I may have missed this in the thread but any thoughts on stainless steel vs high carbon blades? From what I've read, stainless requires less maintenance but is harder to sharpen, though it doesn't dull as quickly. The main tasks would be some batoning, feather sticks and striking the ferro rod.
On the upper end, I'm liking the Benchmade Bushcraft 162. (Bark River knives are out of my price range.) It's stainless steel and reviews note that it keeps its edge longer than expected. It can also be sent to Benchmade and sharpened for free. I like the holes in the handle that allow fashioning a spear much easier.
I get confused when trying to choose a high carbon bushcraft knife. I read that the blades are more fragile but easy to sharpen. I want durability and dependability. Am I overreacting to worry about this? In this category, I like the ESEE 6 but reviews of using it with a ferro rod aren't great. I'm also thinking of trying out a Hultafors OK4 to get an affordable idea of working with a high carbon blade. (I do know it's a 3/4 tang and I want a full tang.)
Does anyone have opinions on which to go with?
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