Top Saws for Hiking, Camping, and Survival
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- čas přidán 22. 08. 2024
- A good saw makes life a whole lot easier and safer when working with wood. In this video we take a look at eight saws for bushcraft. There are three categories:
- folding Saws
- Fixed or Straight Saws
- Buck or Bow Saws
You will find the faster, easier to use, and longer lasting saws cost more money but are worth it in the field.
Music:
"Brother Wind" by Tim O'Brien.
From the album: Transatlantic Sessions 3: Vol 1.
Bought from Amazon MP3 Music by sweetcostarica.
Well at last a very good review on all the saws for bush craft you did not rush or force anything took ur time and gave a good account thank you and stay safe even good music as well 👍👍👍
I also love Japanese saws. One aspect that you only mentioned in passing is the smoothness of the cut. While this is obviously irrelevant for firewood, it is a huge time saver on crafts and construction projects.
You don't need to plane, sand, or otherwise finish the cut before moving on - the finish those Japanese saws leave is good as is for most DIY applications. Those bowsaws on the other hand rip and tear the wood rather than cutting it.
Thanks for taking the time to edit this in a quick efficient video. Appreciated
Excellent presentation. My current bushwhacking saw is the Silky Bigboy, fits in my Osprey lumbar pack. 4 blades are available with different teeth sizes, easily interchangeable. Solves the hardwood/greenwood/any wood dilemma (Fine teeth for finish carpenters!). Plus a backup blade is always great to have. Side note: I see Silky now has a 403-65 KATANABOY Folding Hand Saw 25.6 inches (650 mm) blade, the regular Katanboy's blade was 19.8 inches (500 mm). The Godzilla of folding saws.
The Silky Bigboy folding saw is a great one. Many folks still don't know much about Japanese pull saws.
Silky saws are faster, cut very smoothly, and last much longer; these benefits alone justify their higher, but reasonable prices (IMO).
The Silky Katanboy line of saws are a monsters.
Stay frosty.
Silky the third folder saw seem to be the best and quickest. I like it.
Yes, that was amazing in my opinion.
In hand saws Silky seems to be the best. They have advanced teeth designs and different sized teeth.
From the maker:
There are four GOMBOY blade lengths:
8-1/3-inch (210 mm)
9-1/2-inch (240 mm)
10-2/3-inch (270 mm)
11-4/5-inch (300 mm)
Every blade length is available in three teeth sizes/configurations (tpi � teeth per inch):
5-6 tpi - Large/Coarse (pruning, green wood)
8.5 tpi - Medium (soft wood)
12 tpi - Fine (hard wood).
I used the 8-1/3 inch (210) blade & medium 8.5 tip version of the Gomboy that was the fastest saw.
Cool review. Thoughts on Sven, and pull saw option....
I use a 21" Sven for "big wood" (up to ~8" diameter) firewood when backpack camping. Applying the same sort of pressure to this saw as you expect to with a pull saw does not produce good results. This saw needs more pressure to take a proper bite. Being a very rigid bow saw, it can handle the pressure and makes very fast work of 2-4" rounds. When using this saw one-handed, it performs best with the hand above the blade to put more pressure against the blade. This saw works best two-handed if you can find a good pinch point to cut against. I often put a foot on the wood propped up into a pinch point, then get after it with TWO hands. One below the blade on the protruding part of the handle, the other pressing against the top near the 90 degree part of the triangle and helping it along. This allows a FULL stroke both ways without worry of smashing finger, and provides the pressure this saw needs to take big bites.
We take a cheap Fiskars 13" pull saw for
Great Demonstration Thanks for sharing . I like the ending song its awesome.
Thanks RealityCheckGA! You encourage me to do more outdoor videos.
Have a great week.
It's horses for courses with saws, what you're intending to do, your environment, how long you're out for, what other wood processing tools you're using and how much you're willing to pay. I'm glad Silky is the flavour of the month, it means the Bahco's/Kershaw's have dropped in price, I got a good, versatile saw at a great price. I'm hoping the YT community starts bad mouthing Granfors Bruks or Hultafors axes so I can get them cheaper but I can't see that happening!
Thanks for the video, it was a BIG help in deciding what saw I want to take with me backpacking... the Silky Gomy 210 will work great
thanks for a great demo i have been using silky saws for years. folding and fixed blades i agree that they are tough to beat. i liked what i saw in the ARS and bought the tl-30 i am very happy with it thanks again
The ARS saws are second only to the Silky saws. They are cheaper with good performance and a great alternative in my view.
Almost all the saws on the market today pale in comparison to these Japanese pull saws.
Hope you many years of happiness wayne gibson.
