The Woodsman's Journal Online: May 2023

Sunday, May 28, 2023

Not all knives are created equal...©

Not all knives are created equal, nor is all steel the same; a knife, like any tool, is created to do a job and depending on the job, the knife, and the steel in it, will be different.

When you go out into the woods you need to have a durable, reliable, trustworthy knife. So, in a survival situation what knife is the best?

In a survival situation, the best knife to have, is the one in your hand! And as the writers at Field & Stream wrote, “Any knife is better than none in an emergency”¹.

But, if you’re sitting in your chair at home, trying to decide what knife to take with you in case of an emergency, what do you pick? Is there a right or wrong choice?

Fixed blade or folder?

So, do you pick a fixed blade sheath knife or a folding pocketknife? That depends on what you plan to use it for.

If you are going to use your knife to baton pieces of wood apart, so you can get to the dry wood at the core and make kindling and fuzz sticks, cut browse or blaze trees, then you will want to use a fixed blade sheath knife, not a folding knife. If you are planning on using your knife for repairing gear, skinning small game, whittling trap triggers and fishing gorges, and other small tasks, then you will want a pocketknife.

Fix blade sheath knives

As the late Colonel Townsend Whelen, who was a survival expert during the early years of the 20^th century, once wrote, “The sheath
knife ... can be invaluable for a lot of different jobs: blazing, cutting browse, repairing leather goods, and making fuzz-sticks for starting a fire”².

Pocketknives

Some pocketknives have multiple blades and/or tool blades and it can be an all-around wilderness tool. Generally, the blades are thinner than those of a fix blade knife and can be ground sharper.

About pocketknives, Colonel Townsend Whelen noted in On Your Own in the Wilderness that, “The best all-around type is the so-called trapper’s knife ... with one blade for rough usage and another for finer work in close quarters. The first blade, with a rounded point, is excellent for general skinning, the second blade, with a point sharp enough to lift a splinter from your hand, if need be, can be kept for more delicate skinning ... Whatever other knife you have, you’d better have one of these that you can keep in your pocket...”³.

Big versus small?

With knives, size is a personal preference, bigger isn’t always better, and size truly doesn’t matter if the knife does the job it was designed for. If you are going to use your fixed blade knife to hack and cut browse, blaze trees or baton wood, then you will want a knife that is five to six inches (13 to 15 cm) in length and one to two inches (5 cm) in width.

Obviously, pocketknives fold and fit into your pocket so the blades are smaller, usually no longer than four inches (10 cm) at the largest.

What to look for...

The Pathfinder School⁴ suggests a knife blade with a flat spine and sharp 90^o angles on both sides. The reason for this is in a survival situation, you can use the flat spine of your knife to scrape sparks from a ferrocerium rod or to strike against a piece of flint to throw sparks and start a fire. Without a 90^o spine on the back of your knife, you will have to use your blade to scrape sparks from a ferro rod and this will quickly ruin the edge (for more read From a Little Spark May Burst a Flame...©, HERE).

For fixed blade knives, look for a knife with a full tang. This means that that steel of the knife runs the full length and width of the hilt⁵,
and this will ensure that your knife is strong enough to act as a tool. For both pocketknives and sheath knives, you want a grip that feels good in your hand, a cracked scale on a pocketknife can leave you with blisters and a grip that is too big for your hand can slip. Additionally, fixed blade knives must have a good sheath, whether it is leather, nylon or Kydex

is a personal preference.

To rust or to not rust?

Unfortunately, not all steel is created the same. Some steel is more rust resistant, and some produces better sparks than others. Steel is an alloy of iron and some other elements, such as carbon, sulfur, manganese, tungsten, or chromium. This mixture of elements is what gives an alloy of steel its own unique properties.

