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>zinc coating doesn't do shit
get whichever one you wawnt, jaysus
they're all too big to comfortably pare or gut anything anyway
KA-BAR mark 1 is the knife i use for nearly everything.
7 inch knives are too big to even clean durr - you really only need a 3.5" blade for that.
5" mark 1 is the perfect size for most camp tasks. solid weight and comfy leather sheath, no military branding on it, will take a sharp edge, well balanced, etc.
just to show you how little it matters, my dad has used the same buck spine-lock folder for the past 30 years and has never had a problem with it. every competent outdoorsman knows that a knife is primarily a cutting tool. so, get something that fits in your hand well and you can maneuver easily when you're forearm deep in guts.
bunch of yuppies here that have never actually been outdoors. after 2 outings you realize batoning wood is a sucker's game that should be left to people who made emergency landings in the alaska bush and had literally no other way to do it. even collecting deadwood is less tiring than batoning wood.
bottom line:
it is my opinion that posters on this board make a huge deal out of trying to find one tool to do everything in the woods and then use muh bushcraft skills to compensate for the tool's shortcomings.
instead, listen to what experienced campers have to say: 90% of the time you just collect fallen branches for firewood anyway. if you need to cut them to length you use a folding saw; why do you think human's invented saws? because they're way easier to use than an axe or a knife
there is no do-it-all knife. the smart money is on a medium size knife and a saw. the less smart money is on a folding knife and a hatchet.