Those hands look like they got a little too close to the fire LOL... Your opinion is spot on... I've tried many of those other saws, and recently purchased a Silky Bigboy folding saw and love it... I will be purchasing the GomBoy to save weight and space... Thank You for your time for this review
My pleasure. You will really like the Gomboy line of pull saws, fastest & longest lasting folding saws on the market today.
Stay safe out there.
Awesome reviews! Good job on all the comparisons at the end also. Thank you!
Thank ya, thank ya very much (said in Elvis voice).
Happy New Year!! May 2017 be good to you.
That Gomboy killed it ;)-
The Katanaboy (huge folder), Bigboy 2000 (extra large teeth), Gomboy (medium teeth), Super Accel (large teeth), and Pocketboy (all sizes of teeth) are all amazing Silky saws.
They do cost but I think they are worth it in saving you energy, time, and are so convenient.
Thanks for the great comparison!! I really enjoy my Silky Gomboy 210, but after snapping a blade snow camping I find myself rethinking my saw situation and some of these are on the list to be considered. I will get a new blade for my silky saw because it is just too efficient a cutter not too, but I think I will pick up something larger and more robust for longer cold weather trips, thanks again for the video, its nice to see them work side by side !
Thanks for watching & your comment. I'm in Alaska (now) and I only go hiking & camping in the Winter. The alloy blades of the Silky Saws are very hard so I carry an extra blade or a back up (saw or axe). Have not broken one Silky blade yet but it is a real possibility.
But I think in your case going for the softer carbon steel saws are better. That is if you don't mind their drawbacks. So I highly recommend *Bob's Quick Buck Saw* for you.
God bless.
Phenomenal video, I subscribed. I have the Gomboy 210 as well. Iv had it for a year 9/10 Saw will upgrade to the larger one soon. Iv cut some serious size wood with it and it's a work horse. Thank you for posting such a refreshing video.
+Pablo Cervantes That is good news. Silky Saw is the No.1 saw company in Japan. And the their biggest saw "The Katanaboy" can replaced a chain saw for small duties; amazing to me.
Have a great 2016.
Nice video! If I lived in the woods and would be doing much cutting, I'd buy one of the big Silky Saws for most work. I can see the value of a small one for backpacking, hunting, or some activity where I really don't plan to cut much, but if I really thought that I might get stuck and need to do some cutting, I'd go for at least one of the medium-sized Silkies.
Nice work.
You also might want to try them on some very small wood because some of those saws will be able to do it well, but on some it will be very difficult, especially if the wood is springy.
For survival, one of the nice things about the fine saws with the japanese style teeth is that they can also cut plastics and even ropes decently well and if you are not concerned about extensive wear, even bones. In extremes the ability to handle these materials makes them interesting from a survival perspective.
You are the best, thanks for the great vids.
Thank you for your kind words. These Japanese pull saws are really nice. They take less effort, cut faster, last longer, & most are chromed which are weather resistant.
We will see them being used more and more because they are No.1 (IMO).
Siege the day.
nice comparison,i find that a 21" bucksaw is better when the wood becomes larger and hardnend by weather you can take down full size tree with it,the bacho really cant but its less weight and better for light fishing trips etc :)
That is true of the bucksaw on large wood but Silky does make larger saws (the Katanaboy their latest I think) to cut much larger wood at a price of course.
I think the Bacho folding saw is popular with outdoors folk because of it's low $22 US dollar price AND marketers can mark up this saws price and other gear once you enter their shop for a good profit.
Thanks for stopping by Iscariot project.
Great test........ 👍
one more thing to consider is price,you can make your own bucksaw with some pieces of wood and just buy a blade,cost almost zero,replaing the other blades is probably more costly plus its a project you can do with your kids in the backyard :)
excellent review, thanks.
Thank you too Utku.
Have a great day!
Great vid , thanks SC
Thanks. Wish I had a comparison video on saws when I started hiking/camping again at 50.
After testing, I discovered all saws "work" but if you want the best one(s) i.e.:
- easiest cutting,
- fastest cutting,
- best corrosion protection,
- longest lasting sharpness,
- strongest build,
- one of the most comfortable to use,
the easy pick are *Silky Saws.* They are also going down in their price points these days.
Stay frosty.
Yes actually your vid make me decide on that one. Is yours the long or short teeth version?
amazon.com
That one on Amazon:
"Silky Folding Landscaping Hand Saw GOMBOY 210 Large Teeth 294-21"
Is good for camping & hiking. Blade lengths of 210mm or 240mm is what most folks like to *carry* for their effectiveness vs weight ratio.
The teeth size guide for Silky is *generally:*
- Large teeth = cuts medium to soft wood
- Medium teeth = cuts hard to medium wood
- small teeth = cuts bamboo to hard wood
I personally use *"most of the time"* medium tooth Silky Saws for it seems the best for all round use.
