Hey! Thanks for the Video. I found my perfect ultra light knive in the Gerber Lst recently, but if i found your video first it would have safed me a lot of time of research. I believe your video has a lot of usefull information for others. In terms of ultralight I think the opinel no. 2 has to be mentioned with only 4gramms and the lightest victorinox I found, the victorinox escort with around 16 gramms. 👍
The little Shrade is such a rip off of the LST - it’s a fun little knife though and perfectly serviceable as an ultralight knife. I’m Sure the LST must be much better quality though. Do you like it? Yeah the No2 Opinel is so ultralight and is enough for opening packages etc., I’m sure 👍
@accoutrements4469 actually i just ordered the LST didnt get it yet. It just has everything i need in theory. I can share my experience here soon. Also i want to mention a thing i found out with the victorinox escort. You can use the tool on the other side in addition to the handle so that you almost have somthing like a full grip. Seems to be nice to have. Doesnt work with the other victorinox knives i know with the same size.
Hiking/backpacking encompasses a wide range of activities and setups, there are hardcore ultralight backpackers who don't even take a stove and ''cold soak'', but I can't even go to the woods for a few hours without a brew kit at the very least, part of the fun is sitting down and making a coffee or rooibos tea. Full on bushcraft is the other end of the spectrum, taking fixed blades, axes/saws, cast iron pans and griddles and so on. I go wild camping and generally take a SAK with a saw (Hiker, Farmer, Farmer X) as a bare minimum, even if I'm not staying overnight I still like to have one as I do bushcrafty things like make a poncho shelter, make a basic chair from 3 lengths of wood lashed together as a triangle, or use my twig burner. Also if you do have a ferro rod the back of the saw is an excellent striker. One that you didn't mention that is quite popular with walkers/hikers - which is fair as it's discontinued and the 2nd hand market in the UK is limited to forums and facebook groups - is the Victorinox Walker (46g) , this may well be a better option than the Waiter (35g) but good luck finding one now. If I'm staying overnight I tend to add a folder dedicated to food prep because as you said if you're using the same blade as you use for outdoorsy tasks it's difficult to clean. Generally that's a UK legal Joker (of Spain) slipjoint, it has a strong backspring, olive wood scales, and is made from a reasonable MoVa steel, and I only paid about £15 for it. It does have a nail nick but honestly I will always take a few alcohol wipes or some antibac hand gel as a bare minimum and if I'm overnighting I wash up with boiling water.
Thank you so much for these detailed comments! Wonderful information in here, & I’m in complete agreement on many points 👍👍 I do actually have a Walker, was lucky enough to nab one before they vanished - lovely little knife. Not seen a Joker - will look into that, but you’re quite right, it’s all about having what works for you isn’t it. And you’re quite right about part of the fun of being outdoors is making a brew or, better still, some simple hot food! Especially if I’m out with my kids trying to ensure they have a love of the woods as I have🤞👍 Must say, Vic Huntsman has most often been my most used woodland knife, and I do like my Bahco Laplander too if I want to cut a bit more wood - lovely tool, that. Thanks again for the great comments and info 👍
Specifically for hiking I'd have go with one of the multli tool versions for obvious reasons . I love and carry an Opinel daily , but they are mainly just cutters . Not good at prying due to the thin blade. Having tweezers and pliers is really great for outdoors because splinters can be very very common and being able to bend metal can be very handy .
Yeah, I think some of these are great if you’re REALLY trying to save weight. I’ve most often carried something like a Victorinox Huntsman in the woods at the very least, but if you’re just out for a hike some of these options really are probably enough. It’s always that “just in case” thought in the back of my mind though, and carrying a multitool isn’t usually that big a deal is it 👍
Great video! I like to carry a Victorinox Hiker or Fieldmaster. Sometimes an Opinel 6 or an 8. By the way, the first Victorinox you showed, the yellow one, is not a Huntsman, it is a Climber. Nice one too for urban edc.
As long as you're okay with the length and the fact that it locks, the Victorinox Foldable Paring Knife is a really good option. It's light for the size, and is easy to clean (even advertised as dishwasher safe).
Oh yes I did look at getting one of those a while back but settled on the Floral Knife as it’s non-locking and was about half the price at the time. Those folding picnic knives do look good for the task though 👍
Consider: I'm about 80kg dressed, with boots etc. Even if I carry my Swiss Champ I'm only adding 0.2% to my mass, a Field Master at 100g adds only 0.1% so lets keep things in perspective. The scissors, which I know you're not keen on will make a perfectly superb tick remover from any plastic card, even your credit card, without destroying it. Good luck with using the tweezers for that. Great idea to modify the lifter for the ferrocerium rod. I'm also a great fan of the Opinel, the stainess blades are great for food prep and most other things too, a great choice.
