good knife for your use
You said the only thing you want the knife for is for use in camp. If that is the case, the knife you bought will do just fine. If you just prefer a folder, there are plenty that will handle most camp chores.
The two advantages of a fixed blade are that it is easier to clean and it can be used to split small diameter firewood down to pretty small sizes so that it is easier to get a fire started, especially when all of the small stuff that is lying around is damp.
knife
Out away from civilization an injury can be serious. A one piece knife can’t fold by mistake, have it happen with a folder somewhere where you can’t get medical help can be a serious problem.
Bill H.
That Mora
is actually a pretty good camp duty knife. Easy to keep clean and so is the sheath. Comfortable handle. Decent blade material. I’d just hang on to it and put it in my camp kit.
Agreed
The Mora pictured is a decent camp knife at a very reasonable price.
If you ever baton wood, a fixed blade is the way to go.
4
– Last Updated: Feb-19-16 2:39 PM EST –
muh van's instrument panel top is covered with loose black Walmart towels cut to fit. A sharp short paring knife.
Nearby and findable: http://search.nrs.com/search?w=river%20knife
BTW there's a Yakyak sale.
river knives proliferated with tupperware.
why buy the Gerber ? everyone has one like kayak pumps.
No, I doahn like kayak pumps but the knife is OK. Looks good on the pfd alongside the VHF.
a small Gerber single blade clasp knife permanently in the day pack card pocket. A multitool should be in there but zuviel est righto ?
and a $75 Leatherman. Worth $75 ? you bet your whatever. Needs customing....eg functional pick.
Lost one with a sharp strong pick triangular pick alongside a thick truncated 4 sided pry bar with file one 2 sides down from a smooth head. Head's abt 1/8th" thick
Broke the can opener using for a pry bar. L sent a new one back. Thanks L. Hope your foot fungus heals.
Fixed Blades
I carry both a fixed blade knife with a 5’ bade, full tang and sheath as well as a folding or pocket knife with a 3 inch full tang blade. I use the pocket knife for basically everything. I use the fixed blade for more heavy duty things like striping bark, cutting branches, atoning branches, making kindling, etc etc Using a folding blade for those things would destroy it in minutes
Excellent choice!
– Last Updated: Feb-19-16 6:08 PM EST –
Bowrudder- you made an excellent choice for a camp knife. I have the same one only black.
I find the belt clip annoying so I have a loop of paracord that I use for a neck carry (now I've probably started a neck knife entrapment thread that will surpass 303). ; )
It has a pretty big cult following among the survival/bushcraft dudes and, it's a great value.
And, having the built-in Fire steel may turn u into a fire building ninga. U'll be gathering natural tinders and lighting them up.
So, I'd keep it- but hey, you'r the guy who has to be happy with!
Good luck,
4r
woodcutter
best served moving to a quality machete.
There’s room so move to the top.
paint blade yellow, practice machete karate, find sapling need thinning n try felling.
think beaver.
Try opening a can with a machete
Or pounding a stake, or prying the lid off an old treasure chest you’ve found. You can’t tie a machette to a sapling to make a spear. Your not going to jump out of a tree onto a deers back and slit it’s throat with a machete or a leatherman. You can’t dig a latrine or even a decent slit trench under incoming fire with a machete.
Sure it would be nice to carry a machete and an axe and a crosscut saw and an adze and a shovel and a can opener and a hay knife and a pry bar and a pick and a hammer and a pair of scissors but the post is about straight knives vs folders.
Focus dammit, focus.
Tried
– Last Updated: Feb-20-16 3:00 AM EST –
a Marine Corp machete ? ...his head fell off like the instructor said ...
splitting wood:
swing rear blade onto butt side
hammer top blade with a hammering stick
intruders:
pick up machete with yellow blade
look menacing
opening cans:
place can on ground or rock
wash machete blade
press tip onto can
Push down
Repeat
I have both
folding and fixed blade camp/canoe knives and I prefer the fixed blade for the reasons mentioned by others above and also because a fixed blade is instantly available without futzing around to get it open in an emergency.
I generally go with a pocket knife
– Last Updated: Mar-06-16 11:40 AM EST –
when camping, but there are already some good suggestions about fixed blades- won't fold up on you but of course you can get a locking blade knife, which solves that problem. A fixed blade is typically longer so it does some things better- I believe someone already posted about splitting small kindling- add scaling fish to that list- doing it with a pocket knife is pretty nasty- with the scales getting stuck down in the grooves. So a fixed blade knife is easier to clean after a messy job.
A knife to avoid are those pear handled folders that were popular thirty years ago- the pear wood would swell when it got wet and you couldn't open the knife- rendering it useless on a canoe trip but it looked good in the catalog.
Spyderco
It’s hard to beat a good quality locking Spyderco. The blade deploys just about instantaneously with a flick of your thumb and locks in place very solidly and securely. There are over 200 models so you can find one at your price point and made from what blade steel is your preference (including their “salt” series which are extremely corrosion proof). They are also easy to take apart for a thorough cleaning.
I like the pocket clips that let me keep the knife close at hand but out of sight. While I do have a couple of fixed blade knives for scuba diving, walking around with one in a sheath makes you look like a survivalist!
Food prep
For me, a good camp knife is a good food prep knife. Moras are abysmal slicers for food prep. They break carrots and apples, and they can’t slice cheese worth a darn. I think a camp knife should have a flat grind like a kitchen knife, not the scandinavian grind of a Mora. Moras are great wood whittlers and a great value, but that’s about it.
A 4 inch flat grind knife based on a kitchen knife would be my preference. It will still do all the woodwork you need.
but wait!
– Last Updated: Mar-01-16 4:58 PM EST –
http://g02.a.alicdn.com/kf/HTB1UdBBIXXXXXa2XpXXq6xXFXXXz/Car-AUTO-Emergency-Life-Saving-font-b-Hammers-b-font-Army-font-b-Knife-b-font.jpg
I think there's a CPR response kit and a defibrillator in there somewhere.
I keep one on my PFD
I carry a CKRT Bearclaw blunt tip on the PFD. I will cut about anything, doesn’t rust and you can keep a hold of it even with hold wet hands.
http://www.crkt.com/Bear-Claw-Blunt-Tip-GlassFilledNylonSheath-Serrated-Edge
Old school works for me…
…I’ve carried a Buck #110 Folding Hunter since 1981. It replaced a Queen Cutlery 10" fixed blade that I’d had since 1960. Find a QUALITY knife that holds an edge and you like the “feel” of the knife. Take care of it and it will take care of you !
Thanks for the feedback
In the end I got it, and my son immediately claimed it for himself. So … problem solved! 
"pear-handled folders"
Those pear-handled folders are called Opinels. The OP wants a knife for camping, specifically not for fishing or in the kayak. The Opi is a great knife in the campsite. Use it for food prep, cutting cord, carving wood. It won’t fold up on you. It is very sharp. It comes in a carbon steel or stainless version. It’s all-around awesome in.the.campsite, which was the inquiry.
Cheers!