What tools/knives do you carry?

[gixer]

Just wondering what if any tools and/or knives folks carry for single or multi day trips?

I usually carry a leatherman Skeletool CX, doesn't have all the bells whistles and tools for getting stones out of horse shoes, but it's a pretty good compromise between weight and function

On the last trip though i realised i'd done several trips with no knife or multi tool.
Can't say as i needed one in that time but i do like to have a knife in my pack in case i need to cut cord, sharpen my map marking pencil etc

I have a LM Style PS that i carry most days, just been looking at that to see if it's a lighter alternative to the Skeletool.
It doesn't have a knife but it does have wire cutters and scissors i figured would be strong enough to cut through 3mm Dyneema

Turns out they don't though.

Then i remembered i have scissors in my FAK and failing everything else a lighter to cut through Dyneema if needed.


What do you guys and gals carry?


Cheers
Mark

 

[edh]

Nothing for short trips/few days plus.

A Spyderco Ladybug Salt for big trips; sometimes.

 

[EM - Ross]

Nothing for weekends & either a Aspen 'Backpacker' lock knife or a SAK lock knife with corkscrew/bottle opener etc for foreign trips.

Been thinking of getting a Tool Logic SL3 with the integrated fire steel as a general purpose backpacking knife @ 85g

 

[Hedley Heap]

Opinel No.6 or Wenger Swiss Army Knife.
I'm still 12 at heart so camping with no knife is out of the question, why else do we go to remote places if it's not to play with fire and knives?

 

[Mole]

If anything, this:
http://www.swissarmy365.co.uk/swiss-army-knives-c44/wenger-evo-81-swiss-army-knife-red-p243


except, mine is blue!

And for longer trips where I'm carrying several days food and resupplying, I take one of these:

Tomato and Sausage knife. Cuts bread well, plus anything else, and good for spreading and also eating with too.


With a different hat than my hillwalking one, I might take a Mora Clipper Knife, and maybe a Mora carving knife, a Dave Budd Hook Knife and a Silky Gomtaro saw. (and even an Axe and Billhook too....)

 

[Shewie]

Last trip out I took a wee Opinel No.2 minus the keychain

Worked well for cutting moleskin pads and getting into my meals

 

[fluffkitten]

Victorinox Classic SD Blue Jelly Pocket Knife

Small but with useable scissors and tweezers.

 

[cathyjc]

Victorinox with only the bits I need - blade, scissors, corkscrew, tin/can opener, tweezers and tiny screwdriver for glasses repairs. Charcoal colour.

I use all except the cork screw regularly. It took ages to find one with the correct combination - I was fed up carrying extras I didn't want on a bigger 'knife'. I've never seen this combination since - I hope I never have to replace it.

PS. 60gms

 

[theoctagon]

MASSIVE photo removed

 

[theoctagon]

didn't expect pic to be that big, I'll try again...

 

[fluffkitten]

Victorinox with only the bits I need - blade, scissors, corkscrew, tin/can opener, tweezers and tiny screwdriver for glasses repairs. Charcoal colour.

I use all except the cork screw regularly. It took ages to find one with the correct combination - I was fed up carrying extras I didn't want on a bigger 'knife'. I've never seen this combination since - I hope I never have to replace it.

The one thing mine is missing that I want is the tin/can opener, trying not to get unnecessary tools can be hard.

 

[el manana]

Leatherman Style 23 grams

 

[gixer]

Good selection so far, seems SAK's are the most carried.

Food prep and packet opening aside how often are your multitools/knives used?


A knife has come in handy a few times over the years, one time i had to make a splint for a mates leg, but the vast vast majority of times it was used for cutting cord, opening food packets and sharpening pencils.

It's odd for me because if i was asked i would have said that it would have felt funny going out hiking on multi day trips without a knife, but in reality it has to be one of the least used things in my pack besides my emergency gear.
Weird

 

[EM - Ross]

That's why I don't carry one for the most part. I can open food packs without one. I may put a Swann Morton scalpel blade in my FAK

 

[cathyjc]

Use the knife and sicssors everyday - opening packets, trimming torn nails, cutting ham/other food. - Use them lots.

 

[Social Climber]

In all my years I have never needed or wanted a muti tool n the hiils, what do you guys use it for, what do you repair or re wire?
My consesion to this is I carry a victorinox credit card type thing which weighs less than an ounce. I think I have used the wee 2cm knife twice. It also has tweezers,a pen, file ...
What is it they say about packing fears.......
If I could be arsed I would make a card sheath for the knife and toss the rest.

 

[Mole]

I can't see the point of a larger multitool like the OP, but the tiny ones (with scissors) could find a place in my pack to maybe replace the small SAK - which main use is for footcare. (For toenails and tape trimming).

The Tomato knife is a luxury, but well used if taken - I tend to have mostly 'real' food in daytime (bread n cheese//olives/hummus/meat + salad) and on summer trips will take/buy fresh veg/salad stuff to use - especially if with my other half - why eat ***** processed stuff 24/7?

 

[gixer]

In all my years I have never needed or wanted a muti tool n the hiils, what do you guys use it for, what do you repair or re wire?
My consesion to this is I carry a victorinox credit card type thing which weighs less than an ounce. I think I have used the wee 2cm knife twice. It also has tweezers,a pen, file ...
What is it they say about packing fears.......
If I could be arsed I would make a card sheath for the knife and toss the rest.

Off the top of my head a few things i've used a knife or multi-tool for over the years.

