Equipment Dive Knife in an emergency

[Snoweman]

the XS Scuba combination knife/scissors in a sheath attached to grommets on my left BCD pocket.

Same for me, but mine is the mini fogcutter.

 

[Snoweman]

Yes, my mistake by omission, mine is also the mini. The larger model is too big for that sort of mounting, in fact it's too big for almost anything (IMHO). By odd coincidence, while my post that you quoted is from almost a month ago, I just posted about my experience with the XS mini fogcutter on another thread less than an hour ago. It was about losing dive knives out of sheaths. If you haven't lost your mini fogcutter yet, it's only a matter of time. I suggest a backup attachment method.

I did lose it getting back in the boat in COZ. The DM went flying down after it and caught it at about 85'. I tipped him about $80 that day. It shocked me that it came out because I have had a hard time taking it out when I've been on land.

 

[Endler's]

a bit more than a replacement knife will probably cost you.

With post-COVID inflation, $80 is what that tool sells for now.

 

[Snoweman]

With post-COVID inflation, $80 is what that tool sells for now.

You can buy it on Amazon for $60. My tip also included $20 for a two drive trip. I was more concerned about his service than the price of the knife.

 

[passeparici]

I confess to having made a potentially serious mistake after I was signaled over by the second diver. I was too concerned about him not being pulled to the surface. I think the diver had dumped all the gas in his bladder, so the only thing that the fisherman could pull up was his arm. I should have stabilize the situation by first checking on the diver's gas status. Instead of doing that, I just immediately started cutting line. The last thing you need is someone out of gas, while you are cutting them loose. Perhaps that is why he made a bee line to the surface as soon as he was free.

The probability he was (or will get) out of gas was very very low. The probability he was going to be pull to the surface was very high. So not only you did not make a mistake but the mistake would have been to check his gas first and loose time for what was really needed

 

[John C. Ratliff]

Below are the dive knives I have used over my decades of diving. I have one knife, on my right leg, accessible with both hands. In recent years, I’ve used it to cut monofilament fishing lines many, many times. The Wenonah dive knife (one with a button in the handle) is my current dive knife. I also recently (within the last few years) used it to cut a throwing like that wrapped around my left thumb while I was in high current; that incident could have been bad without a knife or cutting device, as the current was stretching the line tight, and it took only one swipe to severe very quickly.

Each of these knives (the Sportsways and my Wenonah) have these characteristics.
—They are of high quality stainless steel, that can be sharpened and keep a very keen edge.
—They have a serrated edge.
—Line cutting is easy.
—They are heavy enough to dig out lead sinkers from between rocks, or lures which are stuck to limbs.

Very early in my diving, as a teenage (early 1960s) I used my knife to cut through a heavy line (3 inches in diameter) using the serrated edge as it was wrapped around a boat propeller. When I finally got it cut through, it and the net on it carried both me and my buddy to the bottom, some 25 feet below.

While a Pararescueman in the USAF, I cut two Korean pilots out of their parachute lines that were wrapped around them after they unsuccessfully ejected, probably through their bird’s canopy, upon impact from their T-33 jet. I had to cut the risers too.

I sharpen my knives regularly, to the point where I can shave hairs on my arm with them. I feel a sharp knife is as necessary as having a knife in the first place, which is why I buy only quality stainless steel knives.

I like what divers are now calling “BFKs” because I can grab them and handle just about any emergency what comes by. The term “BFKs” is rather derisive, and these knives are not for “show,” but rather are in integral part of my diving safety plan. I have used them on my right calf for over six decades now, and not tangled them at all, even while parascuba jumping in the USAF. Here is a photo of the PJs (Pararescuemen) who jumped on Gemini VIII, showing how they geared up for their jumps. Note the Mark 13 Day-Night flare taped to their dive knives, and they probably had a second knife on their reserve for use in the air if needed.

SeaRat