self relient tool

[flatwater]

What is the one tool that you have acquired that has been the most benificial for being self reliant ? For me it's hard to pick just one but I would have to say---damn I can't pick just one so it will have to be two. My grandads wood cook stove. and the second would be his genes he passed down to me for the ability to fix things. Yes , knowledge is a tool because it gives us the ability to think and act with a true homesteader's spirit. And the wood cook stove taught me a few lessons in it's self , like it takes two men and an oxen to move that damn thing. My back still smarts from trying it myself.
flatwater

[otterbob]

Like you, I find it hard to pick one “Tool” !

If I choose just one “Tool” it would have to be “Fire” !

I like the premise of your post, and believe you should create another thread along the lines of “items acquired for Self-sufficiency” then keep a cut and pasted list with each response.

Otter Bob

[LeatherneckPA]

Norway, January 1981; while on maneuvers with the USMC and the Norwegian crack Alpine Unit (Bravo North) I witnessed first hand the amazing versatility of the knives they all carried. Most of us Marines belived they were too big to be useful. But I saw these guys chop firewood, cut boughs for snowbeds, make ice blocks for igloos, and fillet fish; all with the same 10" bladed knife. I promised myself I would get one before I left Norway and I did. I carry it to this day whenever I'm in the woods. Given that one knife I am fairly confident I could survive long enough to start making whatever else I needed to be comfortable.

[Junie]

The one thing I use the most, and couldn't do without, that I didn't have when I lived in the city, is a hoe. I've used it extensively to grow food, but it has also come in handy for self-defense (snakes and rats) and to hack my way through brambles (yes, I know it isn't intended to be used that way, but that's what I had at the time and the chicks wouldn't stand still while I got a machete)

[mwhaught]

If I am staying put, a nice, single-bit axe.

If I am treking, a large Kukri type knife.

[randallhilton]

If I had to pick just one, in the suburbs, I think it would be my 10" alligator grip pliers (similar to goove joint water pump pliers). I can work on mechanical stuff, work magic with tie wire and do a little bashing and banging as necessary.

In the brush, I guess it would be my gerber multi-tool with knives, a saw, pliers etc.

[bassntrout]

Flatwater--

Good post idea. Very tough to chose just one.

Chainsaw, axe, well, woodstove . . .

Very tough.

[silvergramma]

a 42 inch bow saw ,, two in fact..the blades are no longer made in those lengths ,, cant find them anywhere,, if my chain saw is no longer viable due to the availability of gasoline,, i have them ,, already have extra blades in shorter lenghts after that a machete

[madmac]

A hawk. I just bought my second one. A coldsteel. Great little tomohawk. It's got a real sharp edge as well as a hammer. Heavy enought to chop and sharp enough to use as a skinner. My second choice would be a good knife as one poster stated, with a knife you can make a lot of tools that you could use. Great post flatwater.

[EJC62]

A mean wife

With enough fear I can do anything with nothing.

Eric

[recoilless_57mm]

If I am given a choice it would be a large knife with a hollow handle. Such a knife can be used as a spear, knife & small machette. It is a very basic tool for me. OT

[Pokeberry Mary]

A mean wife

With enough fear I can do anything with nothing.

Eric

A lazy husband. ;) Its amazing how inventive a gal can be when she's gotta do it all herself. :D

[Pokeberry Mary]

My favorite two tools are my hard maple cutting board and my favorite sharp knife. ...and I guess my laptop. ;)

[Travis]

I am broke and stubborn what else do I need. I will figure out a way to do what I need to do using what is at hand. I have no qualms searching the "free section" on craigslist or dumpster diving.

[patience]

Out here in the woods, it would have to be an axe. With that I can make a mallet, wood "gluts" (wedges) for splitting any number of things, and whittle about anything.
Add a crosscut saw, a froe, and a couple augers, and you can build a house, with all the furnishings. An adze would help to put a better finish on things, but isn't really necessary.

[offgridbob]

My wife, the best tool a man can have, she is sharp , easy to look at and I love her Ttthhhiiisssss mmuuuccchhh.

[Pokeberry Mary]

My wife, the best tool a man can have, she is sharp , easy to look at and I love her Ttthhhiiisssss mmuuuccchhh.

Good answer!