• Made a splint and crutches for a mate that knackered his ankle
• The dog managed to get herself wrapped up in some wire and needed cutting (the wire not the dog)
  
• Usually take a couple of tie-wraps, used the wire cutters to trim one these when we fixed a mates rucksack strap
• Cutting cord to replace snapped shoe lace
• Sharpening pencil (map marking)
• Fixing my mates glasses
• Carving stakes out of wood (left mine at the previous camp spot )
• Last trip to the lakes 2 lads camping near us forgot their spoon, lent them my knife and the resourceful young chap carved them both a spoon

Some made life a bit easier, others would have seen a trip end earlier, some others while not exactly life threatening, made very stressful and painful situations a noggin easier.

I can't see the point of a larger multitool like the OP, but the tiny ones (with scissors) could find a place in my pack to maybe replace the small SAK - which main use is for footcare. (For toenails and tape trimming).

The Tomato knife is a luxury, but well used if taken - I tend to have mostly 'real' food in daytime (bread n cheese//olives/hummus/meat + salad) and on summer trips will take/buy fresh veg/salad stuff to use - especially if with my other half - why eat ***** processed stuff 24/7?

I think i must be really really unlucky with stuff most other folks like,
Had a few Mora knives that were terrible and every SAK i've owned likewise.
Crap scissors, blade that blunts quicker than chocolate carving knife, poor locking mech on the ones that lock, and brittle blades (snapped when trying to pry a small rock out my boot, which came out after using a pencil).

I can't imagine a situation that'd be bad enough for me to cut my nails with SAK scissors.
In my experience anything other than paper just gets trapped between the 2 blades and you just wiggle it into submission rather than cut.

In all fairness i've yet to come across a pair of scissors on ANY multi-tool that were able to cut anything well.

I do tend to cut my nails at home before a hike though.
On the few trips i've done that were long enough to require toe nails trimming on the trip i had a small set of nail trimmers in my FAK.

Recon they'd be a great option if you needed to cut some cord mind.

 

[Mole]

Hah, well, the scissors on SAKs do need careful use. My Wenger ones have a sort of microserration on the blade for some reason. They've always worked fine for the use I put them to.

Going off thread here really, but:

Mora clippers etc are cheap and easy to sharpen to the level I need. Used them a lot for teaching youth and my own kids too - nothing fancy needed there! Not broken one yet (have 4 or 5). Their hook knives are pretty poor though. If doing anything heavier than a Mora can handle I use a small axe or drawknife or billhook.

(My bigger sharps get prolonged rough use in all weathers, so as long as they are decent steel and edges correctly profiled and sharp enough for the work I do (i.e. hedgelaying (professionally and teaching) and some greenwoodwork (mostly for fun these days)), I'm not too precious about them - brand or looks).

Pruning Saws are the only thing I'm really snobby about for work (orchard pruning) Silky Fox surpass everything else for cutting green wood IMO.

 

[Shewie]

Yeah but you can buy 2 x new Laplanders for price of a Silky blade

 

[gixer]

Hah, well, the scissors on SAKs do need careful use. My Wenger ones have a sort of microserration on the blade for some reason. They've always worked fine for the use I put them to.

Going off thread here really, but:

Mora clippers etc are cheap and easy to sharpen to the level I need. Used them a lot for teaching youth and my own kids too - nothing fancy needed there! Not broken one yet (have 4 or 5). Their hook knives are pretty poor though. If doing anything heavier than a Mora can handle I use a small axe or drawknife or billhook.

(My bigger sharps get prolonged rough use in all weathers, so as long as they are decent steel and edges correctly profiled and sharp enough for the work I do (i.e. hedgelaying (professionally and teaching) and some greenwoodwork (mostly for fun these days)), I'm not too precious about them - brand or looks).

Pruning Saws are the only thing I'm really snobby about for work (orchard pruning) Silky Fox surpass everything else for cutting green wood IMO.

Problem i had with my Mora's was blade chipping and the handle came loose then came off completely.

Good point on the easy sharpening.
For me though although i enjoy sharpening when i have time at home (find it oddly relaxing) when out i really don't want to faff about sharpening.
Partly because i want to enjoy the outdoors but also because i wouldn't never take my sharpening stones, so i inevitably end up using my DC3, which is not fun.

So ideally i'll have a knife that keeps it's edge till i get back home.

If i had a garden and worked in it then i'd probably use a Mora for knife tasks, if it failed or needed sharpening i'd nip in my shed and sort it or pick up another to use.
When out though my time is limited, so i don't want to go on a trip and have it cut short because of a tool that failed or even worse a injury from a tool failure.

I'm in a odd situation these days.
I like a good knife and have a couple, but i don't really do anything that necessitates the use of them, like i said above i didn't even notice i didn't have a knife at all for several trips.

I think previously i'd have it in my mind that i NEEDED to use one of my knives, so i'd try and find an excuse to justify taking it.
Now days i'm more practical and tend to only take stuff that i use regularly.

Tough part is though that although i don't use a knife much at all when hiking, the odd times i have needed one it would have been tough to manage without it.


Cheers
Mark

 

[Mole]

yeah, but Laplanders aren't really primarily for greenwood? (the Bahco orange handled version is better for that) . More a drywood/firewood blade?

I reckon they are so popular with bushcrafters more because of marketing/Mears/Scandy origin/Green colour rather than being the best saw for the job.

(I do use Bahco loppers and hedging shears - they are the best for the money - great steel and tough build)

I don't like the lock or the handle design of the Bahco folding saws.

I rarely use folders for actual work - not really up to all day use IME, but if I do use one,
I use the Stihl Handycut - for pruning, much better than a Bahco IME (actually a rebadged ARS)

I've used a Silky Gomtaro 300 for work since 2000.
(not the same one - usually I go through 2 blades a year - I've seen people somehow **** a Laplander blade in a couple hours use on hedglaying courses!)

Sorry for tool rant!

 

[edh]

a ranting tool is always entertaining...

 

[Mole]

 

[Gazelle]

I carry a SAK if I remember to pack it.