Esee 4 Serrated Possibly Useful for BC & Survival?

Discussion in 'ESEE® Knives and Gear' started by Disk4mat, Jul 27, 2018.

  1. Disk4mat

    Disk4mat Member

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    I am looking to pick up an Esee 4 and was seriously thinking about the serrated version. Ive watched countless videos where people say partially serrated blades dont belong in the woods. Ive never owned one so I have no opinion.

    What I was wondering and maybe serrated owners can chime in - can the serrated part of the blade be used to saw through small branches and sticks? If so what range of diameters do you think would be possible?


    Sure you could easily chop a 1" to 2" branch. But there are occasions where I would like a clean cut. Im also thinking the serrated portion could be used for scraping some fine wood shavings?

    I would love to hear peoples opinions and experiences relating to bushcraft and the serrated version. Any regrets, limitations? Any benefits?

    I currently own an Esee 3 plain edge and a rat 5. I figure a 4 serrated might round out my abilities and needs.
     
    Last edited: Aug 31, 2018
  2. koolaidnd

    koolaidnd Member

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    I used to keep a combo edge Esee 4 in my get home bag. I figured it would work well for cutting brush and cattails to make shelters if I’m stuck in a rural area here. In town it would be more useful for cutting cardboard, strapping, tape, etc.

    Ended up selling it a while back. Nothing wrong with the combo edge, im just not a fan of the Esee 4. Probably get a combo Esee 3 at some point.
     
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  3. STPNWLF

    STPNWLF Member

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    Haven't tried it so much as a saw, but the serrations do very well scraping tinder shavings.
    Here's my heavily customized 4
    IMG_20180212_125809.jpg
     
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  4. Charlie Delta

    Charlie Delta Member

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    In my experience a serrated knife makes a terrible saw, like utterly useless. I have seen guys make some nice fine shavings with a serrated edge though.
     
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  5. Mark

    Mark Member

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    Esee serrated knives are easy to sharpen,make great starter shavings. The serrated part seems to cut thru deer hair & fat on the rib cage better.
    I have a 4 that's serrated & don't have any issues with it.
     
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  6. james gormley

    james gormley Member

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    I have a serrated 6. I use the serrations to make feather sticks and to throw gobs of sparks off a ferro rod.
     
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  7. Disk4mat

    Disk4mat Member

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    Huge thanks to everyone for the replies! I really appreciate it very much!

    That looks pretty sweet! Love the handle scales! Good to know its useful for tinder.

    Ive thought about getting another 3 with serrations but it would be hard to justify keeping both blade editions in the same size. So the 4 is looking pretty good now.

    That was my main concern was that for sawing small things it wouldnt be efficient enough.

    Seems like there are some things serrations wont do well but there are other areas where it outperforms. So things where you need to get a little bite into them, the serrations will dig in better than a plain edge.

    Oh yeah it would work great with a ferro rod! I hadnt thought about that. Nice to know it will feather well too.
     
    Last edited: Aug 31, 2018
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  8. OutdoorsFamilyMan

    OutdoorsFamilyMan Member

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    I had a Gerber Prodigy that was serrated. They were very sharp and aggressive and did their job well. Rope cutting, shavings, scraping/debarking, and sparkling ferro rods...The good thing about serrations is they stay sharper longer. My issue with them that they occupy the part of the blade that is used with fine carving and other uses that require more blade control...That is why I haven't owned another serrated blade since.
    Another option is to file a sawback section in the spine of your 4. There's tons of vids on how to do it on YouTube. Call me a mall ninja but I like the looks of them and if done right they work nicely. I've heard the Tops TBT has a nice sawback but I've personally never used one. The sawback on the Gerber Gator small machete works great but that may not be a fair comparison because the length of the blade.
    Another option and what I chose to do is carry a SAK or other small folding saw with your 4 (attached to the sheath or in the accessory pouch). For its size I dont think there's a more capable saw than the one on a SAK.
     
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  9. Disk4mat

    Disk4mat Member

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    Some good pros and cons to consider. This is a good thread and will help future soon to Esee owners to decide which is right for them.

    I like the idea of a sawback. Got a new dremel and would love to put it to use. I'll check out some videos and see how easy/hard it is and how it might come out.

    I would be interested in learning more about the SAK. Sounds like its compact and that could fill a gap for me.
     
    Last edited: Aug 31, 2018
  10. STPNWLF

    STPNWLF Member

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    Leatherman multitool saw also works well
     
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  11. OutdoorsFamilyMan

    OutdoorsFamilyMan Member

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    SAK stands for Swiss Army Knife. I really like the saw blade on the Victorinox models

    Or like he said above, leatherman multitools also have good saws
     
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  12. NT Tristan

    NT Tristan Member

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    I've owned a couple of serrated ESEEs. I wanted to like them, cause they look bad ass, but i just more often wished for a plain edge where the serrations are.

    Speaking of Victorinox, i do like the blade on the soldier knives, wavy serrations from the tip to about half way along the blade, and plain edge close to the handle. The serrations are shallow enough to still be good at slicing, but may help if cutting rope etc.
     
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  13. Disk4mat

    Disk4mat Member

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    My many thanks to all the contributions in this thread and information! Here is an update. To help me decide I picked up a cheap folding combo. Played with it for days. Using it in every scenario I could think of. I realized I hardly ever use the entire blade. I find myself using mostly the tip of the knife to maybe half way down the blade. Then I went back to using my E3 and 4.

    I noticed I tend to always use the finger choil more often than not. Its like a go to grip for me. So by this point Im thinking an E4 combo would be perfect. Since I already own 99% plain edges why not mix it up? So some time next week I will have my first Esee serrated. Looking forward to it.

    Thanks again to everyone for the feedback and information.
     
  14. JohnGer

    JohnGer Member

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    If you like Sawbacks, which were mentioned by OutdoorsFamilyMan, check out the Benchmade Adamas Fixed Version. Very cool blade with functional serrations.

    Other then that.... try it out. I have a few knifes with serrations and like OutdoorsFamilyMan I can’t say anything really negative about them, but I also tend to use normal blades without serrations.

    Try it out. I never had to quit an Outdoorstrip or a Tour because I only had a serrated or a fixed blade. No one seems to like serrations anymore - but it also has to do with personal preference in the end.
     
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  15. Disk4mat

    Disk4mat Member

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    Truly a nice knife that offers the best of both worlds. Seems like it would be a jack of several trades. Only thing you might not do with it is baton with it. But thats something I wont do with any knife unless there is no other option.
     
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  16. JohnGer

    JohnGer Member

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    Not batoning with the Adamas 375? Sure, not the best knife. But you can, if you have to.
     
  17. Disk4mat

    Disk4mat Member

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    Agree completely. I just have a short list of three things I wont do unless I have to... Batoning, throwing and prying. You do what you have to do of course. But if I have a choice I will always avoid those three usage scenarios.
     
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  18. JohnGer

    JohnGer Member

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    Yep, unless you carry a big heavy duty knife you should always spare the blade and use other tools for these tasks. But it´s still good to know that your knife would do the job if you have to. Same with the ESEE 3....
     
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