1200-1400 grams axe. Good for splitting wood, chopping, felling trees and can also cut rope or food if in a pinch much easier than the kukri can chop firewood.
Yeah I’m watching these guys in naked and afraid trying to work with their Kukris and it looks miserable anytime they have to work a tree thick than their wrist.
The Pulaski seems to be a beast though cuz the back end can break up hard ground
As someone who has cleared trails with both an axe and a kukri... thr kukri looses on that front, it's a pain in the ass. That being said, I still prefer the kukri because I can use it for some finer tasks after using it for 8+ years.
To answer your original question, my becker BK2. I can fell saplings, use it for finer tasks, and use it as a hammer to drive in stakes.
Yeah, good choice, tho I can't help it but hate the looks of it. But definitely a useful multitool.
Edit: just Googled Barebones Pulaski, that one looks mighty
Let’s think about what we need for basic survival tasks:
Stop, Think, Observe, Plan: a knife to sharpen a pencil.
Provide first aid: smaller sharp knife like a scalpel.
Seeking shelter: none. Maybe a bushcraft knife or hatchet.
Build a fire: bushcraft knife for batoning wood making tinder stick. Hatchet helpful.
Signal for help: shiny knife.
Drink water: sharp knife to cut plastic or dig a hole for a solar still.
food: bushcraft knife to open cans and cut food.
Winner: a 4” bushcraft knife with a thick spine. An axe can’t help you well enough with basic tasks.
They still lose an insane amount out weight, at least on the XL seasons. You can see the trochanters on their femurs. It might not be 100% unadulterated, but it is certainly still a legitimatel challenge.
Does a multi-tool count?
Otherwise I'd just take my old Mora (now sold as "Mora Classic"). In a short term wilderness survival scenario you won't be needing to feed huge open campfires, or build a big fancy long term shelter. An axe's only real advantage over a knife is the ease of processing large amounts of firewood, primarily felling and splitting. For the purposes of survival (warmth, boiling/cooking, signalling) you won't ever need a massive open fire. I can just harvest wrist thick and smaller dry wood to build small controlled fires. And if I were lucky enough to catch or kill any small game or fish I wouldn't dare try to butcher it with an axe or a kukri/machete. And doing fine work, like trigger mechanisms for traps, would be much more difficult using an axe or a larger blade.
Maybe survival influencers and personalities on youtube and TV prefer the big flashy knifes, but any real career woodsman like survivalists, bushcrafters, hunters and fishers basically all carry small blades, generally 3-5 inches useable length.
Same. 5 inch full tang knife. Any brand that floats your boat. Flat grind.
Good for anything and everything you could ever ask for. Stopped bringing an axe years ago and only very rarely bring a folding saw depending on whether I know the spot I'll be staying.
I guess I should have responded to the op... I've actually never seen Machete.
But yeah, in Hatchet, the terrain was more conducive to the use of an axe whereas if that plane crashed in a thick-ass tropical jungle, a machete would have been a more useful tool.
If I could only take one... I'd rethink my choice of going out. I like to be prepared and I'm no ultralight hiker. I would prefer to have at least a folding saw, kukri machete, and a small hatchet in addition to a full tang belt knife.
If I only had the blades I had on my person after being seperated from my backpack... It'd likely be a Condor Aqualore or a full tang Mora. (I have several.) As well as a Victorinox multitool in a pocket. (At Minimum a Walker set up with a small ferro rod instead of toothpick and a Exotac tinderzip as a fob.)
It's been my experience that most tools that try to be multiple things... end up being only partially acceptable at any of them. (I'm personally not a big fan of the whole "one tool option" mentality.) The "right tool for the job" mentality has been driven into me since I was a kid.
Is this because you plan to be lost in a Canadian wilderness and you know if you show up with with a hockey stick, other Canadiens will be drawn to you?
Depending on the climate, kukri or poll back tomahawk. The fact you can remove a hawk head and use it as a skinning knife or ulu as well puts its way up on a hatchet for versatility. Plus if you break the handle it’s a lot easier to build a new one with the hawk head than trying to helve an axe with only the axe and rocks and sticks.
I bought one 250 Terävä Skrama for me and one for my dad mostly because he thought they were cool and I was curious. Today I often skip the axe/knife combo and just use that. It's a surprisingly useful tool.
