# Is Bear Grylls a real survivor?



## Oosn (May 28, 2015)

Hi People,

I'm planning to go on a survival trip.
The most import tool most be a knife!

But i'm in doubt of what I should pick...

I stumbled upon Bear Grylls knifes. Does anyone have experience with these? Or is it pure marketing BS?

It cost $71, on his official webshop - Not to bad. But I wont buy it if its not good qualty. 
What i'm guessing it's a carbon knife.

http://www.gerbergear.com/Survival/Knives/Ultimate-Fine-Edge-Knife_31-001063


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## RetroTechie (May 28, 2015)

Welcome to CPF, Oosn! 

Haven't got any experience with his gear, but I can't imagine a dude like Bear Grylls would lend his name to crappy stuff. On the other hand, you're likely to pay a markup simply _because_ of the name / marketing BS. So you could probably find knives of similar quality for a lower price.

Personally I don't like the bright orange theme, but that's just me...


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## markr6 (May 28, 2015)

First, I would go to Amazon to pay half as much!! Second, I never had a problem with Gerber knives. I think the quality is excellent for the price. I like the plain edge on this one; can't stand serrated blades!

"Knife guys" are going to say it's junk and that you need to spend $300 for a good survivial knife...trust your life to $xxx, etc. etc. Of course it depends on what you will be doing, or what you think you will encounter.


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## StarHalo (May 28, 2015)

The knife that the _real_ survivor, Les Stroud, arrived at after all his adventures was the humble Buck 0119, which would make it my first choice.


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## markr6 (May 28, 2015)

StarHalo said:


> The knife that the _real_ survivor, Les Stroud, arrived at after all his adventures was the humble Buck 0119, which would make it my first choice.



Good looking knife! I like Les, so don't Google "Ticaboo Creek" and ruin it for yourself!! Either way, he's still a real survivalist to me.


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## Kestrel (May 28, 2015)

Hello Oosn, :welcome:

My own preferences, I used to like Gerber knives (and carried one for many years) but not anymore - country-of-origin is very important to me and that's all I want to say about that.

My wife has the Buck 0119 and has field-dressed two deer with it, it's 'meh' IMHO merely because I feel the blade is too long for general utility. :-/

I really like the Buck Vanguard, I did a thread on it ~4 yrs ago. I think it's a nearly-perfect utility knife, and their price is still very reasonable.
I've used one for years and have field-dressed two moose with it, I still carry it when I go for multi-day / small game hunting trips.

*Thoughts on the Buck 'Vanguard' hunting knife? (either the 192 or the 692)*

Hope this helps,


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## ahtoxa11 (May 28, 2015)

Bear grylls is mostly a public persona. 

Don't go for his knives. For the same cost you can get a much better knife. Look into Ontario knives specifically. TAK-1 is my camp knife, and it is phenomenal. 
Not a fan of Gerber knives for heavy duty use. The BG knives - you are mostly paying for the image and name. The quality isn't worth the cost.


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## monkeyboy (May 28, 2015)

Gerber knives tend to be decent value for money although I'm guessing that you will be paying extra for the Bear Grylls branding. There's no such thing as a carbon knife blade BTW. This is made of high carbon steel which is very different from pure carbon. The blade is painted black.
"Is Bear Grylls a real survivor?"; that's a different question altogether. He has the skills for sure, I'm not questioning that, but a lot of the stuff he does on TV is purely for show and is actually very poor survival advice. e.g. taking silly risks with unnecessary climbing and eating live uncooked animals that are likely to be carrying harmful bacteria.


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## MrJino (May 28, 2015)

Bear grylls is definitely a great survivor, though his show is merely just show, it's for ratings.

If you were stuck with him in the middle of nowhere, I'm sure he be more moderate and cautious.

His knives, or even the brand gerber, are terrible. They are of poor quality. You're paying for the name.

Opinel or mora, which are usually about 15 bucks or so, are the choice knives for Bush living. If it suits for permanent wood living, I'm sure it'll be fine for hiking or camping.

Me personally, prefer a 15" kukri.
Fantastic at chopping or batoning wood, and the sheath usually has a straightener rod/knife used to correct chips and dent during service, and a small pairing size knife for smaller tasks.

They are near indestructible, made from bobtail Leaf springs, heavy duty stuff.



they're not too expensive either, for something you could pass down to your grandchildren.


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## ForrestChump (May 29, 2015)

:welcome:

I would absolutely NOT recommend that knife.

