Benchmade Vex vs. Spyderco Tenacious vs. Kershaw Skyline

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Kim Lau

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May 6, 2008
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I'm currently searching for a new EDC folder that has a decent steel, cheap price tag and shouldn't be too heavy. I've basically split on these 3 knives. I would be using this for general cutting such as cardboard and rope and maybe cutting some fruit. I like the hole on the Benchmade and Spyderco but the flipper on the Kershaw is something I'd like to try. So my question is: Which knife would be best?
 
Having only handled the Tenacious I can tell you that it is one solid knife, reminiscent of the Manix but lighter and thinner and more suitable for EDC (though I do know people who EDC the Manix). If you are cutting rope a lot you may find serrations handy.
 
I have owned all 3 of those knives. In fact I owned a Vex and used it hard as heck. All in all it was a good knife. I just didn't like how close the opening hole was to the handle.

I only handled the the Skyline as I didn't like it enough to keep it so I re-sold it.

I still own my Spyderco Tenacious and I love it. I think it's the best out of the three. It's a bit larger than the Vex and I like the knife much more than the Vex. I don't think any of them are "hard use" knives but I did a LOT of chopping into a 2x6 as a test on the Vex and it stood up very well to all the abuse. I was very surprised with the Vex.

Out of those choices I would buy either the Tenacious or the Vex. I wouldn't buy a Skyline but that's just me.
 
Kim,
My suggestion is to go with the Kershaw Skyline. I'd normally almost always suggest going with Spyderco (and forgetting completely about Benchmade), but in this case, you've picked the one Spyderco model manufactured in China, and though it is a great knife that I would whole-heartedly suggest over the Benchmade with the Spyderco-hole (the Vex), the bottom line is that the Skyline is made right here in the USA (with Swedish blade steel).

I say give the Skyline a try, and if you don't like it, go with the Tenacious (and forget all about the Vex).

David Lowry said:
In fact I owned a Vex and used it hard as heck. All in all it was a good knife. I just didn't like how close the opening hole was to the handle.
Click to expand...

Yep. Benchmade just doesn't do the Spyderco hole as well as Spyderco does.;)

Regards,
3G
 
I have tried all three and I will give you my impressions

1. Vex - Nice knife, good lockup. Heavier then it looks, almost too heavy. Hole is partially obstructed by scale.

2. Skyline- Nice knife,made in US. I like that Kershaw went with thinner blade. Did not like the "spearpoint-like" blade profile. Only having one liner worried me although it was never a problem.

3. Tenacious - Like a Mini-Me Manix. Good blade profile and grind, great lock up
wish they would have made the liner-lock cut out a bit smaller.

All are good cutters when sharpened correctly. I still EDC the Spyderco. The other two were eventually traded off
 
skyline fits the bill perfectly. good size for every day tasks. wont scare the sheeple easily. just remember to play around with different techniques with that flipper. to many use the flipper wrong and then complain about how to open it. there is a technique. stay on top of the flipper and push down on it and you should have no problems.
 
The Skyline does seem nice. It seems the Benchmade is basically off the list for me. I like that the Spyderco has a full flat grind which would made a great slicer but I've also heard great things about the Sandvik steel and how its able to take a wicked edge.
 
However remember that Kershaw has a bead blasted finish on it that gets rust spots quite easily (I've read this from quite a few posts on this forum). On the other hand the 8Cr13MoV that Spyderco uses has a more polished finish and is a bit more corrosion resistant. Anytime you bead blast, or sand blast or plastic media blast any steel it is more prone to corrosion than a polished finish.
 
David Lowry said:
However remember that Kershaw has a bead blasted finish on it that gets rust spots quite easily (I've read this from quite a few posts on this forum). On the other hand the 8Cr13MoV that Spyderco uses has a more polished finish and is a bit more corrosion resistant. Anytime you bead blast, or sand blast or plastic media blast any steel it is more prone to corrosion than a polished finish.
Click to expand...

though true with the types of finish put on a blade helps to determine the corosion resistance, one can avoid rust if they take care of the knife. if you cant take care of the knife, dont buy it.

of course rust can happen to any steel at any time for a number of reasons, but it is avoidable if you are careful and perform regular maintenence. reguardless of finish
 
offsetlover said:
though true with the types of finish put on a blade helps to determine the corosion resistance, one can avoid rust if they take care of the knife. if you cant take care of the knife, dont buy it.
Click to expand...

I own carbon steel knives and know how to care for them. However the bead blast finish Kershaw uses makes an otherwise corrosion resistant steel spot after contact with sweat for half an hour or so in my experience. In an EDC folder I think it's a bit much to have to wipe down the blade with water and a rag every time I get a little sweaty from doing work. The Skyline I've been EDCing for my review has the entire blade covered in tiny specks after being carried for about 3 or 4 days. This is just from getting a little sweaty walking around in the summer heat or while helping my Dad finish his deck.
 
