You‘re perfectly right about being cautious and focused when using bladed tools - especially when outdoors. I forgot that once and ended up putting an axe in my lower leg. I was unbelievably lucky that I didn’t hit my shin or any major blood vessels, had good first aid training and was able to stop the bleed with an Israeli bandage and only had to walk 5k (3miles) back to my car to get to the ER. Lessons learned: 1) when handling axes and knifes - do that and do that only (even mentally). Don’t get ahead of yourself. 2) there’s a reason why there are certain techniques that might seem odd or inconvenient, but that are recommended for the better 3) A well equipped IFAK with proper First Aid training is a must with these activities 4) The more remote/austere you go, the more caution should be applied. Great basic video. Gives me the impression you watched and/or read a lot of Paul Kirtley. Only thing I’d politely disagree is sharping an axe on more than a 1000grit stone.
Thank you for sharing this. Will pin the comment so others can learn! No idea who Paul K is, but will look into Him! And yes the grits I mention are for knifes also not just the axes
@@Echo_Mike you’re welcome. If just one person is eager to learn from my mistakes it is already worth sharing. Yes, you should absolutely look into Mr. Kirtley.
@user-jx3ox4iz5r good for you! I only put a small hatchet in and needed some stitching… a splitting maul would be a different story though… Techniques and procedures are there for good reasons. I think the two of us learned their lessons 🤦🏻♂️
A really very useful introduction to knife, saw and axe usage (didn't think I'd learn anything new, but did)! Ye, for me the 3 main takeaway lessons were; the knife power-cut, overhand saw cut, and V-Shape sawing... Excellent presentation. Thank you.
I'm really enjoying your channel . I really like your slow, deliberate presentation of information . Reminds me of training films of years ago. Your choice of tools is also excellent.
Your choice of knives is definitely great. I do believe Mora Companion is the very best knife ever created considering all and every factors. Keep it up 🔪
Nice video. Just wanted to say, according to Mors Kochanski you shouldent do upwards swings with an axe, as they can glans and come towards your face. Also on sharpening, i agree with freehand sharpening, practice it, i do woodworking, so i mostly handsharpen all my tools, which include handplanes. In the old days, when people knew a lot more about this stuff they didnt sharpend to the finest of grits that people do now. You don't need thousands of grits on specially something like an axe, the granfors bruks sharpening stone that has a coarse and fine side is plenty good, 180 for when you have damage on your edge, and 600 for when it's dull. You can also sharpen your knife on that stone if it gets dull, or if you want that extra sharpness on your knife, bring a leather belt or a strop, and hone the edge, you can keep a knife edge sharp with just that, as long as you havent let it go dull. For my woodworking when sharpening handplanes and chisels, i use a 1200 diamond grit stone and then i strop them with a compound, i do this often enough so that there is no need to go to a coarser grit, but this is for very fine work, and beyond what you need out there for survival.
Great info, mate. The more knowledge you have, the less gear you need to bring. It is also important to use the right tool in the correct way for the job at hand.