The man himself obviously has knowledge and a passion for survivalism. Im sure despite the "show" he is extremely knowledgable. But the gear is just branding. Thats all, some of it may be ok, some of it may be garbage. Usually heavily marketed items are garbage but there are several functional products that line offers that serve their purpose, although they may be tacky. You are 110% right about the knife. It is by far the most important tool. ( Just remember water is paramount, you can't cut stuff if you die of dehydration. )

Survival blades often call for a high carbon / high impact steel from a manufacturer that understands a good heat treat. 1095 being the most popular as the price is right and it's just a very robust steel. The downfall is it rusts and needs to be taken care of. You can also get coated versions but you still want to watch the uncoated sharpened portion of the blade. It sounds like you are on a budget so I would start with any *USA MADE* Ka-Bar. The USA, is not a preference thing, I have seen multiple overseas produced Ka-Bars shattered, my best guess would be from poor heat treatment.

They have a lot of excellent USA blades under $100.

*Remember: 3 seconds without hope, 3 minutes without air, 3 days without water, 3 weeks without food.*

Good Luck. :thumbsup:


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## ForrestChump (May 29, 2015)

Also worth a mention...... if you are mindful that this is a weaker steel and practice good judgment the Spyderco Serratta is an EXCELLENT blade. You want to baton with caution should you select this blade. It is VERY thick but is not as robust as 1095. The reason I mention this knife is because it is by far the most comfortable woods knife I have ever handled and would be ideal for extended cutting. It will also be much more corrosion resistant and be much quicker to sharpen in the field:

On sale $116 from Blade HQ, heres a fantastic overview:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ov4fN2d9sXs


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## Crazyeddiethefirst (May 29, 2015)

Isn't it 3 minutes without air?


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## ForrestChump (May 29, 2015)

Crazyeddiethefirst said:


> Isn't it 3 minutes without air?




Of course. What do you mean?


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## P_A_S_1 (May 30, 2015)

OP, don't know about that knife however reading through various forums Mora knives get recommended often. They're supposedly very inexpensive yet good in relation to their cost.


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## RollerBoySE (May 30, 2015)

The Mora knife is a great classic tool as opposed to overpriced modern crap. Read more here: 
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mora_knife


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## radiopej (May 30, 2015)

Have you got a multitool? Something like a Leatherman Wave or Charge would be a good addition to a fixed blade knife. 

Perhaps an ESEE knife?


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## dmanuel (Jun 3, 2015)

Wow, really surprised nobody has pointed you towards Battle Horse Knives. Great blade for the money.

I would also look at Esee, Becker Kabar, Mora, Opinel, SAK, Condor, Tops, Ontario, and Cold Steel. All of these are fairly easy to medium on the budget but deliver a great blade for the price.

I haven't bought a Gerber in years and at this point you couldn't pay me to take one into my house, much less pack one on a trip.


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## Ishango (Jun 5, 2015)

The Gerber knives are mostly marketing. Depending on your needs there are a lot of options. The famous cheap Mora knives for one are great knives for the outdoor. Bushcrafting experts Mors Kochanscki and Ray Mears use them a lot also during their training courses. If you want something a bit sturdier there are a lot of opinions out there.

I personally have an Enzo Trapper, Blind Horse Knives Bushcrafter (predecessor to the Battle Horse Knives bushcrafter before L.T. Wright and he parted) and EKA A10 as my favourite bushcraft tools. ESEE is great too (especially the Izula series). However I do still use my Mora's quite often as well.


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## Berneck1 (Jun 5, 2015)

You'll be fine with any full tang knife. There are "better" knives out there for the price, but you certainly can't go wrong with it either. A very popular knife for survivalists is the Kabar Becker BK2. 


Sent from my iPhone using Candlepowerforums


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## HighZenBurg (Jun 5, 2015)

Esee 4, 5, or 6 depending on size etc. I just went through the same thing, and after a few days of researching, I now have a Esee 6 and love it! It's a bit more $$ but check it out. I was going to get the Gerber LMF II, and I'm sure that would work fine, but it all depends on your needs.
Esee - Made in USA!!!


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## MartinDWhite (Jun 5, 2015)

I must say, all this is fine gear advise, BUT the real issue is that the knife if only 10% of the survival equation. The user is 90%. Any descent knife will do. A cheap Mora or a Benchmade bush crafter or a BHK or a solid folding knife are all capable of providing the sharp edge necessary to affect survival. Get a knife that is legal for the area and take a bunch of knife skills with you and you will be better equipped than most. 

