Best EDC for $20 - Carry it for a year.

lemonslush

lemonslush

Joined
Aug 13, 2012
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783
I was bored today and decided to find out what I thought would be the best EDC and made a game of it. For fun.

Rules- It's your only knife and you plan on carrying it daily for an entire year. Must be new and can't cost more then $20 shipping included or tax if your buying at a store.

I figured Ok, since I need a jack of all trades knife it should be something mid sized and not super heavy. Also i know Ill be stuck with 8cr13mov or aus 8 at best on most any folder.

I almost went with a
Sanrenmu 7063AUC-LI 763 ( love the size and most everything about it) or a Ganzo G739as (feels like a early model griptilian but with nicer milled scales and fits BM deep carry clip) I own both and they are excellent folders but, I only seldom use them and didnt want to worry about how reliable it would be after using it for six months. Considering this is an EDC knife I need to be able to use it around most anyone at any place.

My pic is the
Victorinox Swiss Army Sportsman II
911aPcWhW1L._SL1500_.jpg


Shipped it would come out to $18.58 as of today.

What would you go with?
 
Hmm... good question. Without doing a little more research, I would probably go with a Swiss Army Knife Camper II. I know they can be found "floating down the river" for around 19.99. Going to be hard to beat a SAK at that beyond skinny budget.
 
I had a friend buy a Mora HD and put together a cross-draw kydex for it, he carried it as his knife for about that long and it worked just fine. You can get the Mora for around $10, a screamin' deal.
 
Absolutely a Swiss Army Knife. It was all I carried for several decades, first a Spartan and then a Tinker.
 
Bill1170 said:
Absolutely a Swiss Army Knife. It was all I carried for several decades, first a Spartan and then a Tinker.
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I carried a Tinker from the age of 17 until my mid-30s and to be honest didn't really know at the time that there was much else in the pocketknife world besides a Buck knife. I could easily do it again but would go with a different model as the Phillips head screwdriver on the Tinker wasn't worth the loss of the corkscrew.
 
I would prob go with the Kershaw Chill...capable lightweight EDC blade for right around $20. I've owned one before and it wasn't a bad little blade for it's price.
 
mugwump867 said:
I carried a Tinker from the age of 17 until my mid-30s and to be honest didn't really know at the time that there was much else in the pocketknife world besides a Buck knife. I could easily do it again but would go with a different model as the Phillips head screwdriver on the Tinker wasn't worth the loss of the corkscrew.
Click to expand...

When I carry a SAK with corkscrew, it is rarely needed, actually, when out and about, only 3 times in 20 years, although sometimes at home for “just because” :D. I like my Sportsman for other reasons, so it is still in the rotation. But the ph screwdriver has other functions. In case physical confrontation and no other option, a Tinker makes a good fistload with the driver sticking out between your ring and middle fingers*. Back in the day, troops in Vietnam villes on leave were not allowed to carry firearms, but the streets were infested with snatch and grab thieves. Carried like I described, Tinkers were a good deterrent; perfectly legal as far as military and civil authorities were concerned, non-lethal when used in defense, and handy for peaceful pursuits. Everybody ought to have one.

*Do NOT use the back mounted awl. You’ll cut yourself.
 
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Every single day for 2 years my edc knife was my buck 482 that I bought new for 20$ out the door and it is the only modern one hand opener I really need ( not saying another won't entice me, but I'm certainly not looking )
If I had to chose something to do it all over again I would chose my Vic tinker or Vic recruit.

I love my buck 482, but it wasn't and couldn't be my only knife because I sometimes need a small blade for things which it doesn't have. It was always paired with something small like a lm micra or Vic classic.
I like the useful awl and Philips driver of the tinker, but the recruit could do the job just as well as I've always got my leatherman fuse with its own drivers ( don't carry or use it as a knife so it doesn't count as one ).

This would be a fun challenge, but I already had my 2 straight years with one primary edc knife so I'm done with that. I also carried my Vic recruit as my only knife for 3 months when I got it back in November.

I've got other knives that I love too much not to carry and If I didn't get rid of them there's no way I could leave them sitting there for a whole year.
 
Old Hickory 7 inch butcher knife. But I would reprofile the tip to make it a better piercing blade.....I already have one but haven't reprofiled the tip yet.

With 20 dollars I could probably buy 2 of these.
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Since I will never do it, it is easy to say Opinel No.6. I have tools all over the place, around the house, in my truck and on my bikes, plus SAKs, multi tools and other knives, so the only thing I really need in my pocket is one good, sharp blade, in a light, unobtrusive package.
 
znapschatz said:
When I carry a SAK with corkscrew, it is rarely needed, actually, when out and about, only 3 times in 20 years, although sometimes at home for “just because” :D. I like my Sportsman for other reasons, so it is still in the rotation. But the ph screwdriver has other functions. In case physical confrontation and no other option, a Tinker makes a good fistload with the driver sticking out between your ring and middle fingers*. Back in the day, troops in Vietman villes on leave were not allowed to carry firearms, but the streets were infested with snatch and grab thieves. Carried like I described, Tinkers were a good deterrent; perfectly legal as far as military and civil authorities were concerned, non-lethal when used in defense, and handy for peaceful pursuits. Everybody ought to have one.

*Do NOT use the back mounted awl. You’ll cut yourself.
Click to expand...

I've found the best use of the corkscrew is as a holder for the small screwdriver which I use all the time to tighten the hinges on my sunglasses. I have to admit I never thought of using the Tinker as a threat deterrent but I can see where it would be plenty effective in that role.
 
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