Choosing a dive knife
There are many different things you can do while scuba diving but regardless of whether you like to ica dive pr simply want to take nice tropical fish pictures a dive knife is recommended as a helpful and valuable accessory. Since humans can’t breathe underwater something as trivial as getting entangled in stray fishing gear can be a life threatening situation if you’re not carrying the right safety equipment. If you are taking tropical fish pictures you may focus on the task at hand and miss a ghost net or other danger while pursuing a big grouper to get that price winning shot. In such a situation a good dive knife will help you free yourself from the net before things get critical.
When it comes to scuba knives, two things are of imperative importance:
- Make sure that you get a scuba knife that is right for you and your diving style.
- Learn how to use it in a manner that is safe for you as well as for your dive buddies. If you don’t know how to use your dive knife correctly it can cause more bad than good.
Below you will find info on how to choose a knife that suits you.
Size matters
Generally speaking, dive knives can be divided into three size groups: standard size knives, mini knives, and big knives. A standard size dive knife, also known as medium size dive knife, has a 4-5 inch or 10-15 cm blade and is small enough to comfortably keep mounted on your leg, arm or BC. An import aspect to consider is making sure that the handle is big enough to fit well in your hand. Mini Knives are 2-3 inches (5-7.5 cm) and can be mounted on the air tube. They can however be hard to use wearing gloves due to their small size. It is therefore extra important to try the handle on a mini knife before buying it. Any knife with a blade that is longer than 6 inches (15cm) is ti be considered big and can though to handle with any degree of precision under water. When scuba diving, big doesn’t automatically equals better so only get a big scuba knife if you know that you will be doing things underwater that actually require a big knife.
Material
Titanium and stainless steel are the two most common materials in dive knives. Titanium knives tend to be the most expensive choice, but are on the other hand extremely resilient to rust and other types of corrosion and a good titanium knife will stay sharp for numerous dives. A stainless steel knife will on the other hand be more susceptible to rust and corrosion, but you can counteract this by rinsing it off in freshwater after each dive and leave it to dry completely before putting it back in its sheath. Coating it with a layer or oil or silicone is also recommended.
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Serrated edge or not?
Depends on what you want to cut, a straight edge is better for cutting artificial material like nylon while a serrated edge is better for cutting natural fibers. If you decide to go for a serrated knife, ideally pick one where the serrations run almost the entire length of the blade to make it possible to get a nice sawing motion going when you need to cut something. Today, you can also find multi-purpose dive knives where both types of edging is present on the same knife.
Should I choose a knife with a sharp tip?
Sharp tips are popular among spear fishers, but if you plan on using your knife for something else then a blunt tip is usually to be preferred. The reason that a blunt top is usually better is that a sharp tip easily breaks when using the knife to dig and pry. Having a knife with a sharp tip will also increase the risk of accidently puncturing a BC your own or your dive buddy’s.
Do I need a line cutting notch?
Dive knifes should always have a cutting notch because that makes it much easier to cut small lines.
