I'll start with an apology for the length this post will need to be.
I'm going to put out many subjective observations that relate to survival, the nature of discussion on the internet, and perhaps, some actually useful information.
As I age and notice just how much I don't know, I have a more and more difficult time answering the simplest of questions without nitpicking the question itself. Most of you know what I mean and many of you would never admit it.
The title of this thread is one of the reasons I left wilderness forums for a long time. The question; "What is the best?" is so extraordinarily subjective that it's almost meaningless. It simply is not exhaustive enough to give a well thought out answer, if indeed a well thought out answer is even available. The most common answer to that question is whatever the responder owns and wants to justify the purchasing of. It's sort of like this.
"What's the best lighter?" is followed by an endless series of "what I have is the best". You can test this on yourself right now. It doesn't matter at all that there may well be a better lighter out there. The one in your pocket is the best. This is simple psychology.
Let's take the most annoying question of all. "What is the best survival knife?"
This is followed by the inevitable, and I'm guilty of this as well, "the one you have when a survival situation occurs to you." While true, it isn't really the answer to the question. The question should be; "What would be the best knife to have with me when I'm in a situation that can turn to crap and become a survival situation?"
That is also not a good enough question unless it is followed by a list that includes where you live, your skill level, your expectations, and what aesthetic you like. Even then, the previous phenomena will still come in. Nobody will suggest a knife they don't own or don't want to own.
"What is the best knife?" Well, do you carry a tent? If not you have to build shelter and that changes the knife. Do you have a fancy camp stove or do you have to build large fires? Your best knife may well not be a knife at all, but a hatchet.
Us old guys who have been doing survival stuff for many years need to have more patience with newbs and newbs absolutely need to ask better questions. The term "best" is absurdly subjective and I'd be happy if the word was removed from any discussion of survival gear or techniques.
What's the best tent? Well, objectively, one of those giant ones that Sultans live in filled with pillows, carpets, and belly dancers. Again, it's just a poorly asked question.
What's the best tent for experienced ultralight backpackers doing the Appalachian trail with 2 people in the winter? <-----that is an answerable question where you may receive a useful answer.
The quality of your answer is a result of the quality of the question.
All that said, I do believe that I and most others really want to be helpful, but rarely at the expense of our egos. An understanding of human nature may be the best internet survival skill of them all.
I've seen, and been in, some ridiculous arguments about survival gear. I carry large knives. That's what has always worked for me, and that's what I like at a subconscious aesthetic level. They are just cool.
I've been told by folks that I'm an idiot for not using a hatchet instead. Well, no argument there. I'm an idiot. I'm not an idiot for using the large knife. I'm an idiot for getting into the argument. I know what I know and I've done what I've done. The tool is irrelevant. The actual difference in my situation and it's outcome had nothing to do with which tool I used. The only important thing was that I had a tool. Had I not had a chopper, I would merely have had to change my shelter plan and maybe worked a little harder. Then we are looking at caloric/labor exchanges based on carrying heavy tools and various other nonsensical minutiae that is neither here nor there.
All the material things we carry for survival are not as important as we pretend. The most important survival tool is your brain. If you know what you're doing, the knife you have doesn't matter. If you don't know what you're doing, a $500 knife also won't matter. I say this as a knifemaker who sells expensive knives.
This dynamic applies to all your gear. Is a $400 Osprey pack better then a $35 military surplus back? Maybe, maybe not. Most of my adventures are boat based. I have a small pack to leave camp with but most of my gear is in a duffel bag because it's carried from boat to camp and back.
I guess the point of this tirade is this. Ask better questions, get better answers. Avoid generalities. Understand the difference between subjectivity and objectivity.
Have a glorious day.
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