"Beater" POCKET Knives....Do You Like Rough Rider or Something Else??

N

Nalapombu

Joined
Oct 26, 2001
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303
Hey all,

I'd like to pick up a pocket knife or 2 and use them around the house and yard. I want to get something that I don't have to worry about dropping, getting dirty or scratched up and that kind of thing. I don't want to use my CASE or BUCK folders so I started looking at Smoky Mountain.

One of the brands that I looked at was ROUGH RIDER. I have read a bit about them in the past and seen some fairly good reviews on them for a $13 pocket knife from China. I am wondering what other brands I should be looking at that are in this price range.

I am looking for large Stockman or Congress pocket knives. I like the Rough Rider FAT BOY Trapper, Marbles JUMBO Trapper, Rough Rider JUMBO Trapper and a few others I came across on Ebay. Just to give you an idea of what I am kinda looking for.

What would you suggest? Do you have any of these inexpensive folders or pocket knives?

I'd like to hear what you think and have found in your lifetime of knife use.

Thank you for your time and any help you can give me.

Nalajr
 
What happened to the American working knife? Have to rely on overseas work force now? :D
 
You can find Victorinox Tinkers for less than $20 (I found some at $15 and bought several) if you shop around. They have a decent blade and a good tool set for the size. I carry one, and have several others I keep as "beaters" in the boat, truck, and my backpack as spares.
 
Colt has a carbon steel line. They are titanium coated and just too big a knife for EDC (for me) but the steel isn't bad at all for a $14 knife.

There is always Opinel. If you want a thicker blade than (whatever size) you can always go the next size up. Then you can shorten the blade by filing off the flimsier part of the tip with a bastard file and shortening the handle with the same tool. The stainless is decent for the money.

Not a fan of Rough Rider myself, YMMV.
 
I've no experience with anything posted already, but this is my 'beater' knife. BM 556.
19216553538_3d9a08e516_z.jpg


It's a tough little SOB, no doubt. :)
 
I thought it is better to keep my American knives nice and in my pocket when I'm not out in the yard or doing outdoor chores and take the Chinese knives to abuse and not care a thing about it if they get lost, stepped on, broken or a tip snaps off or whatever.

My American knives are the ones that I carry every single day and at times trust my life to them or at least to give me a chance to make it if I were ever attacked and didn't have my pistol. I NEVER walk out my door without my Spyderco, Buck or a couple CASE knives in my pocket. Sometimes 2 of them!! In fact I am try to save now for that sweet Zero Tolerance that you all told me about in my thread a couple weeks ago.

Thanks all for the recommendations. I'll check out the Colt and the Marbles....Remington too. I'm not a big fan of the Opinel. Just don't like the looks of them. I do like a pocket knife with bigger blades than you see on everyday knives.


Keep the recommendations coming....pics too if you have them.

Thanks

Nalajr
 
Does anyone have experience with knives from tool companies such as Milwaukee ?
 
You could buy a duplicate of one of the spyderco or buck you edc and keep one for around the house and for going out in the world. I carried a delica 4 for about 8 years. It preformed every task I needed, at home and out on the road. I lost that knife and replaced it with a griptillian with the hole in the blade and have been satisfied with it.
 
My most used knife is a 111 mm SAK. I wouldn't call it a beater however; it's a user. It does what needs doing with a knife and a few things beyond.

I own one Rough Rider which I purchased to check out. I was not generally impressed, even at its price. I own two or three Frost slippies. If you don't use it or seriously consider using it, $10 may be inexpensive, but it is still $10 wasted. I have yet to buy a Colt slippie, but probably will do so to check out. Just have not found the one I want just yet. My $10 statement probably applies to it too. I don't condemn people for buying and using these inexpensive knives. The hobby started out that way for me because that was all I could afford as a kid. For some, it is all the knife they ever need.

One that many buy to have knives lying around .... car, truck, tackle box, garage, boat, etc is the Kabar Dozier Folding Hunter.
 
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Todd21969 said:
This. Never really understood the concept of having a lesser quality beater.

