First Dive Knife

Serious ninja skills there Marie!

 

Like many people, I started out wanting what some call a BFK (Big Freakin' Knife [keepin' it rated G]). Now, I usually just carry 2 Trilobite-style cutters (one is ceramic) mounted in different locations on my BCD -- hopefully where if one arm is entangled, the other arm can reach one, etc. I have been thinking of replacing one with shears, which could come in useful in several ways.

It may not have been mentioned in this thread yet, but some locations won't actually allow you to dive with BFKs. Cozumel, to name one popular location. So you may want to consider your most likely dive locations before plunking down too much money on a BFK.

 

I use this knife but I ditched the crappy sheath (too floppy; knife falls out): DGX DIR Knife w/ Waistbelt Sheath | Dive Gear Express®

and this is the halcyon sheath I use for the knife (10 times more rigid than the crappy dgx one): Extreme Exposure

 

Ask yourself a few questions:

• What hazards will you encounter?
• What gloves will you wear?
• Where will you be able to reach a knife most easily?
• Will you spearfish, or will you look at fish?
• Do you enjoy gear maintenance?
• Would you endanger yourself to save your knife?

Hazards: I see you're from Idaho; will you be diving locally in lakes/reservoirs? If so, your main cutting need will probably (not exclusively, but probably) be dealing with monofilament fishing line. A line cutter (e.g., Trilobite) will do nicely for that. If you're going somewhere that might require you to cut something more sturdy, or to use a knife as a prybar, then get a fixed blade.

Gloves: You wrote that you're currently wearing 5mm gloves. Those are inherently clumsy, so manipulating a folding knife can be challenging. If you're going to continue diving cold waters, I'd go with a fixed-blade knife, preferably one that locks/straps into its sheath and that's deployable with one hand. If you're going to travel to warm waters, though, you'll probably go bare-handed or just wear thin gloves, so a folding knife would be easy to deploy.

Reach: Whatever cutter you get, put it somewhere that it's comfortable and convenient for you. A BFK will fit nicely on the inside of your calf, preferably on the same side as your dominant hand. It's less likely to catch on entangling hazards there, and you just have to draw your leg up/reach your arm down to find it. A small knife should attach anywhere that requires a short, non-contorted reach; a BCD's corrugated hose is one popular location. If you have a wrist-mounted computer, get a line cutter and put it on the computer's wristband.

Spearfishing: If you're going to poke fish with pointy sticks, you want a straight-up dagger to finish them off. Otherwise, go for a blunt-tip knife. You're less likely to stab yourself (or your BCD, or your drysuit) while putting it away.

Maintenance: If you're the sort who loves to love his gear, get a stainless blade. If you want to rinse-and-forget, get titanium, or just get an inexpensive stainless knife and rinse-and-forget until it gets rusty.

Endangering yourself: Remember that a knife is disposable equipment. You want one that you won't cry over losing, or that you'll do something risky to retrieve once (not if) you drop it. Save your money for something really important and that won't tempt you to endanger yourself.

 

+1 for the Trilobite. It's compact, easy to mount, and very effective. Although I have some other cutting devices, I have rarely needed anything more than the Trilobite.

 

trauma shears, trilobite with ceramic blades, short stubby tech knife. I haven't carried the scimitar in years, since I learned to kit up near the stern instead of the bow to avoid the fighting through the crowd to be first off. ;-)

 

My Trilobite blade kept rusting so I replaced it with a ceramic line cutter that requires no maintenance. I also have a small Aqua Lung Squeeze Lock stainless steel knife, which gets a squirt of WD40 at the end of every dive trip but requires no other maintenance.

 

I dive with an Aqualung squeeze lock knife on my waist and dive rite line cutter on my right wrist. A lot of the local working divers however use the Victorinox little Vickey paring knives they are cheap enough to be disposable and razor sharp. They can be found at any marine supply or commercial fishing supply store.

 

Use a line cutter and attach it somewhere where it's accessible with both hands.

Then bring a butter knife for PBnJ sandwiches during the surface intervals.

Problem solved.

 

How are you going to spear that nice 5kg anglerfish with your butter knife?