Stainless steel knives resist rusting because stainless steel is an alloy with a minimum chromium content of 10.5%. The chromium reacts
with the oxygen in the air to form a protective layer that makes stainless steel highly resistant to rust. Just because stainless steel resists rusting doesn’t mean it won’t, it can and it will under the right conditions, just not as quickly as normal steels. Stainless steels rust when exposed to salt water, grease, moisture, or heat for prolonged periods of time.

High carbon steel doesn’t have chromium in its makeup, and because of this high carbon steel knives are prone to rusting quickly and require more care to maintain, but they are easier to sharpen in the wilderness. Also, they throw more sparks when used as a striker with flint or ferrocerium.

So, what is the best steel for a survival knife, high carbon steel⁴ or stainless steel? The Pathfinders School suggests that a survival knife should be made from high carbon steel, because it throws more sparks, if used as a striker, and because it is easier to sharpen.

So, what did Col. Whelen carry?

The late Colonel Townsend Whelen carried a fixed blade hunter’s knife, with a 3-½ long blade, and a stockman pattern two-bladed folding knife, both of which were made with high carbon steel.

Personally, I carry a high carbon steel fix blade boning knife with a six inch (15 cm) long blade that is one inch (2.5 cm) wide at the base and ¹/₈ inch (3 mm ) thick. It has a full tang and is comfortable in my hand. I have carried this knife for the last 15 years and have been very pleased with it. I also carry a Kershaw Leek Pocket Knife (1660) stainless steel folding knife in my neck sheath. It has a SpeedSafe Assisted Opening button, which means it can be easily opened one handed – a plus if you are injured in the wilderness and can only use one hand. As my back-up survival knife that is kept in my survival kit, I carry a pocketknife with a 2 ¾ (7 cm) long, high carbon steel blade made by the Colonial Knife Company. It no longer has any scales, but that is fine by me as it feels good in my hand, and it has an awl, a bottle opener/screwdriver and a can opener blade which have all proved invaluable in the field.

Don’t forget to come back next week and read “Not All Steel is Created the Same ©”, where we will talk about which high carbon steel is the best for your survival knife.

I hope that you continue to enjoy The Woodsman’s Journal Online and look for me on YouTube at BandanaMan Productions for other related videos, HERE. Don’t forget to follow me on both The Woodsman’s Journal Online, HERE, and subscribe to BandanaMan Productions on YouTube. If you have questions, as always, feel free to leave a comment on either site. I announce new articles on Facebook at Eric Reynolds, on Instagram at bandanamanaproductions, and on VK at Eric Reynolds, so watch for me.

That is all for now, and as always, until next time, Happy Trails!

Notes

¹ Field & Stream, December 2008 – January 2009, page 110, HERE

² From On Your Own in the Wilderness, by Colonel Townsend Whelen and Bradford Angier

³ Ibid.

⁴ Information on The Pathfinder School can be found, HERE

⁵ Some knives have a full tang, some with a partial tang that only extends partway into the hilt, and some are forged with a “tail” that extends through the length of the hilt.

Sources

Ewing, Dexter; “Best Survival Knife: These 10 Blades Could Save Your Skin”, September 1, 2022, [© 2023 Caribou Media Group], https://blademag.com/fixed-blade/best-survival-knives, accessed May 26, 2023

Gordon, Ben; “Why Flint Probably Won’t Spark Your Knife (or Hatchet)”, © 2023 Copyright Bulwark Consulting LLC of Wisconsin dba Ben Gordon Outdoors™, https://bengordonoutdoors.com/why-flint-only-makes-sparks-from-some-steels/, accessed May 12, 2023

Knifeguide; “1095 Steel – Is it a Good Knife Steel?”, https://www.knifeguides.com/1095-steel-for-knives/, accessed May 16, 2023

KnivesShipFree; “How to turn your ESEE knife into a firesteel striker”, April 12, 2015, https://www.knivesshipfree.com/blog/how-to-turn-your-esee-knife-into-a-firesteel-striker/, accessed May 12, 2023

