cold steel spike for survival???

...They'd be handy for carrying all of your knives for a start :D

Well I used think that really the only spike that has a lot of value beyond being shiv is the Scimitar (and even it is very limited). But I guess you could use it for delicate stuff. However is this going to make it an essential survival too? Probably not. It is an odd choice.

I'm just a man, but I'm trying to do better.

I think a spike tucked into a pack would be pretty handy myself.  Maybe tuck one into your sock so you have it all the time and won't get separated from it.  I think what LCT is getting down to is the difference in a survival situation between having and not having a knife with you.

Say you are out in the woods and have your camp all set up nice.  You go out for a little walk taking with you nearly nothing because after all, you are coming back to camp.  In the course of your walk something happens, you get turned around and can't find camp again.  Now all you have is the Spike that is tucked in your sock, or the one in your fanny pack with some small items that you are always with... now you are in a survival situation.

I am sure that all here are going to protest how this could NEVER happen to them because they are never without "X" and "YX" etc.  I am sure you take all of this with you all the time, even when you go off a little ways to take a crap, right?

There have been cases of people loosing there way back to camp after doing just this if something odd happened to them as they were TCB.  Maybe a bear finds you tasty or maybe you decided to use the wrong tree and a mountain lion takes exception to it.  Extreme examples sure but to make the point easier to swallow, perhaps something catches your eye and you wander off a bit further than you thought after you finish pooping.  

Now what do you do?  All alone, in the woods, some TP and your knife with you and some small stuff in your pockets maybe... glad you have the Spike now?

Out here in Arizona, and many other places, I always hear stories of people getting lost while hiking, camping, etc... When I heard those stories, I use to say, "How can so many people get so lost so often?  Well, I quit saying that a few years ago when a friend and I got lost on a simple hike of just a few hours.  We came out of the woods on to a gravel road. I just KNEW we should go to the right, but Stan was certain we should go left. Instead of trusitng my gut, I let Stan have it his way. BIG mistake. We ended up heading out into the middle of nowhere and quickly ran out of water and anything to eat. We were rescued by two vehicles out four-wheeling. Had they not come along, no telling what would've happened. We were in a VERY desolate area, and those guys showing up was a miracle. Never think it can't happen to you...it can. Now that I think about it, neither one of us had a single weapon on us. How dumb was that? Thankfully, I learned a valuable lesson and never leave home without at least one weapon on me. You never know when you might need it.

 
               

My spike is in the first aid/survival kit now.  A spike beats empty hands %100 of the time. It is very sturdy and very pokey, it drills holes for fire boards and digs for fish bait like a champ. The more knives you have strapped to you, the better off you are in the outdoors.

Dragonblue. Dude, minions? You are cracking me up with that.

I just returned from a wilderness trip which my wife and I are guides for every year.  We take college and high school students into the mountains and teach basic camping / survival skills.  Everything went wrong this trip and I was glad for the spike around my neck.

I always take it camping but not as a primary.  Trail master bowie as a primary, Scimitar spike for a small blade and a good multi tool for options.

I try to spare the edge on my blades as much as possible so don't use the edge of the spike often but that back edge (I think it's supposed to be a "bone breaker") is amazing.  I cut paracord with it and it throws sparks like fireballs from flint or fire starters.

Like Warthog said you never know when you will get turned around.  I had issues this trip with a trail I've hiked dozens of times over the past 13 years but this year...  Something around your neck is with you and even though I take my bowie even to poop in the woods you never know.  I use a hammock with bug netting while camping, if a predator comes along you better believe that spike is going to cut me out faster then finding the zipper.

Couldn't you fit a Spike in the handle of a Bushman? That could be handy, and you could carry another secondary if you wanted.

Cry 'Havoc' and let slip the Dog's of War.
~W. Shakespeare, "Julius Caesar"

If a six-foot guy knew when he tried to beat up a five-foot accountant that the guy was going to whip out a fighting knife and flay their arm from elbow to wrist, they might not ever throw that punch!
-Lynn T.

I doubt you'd get a spike in there, maybe a super edge.

Hasste


Couldn't you fit a Spike in the handle of a Bushman? That could be handy, and you could carry another secondary if you wanted.

Funny you should ask. I actually tried that idea a while back and it does not fit at all. Way too big.

 
               

while i am in no way a fan of the spike series, i recently obtained a gift certificate to a local sporting goods store and going off opinions here, got a the 'spike' spike to put into my car emergency kit.
do i like it better now that i have one? not really. still just doesnt appeal

thedragon.blue


hey sirupata,
where did you find LCT's recommendations for survival knives?  is it on the CS website?  i would be interested in reading them. 
 
i think the spikes are good knives to have in survival situations if you have a larger primary blade.  of course, ideally i would want a machete or two, an ax or tomahawk, a couple large fixed blade knives and a couple smaller fixed blade knives.  i would also want minions.  minions are good to have regardless of the situation. 

yep... heres the link
http://www.coldsteel.com/survival.html

"We will never defeat the enemy if we are at each others throats."  -Sean Kennedy

 
www.rantmedia.ca

 
               

bbbb's got a point.  I carry a cheap non CS knife to abuse while saving the edge on my Vaquero.  The non-CS is cheaper but assisted opening so has cool points.