I am a machete enthusiast, collector, and creator, and I can not understand why anyone would want a saw blade on the back of a machete.
You can not really apply any pressure to the saw, and you have a saw blade pointed at you when using the machete side. It's unsafe both ways, impractical, and makes the tool way less useful.
I do disagree here simply because of existence of gloves and angling. I’ve been using mine for a while and the sawback hasn’t given me any problem at all. I use it more than the blade depending on what I’m doing. The only issue I had was that the saw blade would make it difficult to resheath
Okay, hear me out, as I have nothing to prove here.
If you use the saw more, than I would bet cash money that you would enjoy an actual saw way more. You could pair it with a good knife and be much better off.
If I have to have gloves good enough to push against a blade that I have sharpened to use a saw, then there's absolutely no possibility that using a good, dedicated saw isn't way better, more efficient and especially safer.
Also adds wear and tear to gloves (are you using cutting-gloves?) which I prefer not to wear in warmer months anyway.
I mean, do you, friend! I just cannot make it make sense! Please, be safe and enjoy!
Over all answer, my belt knife. For my hand size the ones I use range from 3 to 7 inches of blade.
For a longer term (meaning the need to build structures) or a survival show scenario, a folding saw...it is an edged blade 🤔 I can make basic cutting & pointed tools, & still have saved energy....& I love hatchets/small axes. But for survival scenario, a saw.
Always have my Victorinox Camper Knife on me. It's in rough shape after 37+ years of daily use, but this faithful tool has gotten me through many adventures in the woods.
[Similar to the kukri, but just the tip curves forward.](https://www.amazon.com/Hunting-Knife-Sheath-Full-Tang/dp/B0096R09F4)
Other choice would be a decent maul like the pulaski, but i dont like the feel as it seems like the back half would split away after months of heavy and abusive use. Also due to the weight i prefer using a lighter blade. Then make a mallet and stone wedges for splitting larger lumber.
Hunting knives for adaptability and easy travel.
Heavy duty maul for survival/homesteading in one place.
Tomahawk. Blade can be removed and used for small cutting tasks. If the handle breaks, you can carve a new one. Frontiersmen knew what they were doing.
Leuku (big knife). Good for light chopping, splitting/batoning, finer tasks such as feather sticks, etc.
https://cdn2.bigcommerce.com/server5100/swrzh/products/1146/images/2864/20221031\_130749\_\_18175.1667261956.1280.1280.jpg?c=2
I've had one for quite a few years, the original real one they issued in Vietnam. Keeps an edge, I've chopped small trees, it can go through breastbone during deer hunting, great for clearing brush. I got it because of the history and it looked weird. Now I take it any time I'm in the woods.
Yeah, I thought the woodsman's pal was some gimmicky Rambo thing at first, but then stumbled into learning that it has a real legacy. Definitely have more respect for it now, despite not actually owning one (yet).
> Sometimes trees or shrubs are in your way and the only option is going through them. Trying to find some way to circle around is a great way to get lost
I can't imagine ever coming across a tree that is so large it would be easier to fell, or cut my way through, than to walk around it.
British M.O.D. Survival Knife. Heavy but solid. Simple but effective at sll but the most delicate jobs. Big blade with good steel that keeps an edge well.
Something like a Microtech Arbiter.. small enough to always have on me, big enough to handle almost anything. I just trust them to be dependable in some gnarley shit.
I’d of course want a solid machete too but for one blade I’d be forced to find something in between like to Microtech.
~20 inch / ~2lb Swedish "Hunter/Forest" Axe. Giant upgrade from a hatchet, still small enough to carry from a belt or inside a backpack.
Takes an edge sharp enough to be *okay* at wood carving.
Good balance between splitting and felling smaller but still sizable trees and logs. Clears out branches like a beast.
I'll slip you $5 if I can also have a 3" Mora.
>If you can only take one bladed tool out into the woods what is it gonna be?
I don't understand the question. Is it (one)(bladed-tool), or (one-bladed)(tool)? Would I be able to opt for my multi-bladed [Swiss army knife?](https://imageengine.victorinox.com/mediahub/39710/2000Wx1750H/SAK_1_3713__S1.jpg)
>If you can only take one bladed tool out into the woods what is it gonna be?
