Off-grid living is best when you’re experiencing unbelievable freedom from almost all the ‘necessities’ of our metropolitan social infrastructure.
You’re not accountable. You’re not bound. You’re your own king.
But choosing to live off-grid can be a little ‘too painful’, sometimes. And when you haven’t got a survival knife for off-grid living, it can surely be more than that.
One way of minimizing that pain is to listen to what the experts at offgridliving.net have to say. The other way is to live without a knife. Let’s find out all about DIY knife-making for off-grid survival!
Why so necessary? – You must have a knife.
To solve a problem, it’s important to realize you have one. The problem here is the question, that why are knives necessary in off-grid survival.
Although fairly obvious, people may fail to see it from a survival perspective:
“Hey, knives are violent man, I’m a peace lovin’ hippie livin’ out in the wild, why do I need a knife? I love mama nature and her children!”
Sure, you do, Andy, but what are you planning on to do when a bear attacks your homestead all of a sudden? Are you gonna talk to your “mama nature”?
Carrying a weapon does not mean you’ll be going offensive with it—it can mean the opposite too: you’re trying to be defensive.
Plus, living off-grid means you’re at the mercy of hundreds of wild creatures that can attack you out of nowhere. Having a knife or a survival weapon at least ensures safety for your life.
When it comes to off-grid living and the importance of having a knife for survival, exploring the world of DIY knives can offer a practical solution. Among the array of survival knives, the Damascus knife from Mini Katana stands out as a versatile and reliable option for various tasks.
Its compact size makes it a convenient tool to carry with you at all times, ensuring you’re prepared for any unexpected challenges that may arise in the wilderness. To find the perfect Damascus knife for your needs, check out the link where you can discover a range of high-quality options to equip yourself for the adventures of off-grid living.
With that answered, let’s lookout for different types of survival DIY knives there are!
Different types of knives – The Alternate universes
Yes, the possibilities of the different types of survival knives for an off-grid living are actually uncountable, but they can be generalized and simplified.
- Stone Knife
A knife that’s carved out of stones using other stones. Though heavy, a stone knife can fulfill the purpose of a survival knife better than most.
Due to material abundancy, a stone knife is, by far, the commonest type of survival knife you can make for off-grid living. The North American countryside has nothing but a wide variety of stones. These stones occur in all shapes and sizes, and in my guide below, I’ll tell you how you can shape up a knife out of them yourself!
- Wooden Knife
A wooden knife can be exciting useful in the off-grid arena. If made efficiently, the wooden knife can cut through most materials we might wish to dissect.
Although wood from trees (standing and fallen) is also available just as abundantly as stones, the fragility of a thin piece of wood makes it unsuitable for survival knife purposes.
- Cardboard Knife
It might seem absurd on the outset, but surprisingly enough, cardboard knives are pretty damn good when it comes to cutting and tearing things apart.
It’s all good and decent until you ask how you can make them. Although not as difficult as making a wooden or metallic knife (they need machines to be crafted), the cardboard knife can be made by using cardboard, glue and glue guns similar to the ones at Glue Guns Direct, and sandpaper.
A little effort can give you an awesome cardboard knife!
- Metal Knife
No, no. Metal isn’t found lying around on the ground when you’re living off-grid. To make a metal knife, you need to focus on the scrap metallic parts you have that can be recycled.
Crafting a metal knife is a real challenge. You either need to be masterfully skilled at utilizing naturally available commodities, or you need machines to the job for you. Either way, it seems pretty out of question.
DIY survival knife – The Excalibur in Making
So, basically, there is a ton of things you need to know before you make a knife, and by far the most important one is that you must know how to be resourceful. You must have the ability to look around and simultaneously imagine different ways of crafting this tool.
In this little guide, let’s see how to make a knife out of stones!
- Find the right stone
The real-time thing. Find a stone that’s much larger than the knife you’re planning on to produce. This is because the raw stone will be carved and sculpted into a much, much thinner knife.
Try to find a stone that is rigid and has a stronger structure.
- Find the right counter-stone (a self-made term!)
The fun begins here. Finding the right counter-stone means finding a stone that’s harder and more rigid than your product stone. This stone also needs to be sharper and smaller than the primary stone so that it easily carves it without breaking or shattering it completely.
You need to pick your counter stone more carefully. If you’ve chosen the perfect primary stone, but your counter-stone breaks it in the first hit … you’re gonna have to find your perfect primary stone again!
- Going back to the stone age.
Now’s the test.
You’ve found the perfect stone.
You’ve found the perfect counter-stone as well.
Can you now do what your Neanderthal ancestors could do? Can you carve out a knife?
Yes, you can. You can always learn how to.
It’s all about having fun. It’s all about creativity and skill.
Just remember that the perfect survival knife need not be perfect in shape or size; it needs to be perfect in utility. And what’s the utility we’re looking for here? Survival.
Survival weaponry – Must-haves when in the wild
When it comes to survival weaponry, it’s nice knowing about the 19-year-old masterclass Everett Noel who is unique in his crafts and is well set to make a business out of it—although he isn’t planning to!
The purpose of teaching off-grid crafts to you is clear: survival. You survive, off-grid living prevails. It’s always worthwhile spending your spare time honing skills that you think might come in handy some obnoxious day.
So, keep learning, keep living off-grid!