Vivi said:
I own carbon steel knives and know how to care for them. However the bead blast finish Kershaw uses makes an otherwise corrosion resistant steel spot after contact with sweat for half an hour or so in my experience. In an EDC folder I think it's a bit much to have to wipe down the blade with water and a rag every time I get a little sweaty from doing work. The Skyline I've been EDCing for my review has the entire blade covered in tiny specks after being carried for about 3 or 4 days. This is just from getting a little sweaty walking around in the summer heat or while helping my Dad finish his deck.
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i put in bold your original post just for the heck of it.

now, let me get this straight. you carry the skyline around, i assume use it while helping your dad with the deck, and then not bother to clean the knife afterwards? Even if you didnt use the knife, you knew that it was hot out, and you were sweating. You knew that the knife could possibly rust. So why the heck didnt you take care of it because of that? Did you just want to see how long it would take to rust so you could make your case here?
 
offsetlover said:
now, let me get this straight. you carry the skyline around, i assume use it while helping your dad with the deck, and then not bother to clean the knife afterwards? Even if you didnt use the knife, you knew that it was hot out, and you were sweating. You knew that the knife could possibly rust. So why the heck didnt you take care of it because of that? Did you just want to see how long it would take to rust so you could make your case here?
Click to expand...

If I think about it, I do wipe it down. If I'm busy with work, I have other things to focus on. I subject every knife I review to similar treatment, and part of my "corrosion testing" is letting the knife get a little sweaty on purpose, because it reflects how my knives get treated in real life. In the case of helping my dad, I did clean it off afterwards, but like I said if a knife will rust after contacting sweat for 30 minutes or so, it's going to be rusted by the time I'm done with a 5 hour job.

If you're ok with taking the knife out of your pocket every 15 minutes and wiping it down to prevent corrosion while you sweat, the bead blast finish should serve you fine. Likewise if you don't sweat. For me, that's more hassle than I desire from an EDC, so I polish the blades or deal with the rust.
 
Sorry to contribute to the derailment of this thread, but I'll generally just wipe my blades down with something meant for a saltwater environment BEFORE carrying them, such as a reel oil like Hot Sauce. Pretty unusual to see any rust spots on any of my bead blasted knives if I've done that, and its about as hot and humid as it can get down here.

Try preventative maintenance.

Back on track, I like the US made Skyline too.
 
Not to start any arguments here, but I keep a Skyline in my back pocket EVERY day lately when I go to work. I'm on the west coast, where it's plenty hot lately, and I work indoors with no AC. I have to wear jeans and run around quite a bit at my job. I tend to get overheated and do my fair share of sweating. I only wipe down my Skyline about once every two weeks or so with a Tuf-cloth and I have yet to see a SINGLE speck of rust on it. Just to note, I have had my Skyline since the moment they were released.

In my opinion, beadblast finishes are NOT very hard to take care of. A few of my Lone Wolf Knives with beadblast finished blades have developed a spot or two of rust here and there, but none of my Kershaws have.

cheers,
Jon
 
Vivi said:
If I think about it, I do wipe it down. If I'm busy with work, I have other things to focus on. I subject every knife I review to similar treatment, and part of my "corrosion testing" is letting the knife get a little sweaty on purpose, because it reflects how my knives get treated in real life. In the case of helping my dad, I did clean it off afterwards, but like I said if a knife will rust after contacting sweat for 30 minutes or so, it's going to be rusted by the time I'm done with a 5 hour job.

If you're ok with taking the knife out of your pocket every 15 minutes and wiping it down to prevent corrosion while you sweat, the bead blast finish should serve you fine. Likewise if you don't sweat. For me, that's more hassle than I desire from an EDC, so I polish the blades or deal with the rust.
Click to expand...

again the OP in bold.

OK, so i understand the testing. That makes sense. the very last sentence, the one in itallics, has me a touch confused however. From that i gather, it isnt a big sense you seem to be polishing the blade anyway. Also, you say that you will deal with the rust. In most cases, when a knife rusts, its just simple surface rust and is a quick fix for most people. You seem to be one of those people as you can "deal with the rust".

So, whats the point here Vivi? Just because its a small hassel to wipe a blade down after use, and/or do some preventative maintenence (like kneedeep said) on a beadblast finish, it isnt worth buying, or having any for that matter?
 
Kim Lau said:
I'm currently searching for a new EDC folder that has a decent steel, cheap price tag and shouldn't be too heavy. I've basically split on these 3 knives. I would be using this for general cutting such as cardboard and rope and maybe cutting some fruit. I like the hole on the Benchmade and Spyderco but the flipper on the Kershaw is something I'd like to try. So my question is: Which knife would be best?
Click to expand...

If you have a place to check them out first hand, do that.
The flipper on the Skyline works very well.
Good luck

mike
 
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