Cold Steel sells some fine field knives. I can get all excited about the Cold Steel Trail Master Bowie, particularly in the smaller blade size for general civil use. If I were contemplating having to get in a knife fight with one on a Texas sandbar, then I'd tote the larger.

But then, I do own a Museum Replicas claymore, after all... and one of their dirks.

I wonder if the WASP has any tendency to blow itself back out of the wound under its own gas pressure.

@ Griff

Yes, better to be judged by twelve than carried by six. I selected my knife for field use in military scenarios when I was on active duty. It's now stored with other disaster preparedness gear: I use a firearm for personal protection. When neither firearms nor less than lethal alternatives are a viable option (for whatever reasons), I'll opt for a knife that is optimized for rapid incapacitation and not just deterrence. Given that there must be justification for the use of deadly force before a knife is employed, it is the most humane choice in the event of a fatality.

Now that is just weird. There is something available now that performs a similar function without being needlessly esoteric, and is very reliable.

A "powerhead" or "bang stick" is a steel shaft with a length of tubing at the end which serves as a chamber for a cartridge. The chamber has a firing pin at the back which generally has some sort of safety mechanism. To use it you simply press the business end into the target; the pressure will force the cartridge against the firing pin and discharge it into the target. The minimum length of the shaft is 18 inches, and the general maximum size cartridge is for a 12 gauge shotgun shell.

A 12 gauge shotgun shell discharged point-blank *will* stop whoever is coming after you, and afterwards you still have at least an 18 inch steel rod to fend them off. Of course, you might as well simply use a firearm at that point.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bangstick

If you load it with a nitrous oxide cartridge, will it make 'em die laughing?

I carried this in my ruck. It was a very usefull tool. I had it made by the 2nd Gurkha Brigade's goldsmith when I did a US/British exchange to Hong Kong in 1987.

Looks like this:

http://www.heinnie.com/Kukri/KUK-2.jpg

Some of the toughest troops I ever had the chance to meet.

http://cache.daylife.com/imageserve/...Ht0NC/610x.jpghttp://www.gurkhas.com/TheGurkhas/im...r-2004-002.jpg

I call that a knife!

What's the little divot in the blade, just above the hand?

The "blood dipper".

They should call it a blood dripper, not a blood dipper.

It's just like drip rings on a kayak paddle.

Mu dad has a nice collection of knives. He keeps them mostly in a nice wooden box. We tease him, and call it "Dad's Killin' Box." lol

So, Pierce, did you pick up a Ka-Bar at an army surplus place? That's likely an excellent ratio of Bang for Buck.

{Edit} Right, you guys were going to get yourselves a big stick.

My outfit now sells a 2 3/4" blade lockback folder, the first one-handed-opening Cutco design, with a pocket clip so you don't have a high profile when carrying.

For somebody who wants a high-tech kukri, there's this one, endorsed by the American Bando Association, with which I once studied -- got promoted in, too.

Another model of the same thing, much less expensive.

Note -- no notches.

I still stand by my advice...unless you're Dan Inosanto, or well-trained by experts such as SEALs, don't try using a knife. It's too easy to slip into the wrong mindset and make a serious mistake.