Thanks!
I believe all those saws are good. It's a matter of choice. Don't know why everyone is so hung up on speed. Does 5 or 8 seconds more matter when you are out in the wilderness hiking or camping?
*"...those saws are good."* is 100% correct just like all athletes in the Olympics are good But only one is the best and gets the gold medal.
Thus, small advantages/differences mean a lot. Just one of the small differences that answers your question:
*"why everyone is so hung up on speed"*
is quickness in getting a job done is very important in the woods. Here are some reasons:
- in Winter you need to "get her done" so you don't freeze
- in a serious survival situation you need to work fast to get out of it
- quick camp set up is always a good thing when using the natural environs to build a shelter
- fast, easy sawing saves calories for other things
- on & on
Stay frosty
I hear you ... but we are not comparing Olympic athletes with hand saws. - all of your examples you give or logics does not compute. In a survival situation, what you have is what you use.I still stand by what I said. All the saws are good...It's a matter of choice, price, weight when you decide to hike or camp. You have decided to give up city living for a few days to enjoy peace in the woods ... to get away from the rat race. With that in mind.... 5 secs or 20 seconds does not matter. Smell the roses.. er trees, leaves etc. Take your time with life. How does 5 to 20 seconds matter?I believe you don't get my point.Cheers.
No problem Tyboy4U. Thanks for your comments & for watching.
People grow trees for living.If you cut one small branch,then yes no big deal but if you are pruning all day your olive trees,then the double time and energy spend is A HUGE reason,to which saw to choose.
As time goes on 3 second intervals can stack up and eventually you will have wasted 1000000000000 years
Thanks for another amazing video. Will you please do one long video on all your saws, axes, and Hatchets.
Also will you please explain what is the purpose of curved blades, in what situations do you and don't you use them?
Long video on my saws? I would like that but it might take some time to put together. We will see.
"What is the purpose of curved blades, in what situations do you and don't you use them?":
*Pros* - curved saws give you more cutting power by angling the saw blade the tool slices as well as cuts. This is more efficient & faster. Arborist/arboriculturist love this curved saw blade as it is the best saw for limbing trees which is what it was mainly designed for.
*Cons* - For the outdoors person, carpenter, construction industry the curve is not good. When cutting wood on flat surfaces the straight saw is much easier and you can be more precise in your cutting. The curved saw is less of a multi-purpose saw as compared to the straight saw.
Stay frosty.
....thanks brother , good review....the broader teeth won along with the pulling mechanism.......I believe !
Good vid and nice backdrop! The Bacho is ALWAYS in my pack. For the size, weight, cost and capability; you would be a fool not to carry it.
If I plan on processing a good amount of wood, then the Sawvivor goes with me instead.
I will be ordering the Silky 210 based off this video.
Thanks dodoinurpants.
The Bacho is a nice economic saw. It is fast enough.
Only in comparison are the Japanese Pull Saws faster and much longer lasting.
The on drawback to the Japanese saws are their prices. Some are up there in cost.
But you do get what you pay for.
Good luck with that Silky 210. Most Silky Saw are fantastic.
sweetcostarica
I don't see the drawback. If you compare the Bacho to the Silky; for a few grams and a few bucks more...you get a longer lifespan and half the cut time!
If your test is accurate and fair the Silky 210 dominates not only over its comparable competitor, but over the larger saws meant to process larger circumferences of wood.
dodoinurpants It was a good test of the differences in the saws I think and what I found interesting was how easy it was to cut through wood with the Japanese Pull saws compared to the resistance of the Bacho/Kershaw and Buck saws. Also the smoothness of the cut the pull saws made was nice and better for the trees.
One more thing thats good to know is the Japanese pulls have different teeth size & spacing.
So generally speaking larger teeth saw are better for live and softer wood
while the smaller teeth saw blades are best for hard wood like oak and hard frozen icy wood.
These Silkys are so good many outdoors people have traded in their large buck saws and other saws for Silky products.
Note: I do not work for Silky. You are in for some fun dodoinurpants.
wow crazy cool. thanks for the review . great job on editing as well. you have my subscription would like to have your support as well. keep up the good work.
Thanks so much! I'll try to do better videos in future.
Stay safe & happy.
say, i suppose the larger tooth silky is the one u used. and is preferable over medium tooth?
the silky gomboy looks like the one for me,, now is it impulse hardened?
+trooper2221 Sorry for not getting back to you sooner trooper2221. Summer 2015 was very busy!
To answer your question almost all Silky saws are impulse hardened and hard chromed for rust resistance.
Also, my preference is for *medium teeth* as that is great for frozen wood, hardwood, ice cutting, and work with greenwood.