Your Spyderco, Buck etc, will handle anything a knife should be doing.
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This. I'd rather have a few really nice knives instead of a bunch of cheap-o knives. I can only use one at a time. :D
 
Todd21969 said:
This. Never really understood the concept of having a lesser quality beater.

Your Spyderco, Buck etc, will handle anything a knife should be doing.
Click to expand...


I have a wide range of knives cost and quality wise, just because I like knives. I have found when deciding what to take on an adventure, thinking for a moment I would take a lesser quality (cheaper) knife in case I might lose it. I then catch myself and say "take the best, most task fitting knife you have, that's why you bought it, just for that situation".

My only qualifier then becomes "Is it something that can't be replaced", for example it's no longer in production and/or very rare.
 
I have two of the Rough Rider knives and they are decent knives, well worth the price paid (under $10 each). If you are looking for a good value in a slipjoint knife and where they were made is not a factor for you, then you'll probably be happy with that brand. The related Colt and Marbles brands all are now house-owned brands of that east TN knife retailer you mentioned, and appear to be made to the same relatively good standards.

There is an entire thread about the imported knives of this type over in the Traditionals sub-forum if you want to read up on other people's experiences and opinions on these knives without much discussion on where they were made.

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/582468-Rough-Rider-amp-Related-Slipjoints

If you are looking for other inexpensive imported knives, I think the Buck 37x and 38x models might be worth a look, though I don't own any. I also own two knives of the Taylor Brands revival of the Old Timer brand. One of them, a 93OT in Delrin handles, is a decent user knife for $16. The other, a 34OTB in bone handles and polished 440C, had more fit and finish issues and is not something I would buy again.
 
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I used to be hesitant about using certain knives because of their beauty and superb craftsmanship. Or price. Then I got to thinking that I don't know what will happen to my knives when I'm gone. Nobody in my family has any interest in knives at all. So I figured that while I'm here to enjoy them, I might as well use them for the purpose they were designed for. That way, at least I'll get all the enjoyment I can out of them. If I'm always worrying about keeping a knife pristine, I find I get very little satisfaction or enjoyment out of owning it.

TBH, some knives I'm still a bit less apt to use as hard, until they begin to show some wear. Once the wear marks begin, the hesitation goes away.

Jim
 
James Y said:
I got to thinking that I don't know what will happen to my knives when I'm gone. Nobody in my family has any interest in knives at all. So I figured that while I'm here to enjoy them, I might as well use them for the purpose they were designed for. That way, at least I'll get all the enjoyment I can out of them. If I'm always worrying about keeping a knife pristine, I find I get very little satisfaction or enjoyment out of owning it.
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I can't challenge this logic as it applies to me as well. BUT, I also just enjoy looking and handling them. I have plenty of users and the pile grows monthly. So, some I just appreciate for their inherent qualities.

There is absolutely nothing generally wrong with Rough Rider, Frost Cutlery, Colt, and Marbles slip joint knives. They're all birds of a feather and will serve the purpose of cutting, especially occasional cutting or use. People put down Frost Cutlery slip joints. But honestly, these are all essentially 440A Chinese knives.
 
I would suggest that rather than buying a brand new cheap knife, you buy a used knife of slightly higher quality. A used griptilian or delica should fit the bill. It will already have ding/scratches/wear so you don't have to worry about ruining a "nice" knife, but the build quality and materials will be much better than a cheap beater.
 
Colt is essentially a upper end Rough Rider; owned by the same parent company, made in the same factory, and not a bad batch of 440a steel. Definitely not bad "cheap beater" Knives... Probably on the better end of the $10-15 pocket knife scale... I know (schrade) Imperial uses 3cr13mov and frost doesnt specify but their website q&a section claims they use 440 and 420 grade steel in most of their knives, so judging at the price difference between a RR (440a) and an Imperial (3cr13mov), and standard Frost of equivelant design, I'm going to bet they're made with 420, which would explain why they prefer not to specify. Personally these days I prefer to spend a bit more on something better...
 
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