....anyway.... I carry a benchmade bushcrafter or a GFB small forest axe and a small pocket knife (usually benchmade barrage). These have served me well for a long time.


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## NoisyPegasus (Jun 19, 2015)

They aren't high quality. But they do have neat features... 
Re: survival knife.
*If you want a "survival knife"?* Go nab a SOG Seal pup or the smaller 5.5 Ka-bar. 
*If you want the ability to make fire?* Carry a bic lighter. they're really inexpensive and will get a fire going a LOT faster than flint/sparkrods. They are incredibly inexpensive and last a long time too.
*You want the abilty to sharpen it without using a random rock? *Carry a small whet stone, most milsurp shops carry small ones ideal for this. However this isnt necessary if you're not out longer than a few days. You _do_ want to keep your knife sharp. _Always.
_*Spear?*Make a proper spear tip or carry one (preferably sheathed)._ You should always have a knife available. _Using your only knife as a spear-tip is absolutely foolish as it might get stuck in your target and it can run off with it, or more dangerously, it can be broken.


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## ven (Jun 20, 2015)

Imo he is a good entertainer,and seems very knowledgable to me. Sure he is a brand ,all about the $$$ and no doubt they will sell because of his name . He has pants to all kinds of stuff.........even flashlights
My 5yr old is a fan,he thinks he is a survivor now ,catching spiders and all kinds............all fun 

So it would have been rude not to buy the gerber flashlight for him,imho a perfect light build and fuel wise. Not going to blow anything away,but around 10hrs of sub 20lm is not bad at night...........








Inside




Of course he does not get the matches ,but a great light for a kid(maybe an adult for camping too depending on their expectations).

I think the knives are in a way similar in class to the flashlight..........ok for the average person,not for life/death uses imo anyway.


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## Hooked on Fenix (Jun 20, 2015)

Bear Grylls is technically a survivalist. (He knows how to survive. He just throws all common sense out the window when he's on T.V.) However, what he does on T.V. is for ratings and is actually the exact opposite of what you should do in a survival situation. Do not follow his example on T.V. or treat his T.V. persona as a role model. If you drink water from an elephant turd, play with a venomous snake, climb down or jump off a waterfall, drink your own urine, run down a snow covered slope, or rapel using 550 lb. paracord, you will end up sick, hurt, or dead. What that man does near his own personal rescue team and paramedics with someone cooking him a steak by his air conditioned trailer is likely different than what he would do in a real survival situation.

As for his line of survival tools and knives, I think they turn good ideas for survival tools into gimmicks to sell made in China garbage at outrageous prices. It's nice that he has a storage compartment for fire starting fuel built into a firesteel handle, but you can get a decent firesteel.com Gobspark Armageddon firesteel for the same price that will last 3 times as long and throw better sparks so you may not need those 2 cotton balls that will fit in that storage compartment and last a day or two. If you need a fire starter, get a decent magnesium rod or block. The knives might have decent features but they are made of cheap chinese plastic and steel that won't last.

If you want a similar knife to the Bear Grylls knife for survival, get one that has actual field testing by the military (or at least a military). An old 7" U.S.M.C. issued Kabar knife would be at the top of my list with 1095 high carbon steel. This was the standard issued knife for the military for decades. If you want something more for backpacking, get a Victorinox Swiss Army Knife. They do not rust. For a lightweigh fixed blade knife, there are Mora Knives. The cheaper ones are decent, the more expensive ones have similar properties to Damascus steel at a fraction of the price. The Light My Fire Fire knife is sort of a joint venture knife between Mora and Light My fire combining a Mora knife and a Light My Fire Scout firesteel in the handle with the back of the knife designed as a striker. For a folder, a Spyderco knife with S30V or VG10 steel will hold a wicked edge, but be aware that these supersteels rust twice as fast as cheaper steels.


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## P_A_S_1 (Jun 20, 2015)

^^^ Good post.


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## RWT1405 (Jun 23, 2015)

Personally I haven't purchased a Gerber blade since the mid 1990's, or so, and would not purchase any now. As some have mentioned a good fixed blade for you to start with, and learn with, is the Mora.

Last Christmas, I gave my buddies Mora 4" Companion Carbons (along with Opinel 4" VRN7 in carbon) as an intro to Carbon steel knives, and helping them to understand their use and care. Yes, they are city boys and this country boy attempts to teach them the best he can.


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## bladesmith3 (Jul 5, 2015)

Ka-Bar Becker BK2 way tougher then you think. only $75 I teach survival and many students use the BK2


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