i hope more people will watch this .. i've seen some horrible accidents with axes. Sadly the same people that use their tools carelessly are more often then not also the same people that skip on carrying a first aid kit. My wife and i had to patch up a camper once who got hit in die forearm by his made with a large knife while they tried to delimb. Neither of them had medical supplies nor were they sufficiently trained in first aid.. If you go into the woods and carry tools, make sure to take a first aid class at least because like he said.. knowledge weights nothing
Hi there, and well done on a great video, especially the safety aspects. I do, however, want to present some alternatives to your choice of tools. For example, you maintain that an axe is absolutely essential, but then do not say why this is! You also say that a good bushcraft knife (singular, as in ONE) is what you need, but again you don't expand on why one one and why a Mora. So, I'd like to share some thoughts on what I would choose for tools for being in the woods/camping/hunting, etc, maybe for quite a time. I notice you carry quite a large pack, so I thought maybe the intention was for a longish stay. Firstly, I'd like to address the Axe. Personally I love working with an axe, and it can be loads of fun (I have some skill with axes and have never injured myself). However, in this scenario I would not carry an axe (unless I have some mode of transport [horse, truck, car, quadbike, etc] ) . Why? Mainly because it has very limited usage as there are more viable (and safer) alternatives. Alternatives: The most obvious one is the saw, preferably folding. That dry standing in the video would present very little challenge for a Silky Gomboy (and even less for a Bigboy). In addition, the result is clean, and nicely squared off (useful in later tasks like splitting or building) which one does not get with an axe without a lot of extra effort (calories!). If one is processing green timber, it works even better! For me, a saw (as above) is absolutely essential and my number one tool. Not negotiable. (The Bahco is also OK, and some prefer it. I would prefer the Silky (calories!). 0 Knife: Now, back to the axe. let's assume all cross-cutting will be done with the Silky. So what's left? Splitting? OK, that is useful use of an axe. However, why split? For fire? Why not collect wood that is sized for that purpose? Even if you have to (for some reason) split a log, one can use a knife - a large knife! It's MUCH lighter, easier to use and safer! It's also more versatile as it has tons of extra uses. I have a rule of thumb for splitting (batoning if you want): only logs as thick as half the length of your knife blade. (In my case, about 4 inches (I have a CS Trail Master). Bigger than that I'd use wedges cut with the TM. I'd carry this attached to my pack. I also do not subscribe to the One knife fits all school of thought. I'd also have a belt knife suitable for woodcraft tasks, carving, shaping, slicing, etc. I'd rather go for an all-round good performer rather than a specialist Scandi grind bushcrafter like a Mora or similar. My choice here would be a Victorinox Venture Pro system, which I'd wear on my belt. I'd also carry a multi-use knife for the majority of camp/cooking/general tasks, and carry it on a lanyard in my pocket (as I have done for 50 years! My choice here is the Victorinox Hercules. Having 3 (or more) knives give one another BIG advantage - multiple blade edges. With these three knives I have three blades and it is unlikely that I'd make them blunt to the point that they would be unusable! In fact, I doubt I'll ever in my lifetime have to re-sharpen my San Mai III Trail Master! The other two are very easy to sharpen but I could maintain a workable edge for a considerable time. So, I have presented an alternative approach! It would be nice to hear your thoughts on my approach! Cheers mate!
Saws and axes are great bushcraft tools every soldier should now how to handle. But i'm missing e-tools in this parade. While beeing build for digging they can also be used for chopping small wood.
Well done. Just one critique is that at 28:52 you have the wrong leg forward while cutting, thus exposing your femoral artery to a potentially fatal accident. That being said, you definitely cover so many important elements of fieldcraft/bushcraft neglected by others - even former Tier One operators. Good work!
For the wood split, it would be the best if you cut the pieces to the same length as your axe. In this way it would fit better when you place them next to each other. Also before you slam them together with full force, it is better to hit them together lightly so that the axe could embed a little into the wood and it would not budge during the big slam that would split the wood. For the knife chest lever grip, it is better to hold the knife sideways - your thumb on the wide side of the blade, the edge towards your knuckles. It gives more natural way to hold the knife and perform the cut unlike the way you showed it which involves twisting the wrist in not so comfort way.