McCafferty, Keith; “Primitive Survival Skills”, Field & Stream, February 2006, page 54-56, https://books.google.com/books?id=572F69alwGYC&pg=PA56&dq=Striking+sparks+with+a+pocket+knife&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjy_824oPH-AhUyjokEHWgSAHsQ6AF6BAgOEAI#v=onepage&q=Striking%20sparks%20with%20a%20pocket%20knife&f=false, accessed May 13, 2023

Mee, Arthur; and Thompson, Holland, Ph. D., Editors; The Book of Knowledge, Volume XXIV, [The Grolier Society, New York, 1911], https://books.google.com/books?id=AG46AQAAMAAJ&pg=PA5540&dq=pocketknife+carbon+points&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjXi8TxnPv-AhW4EVkFHfGpAuw4FBDoAXoECAgQAg#v=onepage&q=pocketknife%20carbon%20points&f=false, accessed May 17, 2023

Integrated Publishing; Hull Maintenance Technician, “Figure 6-11.--spark pictures formed by common metals”,[© Copyright Integrated Publishing, Inc.], page 6-16, https://enginemechanics.tpub.com/14119/Figure-6-11-Spark-Pictures-Formed-By-Common-Metals-189.html, accessed May 17, 2023

Whelen, Colonel Townsend, and Angier, Bradford; On Your Own in the Wilderness, [The Stackpole Company, Harrisburg, PA, 1958], page 116 to 120

Sunday, May 21, 2023

From a Little Spark May Burst a Flame...©

Sparks from a lighter with ferrocerium rod, from Wikimedia, HERE.

Last week, I wrote an article about how to paint a lubber line on The Ultimate Survival Tool”, manufactured by FreedomGorilla, HERE, which is a type of “5-in-1 Survival Whistle” that has a ferro rod, a “flint of pyrophoric metal”, from which sparks could be struck by the back of a pocketknife; and from that little spark may burst a flame, if you were out of matches.

A “flint of pyrophoric metal” is made of ferrocerium, (known in Europe as Auermetall), a pyrophoric alloy of mischmetal¹, a man-made combination of rare-earth elements, iron, and magnesium and is also called a ferro rod, a spark rod, or a flint-spark-lighter. Because of ferrocerium's easy ability to ignite in adverse conditions, it is used as an ignition source for lighters and as an emergency fire lighting device in survival kits. The ferrocerium rod is often called a “flint”, despite it being completely unlike natural flint, since both are used to create sparks to light a fire.

Ferrocerium is soft, and when struck with anything sharp and hard, such as a piece of steel, a bit of flint and even a shard of glass, porcelain, or ceramic, it will produce hot sparks that can reach temperatures of 6,000 °F (3,315 °C) Striking knocks fragments off, igniting them by frictional heating, due to cerium's remarkably low ignition temperature of 302 to 356 °F (150 to180 °C).

You can also strike sparks from a piece of steel, but when it comes to striking sparks with steel, it isn't the steel, but the carbon in it that
matters. As the carbon content increases, and the steel becomes harder, more and hotter sparks are produced. No matter how hard the steel is, however, it will still be softer than the flint, or other silicate stone, being used to strike it and it will spall off fragments. The striking action ignites the fragments causing the spall to oxidize as it flies through the air. Any carbon steel suitable for crafting a durable blade should work to produce sparks, with either a ferro rod or piece of flint. If the steel is struck a piece of flint, its sparks will ignite at a temperature of 932^o F (500^o C) and burn at a temperature of 2,498^o F (1,370^o C).

Stainless steel however, while it does produce sparks, yields fewer sparks, and is not a very good striker.

Many survival manuals, such as the Survival Training Guide, 1955, and Survival: Search and Rescue, 1969, show people using the sharp edge of their pocketknife blade, to scrape sparks from a ferro rod. This makes me crazy, the instructor in me worries “that people who are new to the wilderness will think that is the right way to do it!.”, while the historian in me notes “when tinderboxes were still a thing, that is not how they did it at all!”, and the survivalist and knife aficionado in me says, “gahh!..you’re going to ruin the edge of your knife!”.

