Legal leength blade? Yes?no?Do you carry a fixed blade knife? Where? Why? I'm considering carrying one in my bag since I do try and camp in the woods and other wilderness areas.
Knives are varied & can be specialized tools for specific tasks like filleting, cutting rope/cordage, skinning, combat etc. Fixed blades are great for a camping trip. Folding knives are perfect for everyday carry & for many unforseen uses!
That being said. If you ever plan to hitchhike, hop trains, trespass, spange, loiter, busk, drink in public jay walk or otherwise get on the radar of law enforcement than "DO NOT" carry any large fixed blade over the legal length here in the US. It just aint worth it given the context of STP & how most exist & what we do. If you are doing any of the above & much more the police can & will search you & harass you for little to nothing. I wont say I agree with this practice but it is common. I assumed since I didn't first notice the wilderness comment when first posted that travel may be involved.
If you are planning to use the knife for self defense than again KISS (keep it simple stupid). Large survival knives do little except cause further criminal charges & harassment where as a small even slightly over lengtg tactical folder is viewed as a pocket knife. Its hard to conceal & even more illegal at times if found hidden on your body. That leaves storing it in your pack, thus not easily available everytime you need a blade. Both will cause self inflicted injury in actual combat so not real practical to the untrained. Since I always wear shorts or pants with pockets everyday I always have a knife clipped on on me when out of the house. Its an all around legal tool that even boy scouts carry. Only Rambo, Crocodile Dundee & b-movie horror movie characters carry large fixed blades while traveling.
There are some really nice legal length fixed blades but they aren't that common.
Side note:
To dispute young Tick Dickler again. Who isn't even old enough to legally, buy, own or sell any knife in the US; Save New Hampshire.
"it looks cool, but doesnt do anything else than stabbing people.
folders are good, just not for the road".
YOU ARE FLAT FUCKING WRONG about Folding Knives "just not for the road"!!! WTF?
Those 2 brand names are great knives but definately isnt practical for traveling. Esse blades are super expensive & often way past legal carry length. No one wants to loose $80-$200+ on a knife just to have a cop pocket it or bag it as evidence & add it to some criminal charges.
I do like those inexpensive mora knives though especially for carving soap , lol.
Just don't try to sell yourself as an expert in traveling if you haven't even started yet!
My comments were supporting the use of the right tool for the right job in various environments. Some inexperienced users will read this thread regardless of the multiple knife threads & miss as I did; the part about camping.
I don't support armchair online experts preaching as experienced travelers without ever leaving their parents house yet.
Thanks for the replies everyone. Mostly general camp work. I do a lot of stealth camping but now and then I set up an actual camp if I can acquire a permit and may stay there for a week or two. In that case I need something to deal with cutting wood, whittling and possibly dressing game if I happen to catch it. I don't do much trapping anymore though.
Any suggestions on specific small folders? Have a little extra money at the moment. think ill ditch the fixed since ill be heading through urban areas next trip
Wow a swiss army knife too. Brings back childhood memories before leatherman's. Both the Kershaw & vicky are good choices if not expensive. I loose a few knives a year so its too rich for me. I just lost a nice US Marines novelty knife to the police last week. Had to ditch another knife around xmas. Both knives were used very little but worn often. Many times I had the knife at the ready in my pocket waiting to get jumped, assaulted & or robbed by groups of thugs.Went with a Volt 2 and the SAK Huntsmen. Under 3'' length and they don't look like they were meant to eviscerate people. Hopefully I don't get too much shit from the man. Even if I do they were fairly cheap. Thanks again for your input guys/gals.
So Tick Dickler did you not write this? "folders are good, just not for the road" & then post a pic of that fixed blade?
It seems that this post & others you have posted are riddled with holes, untested experiences & or bad advice.. I am not trying to dissuade you from participating but your statements at times sound so confident yet so wrong. I routinely find myself calling you out. Why?
Have you traveled before? If so What methods? & Where?
What are folders good for?
What are the best knives for the road?