I have a problem….

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!

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! :)

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

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……

huge savings, two items, great price…..

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

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!

.

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.

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!

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.

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

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

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

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

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

No, seriously, I like a good fixed blade.

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).

"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-

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.

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.

"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.

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.

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!

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.