Sawteeth on a Knife (Pros and Cons)

[TrapperReady]

Just curious what you all think about sawteeth on a fixed-blade knife. I'm specifically talking about on a long-bladed survival/camp knife, like a Randall #14.

Many years ago, I had one of the Air Force Survival Knives with the sawteeth on the back and found them fairly useless for cutting wood, but otherwise not much of a hinderance. I didn't mind that they were there, but I didn't use them either.

If you were spec-ing out your own knife, would you include them "just in case" or leave them off entirely. Do you find them useful? Do they cause any problems?

Thanks!

 

[Sunray]

"...found them fairly useless for cutting wood..." Exactly. Use the right tool for the job. Mind you, my Swiss Army knife has the saw. It works, but it's take eons to do anything with. Knive are for cutting, not sawing. Then again, did those teeth look like a bread knife blade? That's for cutting rope. Still too short.

 

[joab]

If the blades are not offset they are not going to be very good at sawing. I have a machete that I bought for camping thinking that I could save some space in the pack. I tried it out by pruning a branch from my orange tree, while it worked better than most I ende up getting pissed and chopping it off with the blade.
The onllt problem I have with it is that it shreds my sheath a little as I draw it from where I have it attached, behind my head on the back pack.

 

[TrapperReady]

They are most definitely sawteeth, not a serrated blade.

Please note that these are typically found of survival-type knives. They are meant to give you another "tool", even if it's not a very efficient one. BTW, I've also heard that the teeth can be an advantage when cutting/ripping through thin metal (for escape or extraction).

Never having done this myself, I can't vouch for its effectiveness.

I guess what I'm asking is "Do the sawteeth do any harm?" and if not "Are there instances where they would be an advantage?".

BTW, I do have a Mauser brand SAK which has an extremtly useful small sawblade. It has double rows of very sharp teeth and can be used to cut thick branches with ease. I've used it quite a bit for small campfires and also pruning bushes around the house.

 

[Wildalaska]

Sawteeth are handy if you get a limb caught in a trap and have to remove it to escape...I remember after a binge a few years ago when I woke up and saw what I had brought home from a dive called "The Bucket of Blood", thank god I had my trusty German Pioneer Bayonet under the pillow because my arm was trapped under 300 pounds of snoring, wart covered bleached blonde lard with a set of...

WildoopswrongboardsorryartsgrammawAlaska

 

[Gabe]

Sawteeth bad.

1. They weaken the spine.

2. You can nolonger pound the spine with a log to split a log.

3. They damage the sheath.

4. They make sharpening harder because you can't grab the spine as well.

5. For the same reason, you can nolonger hold the knife to do fine scraping work.

Knives are too thick to be good saws. Get a Leatherman, it comes with a saw blade.

 

[Soap]

The Air Force knife is designed to cut through metal more so than wood. It completely stinks for wood cutting as you have seen. I use the same solution as Gabe, get a great knife w/o sawteeth and combine that with a Leatherman.

 

[mete]

There are many good folding saws on the market, mine is an old Gerber .Cuts bone and wood very efficiently and weighs only 3 ozs.