Dive knives: Tester's choice or go cheapie?
- Thread starter maudiver216
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Mine, mounted to my BCD, is actually hard to spot - unlike a foot long leg mounted knife. I've been to more than one place that didn't like knives, and I have never been busted.
Who told you that you couldn't carry a knife? We've got at least 200 dives off Cozumel, and none of us have ever been asked to leave our knives behind.
Now, admittedly, none of us carry a BFK (except me, and only when I'm lionfish hunting), but we all carry at least a knife. Personally, I carry a knife, trauma shears, and a line cutter.
CT Sean
Contributor
I can't find a direct source but the "prohibited items" list here is repeated on multiple sites Marine Park Rules
I heard a story once about a diver who got bent after chasing down an expensive dive knife he dropped.
That got me thinking.
In over 1,500 dives I’ve used my knife maybe five times. Most commonly to cut monofilament fishing line.
The idea I'll ever need a knife to defend myself against a shark, or one of those underwater secret agents from the James Bond movies, is kinda unlikely.
So, I buy the cheapest folding knives with a locking blade I can find… No worries if I loose it. Usually $7 to $10 at the discount hardware store is all it takes. If I find a model I like, I buy three or four of them at a time. A knife like that can last about a year for me. I just throw them out when the blade start to get rusty. I carry them in a generic nylon knife pouch on my waist webbing.
For me, it’s important to buy a knife I can operate with gloves on. That’s how we dive here. So, my knife must be of a certain minimum size, and have a big easy unlocking mechanism. I prefer the ones with a push-down button on the top of the handle to unlock.
I remember reading a story here on SB about a diver who became tangled in some line and couldn’t reach his cutting tool. So, I also carry a couple zip cutters; one on my wrist and another on my webbing. After reading that story I now believe it’s important to have two or three cutters located at different points on your body in case your reach is somehow hindered.
I've found a lot of fixed-blade knives other divers have lost. Some of them I know are expensive... titanium blades. If the divers had written their phone number on the knifes I would have been able to return them. Now they're just sitting in an old tool box in my garage.
A sad end for such noble dive gear.
I'd use them myself, but the problem is the dive knife manufacturers will not sell just a replacement sheath.
With a fixed-blade knife you need a specific fitted sheath.
But there is at least one argument for having a heavy-duty dive knife.
Once I did see another diver use his BFN to cut an opening in an abandoned rope fishing net, and free a trapped Leopard Shark.
Most inspiring thing I’ve ever seen underwater.
.
That got me thinking.
In over 1,500 dives I’ve used my knife maybe five times. Most commonly to cut monofilament fishing line.
The idea I'll ever need a knife to defend myself against a shark, or one of those underwater secret agents from the James Bond movies, is kinda unlikely.
So, I buy the cheapest folding knives with a locking blade I can find… No worries if I loose it. Usually $7 to $10 at the discount hardware store is all it takes. If I find a model I like, I buy three or four of them at a time. A knife like that can last about a year for me. I just throw them out when the blade start to get rusty. I carry them in a generic nylon knife pouch on my waist webbing.
For me, it’s important to buy a knife I can operate with gloves on. That’s how we dive here. So, my knife must be of a certain minimum size, and have a big easy unlocking mechanism. I prefer the ones with a push-down button on the top of the handle to unlock.
I remember reading a story here on SB about a diver who became tangled in some line and couldn’t reach his cutting tool. So, I also carry a couple zip cutters; one on my wrist and another on my webbing. After reading that story I now believe it’s important to have two or three cutters located at different points on your body in case your reach is somehow hindered.
I've found a lot of fixed-blade knives other divers have lost. Some of them I know are expensive... titanium blades. If the divers had written their phone number on the knifes I would have been able to return them. Now they're just sitting in an old tool box in my garage.
A sad end for such noble dive gear.
I'd use them myself, but the problem is the dive knife manufacturers will not sell just a replacement sheath.
With a fixed-blade knife you need a specific fitted sheath.
But there is at least one argument for having a heavy-duty dive knife.
Once I did see another diver use his BFN to cut an opening in an abandoned rope fishing net, and free a trapped Leopard Shark.
Most inspiring thing I’ve ever seen underwater.
.
mcohen1021
Contributor
I'd go cheapie. IDK why anyone would carry a knife in Cozumel
This is a case where Ebay is your friend. Search for a Blackie Collins dive knife from Wenoka. Should find one for $25 - $40 with sheath and straps. Some are BFKs [Big Friggin' Knives], others less so. All are built to last a lifetime and do, with very little in the way of maintenance. I break mine down and clean and lubricate annually.
EireDiver606
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I go for the "inexpensive" type. Just rub them down with some silicone about once a year to make sure that you can still open them and to help protect them from rusting as much. I think I have used mine about 3 time in over 20 years.
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