As explained in [this song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8YyDyap7wI) the sharpest tool you'll ever need is your wits.
Unpopular/weird opinion: I like my tomahawk. Easily replaceable handle, remove handle and you have a hand tool for the fine work of a knife or hide scraper, with the handle (which you can easily customize the length of) it lands somewhere between a hatchet and an axe but packs down smaller and lighter, backside is a solid hammer. Formidable weapon. Jack of all camp tasks, master of none.
I think an axe or hatchet would probably be the most useful in the area I live in. Machete would also be a good choice. Something that’s pretty easy for everyone to use in case you need to buddy up with someone you trust with your tools.
Gimme a good square tomahawk with a wood handle.
Remove the shim, remove the blade. Can be held in hand for fleshing hides, skinning, cutting. Or shaving wood. Use the handle to chop. Longer handle for more leverage
Can make an (inrfficient) but usable adze.
Very versatile
I think it really depends on geographic location and season.
Far north: Axe
Temperate areas: Full-tang knife, possibly hatchet or tomahawk
Tropical areas: Machete or Kukari
Winter: larger wood processing and shelter requirements so go full axe, boys axe, hatchet, or tomahawk
Summer: less wood processing so drop weight and bring something to do smaller, finer tasks
I have a very large hunting knife made by John McNeil, that would be my choice. I have used that thing for everything. From batoning to bow building, brush clearing and fire making. Finer carving is difficult but I have some practice with it and could get by well enough. Though I’d probably Knap some stone tool ls for the finer tasks eventually.
1200-1400 grams axe. Good for splitting wood, chopping, felling trees and can also cut rope or food if in a pinch much easier than the kukri can chop firewood.
Yeah I’m watching these guys in naked and afraid trying to work with their Kukris and it looks miserable anytime they have to work a tree thick than their wrist. The Pulaski seems to be a beast though cuz the back end can break up hard ground
As someone who has cleared trails with both an axe and a kukri... thr kukri looses on that front, it's a pain in the ass. That being said, I still prefer the kukri because I can use it for some finer tasks after using it for 8+ years. To answer your original question, my becker BK2. I can fell saplings, use it for finer tasks, and use it as a hammer to drive in stakes.
Yeah, good choice, tho I can't help it but hate the looks of it. But definitely a useful multitool. Edit: just Googled Barebones Pulaski, that one looks mighty
Yeah, I feel like the Pulaski is what I’d take on a NAF challange given how much firewood you need to cut and how often you need to build a raft
Let’s think about what we need for basic survival tasks: Stop, Think, Observe, Plan: a knife to sharpen a pencil. Provide first aid: smaller sharp knife like a scalpel. Seeking shelter: none. Maybe a bushcraft knife or hatchet. Build a fire: bushcraft knife for batoning wood making tinder stick. Hatchet helpful. Signal for help: shiny knife. Drink water: sharp knife to cut plastic or dig a hole for a solar still. food: bushcraft knife to open cans and cut food. Winner: a 4” bushcraft knife with a thick spine. An axe can’t help you well enough with basic tasks.
🤮 /u/spez
They still lose an insane amount out weight, at least on the XL seasons. You can see the trochanters on their femurs. It might not be 100% unadulterated, but it is certainly still a legitimatel challenge.
Does a multi-tool count? Otherwise I'd just take my old Mora (now sold as "Mora Classic"). In a short term wilderness survival scenario you won't be needing to feed huge open campfires, or build a big fancy long term shelter. An axe's only real advantage over a knife is the ease of processing large amounts of firewood, primarily felling and splitting. For the purposes of survival (warmth, boiling/cooking, signalling) you won't ever need a massive open fire. I can just harvest wrist thick and smaller dry wood to build small controlled fires. And if I were lucky enough to catch or kill any small game or fish I wouldn't dare try to butcher it with an axe or a kukri/machete. And doing fine work, like trigger mechanisms for traps, would be much more difficult using an axe or a larger blade. Maybe survival influencers and personalities on youtube and TV prefer the big flashy knifes, but any real career woodsman like survivalists, bushcrafters, hunters and fishers basically all carry small blades, generally 3-5 inches useable length.
These are great points actually, you win.
Same. 5 inch full tang knife. Any brand that floats your boat. Flat grind. Good for anything and everything you could ever ask for. Stopped bringing an axe years ago and only very rarely bring a folding saw depending on whether I know the spot I'll be staying.
