Amazon Cutters
Our resident jungle pro takes on the Green Hell with a Trident, a Magnum, a Necker and a Work Horse! Guess who won?
Having spent a good part of the last dozen years in the midst of a tropical jungle, I’ve learned that pretty much all you need to get by and travel comfortably is a good machete, a mosquito net and maybe a poncho. With that said, tropical rainforests are excellent testing grounds for sharp edges, so it would be a shame for a knife writer to limit his tools to only a machete. So, 
when Holland’s BNN Productions contacted us to train their film crew in jungle survival for an upcoming TV show, you can bet I was thinking of more than just a cheap machete as my primary survival tool three degrees below the equator.
Before I get into the knives, let me give you a little background on how we test gear. On any trip that we’re testing equipment, we pass the gear around so each team member has a chance to give feedback on a particular design. On this trip we had Reuben Bolieu helping us with the knife testing. When it comes to actually going and doing, Reuben has made quite the name for himself and is probably one of the best outdoorsmen I’ve run across. So to give credit where credit is due, while I was training the BNN film crew on camera, Reuben was also testing a lot of the knives mentioned here while working with indigenous cultures of the area, building traps and snares, constructing shelters and making a lot of fires—one of the hardest things to do in a wet jungle.
SOG Trident
Immediately after landing in Iquitos, Peru, the first knife to come out of my pack and into my pocket was a SOG Trident tanto. Now, it’s no secret that I’m not a fan of tanto points for bush work, but for bumming around town, deep pocket concealed carry, and as a general utility knife, the SOG is as good as it gets. I really like the lightweight features and secure lockup. And while I’m not a fan of assisted-opening knives, the Trident does feature a safety to keep it from accidentally popping open should you hang the thumb stud on your pocket (I’ve done that many times with other folders).
Be the first to comment!
Leave a Reply