Yeah, a SAK (any SAK) is hardly like carrying round a brick is it… I just did this vid to explore cheap & lightweight options… but I’d really hate to be the guy who has an accident and then wishes he’d brought along a more useful tool for the sake of saving a few extra grams in my pocket… 🤞 Love the opinels, but also really like that dirt-cheap little £6 Schrade Imperial for a bit of food prep as there’s no nail knick for food germs to fester in 👍
The batoning and stuff is a bit silly for me when it comes to a pocket knife. Im sure that if in a survival situation where you had absolutely nothing else to use, yeah you do what you gotta do but I most situations… it’s a bit silly to use a pocket knife for tasks that are really better suited for things like axes, hatchets, machetes, and large fixed blade knives that are designed to handle/do those tasks. If im knowingly going into a situation where I know these tasks will be necessary, I will pack the more necessary tools which I typically have in my bag at all times anyhow (like my hatchet)
@@accoutrements4469 hey, thanks for responding! I myself carry an opinel no. 6 and an opinel no. 8 depending on my mood and though it does have a thinner blade, an opinel does everything I need it to do tbh for a pocket knife haha.
That’s great, & yes I agree that although the blade is somewhat thin I’ve always found they stand up fine in use as long as you have realistic expectations of them 👌👍
@@Robert_Thomas832 thank you, Robert! Opinels are great! I particularly love that Garden Knife - prefer the blade shape over the standard clip point types blades 👍
Thanks very much! Those plus scales were from Shapeways, a 3D printing website, supplied by a seller called Asquared. I was very dubious about buying from Shapeways but the whole process and shipping was very quick and the scales are really fantastic - it’s the best 3D printing I’ve come across, very high quality. And they’re much grippier than the usual red plastic scales that come as standard on Vic knives 👍
2 years ago I discovered Florinox Kiana, made in Thiers - the French knife capital. French reviewers called it the 21st century Opinel - and I agree. Lightweight, great grip, great lock, fantastic blade for less than 20€ It doesn't look threatening, just a better modern look Opinel with a slightly more robust blade and therefore a little heavier than a similarly sized Opinel. I got the half serrated version in white. I love it. I rarely carry it, it is not an EDC knife, more of a camper and hiker knife. Otherwise a non-locking UK legal version could be a slipjoint Otter Mercator knife or a Douk Douk. Very slim, great looking blades, slipjoint...
It IS a cracker and has you covered for so many bases - all still in a relatively compact package. I just did this vid to explore alternative cheap & lightweight options ✌️✌️
Ah yes I forgot about the Bantam!! 😖 I have the Alox Bantam and think it’s a lovely knife! I *think* I forgot it in this list because it has no keyring loop & as a result I hardly ever carry it as I’m scared about it slipping out of my pocket and losing it as it’s so thin, so I just forget to include it here. Great little knife though 👍
Hiya Steve, the Waiter is a wonderful and under appreciated knife! I think a Waiter paired with an Alox Classic on my keys is a fantastic combination. Hope you’re well, Sir.
The Waiter is a massively under appreciated model imho - so useful in such a small package! The Soldier is a brilliant tool too if you need something beefier 👍
Vive la Suisse et la France. My favorite Opinel knife is the Garden n.8. I don't like the complicated blade of the ''normal'' (non-garden) n. 8 or of the other Opinel knives.
I have to agree - I definitely prefer the blade shape on the garden knife - much more useful for me than the clip point blade on other Opinels. Those have too much upsweep at the end of the blade: not as useful in my opinion. 👍
Hey! Thanks for the Video. I found my perfect ultra light knive in the Gerber Lst recently, but if i found your video first it would have safed me a lot of time of research. I believe your video has a lot of usefull information for others.
In terms of ultralight I think the opinel no. 2 has to be mentioned with only 4gramms and the lightest victorinox I found, the victorinox escort with around 16 gramms. 👍
The little Shrade is such a rip off of the LST - it’s a fun little knife though and perfectly serviceable as an ultralight knife. I’m
Sure the LST must be much better quality though. Do you like it?
Yeah the No2 Opinel is so ultralight and is enough for opening packages etc., I’m sure 👍
@accoutrements4469 actually i just ordered the LST didnt get it yet. It just has everything i need in theory. I can share my experience here soon.
