Anybody test the following?

[silenthunterstudios]

I'm interested in buying the following production knives, has anyone tested these? Money's going on the squeeze, and I have to make much better choices about what I buy :grumpy: . The first set of knives are meant for either dress carry, or will be on the shelf, so are not hard use knives. The next set will be used, maybe not EDC, but will be used for camping, fishing etc. Some will be hard use knives. Your help is appreciated.

DRESS/SHELF KNIVES

AG RUSSEL quincewood lockback 2-334cq

Cold Steel Laredo Bowie or stag handled bowie (do these retain their collectability?), Moro Barong (can this be used?), Ozark Hunter

Kershaw Clad blade

any Randall knife (can I find one for under 150?)

Spyderco Persian

HARD USE KNIVES

AG Russell Sea Master (thanks for the reviews, would like to see more)

Cold Steel Bird and Trout fixed blade, Trail Master bowie, Ultimate Hunter, Voyager X2 spear/clip point

CRKT Bwana, Corkum First Strike 2706 (any reason to buy this over another fixed blade, the design caught my eye), Serengeti Hunter (anybody used this?)

Kellam Leuku style knife (what are the benefits of this knife as opposed to other fixed blades?)

Lone Wolf Harsey Ranger (is the price worth it?)

SOG Twitch XL (I like my Twitch I and II and my Blink (current EDC), but do I really need a full size Twitch?)

Spyderco Assist I w/ carbide tip (will this really help me in an accident?), Delica (just looking to upgrade my old one, any new Delica tales?), Spyderhawk (any good hawkbills out there?)

I'm also looking for good fixed blades, preferably from the companies above. Any ideas on what to get in that area? Looking for one of those catch all designs, the knife that will do everything needed, a basic camp knife. I already have a kukri machete from CS, should I stick with that? Thanks for the input.

 

[silenthunterstudios]

Just a quick note, I know that Benchmade is very popular on these boards, I'm not into Benchmade too much, thanks for the option though. Also, I realize that if I didn't spend so much on these production pieces, I would have the money for a good custom piece, but if I paid a lot right now for a good custom piece, I wouldn't use it, afraid it would get beat up. But thanks for your opinions.

 

[Roadrunner]

I haven't used any of the knives you've listed above except the Spyderhawk. I'm not sure exactly what you mean by hard use, but the Spyderhawk has a pretty narrow range of useful functions. Mostly it will scare the crap out just about any would be thug. It also works nice for cutting rope. Besides that, I can tell you this:

- the Laredo Bowie is unlikely to go up in value. JMO but I do think it's true.
- you won't find a Randall under $150; but if you do buy it immediately!

If you want a great, tough and useful fixed blade, take a look at Himalayan Imports. Great warranty, great service, and outstanding blades. They'll blow that Cold Steel blade right out of the water, trust me. Best of luck to you.

 

[dalefuller]

The only one I can help you with is the Delica. I bought two of the carbon-fiber Delicas recently and the one I use has become my EDC. The other one has never been used and stays in the box for whatever future value or use it may have.

I also have a Benchmade mini-Grip on order because I like the 940 I have, but it's going to have to be really special to move the Delica out of my pocket. That's about the best pocket folder I've ever had. It replaced my old Cold Steel folder that's been my EDC for 10+ years.

 

[French Kiss]

If I could add a fixed blade option: Puma White Hunter or White hunter II (cheaper but still worth compared to the original one).

In the one you mentionned, I heard very good things about the CS Ultimate Hunter from hunter friends who like sharp toys, from what they said, they dressed 6 deers with it during a hunting trip in Siberia, and it was still shaving sharp...

xavier.

 

[DRider]

Can't add much, except that you can get a Lone Wolf Tactical Ranger for about $200 with a little web shopping.

Re fixed blade knives, I want to put in a vote for the Buck Special. Six inch blade, micarta handle (at least mine is), great steel. Excellent bowie shape for general camp use. I've had mine for probably 25 years now, its held up perfectly. I've batonned through wood, all kinds of hard use, its still in perfect shape. Under $50 new!

And you seem to have some "outdoor use" in mind: why not the Wegner Pro Hunter from Blade Tech? Its an outstanding outdoor / wildlife /general use folder, very light, cuts way bigger than its size.