The best survival knife to have is the one on your person when you need it. I love my spike. I carry it around my neck when hunting, camping, fishing, jogging, biking, going to the supermarket and the list goes on. Just about every thing that fellow on the show Man vs Wild does with his various knives I can do with the CS spike.

thedragon.blue


hey sirupata,
where did you find LCT's recommendations for survival knives?  is it on the CS website?  i would be interested in reading them. 

http://www.coldsteel.com/survival.html

The cold steel spike is the perfect survival blade, I never go into the bush without one! Before I go into my reasons let me describe my experience. I grew up in Northern British Columbia hunting, fishing, hiking, and living and working in the bush. I am now a wildlife ecologist who spends up to eight months at a time living in isolated field camps, so remote we have to have food flown in by helicopter. I have taken the cold steel spike from the mountains of BC to the mudflats of New Brunswick. Everywhere in between this knife has come in handy.

The use of the spike in a survival situation depends on your definition of survival. Would I take this knife into a fight against a beer? Hell no, I have a 10 inch bowie for that! But I am a strong believer that for every job there is a proper tool/knife. Any kind of small, delicate knife work is perfect for the spike. Cutting up roots or plant parts to avoid poisonous parts to get to food, removing thorns or stingers, cutting small straps, removing bark from trees, sharpening twigs or branches, gutting small birds and fish, and any other small job is perfect for the spike. Now yes you could use your larger knife for this, however, it is easier, safer, and more efficient to use a small knife for such delicate work.

The spike also just WELL above its weight class. To prove a point I have gutted and skinned a decent sized whitetail deer with this knife. I would not hesitate to use this knife on any project in the field. Working with wood, metal, cloth, leather, animal fibers, bone, anything is fair game for this knife! Its ability to cut anything and do it well, while being a small, lite knife makes it perfect for survival situations.

This knife is also pefect for working in the bush. It is small and lite and is easily placed in any pack or strapped to your body. As a scientist I have to manipulate scientific equipment and the best way to do this is via a knife!

Hope this helps!

My spike should be here soon

I just reassigned my Original Spike from center console duty in my car to lunchbox duty for those times you need a knife handy around the office. 

Using a folder to cut a cheesy pizza is kinda messy and it's hard to get the gooey gunk out of the folding area.  Don't ask me how I know this!

My old Gunsite has assumed duties in the center console for cutting seatbelts, etc...

Just got my spike today,haven't used it for anything at all yet but I sure to like the looks of it,the spine is nice and thick

bbbb


I just reassigned my Original Spike from center console duty in my car to lunchbox duty for those times you need a knife handy around the office. 

Using a folder to cut a cheesy pizza is kinda messy and it's hard to get the gooey gunk out of the folding area.  Don't ask me how I know this!

My old Gunsite has assumed duties in the center console for cutting seatbelts, etc...

My Schmitar spike just recently assumed lunchbox duties as well. It is very capable of being a steak-knife, pizza cutter despite its thick spine and people comment about how bad-ass it looks all the time!

My scimitar migrates.  Usually in the range bag but often gets tossed on the motorcycle when going in woodsy areas where I may get lost overnight.  Also comes camping with me every time and may replace my EDC now that the Konjo's are discontinued and selling for so much money.

Question:  I'm going to start a thread about this under the fixed blade section but how do you sharpen your spikes?

I carry a spike as a secondary Quick Fix (Quick Fix Blade).  My primary EDC is a Pocket Bushman.... But there are times you just need a Quick Fix and my Spike Bowie fills that need nicely.... I carry my Pocket Bushman tucked in on the front of my Maxpedition Janus chest rig and my spike lashed underneath the rig in an inverted vertical carry  position...Its gives me quick access and is concealed for the most part....As for it being a survival blade, it would work for me....In a survial situation we all would want our biggest badest blade...In reality at least for me, that one is usually too big to EDC and usually stays at home....  Survival is using what you have to the best of its ability....The spike is a rugged one piece fixed blade that is light enough and small enough to be an EDC Quick Fix!!! As an added plus, because of its profile, weight and balance, it makes a decent thowing blade if the need arises....Just my humble opinion!

808 Blade

In a survival situation, there's no chance of me throwing my knife, period.  Should you be unable to retrieve it, you've just lost your most versatile, most important tool.  A better idea is to use the knife to make other weapons, i.e. spears and throwing sticks with both ends sharpened.

Color me paranoid, but I want my knife with ME! 

jitterypillow


In a survival situation, there's no chance of me throwing my knife, period.  Should you be unable to retrieve it, you've just lost your most versatile, most important tool.  A better idea is to use the knife to make other weapons, i.e. spears and throwing sticks with both ends sharpened.

Color me paranoid, but I want my knife with ME! 

Agreed. Throwing a knife in anything other than a recreational setting just never made sense to me.

I just got my tokyo spike. I dont know about full on survival. I do think the kife could be add targeted to the bushcraft and hiker group. It's lite, provides a full 4" blade. You'll have to mod the handel, to make rolling cut. (A few wraps of paracord should do). Hell, even climbers ready to go knife. CS might want to think about a combo blade.