Very useful advice on tool safety - essential to survival! Would be better, if you got closer to the camera, so people not only HEAR but SEE too, what you're doing. And please stop promoting the carbon steel knife myth - the only benefit a carbon steel blade has, is, you are able to strike it with a flint and create tiny, weak sparks (flint-and-steel method) that eventually light up very dry tinder (and ruin your blade). You don't need it with a ferrorod, the sparks come off the rod, you can even strike it with a hard rock or shard of glass. Mora knives are phantastic and I like them too very much, but the cheap regular ones don't come with a 90° spine, you have to file them down yourself; only their 'Bushcraft', 'Kansbol' and 'Garberg', which are pretty expensive, come with a sharpened spine, you missed that. You also missed to mention, that a beginner can easily destroy a saw blade by putting too much pressure on it - be patient, go easy and let the saw do the work! IMHO your tree-felling was rather poor, firstly you missed to mention to determine an escape route to get away from the tree the moment, it starts to fall, secondly, why use the axe to fell a tree, when you have a saw at hand, after correctly telling us, the axe is the most dangerous tool to use?? A saw is much quicker and a lot safer to use. On blade sharpening, if you don't have a nick or a rolled edge, a knife doesn't need SHARPENING, it needs to be STROPPED instead - and if you have to sharpen your knife or axe, use a diamond sharpener, they are so cheap now, cheaper than whetstones, and don't ever wear down - oddly the finer grits are cheaper than the coarse ones. Using only water to clean a knife or axe will not be successful, if you have dried sap or resin on it, then it needs petroleum or gasoline to get it off. Last word on axes: you are absolutely right that you should never use the back of an axe with a wooden handle as a hammer, the bulge on the back is meant to be a counterweight, without it, the blade would wobble (like tomahawks do). Only the edge is hardened, the rest is kept soft, otherwise the hanging, especially driving the wedge/s in could cause the eye to crack. That's different to axes with an overmold plastic handle, these blades are hardened through and through and you can use it like a hammer from light to medium duties and even more.
You‘re perfectly right about being cautious and focused when using bladed tools - especially when outdoors. I forgot that once and ended up putting an axe in my lower leg. I was unbelievably lucky that I didn’t hit my shin or any major blood vessels, had good first aid training and was able to stop the bleed with an Israeli bandage and only had to walk 5k (3miles) back to my car to get to the ER.
Lessons learned:
1) when handling axes and knifes - do that and do that only (even mentally). Don’t get ahead of yourself.
2) there’s a reason why there are certain techniques that might seem odd or inconvenient, but that are recommended for the better
3) A well equipped IFAK with proper First Aid training is a must with these activities
4) The more remote/austere you go, the more caution should be applied.
Great basic video. Gives me the impression you watched and/or read a lot of Paul Kirtley.
Only thing I’d politely disagree is sharping an axe on more than a 1000grit stone.
Thank you for sharing this. Will pin the comment so others can learn!
No idea who Paul K is, but will look into
Him! And yes the grits I mention are for knifes also not just the axes
@@Echo_Mike you’re welcome. If just one person is eager to learn from my mistakes it is already worth sharing.
Yes, you should absolutely look into Mr. Kirtley.
@user-jx3ox4iz5r good for you! I only put a small hatchet in and needed some stitching… a splitting maul would be a different story though…
Techniques and procedures are there for good reasons. I think the two of us learned their lessons 🤦🏻♂️
A really very useful introduction to knife, saw and axe usage (didn't think I'd learn anything new, but did)! Ye, for me the 3 main takeaway lessons were; the knife power-cut, overhand saw cut, and V-Shape sawing... Excellent presentation. Thank you.
I'm really enjoying your channel . I really like your slow, deliberate presentation of information . Reminds me of training films of years ago. Your choice of tools is also excellent.
Glad to have you here mate 💯
One of the best videos you've done my friend. ❤
Cheers mate 💯
Was about to click to the next Echo Mike video near the end… then man pulls out the Alan Watts and I had to stay for the rest!