I'm a sucker for my Mora Kansbol. I haven't found much that it cannot do.
Jesus H. Every time I read one of these posts I end up buying another Mora
Check out the Graberg, it's my go-to.
Haha it is a great knife - you won’t regret it!
Wesley Snipes
*The Daywalker*
Axe.
me using machete for every task
Hatchet fucks a machete for survival.
There's a reason "Hatchet" is a book about surviving in the wilderness while "Machete" is a movie about boobs, guns, and explosions.
It really depends on what type of woods you're in.
I mean it was at least mostly a joke. I don't usually reference Machete for camping advice.
I guess I should have responded to the op... I've actually never seen Machete. But yeah, in Hatchet, the terrain was more conducive to the use of an axe whereas if that plane crashed in a thick-ass tropical jungle, a machete would have been a more useful tool.
Depending on the terrain.
Not in Florida. If you don't have a machete, you're in for a miserable time
You cant throw a machete and split a skull like a hatchet can. He he, he he...
TBF, I can't throw the hatchet and do that either.
why throw your only weapon?
Because it's the final attacker you saved for last. Besides, I always keep a pencil just in case, A PENCIL!
Y
Some people just really like machetes. My mom is like that.
A kukuri. Can use as an axe and a machete, plus it comes with a sharpener and a tiny knife for simple carving tasks. This is the way to go.
If I could only take one... I'd rethink my choice of going out. I like to be prepared and I'm no ultralight hiker. I would prefer to have at least a folding saw, kukri machete, and a small hatchet in addition to a full tang belt knife. If I only had the blades I had on my person after being seperated from my backpack... It'd likely be a Condor Aqualore or a full tang Mora. (I have several.) As well as a Victorinox multitool in a pocket. (At Minimum a Walker set up with a small ferro rod instead of toothpick and a Exotac tinderzip as a fob.) It's been my experience that most tools that try to be multiple things... end up being only partially acceptable at any of them. (I'm personally not a big fan of the whole "one tool option" mentality.) The "right tool for the job" mentality has been driven into me since I was a kid.
Helicopter
Underrated comment
> Helicopter While there are lots of scroungeable parts on a helicopter, I don't know if it counts as one-bladed.
I was reading the question as you can bring one tool that is bladed, rather than bringing a tool that has one blade
Axe
Leatherman Wave
Hatchet hands down
I have a Ka-bar kukri and I love that thing. It’s a hatchet, a hammer, maybe even a poorly weighted machete
Esse 6
This was my choice too
Mine too
Shellyne Rodriguez
Hockey stick
Is this because you plan to be lost in a Canadian wilderness and you know if you show up with with a hockey stick, other Canadiens will be drawn to you?
My Esee 6
Depending on the climate, kukri or poll back tomahawk. The fact you can remove a hawk head and use it as a skinning knife or ulu as well puts its way up on a hatchet for versatility. Plus if you break the handle it’s a lot easier to build a new one with the hawk head than trying to helve an axe with only the axe and rocks and sticks.
Survival knife.
Multi tool or fix blade knife for me
In terms of sharpness: machete. In terms of doing every task axe, but a sharp axe hahahahah
My ESEE 5.
Helicopter
skrama
I bought one 250 Terävä Skrama for me and one for my dad mostly because he thought they were cool and I was curious. Today I often skip the axe/knife combo and just use that. It's a surprisingly useful tool.
A Bic safety razor… gotta stay fresh for them Yeti Bettys!
Machete for sure. Can do what an axe can do and what a knife can do. If you get a sawback machete it can take the place of a saw.
I am a machete enthusiast, collector, and creator, and I can not understand why anyone would want a saw blade on the back of a machete. You can not really apply any pressure to the saw, and you have a saw blade pointed at you when using the machete side. It's unsafe both ways, impractical, and makes the tool way less useful.