Also i want to mention a thing i found out with the victorinox escort. You can use the tool on the other side in addition to the handle so that you almost have somthing like a full grip. Seems to be nice to have.
Doesnt work with the other victorinox knives i know with the same size.
Opinel No8 Inox - lightweight, super blade, best for hiking. I also like my Vic Climber.
Those are both really great choices imho! 👍
Hiking/backpacking encompasses a wide range of activities and setups, there are hardcore ultralight backpackers who don't even take a stove and ''cold soak'', but I can't even go to the woods for a few hours without a brew kit at the very least, part of the fun is sitting down and making a coffee or rooibos tea. Full on bushcraft is the other end of the spectrum, taking fixed blades, axes/saws, cast iron pans and griddles and so on.
I go wild camping and generally take a SAK with a saw (Hiker, Farmer, Farmer X) as a bare minimum, even if I'm not staying overnight I still like to have one as I do bushcrafty things like make a poncho shelter, make a basic chair from 3 lengths of wood lashed together as a triangle, or use my twig burner. Also if you do have a ferro rod the back of the saw is an excellent striker.
One that you didn't mention that is quite popular with walkers/hikers - which is fair as it's discontinued and the 2nd hand market in the UK is limited to forums and facebook groups - is the Victorinox Walker (46g) , this may well be a better option than the Waiter (35g) but good luck finding one now.
If I'm staying overnight I tend to add a folder dedicated to food prep because as you said if you're using the same blade as you use for outdoorsy tasks it's difficult to clean. Generally that's a UK legal Joker (of Spain) slipjoint, it has a strong backspring, olive wood scales, and is made from a reasonable MoVa steel, and I only paid about £15 for it. It does have a nail nick but honestly I will always take a few alcohol wipes or some antibac hand gel as a bare minimum and if I'm overnighting I wash up with boiling water.
Thank you so much for these detailed comments! Wonderful information in here, & I’m in complete agreement on many points 👍👍
I do actually have a Walker, was lucky enough to nab one before they vanished - lovely little knife. Not seen a Joker - will look into that, but you’re quite right, it’s all about having what works for you isn’t it. And you’re quite right about part of the fun of being outdoors is making a brew or, better still, some simple hot food! Especially if I’m out with my kids trying to ensure they have a love of the woods as I have🤞👍
Must say, Vic Huntsman has most often been my most used woodland knife, and I do like my Bahco Laplander too if I want to cut a bit more wood - lovely tool, that.
Thanks again for the great comments and info 👍
Specifically for hiking I'd have go with one of the multli tool versions for obvious reasons . I love and carry an Opinel daily , but they are mainly just cutters . Not good at prying due to the thin blade. Having tweezers and pliers is really great for outdoors because splinters can be very very common and being able to bend metal can be very handy .
Yeah, I think some of these are great if you’re REALLY trying to save weight. I’ve most often carried something like a Victorinox Huntsman in the woods at the very least, but if you’re just out for a hike some of these options really are probably enough. It’s always that “just in case” thought in the back of my mind though, and carrying a multitool isn’t usually that big a deal is it 👍
I do like Opinel, but Cold Steel Kudu is also a good choice
I hadn’t seen a Kudu before - looks good 👍
Great video! I like to carry a Victorinox Hiker or Fieldmaster. Sometimes an Opinel 6 or an 8.
By the way, the first Victorinox you showed, the yellow one, is not a Huntsman, it is a Climber. Nice one too for urban edc.
Thanks for the comments! 👍 I have a yellow Huntsman and a yellow Climber - I must’ve not being paying attention and got them mixed up!
As long as you're okay with the length and the fact that it locks, the Victorinox Foldable Paring Knife is a really good option. It's light for the size, and is easy to clean (even advertised as dishwasher safe).
Oh yes I did look at getting one of those a while back but settled on the Floral Knife as it’s non-locking and was about half the price at the time. Those folding picnic knives do look good for the task though 👍
Consider: I'm about 80kg dressed, with boots etc. Even if I carry my Swiss Champ I'm only adding 0.2% to my mass, a Field Master at 100g adds only 0.1% so lets keep things in perspective. The scissors, which I know you're not keen on will make a perfectly superb tick remover from any plastic card, even your credit card, without destroying it. Good luck with using the tweezers for that.
Great idea to modify the lifter for the ferrocerium rod.
I'm also a great fan of the Opinel, the stainess blades are great for food prep and most other things too, a great choice.
