel developed in the US especially for knives. • AUS has vanadium added to improve wear- • A trailing point blade has a larger curve on its It is a powder-made steel with a uniform car- resistance and sharpening. AUS-8 (or 8A) is a edge, providing a large cutting area needed bide distribution and clean steel properties. high carbon, low chromium stainless steel that for skinning. It offers excellent corrosion reistance and su- balances toughness, strength, edge holding • A gut hook is used by some hunters to open the perb edge qualities. and resistance to corrosion. abdomen without slicing into the meat. • The affordable 400 series is popular for knife • In the VG series from Japan the VG-10 is popu- Handle: The handle material should be non- blades because it is easy to sharpen and has lar with brands like Spyderco, and it contains absorbent and slip-resistant for easy working fairly high corrosion-resistance. When a vanadium for a finer grain and cobalt and nick- under all conditions. For safety, a hunting knife combination of stainless steel and carbon is el to improve toughness. VG-1, for example, handle should feature a finger or thumb stop and used, HC will indicate a higher carbon con- has very high performance for sharpness, edge a contour or other guard where the handle joins tent. For example, the 420HC is often used in retention and strength. with the blade to prevent the hand from sliding sport knives, as it is economical and has high forward on the blade. corrosion-resistance. On the other hand, the Blade profiles • Wood, bone and leather are popular in hunt- 420J2’s low carbon, high chromium, content • A normal or straight back blade has a curving ing handles, as they are functional, warm to results in a tough, shock absorbing knife blade edge and flat back. the touch, and pleasing to the eye. They are, with excellent corrosion-resistance and a mod- • A trailing point blade has a back edge that however, less durable than synthetic handles erate edge holding ability, which is good for curves upward, with a larger curve on its edge, and can be difficult to grip firmly when wet use in salt water. providing a large cutting area, which is popu- with water or blood from skinning. To p54 2015 September :: Sports Trader p54 :: Outdoor perform a number of tasks around the campsite, Select the right knife cont from p53 from food preparation, cutting rope, digging, prying cans open, chopping wood, among many • Synthetic (polymer, nylon) handles offer a Some divers prefer a small 5-7cm mini knife others. combination of a secure grip and economy. because it can fit anywhere, including clamped Blade: A non-corrosive stainless steel blade, They are also lightweight. onto a hose for quick access. which is not too big to perform small tasks, nor Blade: High corrosion-resistant stainless steel Fishing knives too small to be used for more rugged tasks like should be used for diving blades, and your cus- batoning, is preferred. A 10-15cm blade should tomer must be made aware that even these Fishing knives are used for various activities like be ideal. A camping knife should have a single- blades will rust if not cleaned after a dive. The harvesting and cutting bait, cutting fishing line, edged blade with a flat spine to be more ver- filleting fish, etc. Your customer might want to shiny finish of cost effective 420 and 440 stain- satile. purchase more than one knife, depending on less steel gives less purchase to salt than a satin Handle: There are various handle options for the intended activities. finish, reducing the chance of rust. Coatings camping knives, ranging from wood, stainless Bait knives traditionally have a broader blade that provide rust-resistance add to the cost of steel, rubber, bone, plastic, etc. The basic rule with a serrated edge. the knife. is that a handle must be the right size for the Filleting knife: The blade must be flexible. The • Titanium is highly corrosion-resistant and stay user, e.g. he should be able to wrap his fingers average length is between 10-23cm and stand- sharp longer, but it is more expensive. As div- around it with no difficulty. ard sizes are 10cm, 15cm, 19cm and 23cm long, ing knives are often lost, your cutomer might depending on the size fish you are most likely not want the extra outlay. Multi-tools: The many diverse tasks that need to fillet. A fillet blade will be long, thin, and • H1 steel is also recommended as it contains to be performed around a campsite, a versatile sharp with a non—serrated edge for fine cutting. nitrogen to compensate for the trace of car- multi—tool is almost a must-have. Snoek and other bigger fish will require a dura- bon, which makes it more rust-resistant. • Some basic features that will come in handy ble knife with a heavier, broader blade.