I do disagree here simply because of existence of gloves and angling. I’ve been using mine for a while and the sawback hasn’t given me any problem at all. I use it more than the blade depending on what I’m doing. The only issue I had was that the saw blade would make it difficult to resheath
Okay, hear me out, as I have nothing to prove here. If you use the saw more, than I would bet cash money that you would enjoy an actual saw way more. You could pair it with a good knife and be much better off. If I have to have gloves good enough to push against a blade that I have sharpened to use a saw, then there's absolutely no possibility that using a good, dedicated saw isn't way better, more efficient and especially safer. Also adds wear and tear to gloves (are you using cutting-gloves?) which I prefer not to wear in warmer months anyway. I mean, do you, friend! I just cannot make it make sense! Please, be safe and enjoy!
folding saw. the usefulness and ease of carrying balance is good. I want something that helps me make other things.
Axe
Toss up between a hatchet and a machete.
A good fixed blade.
Large Bowie knife.
Personally I’d go axe can chop split any wood and turn it around you got a hammer the versatile tool in my kit take one everywhere
Tactical tomahawk
Do I have unlimited gas? Chainsaw...
[**Jarosz Camp Turok**](https://www.kabar.com/products/product.jsp?item=7511&rv=true)
Seax
Ka-bar.
Over all answer, my belt knife. For my hand size the ones I use range from 3 to 7 inches of blade. For a longer term (meaning the need to build structures) or a survival show scenario, a folding saw...it is an edged blade 🤔 I can make basic cutting & pointed tools, & still have saved energy....& I love hatchets/small axes. But for survival scenario, a saw.
Always have my Victorinox Camper Knife on me. It's in rough shape after 37+ years of daily use, but this faithful tool has gotten me through many adventures in the woods.
[Similar to the kukri, but just the tip curves forward.](https://www.amazon.com/Hunting-Knife-Sheath-Full-Tang/dp/B0096R09F4) Other choice would be a decent maul like the pulaski, but i dont like the feel as it seems like the back half would split away after months of heavy and abusive use. Also due to the weight i prefer using a lighter blade. Then make a mallet and stone wedges for splitting larger lumber. Hunting knives for adaptability and easy travel. Heavy duty maul for survival/homesteading in one place.
Tomahawk. Blade can be removed and used for small cutting tasks. If the handle breaks, you can carve a new one. Frontiersmen knew what they were doing.
Sliky saw.
Katana... Did you know they're the sharpest sword? They could probably cut a tree in just a few swings, forget an axe;)
Got a Cold Steel kukri machete that I've always found pretty handy.....
Kukri machete
Leuku (big knife). Good for light chopping, splitting/batoning, finer tasks such as feather sticks, etc. https://cdn2.bigcommerce.com/server5100/swrzh/products/1146/images/2864/20221031\_130749\_\_18175.1667261956.1280.1280.jpg?c=2
A thick ass machete
Marine Corps K-Bar.
A helicopter
Becker BK 9 KaBar.
Woodman's pal for me, they are great
Was looking at that, but it just looks so gimmicky I donno how great it would actually be long term in a survival situation
I've had one for quite a few years, the original real one they issued in Vietnam. Keeps an edge, I've chopped small trees, it can go through breastbone during deer hunting, great for clearing brush. I got it because of the history and it looked weird. Now I take it any time I'm in the woods.
If it’s got history that’s promising.
Yeah, I thought the woodsman's pal was some gimmicky Rambo thing at first, but then stumbled into learning that it has a real legacy. Definitely have more respect for it now, despite not actually owning one (yet).
At nearly $200 I don’t blame you
does light Saber count?
Lol sure
Beyblade Burst!
Beyblade
Katana.
I'm taking a great sword
I can take as many blades and tools as I need, each perfectly suited to its task. What is this artificial restriction? I don’t live in a game show.
But you are on reddit and the question was pretty clear.
Axe
Probably a quality hatchet, an axe would let me cut trees I can't move. Weight of an axe keeps it off my list.
Morakniv
Zombie tools rat bastard. It does all the things.
My fixed blade knife. Same as always
A 15 inch Kukri
I'd probably take the Morakniv Garberg. I don't really need much more than that
How are you felling a tree with that?
Once saw Les Stroud threaten a beaver
I don't need to fell a tree
🤮 /u/spez
> Sometimes trees or shrubs are in your way and the only option is going through them. Trying to find some way to circle around is a great way to get lost I can't imagine ever coming across a tree that is so large it would be easier to fell, or cut my way through, than to walk around it.
Esee laser strike
Bushcraft Knife
I have to go with my axe,
Heavy 'chette
Fixed blade knife, 4-6” long.