Yeah, a SAK (any SAK) is hardly like carrying round a brick is it… I just did this vid to explore cheap & lightweight options… but I’d really hate to be the guy who has an accident and then wishes he’d brought along a more useful tool for the sake of saving a few extra grams in my pocket… 🤞
Love the opinels, but also really like that dirt-cheap little £6 Schrade Imperial for a bit of food prep as there’s no nail knick for food germs to fester in 👍
The batoning and stuff is a bit silly for me when it comes to a pocket knife. Im sure that if in a survival situation where you had absolutely nothing else to use, yeah you do what you gotta do but I most situations… it’s a bit silly to use a pocket knife for tasks that are really better suited for things like axes, hatchets, machetes, and large fixed blade knives that are designed to handle/do those tasks. If im knowingly going into a situation where I know these tasks will be necessary, I will pack the more necessary tools which I typically have in my bag at all times anyhow (like my hatchet)
Absolutely agree. If needs must I guess, but the right tool for the job is always better. 👍
@@accoutrements4469 hey, thanks for responding! I myself carry an opinel no. 6 and an opinel no. 8 depending on my mood and though it does have a thinner blade, an opinel does everything I need it to do tbh for a pocket knife haha.
That’s great, & yes I agree that although the blade is somewhat thin I’ve always found they stand up fine in use as long as you have realistic expectations of them 👌👍
Victorinox camper is useful for cutting and finishing a walking stick. I carry a GAK sometimes. Thanks for the video.
I LOVE the Camper! I just did this vid to explore cheap & lightweight options, but do still carry the Camper or Huntsman on many outings ✌️✌️
I'm a big Opinel user too, got the no 8 and 9 carbone plus the 8 garden knife. Fantastic bang for buck. Keep up the good work.
@@Robert_Thomas832 thank you, Robert! Opinels are great! I particularly love that Garden Knife - prefer the blade shape over the standard clip point types blades 👍
👍
Nice overview of options. where did you get those scale that you use on the Waiter? they look amazing
Thanks very much! Those plus scales were from Shapeways, a 3D printing website, supplied by a seller called Asquared. I was very dubious about buying from Shapeways but the whole process and shipping was very quick and the scales are really fantastic - it’s the best 3D printing I’ve come across, very high quality. And they’re much grippier than the usual red plastic scales that come as standard on Vic knives 👍
2 years ago I discovered Florinox Kiana, made in Thiers - the French knife capital. French reviewers called it the 21st century Opinel - and I agree. Lightweight, great grip, great lock, fantastic blade for less than 20€ It doesn't look threatening, just a better modern look Opinel with a slightly more robust blade and therefore a little heavier than a similarly sized Opinel.
I got the half serrated version in white. I love it. I rarely carry it, it is not an EDC knife, more of a camper and hiker knife.
Otherwise a non-locking UK legal version could be a slipjoint Otter Mercator knife or a Douk Douk. Very slim, great looking blades, slipjoint...
Thank you for the information- I will check these out! Thank you for the comments - great to hear what other folks like and use!
The Huntsman is my favorite all around SAK.
It IS a cracker and has you covered for so many bases - all still in a relatively compact package. I just did this vid to explore alternative cheap & lightweight options ✌️✌️
You forgot the Bantam which is my cycling knife. My S.D is relagated to my wash bag.
Ah yes I forgot about the Bantam!! 😖 I have the Alox Bantam and think it’s a lovely knife! I *think* I forgot it in this list because it has no keyring loop & as a result I hardly ever carry it as I’m scared about it slipping out of my pocket and losing it as it’s so thin, so I just forget to include it here. Great little knife though 👍
The Waiter is the best option of those you reviewed
Hiya Steve, the Waiter is a wonderful and under appreciated knife! I think a Waiter paired with an Alox Classic on my keys is a fantastic combination. Hope you’re well, Sir.
Victorinox Farmer (Alox)
Yes great tool for sure but nowhere near as cheap or superlight as any of those in the vid 👍
I usually just take the waiter, if I’m doing more food prep or taking steak I take the soldier.
The Waiter is a massively under appreciated model imho - so useful in such a small package! The Soldier is a brilliant tool too if you need something beefier 👍
Vive la Suisse et la France. My favorite Opinel knife is the Garden n.8. I don't like the complicated blade of the ''normal'' (non-garden) n. 8 or of the other Opinel knives.
I have to agree - I definitely prefer the blade shape on the garden knife - much more useful for me than the clip point blade on other Opinels. Those have too much upsweep at the end of the blade: not as useful in my opinion. 👍
Get a knife that does what is necessary.
Sensible advice!