Larger teeth are best for greenwood according to Silky.
What was the tooth size on the Gumboy? I'm Getty ready to purchase one. Excellent cimparison. Thank you.
That Gomboy 210 in my video has medium teeth.
The Gomboy comes in three teeth sizes/configurations:
- 5-6 tpi - Large/Coarse (pruning, green wood)
- 8.5 tpi - Medium (soft wood)
- 12 tpi - Fine (hard wood).
(tpi means teeth per inch)
sweetcostarica Thank you for the reply. Subscribed.
dragland7268 I appreciate that. I hope to have more videos showing the usefulness of the saw.
It will be hard to find a saw as good as the Silky though.
Nice video, thanks, man your arm most be pretty dead after all this cutting, lol
Great video thanks. One small point, the saw teeth are induction hardened, not impulse hardened.
Safety vest?
@sweetcostarica do you feel the himalayan import 18" sirupate is a tourist khukuri comming in at 1.5 lbs???
It is not what I feel about the Himalayan Import 18" Sirupate. It is what the owner/buyer feels. I believe it is my moral job to present facts, like in this saw video, on products so the public can get the best tool for their needs.
IMO here are some criteria for telling weather or not
you have a tourist/export Kukri:
- Do Nepalis use the Kukri in Nepal?
- Is the Kukri of Traditional weight for type?
- Does the Kukri have Traditional measurements for type?
There are a few other details but you get the picture.
I had two or three HI 18" Sirupates and sold all and got a traditional one from Tora Blades and it is a much better and lighter Kukri. Very easy to use and carry.
Again, that just my taste. "Your mileage may vary." - Nutnfancy
sweetcostarica so
sweetcostarica in short you feel the h.i 18 inch sirupate is too heavy and performs not as well as the tora. how would i buy a tora? i have u.s dollars i have no pounds how will that transaction occur?
Colombiano671 For me, from my research, and told to me directly by Karda (a leading figure at Himalayan Imports) HI Kukris are not traditional kukris in balance, weight, & dimensions.
If you want a traditional type Kukri in balance, weight & dimensions check out Tora Blades kukris. They are the best I've found because the company makes close copies of traditional military and villager Nepali Kukris in country.
To Order:
Go to the website (www.torablades.com)
Go to the Kukri tab at the left and then click on the purchase kukri tab.
At the top of the kukri page click on the currency of choice
Then order your kukri if it is in stock.
Hope this helps. Happy up coming 4th of July!
ARS TL 30 is no. 1 in my opinion. Gomboy no. 2
*I can not argue with opinion.*
Have a great Summer
but stay frosty.
are those the small teeth on the corona?
What about the Arkansas? (Sorry. I can't help it.)
🍒🍐😮💟
you held the Sven saw wrong, that why it took so much more effort.
+song luc Explain, please and post your references.
Thanks ahead of time for your help.
Ya, I have a saw from the 'late '70s (from Gander Mountain). The handle is about 10-in. There is no grip below the blade. Design is like a regular arch back pruning saw in how it's used. Hand above blade to get dig-in. I wouldn't say mine is fast, but then it was a low price point and the blade isn't as nice as your fast ones
Gary Weaver The reason I asked Mr. Song Luc to explain why he though my hand hold was wrong while using the Sven (he still has not answered in a year. Hmm...) was that *the instructions on the Sven Saw says to hold it exactly the way I used it.*
If you go to svensaw dot com you will see a picture (top right) of the same hand hold I use in my video.
*Safety Note*
With the Sven Saw a hand hold above blade DOES NOT get it to dig-in. A hand hold above the blade on this saw binds the saw blade possibly leading to a broken blade.
sweetcostarica
I can see the reasoning for that, but the proof is in the pudding with it's cut time
You can sharpen impulse hardened teeth, you just can't do it with a regular file.
I read this on ARS website: " impulse hardened teeth can not be re-sharpened". This warning was next to their 9F-10 Saw Sharpener.
But I'll investigate to see if we can sharpen impulse hardened teeth Cliff.
sweetcostarica Impulse sharpened teeth are usually near maximum hardness and for plain carbon steels that is 65-67 HRC. Because of this common methods of sharpening will not work, jointing can't be done with a file, sharpening has to use an abrasive not a file, and setting the teeth can break them off.
The simplest way to sharpen them is to use acid soaks, similar to files. This does not address issues with uneven teeth heights/sets, but few people will use those saws long enough for it to be a problem.
Cliff Stamp That's good information that would have been hard to find for the average Joe (me). You are a great resource that I appreciate.
+Cliff Stamp thanks, but mmm what kind of file, or sharpening tool? do u use?
+Cliff Stamp ok