A cheap reliable knife

Will Batayte said:
I just ordered a lansky mikkel willumsen x9. Really nice looking liner lock flipper in g10 and 12c27 steel. Not the best steel but it's a beautiful knife and I got it for $32. I'm still waiting for it to arrive but from the you tube videos it looks to be a pretty sturdy knife and for the price an awesome deal.
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Hey, high five! Just picked up 3 of the Responders (smaller version of X9) for $12 a pop and they arrived today. Alas, can't change the clip to the left side (should have looked closer at pics, my fault) but other than that, great cheap beaters so far. Already had one in use mowing through some cardboard.
 
Myal said:
My daily user is an opinel 10 , they are tough .

If you grow up knowing you need a thick blade cos stainless hard enough to hold an edge is brittle and will snap too easy if its not seriously thick an built like a tank ... just looking at the hi carbon blade of the opinel you "know" its weak , you dont need to use it to see that ..

I have rolled the edge on a 30 yr old opinel , the old flat ground blade , carving an axe handle . I peened it back and finished the job .. no worries no chipping no breaking . The newer one I have now tho with its full convex grind , rocks it . Mine has peeled and cleaned kangaroos , goats , sheep and rabbits , carved traps , cut wood wire string paracord plastic strapping on pallets , plastic zip ties .. panties and bondage rope

Its pried lids off tins , cut fan belts , fiberglass reinforced serpentine belts radiator hoses , fuel lines , pried poked lifted stabbed all manner of things dismantling cars and salvaging parts , cut all kinds of unknown stringy stuff off the mower blades and deck ..

I guess tho its nothing compared to what modern tank built stainless knives can do tho :) my opinel cost $16 , but you can get a utilitac with noob friendly stainless blade for only $25 I hear :)
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Opinel #10 is my favorite size of Opinel... and I have way more of them than I should...
 
Byrd knives; the working man's spyderco. Kind of like the honda to the acura if you know what I mean.
 
Dano1987 said:
I have a lot of spydercos but I don't want to jack them up or lose them at work. I want to find a knife that is cheap and reliable that I can beat the hell out of and not cry if I lose it. I like the Spyderco tenacious but it's a little pricey for one i'm gonna really beat on. Plus every 8 year old and his brother has a tenacious.
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Not really sure what you mean by cheap & reliable. Not a fan of Spydercos, but they make a solid knife. The Tenacious costs in the $40 range and is made in China, it;s the definition of Cheap & Reliable. Use it, abuse it and if it breaks or gets lost your only out 40 bucks !!
 
Dude, if a tenacious is too pricey to beat on tell us what price range your looking at. A quality folder on the cheap end is going to be in that price range.
 
The Cold Steel Kudu is 4 inches of cheap, easily sharpened steel that can be had for about $7 each and a knife I absolutely don't care about beating on whatsoever.

I'd ordinarily not suggest something so cheap, but if you just want some steel that takes a decent edge quickly, gives you a fairly large blade and is something you in no way get attached to and could destroy without regret, it's a decent option.
 
Buy a dozen late night tv one dollar folders. After it breaks the first time you use it you'll have eleven more to back it up.
 
I recommend KA BARs line of mule folders. They have great weight to them and are extremely heavy duty. I have great confidence in the blades durability.
 
TrueSpartan331 said:
I recommend KA BARs line of mule folders. They have great weight to them and are extremely heavy duty. I have great confidence in the blades durability.
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I don't carry my Mule much anymore but still like it a lot

Welcome to the forums by the way!
 
Nic S. said:
Esse Zancudo
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This is my vote. There's tons of really nice options mentioned already, but my hard use work knife is a Red Zancudo with a Mad Blacksmith City Dweller lanyard for extra retention and to deflect co-worker looks. Great price, hard worker, decent steel that sharpens right back up, feels great in hand. You really have a plethora of great options, just pick the one that combines aesthetics, price, and.features :)
 
Kershaw Half-Ton, 3/4-Ton, or One-Ton. I think they run around $10-15 for the smaller two and around $20 for the largest model. I have Half-Ton, and it is a pretty stout little knife. The 3/4 is scaled up from there. The One Ton has the same basic shape, but overall it is larger (3.5" blade). It also has a G10 handle and frame lock instead of the FRN handles and liner lock found on the Half and 3/4-Ton models.
 
The Enlan EL-01 is the most sturdy, well built sub $20 knife I've seen. I've given a couple to friends who work as construction laborers and the knives have held up amazingly well after a year of hard use.
 
I carried and lost cheap knives for maybe two decades, finally bought a $30 (as I recall) Buck 450. $30 was a lot of money at the time, since I had 3 kids growing older and needing clothes and food. The Buck 450 came with a small, cheap Buck knife as a freebie. I lost the free knife within a year but never lost the expensive (to me) 450. I still have it now, 15 years later. So the moral to me is that if I carry and use an expensive knife I won't lose it. The Buck has been abused, I guess, cutting roots when I pull saplings out of the ground and out of my stone retaining wall. It has lost some of the curve of the blade from repeated sharpening. But I expect to have it for another 15 years or so.

So I'm not sure where you are financially but I recommend buying something that is expensive enough that you will not lose it.
 
Mike-Mike Yeah that made me think for a minute. It is pretty ridiculous. I'm going to make the manix 2 one for hard use. I have only lost one at work a delica. I work in a garbage factory..... sort of. It's a recycling plant. But you're right like I get a military and a harpy and don't wanna jack them up so I get a resilience and a byrd hawkbill to use while the good ones sit in the cabinet. You were right though. Put them to work
 
Myal said:
Mine has peeled and cleaned kangaroos , goats , sheep and rabbits , carved traps , cut wood wire string paracord plastic strapping on pallets , plastic zip ties .. panties and bondage rope...
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Well, at least you're being honest :D

Opinel should use you as a marketing tool.
 
pinnah said:
Opinel.
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Interesting. I came back from a northern trip and looked for a new outdoor hat in a sporting goods chain store. I impulse bought a #9 out of curiosity. This thing is quite cool and with a few swipes on my Sharp Maker, it's a freaking straight razor !
 
grownstar said:
Well, at least you're being honest :D

Opinel should use you as a marketing tool.
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Myal said:
Mine has peeled and cleaned kangaroos , goats , sheep and rabbits , carved traps , cut wood wire string paracord plastic strapping on pallets , plastic zip ties .. panties and bondage rope
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It's always good when your knife is sharp enough to cut clean through a pair of lacy underthings in one go... it just isn't as cool-looking if it takes longer than that. ;)
 
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