If you ever find yourself in a wilderness survival situation, your life could depend on the choices you make and the actions you take. Here are 5 tips to help increase your chances of survival.

Wilderness Survival Tip #1: At First, Do No Harm

This slogan is borrowed from the medical industry, but it also applies to survival. When you first realize that your survival is at stake, you want to be careful to do no harm - don’t make your situation worse.

Wilderness Survival Tip #2: Stay Calm & Be Rational

The worst thing you can do in a survival situation is to freak out or act rashly. The best thing to do is stay calm, ad carefully and rationally decide what to do. If it takes you 30 minutes to calm down and think things through, that’s OK (in most circumstances - if you are cold and wet, for example, you’ll need to act faster).

Deal with any emergency issues, such as injuries, then move on to take care of shelter, water, & food.

Wilderness Survival Tip #3: Shelter First

In most instances, your worst need will be shelter from the weather - cold and precipitation, usually. Find or create shelter before you find food or water.

Wilderness Survival Tip #4: Water Next

After you’ve taken care of your shelter, find water. You can live for a long time with no food, but you’ll only last a couple days without water.

Wilderness Survival Tip #5: Food Last

Once you have shelter and water taken care of, find food.

Just in case you haven’t seen it, we wanted to post the video showing the test of the Cold Steel Bushman knife. The tests this knife withstands are amazing. Check it out:

Awhile back, we started carrying Mainstay Food bars in our survival gear section. Mainstay food bars are made by Survivor Industries, and are ideal survival rations in nearly any situation.

They are:

• Long lasting - will store for 5 years or more on the shelf.
• Able to withstand temperatures ranging from -40F to 300F.
• Non-thirst triggering.
• Ready to eat, no preparation required.
• In compliance with US Coast Guard standards (160.046/23/0).
• In compliance with Department of Defense guidelines (SOLAS 74/83).
• Made with a lemon flavor.
• Made with added vitamins and nutrients.

Try Mainstay 3600 Food Bars.

Interested in what the history of ka-bar knives is? Here you go…

The beginning of Kabar history:

In the 1920’s Union Cutlery introduced a new brand of knives: KABAR. Nobody is 100% certain where the name came from but evidence suggests it was extracted from a customer testimonial. The customer was an illiterate backwoodsman who write a letter explaining how he had “killed a bear”. Due to his poor scrawl, though, it appeared that he wrote he had “k a bar”. Hence, the name KABAR was born!

WWII & Ka-bar Knives:

Just after World War II started, Union Cutlery submitted a Ka-Bar knife design to the U.S. Marine Corps. After testing and modifications, the 7″ Ka-Bar Fighting Knife became standard issue for all Marines, as well as being used by other military branches. To keep up with demand, the US government commissioned other knife companies to make the same knife design.

Ka-Bar’s Modern History

In 1952, Union Cutlery changed their name to Ka-Bar. The USMC fighting knife had dropped out of production, and the company was not as successful as it once was. But then in 1975, they re-released a commemorative version of their famous knife - it sold like hotcakes. Ka-Bar then brought back their standard issue fighting knife, which also sold well. The company has changed hands several times in recent decades, but they are still known for the quality and performance that made their knife the official knife used by the U.S. Marines in WWII.

What is the history of Ka-bar Knives in a nutshell? Quality, performance, and defending freedom!

Buy Ka-Bar Knives.

Also check out our pages on:
Ka-bar Military Knives
Ka-bar Tanto knives

Oh, dear. There are so many things wrong with this video…but it’s still funny!

Anybody else want a camping trailer that has everything (including the kitchen sink) you could ever want? Donald Duck, Mickey Mouse, & Goofy’s camping trailer seems to have anything - just flip it out from the wall!

I bought my Ka-bar Short Black Fighting Knife (5″ blade) a few years ago; it usually lives in my vehicle for handy use whenever I might need it. This is my favorite knife for carry wherever I want a large (but not huge) knife.

Ka-bar Black Fighting Knife Pros:

Balance: One of the first things I noticed when I got the Ka-Bar Short Knife was balance. The balance point on the knife is almost exactly where your index finger is when you grip the knife.

Handle: The rubber handle also offers an excellent grip and the quillon/guard keep the fingers clear of the blade. Overall, this knife feels great.

Penetration: The blade is quite thick and strong; the point design offers excellent penetration. I used this knife to dispatch a wounded deer once and was impressed by the ease of penetration.

Serrated: I have the partially serrated version of the Short Black Fighting Knife, which I would recommend. The serrated section of the blade is very useful for cutting rope, etc.

Sheath: The leather sheath was super tight at first, but over time it stretch and it fits great now. Some people have complained about the sheath, but I have found it to be great. It’s strong enough that you can use the sheath to support heavy objects you are carrying, even.

Ka-bar Black Fighting Knife Cons:

This is a great knife, but like all knives, it has weaknesses. The primary areas of note are:

Corrosion resistance: Since the knife is made of 1095 steel, a high carbon steel that is not stainless, don’t use this knife where corrosion would be a problem (i.e. around saltwater.).

Sharpness: Due to the thickness and angle of the blade, you’ll find the Ka-bar Short Black Fighting Knife lacking if you use it for tasks that require a super sharp blade - things like cutting paper, slicing food, etc.

