Camping Knife: People Swear by the Morakniv Companion

A camping knife is a gift people buy for the trip they imagine: the cabin, the axe, the fire built from one spark. Then the real trip happens, and the knife mostly cuts cheese.

That gap is why a commenter in r/Bushcraft answered a Garberg question with the Morakniv Companion and an apology: “Thats not what you want to hear.” The reason was short. It's lighter, and the thinner grind “is useful on more tasks”.

We think the apology is the most useful sentence on this page. People want a heavy knife. Most of them need a thin one.

The complaints are specific, and you should hear them before you buy. GearJunkie says the Companion has a standard tang, so batoning stays with thin branches. Hobbystack says the rounded spine won't throw sparks from a ferro rod without filing. Between Lakes calls the sheath basic, with no second retention strap. MM Gear says heavy batoning and long, hard wilderness trips need something stronger.

One owner, rcthetree, reports using it for kindling, food at camp and gardening, and leaving it outside during several thunderstorms. One owner says it “stayed together” when they were sure they had chipped it. Another carries it in a go bag instead of the big knives, because hatchets and large knives “aren't necessary for building a fire”.

Our read: the complaints describe the knife people imagine needing, and the praise describes the knife people end up using. The 4.1-inch stainless blade is about 2.5 mm thick, the rubber handle grips when wet (GearJunkie again), and the orange version is easy to find in the grass.

If your trip does include splitting rounds, don't punish a thin knife. Pack a camping hatchet for the wood and keep the Companion for the rest. And put a portable knife sharpener in the same box, because one owner who describes plenty of use lists “Sharpens up quick” among its virtues.