I have a problem….

[David Ure]

I just got back from MEC and spent $47 to save 8 oz. Is this normal?

[Sam Minnich]

That sounds about right. 8 oz is quite a bit of wieght, considering people pay a lot more to save a lot less. Then again, we all must have a few screws loose if we're hanging out in this forum anyway!

[EndoftheTrail]

Actually, I think you do!

MEC carries precious few UL items. I bet if you tell us what you bought, we can tell you how to shave off even more without any loss in function! :)

[Sam Minnich]

The more screws we all shake loose, the less of them we have to carry!

[David Ure]

Well….I purchased a Gerber LST knife to get rid of my big heavy bear maming one and a Petzel E-lite to replace my EOS……

[Nate Meinzer]

huge savings, two items, great price…..

[Lynn Tramper]

Leave the knife at home and take a Photon Freedom instead: saves another ~ 2oz…

[Nate Meinzer]

I'm in the knife camp…it can be very useful.

Shave down tinder for a fire, if you need to…or whittle an eating utensil from a stick when your plastic fork snaps….what about cutting gauze and moleskin for blister treatment?

Take da knife!

[Dave T]

.

[Andrew Lush]

I'm firmly in the knife camp as well.

I always take my Leatherman Juice on every walk. It's always in my pocket and I use it heaps of times through out the day. It's the best 48 grams I carry.

[Lynn Tramper]

I also carry a knife to cut my salami (and more importantly open the vacuum sealed package), but it is a frivolous use really. I was just playing devil's advocate as I know many people feel deeply attached to their knives. I don't think my knife is even sharp enough to cut bandages etc…however a Leatherman Juice is a different beast as it has many other tools on it. In this respect I DO sometimes carry a small pair of scissors, a good set of tweezers and a razor blade, but I have not 'needed' a knife for as long as I've been backpacking. I have also never needed Needlenose Pliers, Wire Cutters, Hard-Wire Cutters, Extra-Small, Small, and Med/Lrg Screwdrivers, Phillips Screwdriver, Lanyard Attachment, Can/Bottle Opener, Corkscrew, Fish Scaler, or any of the other myriad attachments found on many multi-tools (at least not on the trail).

I agree that there are far worse weight:cost savings ratios occurring here at BPL than $47 for 8 oz. That's a real bargain!

[David Ure]

Thanks all – this support is way better (and cheaper) than therapy!

To be frank, I don't remember the last time that I used a knife in the backcountry but an ounce and a quarter for, presumably, some peace of mind if I ever do need it is worth it.

I avoid true night hiking or just use the moon and the EOS is actually too bright for much of what I do. I will keep it, however. If I was to give it away I would then need it at some point. Always the way.

[Franco Darioli]

No doubt about it , for a gear addict like David $47 for 8 oz is going to be hard to beat.
To cut salamis you should really use the Opinel. I do miss a good glass of red when I do that.
Talking about the Leatherman, for three moments I felt a bit inadequate because I have a Juice but take a smaller one that I thought it was the Squirt. It's a Micra (s), so I feel a bit better now.
Franco

[Richard Matthews]

What a bargain… I expect to spend $20/oz.

[Michael Chudzinski]

I feel naked without a blade. Like Franco,I like Opinels…but I do have a soft spot for the light Leathermans too.

[Unknown abc]

IMO, theres no such thing as a "light" Leatherman as far as the multitools go…

[Nate Meinzer]

Don't infringe on my 2nd amendment knife to carry a right!!!

No, seriously, I like a good fixed blade.

[Lynn Tramper]

Yup. I would never cut a salami with anything other than an Opinel. And no one can infringe on my right to protect myself from salamis with whatever arms I deem appropriate (usually my right arm bears the knife, but my left arm holds the perpetrator in position for the thrust).

[Brian UL]

"But latest figures show an 89 per cent rise in the number of under-16s with serious stab wounds in the past five years and a 75 per cent rise for older teenagers over the same period." -the New Zealand Herald

"A knife is the weapon of choice in countries where firearms, specifically handguns, are not widely available. (reference Mayhew, 19??)" –

Englands Knife crime epidemic:
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0807/S00370.htm

https://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/51721/Why-is-Britain-being-savaged-by-knife-crime-

[Joshua Gilbert]

lets keep the political discussion to those "other" threads shall we? I've been avoiding them and don't care to see it here either.

I don't really understand not carrying a knife. I mean, I understand it academically, but I carry a knife at home, I carry a small knife to work, I feel naked without one, so I'm carrying one on the trail.

David, we all have a problem, otherwise we'd be on another site. be of good cheer, you're in good company.

[EndoftheTrail]

Petzel E-lite:

Don't use that anywhere sand might be blowing about — even if just moderately — and don't ever drop it on sand either — even if for just half a second.

Cute as heck, but the rotating dial is a POS — sorry, but no other way to describe it. I heartily second the suggestion of taking a Photon LED — it's what I do.

Knife – YMMV on this one, but I'm pretty darn happy with my little Cutco multitool.

Photon Freedom to the Max – 0.5 oz.
Cutco Multitool – 0.8 oz.

[Lynn Tramper]

"But latest figures show an 89 per cent rise in the number of under-16s with serious stab wounds in the past five years and a 75 per cent rise for older teenagers over the same period." -the New Zealand Herald"

Glad I'm not a teenager. I wonder how many of those stab wounds happened while backpacking….more likely that a backpacking youth will cut himself with his own knife while chopping up a salami.

"A knife is the weapon of choice in countries where firearms, specifically handguns, are not widely available. (reference Mayhew, 19??)" –

I haven't really ever heard of someone being stabbed while hiking in NZ, but I know that hunting accidents are not uncommon. I don't think a knife, Opinel or otherwise, can protect me from one of those.

Apparently in Sydney airport, the bikers prefer to bash their victim to death :( At 15 to 1, I doubt a knife would have helped him either.

[Lynn Tramper]

My previous comments were not of a political nature, just observational. Likewise in NZ I don't consider the river and lake waters to be dangerous, so I don't carry a filter or purification tablets. You carry what you feel you 'need' to based on experience and locale, and if that includes a knife then there is no problem. If you use it a lot to make fuzz sticks or kill raving lunatics, even better as it's not just dead weight.

[David Ure]

Thanks for the input Ben. Yes, I read your comments in a previous thread. I will definitely be careful. Good thing that MEC has a great return policy should there be an issue.

Interestingly enough, its first outing will be by sand!

[Andrew Lush]

Yes Lynn you're right.

But first a quick detour into the relevant Aussie vernacular.

Biker: Someone who rides a bike. Just an average Joe/Joanne tooling around on their bike

Bikie: A member of an outlaw gang such as the Hells Angels.

Now back to the point at hand. The bikie dudes used the bollards that divide up the check-in queue lines as their weapons of choice. They bashed a rival gang member to death in front of hundreds of horrified (and traumatised) people on a lovely sunny Sydney autumnal Sunday afternoon. Then they jumped in taxis and shot through.

[Author]

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