@@jakeandbacon Cheers for watching mate
2:00 - absolutely! I probably broke my neck being tired and jumping into a wave at the beach.... could have been horrific
Your choice of knives is definitely great. I do believe Mora Companion is the very best knife ever created considering all and every factors. Keep it up 🔪
Nice video. Just wanted to say, according to Mors Kochanski you shouldent do upwards swings with an axe, as they can glans and come towards your face. Also on sharpening, i agree with freehand sharpening, practice it, i do woodworking, so i mostly handsharpen all my tools, which include handplanes. In the old days, when people knew a lot more about this stuff they didnt sharpend to the finest of grits that people do now. You don't need thousands of grits on specially something like an axe, the granfors bruks sharpening stone that has a coarse and fine side is plenty good, 180 for when you have damage on your edge, and 600 for when it's dull. You can also sharpen your knife on that stone if it gets dull, or if you want that extra sharpness on your knife, bring a leather belt or a strop, and hone the edge, you can keep a knife edge sharp with just that, as long as you havent let it go dull. For my woodworking when sharpening handplanes and chisels, i use a 1200 diamond grit stone and then i strop them with a compound, i do this often enough so that there is no need to go to a coarser grit, but this is for very fine work, and beyond what you need out there for survival.
Great info, mate. The more knowledge you have, the less gear you need to bring. It is also important to use the right tool in the correct way for the job at hand.
More people need to find this channel. one of the better ones out there. Grat video.
Love the advice on business aswell. Excellent view.
Nice tutorial. Thanks 👍🤝
Thank you so much for posting!
Love the channel!
Superb video. Thanks for Sharing.
Appreciate it, thank you
i hope more people will watch this .. i've seen some horrible accidents with axes. Sadly the same people that use their tools carelessly are more often then not also the same people that skip on carrying a first aid kit. My wife and i had to patch up a camper once who got hit in die forearm by his made with a large knife while they tried to delimb. Neither of them had medical supplies nor were they sufficiently trained in first aid.. If you go into the woods and carry tools, make sure to take a first aid class at least because like he said.. knowledge weights nothing
Thanks for sharing
Hi there, and well done on a great video, especially the safety aspects.
I do, however, want to present some alternatives to your choice of tools. For example, you maintain that an axe is absolutely essential, but then do not say why this is! You also say that a good bushcraft knife (singular, as in ONE) is what you need, but again you don't expand on why one one and why a Mora.
So, I'd like to share some thoughts on what I would choose for tools for being in the woods/camping/hunting, etc, maybe for quite a time. I notice you carry quite a large pack, so I thought maybe the intention was for a longish stay.
Firstly, I'd like to address the Axe. Personally I love working with an axe, and it can be loads of fun (I have some skill with axes and have never injured myself). However, in this scenario I would not carry an axe (unless I have some mode of transport [horse, truck, car, quadbike, etc] ) . Why? Mainly because it has very limited usage as there are more viable (and safer) alternatives.
Alternatives: The most obvious one is the saw, preferably folding. That dry standing in the video would present very little challenge for a Silky Gomboy (and even less for a Bigboy). In addition, the result is clean, and nicely squared off (useful in later tasks like splitting or building) which one does not get with an axe without a lot of extra effort (calories!). If one is processing green timber, it works even better!
For me, a saw (as above) is absolutely essential and my number one tool. Not negotiable. (The Bahco is also OK, and some prefer it. I would prefer the Silky (calories!). 0
Knife: Now, back to the axe. let's assume all cross-cutting will be done with the Silky. So what's left? Splitting?
OK, that is useful use of an axe. However, why split? For fire? Why not collect wood that is sized for that purpose? Even if you have to (for some reason) split a log, one can use a knife - a large knife! It's MUCH lighter, easier to use and safer! It's also more versatile as it has tons of extra uses. I have a rule of thumb for splitting (batoning if you want): only logs as thick as half the length of your knife blade. (In my case, about 4 inches (I have a CS Trail Master). Bigger than that I'd use wedges cut with the TM. I'd carry this attached to my pack.
I also do not subscribe to the One knife fits all school of thought. I'd also have a belt knife suitable for woodcraft tasks, carving, shaping, slicing, etc. I'd rather go for an all-round good performer rather than a specialist Scandi grind bushcrafter like a Mora or similar. My choice here would be a Victorinox Venture Pro system, which I'd wear on my belt.
I'd also carry a multi-use knife for the majority of camp/cooking/general tasks, and carry it on a lanyard in my pocket (as I have done for 50 years! My choice here is the Victorinox Hercules.