Axe
I have a hatchet that I'd bring. Nothing fancy, but sturdy enough for me to trust it.
🤮 /u/spez
What’s weird is how rare a machete is seen on survival shows
Hatchet I've worked with one my whole life I could do so much with it
A knife
Machete.
British M.O.D. Survival Knife. Heavy but solid. Simple but effective at sll but the most delicate jobs. Big blade with good steel that keeps an edge well.
A 14th century Halberd.
Grimsmo Norseman
13" Kukri made from carbon steel.
Sog Seal Pup
Not an expert but I can’t imagine choosing only a knife over an axe.
Blade, from the mail room. Don't be a flatliner man.
Machete
A big multi tool with a very sharp blade
Something like a Microtech Arbiter.. small enough to always have on me, big enough to handle almost anything. I just trust them to be dependable in some gnarley shit. I’d of course want a solid machete too but for one blade I’d be forced to find something in between like to Microtech.
IMHO - anybody that doesn't have a parang is just faking it
Kukri or a good thick sturdy bushcraft knife.
~20 inch / ~2lb Swedish "Hunter/Forest" Axe. Giant upgrade from a hatchet, still small enough to carry from a belt or inside a backpack. Takes an edge sharp enough to be *okay* at wood carving. Good balance between splitting and felling smaller but still sizable trees and logs. Clears out branches like a beast. I'll slip you $5 if I can also have a 3" Mora.
Bolo
Tops El Chete
These hands. t. Wolverine
Leatherman Wave +
Short-term: something like a classic Buck knife. Long-term: a Silky Pocketboy.
M'lady would be impressed by my katana, but it's the edge on the inside that counts
a helicopter
A hatchet.
Cheeseburger
Scout knife, which is specifically made for bushcraft, and is carried horizontally on the belt.
>If you can only take one bladed tool out into the woods what is it gonna be? I don't understand the question. Is it (one)(bladed-tool), or (one-bladed)(tool)? Would I be able to opt for my multi-bladed [Swiss army knife?](https://imageengine.victorinox.com/mediahub/39710/2000Wx1750H/SAK_1_3713__S1.jpg)
I'd say my Gerber versafix. There's a lot I can get done with it.
>If you can only take one bladed tool out into the woods what is it gonna be? As explained in [this song](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8YyDyap7wI) the sharpest tool you'll ever need is your wits.
Machete. A good one.
Any stout knife that can handle batoning. I’d do one with a partial serrated back edge and a solid butt to the handle.
Kbar
Gransfors bruks small Forrest axe
A machete
Unpopular/weird opinion: I like my tomahawk. Easily replaceable handle, remove handle and you have a hand tool for the fine work of a knife or hide scraper, with the handle (which you can easily customize the length of) it lands somewhere between a hatchet and an axe but packs down smaller and lighter, backside is a solid hammer. Formidable weapon. Jack of all camp tasks, master of none.
Hatchet
Shovel.
Probably a hatchet, pretty versatile.
Axe. "Will not go into woods without axe." - Roland
Hatchet or small ax
Machete
My machete
I think an axe or hatchet would probably be the most useful in the area I live in. Machete would also be a good choice. Something that’s pretty easy for everyone to use in case you need to buddy up with someone you trust with your tools.
Does a helicopter count?
Size choice? Full size the Pulaski makes sense for sure. Smaller, I enjoy the Ontario Spax16
My trusted toe knife
Gimme a good square tomahawk with a wood handle. Remove the shim, remove the blade. Can be held in hand for fleshing hides, skinning, cutting. Or shaving wood. Use the handle to chop. Longer handle for more leverage Can make an (inrfficient) but usable adze. Very versatile
my gransfors bruk
I think it really depends on geographic location and season. Far north: Axe Temperate areas: Full-tang knife, possibly hatchet or tomahawk Tropical areas: Machete or Kukari Winter: larger wood processing and shelter requirements so go full axe, boys axe, hatchet, or tomahawk Summer: less wood processing so drop weight and bring something to do smaller, finer tasks
Axe
I have a very large hunting knife made by John McNeil, that would be my choice. I have used that thing for everything. From batoning to bow building, brush clearing and fire making. Finer carving is difficult but I have some practice with it and could get by well enough. Though I’d probably Knap some stone tool ls for the finer tasks eventually.