The right way to do it...

The correct way to use your pocketknife and piece of flint, or a ferro rod¹ to strike sparks, is to use the spine (back edge) of the blade, or the back edge of your pocketknife’s screwdriver blade.

When tinderboxes were still a thing...

In the days before matches, or when matches were scarce, people placed a piece of punk or charcloth on top of the flint, holding it in their left hand (or less dominant hand) and then with their right hand (or more dominant hand) struck it “with a piece of steel(usually the back of the steel blade of a pocket-knife...Some knives had a special blade for this purpose and some men carried a small pocket steel for striking a light. It is said that the knife blades were frequently deeply indented by constant use on the flint”².

You’re going to ruin the edge...

While you can use the sharp edge of your blade, scraping the edge of your blade against a ferro rod knocks bits of steel off, as tiny glowing, white-hot sparks, and this will quickly ruin the edge of your blade and it is completely unsafe to use a piece of flint against the sharp edge of your knife.

Some tips for using a ferro rod

1. Don’t spare the rod...scrape hard. Scrape hard, gentle scraping won’t provide enough friction to ignite the flakes.

2. Scrape off the paint. Ferro rods are often painted with black paint to prevent corrosion and to keep them from bumping against each other during shipping. So, you have to scrape off the paint, before you can strike sparks from the rod. Scrape hard, the force you would normally use to strike sparks off the rod will also remove the paint and expose the ferrocerium.

3. Move the rod, not the striker. Unlike when you use flint and steel (where you strike with the steel not the flint), with a ferro rod you must hold the striker in one hand, and pull the rod away with the other, like you’re pulling on the cord of a lawn mower. This will help you aim the sparks and keep you from knocking your tinder all over the place.

4. Pick the right tinder To catch the sparks, you will need the right tinder. Use natural, light fluffy, fuzzy stuff like char-cloth, punk, cotton balls, cotton dryer lint, milkweed or cattail seed down, goldenrod fluff, rubbed and crushed, dried grass or the inner bark of cottonwood trees. Other types of tinder, like dry, dead leaves, wood shavings or small pine branches, which would normally light with the open flame, are too coarse, and won’t light until you get the fluffy stuff flaming.

Don’t forget to come back next week and read “Not All Steel Is Created Equal”, where we will talk about what is the best steel for a survival knife, 1075 or 1095 high carbon steel, or stainless steel? And what is the best survival knife anyways?

That is all for now, and as always, until next time, Happy Trails!

Notes

¹ Mischmetal means “mixed metal” and is a combination of cerium, lanthanum, neodymium, other trace lanthanides are-earth element and some iron) and is approximately 95% lanthanides and is hardened by blending in 5% oxides of iron and magnesium.

² From “Pen Pictures of Early Pioneer Life in Upper Canada, by A. “Canuck”, 1905

Sources

“Canuck”, A.; Pen Pictures of Early Pioneer Life in Upper Canada, [William Briggs, Toronto, 1905], page 141 to 142, https://books.google.com/books?id=pGY-GEEY4QkC&pg=PA140&dq=Striking+sparks+with+a+pocket+knife&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjy_824oPH-AhUyjokEHWgSAHsQ6AF6BAgQEAI#v=onepage&q=Striking%20sparks%20with%20a%20pocket%20knife&f=false, accessed May 13, 2023

Colvin, Fred H.; and Juthe, K. A., M.E.; The Working of Steel, [McGraw Hill Book Company, Inc. New York, 1922], pages 9 to 13, https://books.google.com/books?id=jWNJAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA11&dq=pocket+knife+steel&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj__L3dovv-AhXqFVkFHWWTAhs4MhDoAXoECAYQAg#v=onepage&q=pocket%20knife%20steel&f=false, accessed May 17, 2023