Having 3 (or more) knives give one another BIG advantage - multiple blade edges. With these three knives I have three blades and it is unlikely that I'd make them blunt to the point that they would be unusable! In fact, I doubt I'll ever in my lifetime have to re-sharpen my San Mai III Trail Master! The other two are very easy to sharpen but I could maintain a workable edge for a considerable time.
So, I have presented an alternative approach!
It would be nice to hear your thoughts on my approach!
Cheers mate!
Based whetstone enjoyer
Saws and axes are great bushcraft tools every soldier should now how to handle. But i'm missing e-tools in this parade. While beeing build for digging they can also be used for chopping small wood.
Well done. Just one critique is that at 28:52 you have the wrong leg forward while cutting, thus exposing your femoral artery to a potentially fatal accident. That being said, you definitely cover so many important elements of fieldcraft/bushcraft neglected by others - even former Tier One operators. Good work!
Good Job Sir
Cheers mate
For the wood split, it would be the best if you cut the pieces to the same length as your axe. In this way it would fit better when you place them next to each other. Also before you slam them together with full force, it is better to hit them together lightly so that the axe could embed a little into the wood and it would not budge during the big slam that would split the wood. For the knife chest lever grip, it is better to hold the knife sideways - your thumb on the wide side of the blade, the edge towards your knuckles. It gives more natural way to hold the knife and perform the cut unlike the way you showed it which involves twisting the wrist in not so comfort way.
Great post… new subscriber!
Also what comes to knives there are NEVER too many knives you can own. I've tried to push the limit, but haven't yet seen it.
Hello!
What brand and model are your pants?
Thanks!
I think they’re “Tru Spec 24/7 Expedition”
What kind of pants are those?
The three tools are like a gun,they are only dangerous if you do something stupid !
Very useful advice on tool safety - essential to survival!
Would be better, if you got closer to the camera, so people not only HEAR but SEE too, what you're doing. And please stop promoting the carbon steel knife myth - the only benefit a carbon steel blade has, is, you are able to strike it with a flint and create tiny, weak sparks (flint-and-steel method) that eventually light up very dry tinder (and ruin your blade). You don't need it with a ferrorod, the sparks come off the rod, you can even strike it with a hard rock or shard of glass. Mora knives are phantastic and I like them too very much, but the cheap regular ones don't come with a 90° spine, you have to file them down yourself; only their 'Bushcraft', 'Kansbol' and 'Garberg', which are pretty expensive, come with a sharpened spine, you missed that. You also missed to mention, that a beginner can easily destroy a saw blade by putting too much pressure on it - be patient, go easy and let the saw do the work!
IMHO your tree-felling was rather poor, firstly you missed to mention to determine an escape route to get away from the tree the moment, it starts to fall, secondly, why use the axe to fell a tree, when you have a saw at hand, after correctly telling us, the axe is the most dangerous tool to use??
A saw is much quicker and a lot safer to use.
On blade sharpening, if you don't have a nick or a rolled edge, a knife doesn't need SHARPENING, it needs to be STROPPED instead - and if you have to sharpen your knife or axe, use a diamond sharpener, they are so cheap now, cheaper than whetstones, and don't ever wear down - oddly the finer grits are cheaper than the coarse ones.
Using only water to clean a knife or axe will not be successful, if you have dried sap or resin on it, then it needs petroleum or gasoline to get it off.
Last word on axes: you are absolutely right that you should never use the back of an axe with a wooden handle as a hammer, the bulge on the back is meant to be a counterweight, without it, the blade would wobble (like tomahawks do). Only the edge is hardened, the rest is kept soft, otherwise the hanging, especially driving the wedge/s in could cause the eye to crack. That's different to axes with an overmold plastic handle, these blades are hardened through and through and you can use it like a hammer from light to medium duties and even more.
Thank you, sounds like this is your area of expertise. I can’t know it all so thank you for sharing so we can all learn!
Mem