Conclusion: Great knife, especially to fighting, survival, many outdoors tasks, and heavy duty tasks that require strength and penetration.

Click Here To Buy The Short Black Fighting Knife (5″)

Have fun!

~Adam

Trying to choose the best tent for your camping and backpacking needs? This series of articles should help you make the right decision!

Step 1 to choosing the best tent is to define your needs.

What do you need your tent to do?

• Capacity: How many people will sleep in your tent? How much gear needs to fit in the tent?
• Seasonal Use: Will you use your tent mostly in warm, cool, or cold weather?
• Packing: Will you need to backpack your tent in, or will you drive to your camp site?
• Rain: Will you ever ben camping in the rain? (Or are you a wimp…and cancel your trip if rain is forecasted?)
• Wind: Will you be camping on locations where there could be strong winds?

Check out our selection of 1-person tents, 2-man tents, 3 person tents, and 4 person tents.

If you often go backpacking by yourself, you would do well to consider buying a one person tent. Why? Here are 5 reasons to consider:

1: Lighter. All things being equal, a 1 person tent is lighter than a larger tent.

2: Small footprint. A one person tent can be pitched in a smaller area, making it easier to find a good camping spot.

3: Less bulk. A 1 man tent will take up less space in your backpack.

4: Easier to manage. A 1 person tent is smaller, and easier to pitch if you are by yourself.

5: Better warmth. All other things being equal, your body heat will warm up a 1 person tent better than a larger tent, making your sleeping conditions warmer.

Click here to browse our selection of 1 person tents.

Greetings, Fellow Hunter! Since you are reading this article, I’ll assume that you are in the market for a hunting knife; in fact you’re looking for some tips to help you choose the best hunting knife you can.

While it may not be as important as your gun or ammunition, a hunting knife is still an important piece of gear. Take a little extra time to research and make the best choice!

There are at least 4 major factors you’ll need to consider when choosing a hunting knife. They are:

• Fixed blade or folding blade?
• Blade shape
• Blade steel
• Other design elements

Before we cover those factors, though, you need to decide what you will use your hunting knife for. Decide exactly what you will expect of it:

• Skinning game?
• Trimming shooting lanes?
• Need to be strongly resistant to corrosion?
• Killing game?

Once you have decided what you need your knife to do, you can go over the 4 major factors and determine what the best hunting knife for you looks like.

Factor 1: Fixed blade or folding blade?

Choosing between fixed and folding blade should not be hard - just choose what benefits are most important to you. Fixed blade knives are stronger, faster to access, and easier to clean. Folding knives are more compact and easier to conceal.

If you plan on skinning and/or gutting animals with your knife, you should almost certainly choose a fixed blade knife. Trying to clean a folding blade knife with blood and guts in the mechanism is not easy.

For most hunters, a fixed blade knife will probably be the best choice.

Factor 2: Blade shape

There are 3 primary blade shapes used for hunting knives:

Skinner - This blade has a round, blunt shape - it is suitable primarily for skinning and gutting game. Its shape makes it difficult to accidentally damage the skin or meat of an animal. A good example of this shape is the Buck Skinner Knife.

Drop Point - This blade has a point that combines ease of skinning with more general purpose usage as well. A good example of this shape is the Gerber Big Rock Knife.

Clip Point - This blade shape is the most general purpose of the three styles. If you plan on doing alot of skinning with your knife, this is probably not the best choice. A good example of this blade shape is the Ka-bar Black Fighting Knife.

Factor 3: Blade steel

The steel used in creating a knife’s blade is very important. This determines many qualities, such as sharpness, ability to hold an edge, and corrosion resistance. Each type of steel has advantages and disadvantages. Here are some of the steels used:

420HC - Good edge holding and corrosion resistance, when properly treated (as Buck Knives does).

44O-A/B/C - Stainless Steel. Good corrosion resistance, acceptable edge-holding abilities with proper heat treating.

AUS-6/8/10 - Japanese equivalent of 440 steel. About the same, but a little tougher.

Factor 4: Other design elements

There are a variety of other features that you may want or need in a knife, such as:

• Non-slip handle?
• Sheath?
• Guard?
• Gut Hook?

Conclusion:

If you decide exactly what you need your knife to do, then go through the factors outlined in this article, you should be able to easily choose the best hunting knife for your uses.

Click here to browse our hunting knives.

If you need help selecting a hunting knife, please call us at 800-651-2521.

The Ka-bar 7″ USMC Fighting & Utility knife was created during World War II for use as a standard issue combat knife for all US Marines. It is still used by many marines, soldiers and sailors to this day.

Ka-Bar USMC Fighting/Utility/Combat Knife Review:

The Ka-bar fighting knife has a thick, strong blade with excellent penetration ability. It is well suited to any fighting or heavy-duty task.

The sheath is strong and functional, though its not the fastest access sheath ever made.

The handle provides a good grip and protects the fingers from the blade.

The blade is made of 1095 high carbon steel and holds an edge well. It is not well suited to use around salt-water, though, as it is not super rust resistant.

Conclusion:

The KaBar USMC Fighting, Utility, & Combat Knife is a time-tested and proven knife with solid performance you can depend on.

Click here to buy a Ka-Bar USMC Fighting, Utility, & Combat Knife.