Posts Tagged ‘survival knives’
Which Is Better – A Survival Knife or Hatchet?
I keep asking myself this all the time. On one hand, I really love my camping and survival knives. They’ve been with me through a lot. But I have a few camp axes and hatchets that I wouldn’t think of leaving on a camping trip without them. Honestly, I carry a knife or two and a hatchet when I’m wilderness camping. Especially in the West. You just don’t know what you’ll run into when your out there and having a hatchet along is far more important than worrying about the added weight it adds to your load. This is why I chuckle anytime I hear a newbie ask “Which is better, a survival knife or hatchet“. Here’s why you’ll find me with a knife and hatchet if you run into me out in the woods.
For starters, if you need firewood or some wood split, nothing beats a hatchet. A hatchet will split firewood quicker and safer than any survival knife. Also, if you’re building a shelter, then you’re gonna want a hatchet to chop through those trees. Sure, you can chop a tree down using a rock or piece of wood to beat the knife through, but it’s going to take you longer and you’ll use far more energy doing it.
A hatchet also does very well when used to pound stakes into the ground. Yeah, you could use the blade or a rock to do the same thing, but again, it comes down to energy used and safety. A hatchet wins this bout every time.
Which size of hatchet do I prefer? For me, I like hatchets with a 1.5 to 2 pound head. My favorite is the 1.75 lb head with a 14 to 18 inch handle. I have used smaller hatchets and there are heavier hatchets out there with longer handles, but the 10 to 18 inch range is just about right for me to carry. The longer hatchets or camp axes may cut better but they can be a pain to carry. Smaller hatchets just don’t have the weight to be as useful as their larger brothers.
So which survival knives do I carry? My primary knife that I carry around my neck when hiking or camping will usually be from 3 to 4 inches long. Sometimes I may carry this knife on my belt. This size knife has a 101 uses around the camp, such as cleaning game and fish, cutting small saplings, cordage, food prep, etc.
There are times I may carry a larger belt knife, such as my SOG Seal Pup, but for the most part, I carry a hatchet if I’m going deep in the woods.