Department of the Air Force, Survival: Search and Rescue, AFM 64-5, August 15, 1969, [Washington D.C., U.S. Government Printing Office], page 2-21, https://books.google.com/books?id=ICAxuH7126EC&printsec=frontcover&dq=survive&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwisgrqZkM38AhUHF1kFHU2EBnY4FBDoAXoECAMQAg#v=onepage&q=survive&f=false, accessed May 13, 2023

Glazebrook, Richard, Sir; A Dictionary of Applied Physics [MacMillan and Company Ltd. London 1923], page 549 to 550, https://books.google.com/books?id=tknPAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA550&dq=pocketknife+carbon+points&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwi8w-X3mvv-AhXVMlkFHcLvBywQ6AF6BAgIEAI#v=onepage&q=pocketknife%20carbon%20points&f=false, accessed May 17, 2023

Knifeguide; “1095 Steel – Is it a Good Knife Steel?”, https://www.knifeguides.com/1095-steel-for-knives/, accessed May 16, 2023

MacWelch, Tim; “Survival Skills: 3 Handy Tricks For Ferrocerium Rods”, Outdoor Life, November 11, 2014, [© 2023 Recurrent], https://www.outdoorlife.com/blogs/survivalist/survival-skills-3-handy-tricks-ferrocerium-rods/, accessed May 20, 2023

MacWelch, Tim; “4 Tips to Avoid Fire-Making Mistakes with Spark Rods”, Outdoor Life, July 19, 2017, [© 2023 Recurrent], https://www.outdoorlife.com/use-these-tips-to-avoid-beginners-mistakes-with-spark-rods/, accessed May 20, 2023

Oberg, Erik, and Jones, Franklin Day; Iron and Steel: A Treatise on the Smelting, Refining, Mechanical, Fifth Edition, [The Industrial Press, New York, 1918], page 89, https://books.google.com/books?id=F8QxAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false, accessed May 16, 2023

Salmon, David; Longman’s Object Lessons, [Longmans, Green and Co., New York, 1895], page 135, https://books.google.com/books?id=tAUCAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA135&dq=Striking+sparks+with+a+pocket+knife&hl=en&newbks=1&newbks_redir=0&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjy_824oPH-AhUyjokEHWgSAHsQ6AF6BAgMEAI#v=onepage&q=Striking%20sparks%20with%20a%20pocket%20knife&f=false, accessed May 13, 2023

U.S. Navy; Survival Training Guide, NAVAER 00-80T-56, November 1955, [Washington D.C., U.S. Government Printing Office], page 10-7, https://books.googleusercontent.com/books/content?req=AKW5QadMXkcydSphV8cI8UocQe4U6kO6HynyYVS-uS866pfax6PBnFIxXRjLkeRv6hLvbHzdZwrnw5o08b3MH7Goq9Q0Bu67rXza024NnNmS5sFmTXND66jfgCBvst9v-KxpoXRe9S9lNDhoDVgs2JG53oso2I-LgNs1XSKcyIyU8Cx1eIncUxwXx4thehldtGBYeZFLRP8R7KhLqiO4BKsb8uofVaNFqNuGffD0OdUuLkN9V42djgFggOYCgIzwU2RAr9CplG3i, accessed May 13, 2023

About Me

I live near Buffalo, New York and have more than 25 years of experience in the outdoors. I enjoy being in the wilderness, paddling a canoe or exploring the woods, when I am not researching survival, woodcraft, camping skills or life on the Old Northwest Frontier of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. I am a published author and I have been a guide for Birchbark Expeditions and an Outdoor Skills trainer for the Boy Scouts since 2014. I am also a martial artist, having studied several different combat arts over the past 30 years. Currently, I am the author of The Woodsman’s Journal Online and BandanaMan Productions on YouTube.

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Sunday, May 28, 2023

Not all knives are created equal...©

Sunday, May 21, 2023

From a Little Spark May Burst a Flame...©

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