Best EDC Tactical Folder?

My cold steel recon 1($55) doesn't get dull any faster than my Chris Reeve ($450). I am equally impressed with both. My Sog Vulcan vg10($90) blade stays sharper longer than both.
 
Value bang for your buck tac folder?
1) Recon 1 Triad lock by Cold Steel

Super discount model Enlan EL01 http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/829865-Enlan-EL01
For the price these are dang tough to argue with

If price is no object and you want a great blade steel I'd suggest the ZT0550 or 0551. probably the best tactical folder for a lot of reasons but maybe a bit hard to find.
 
For ME it would have to be my Hinderer XM-18, followed by my Strider SNG, ZT 551, and CRK Sebenza. Not sure how tactical they are, but those would be my first choices. Honorable mentions would go to my Spyderco Manix 2 and Paramilitary 2. Personally, the Hinderer is the pride and joy of my folder collection.
 
I have a Zero Tolerance 0200 and an Emerson CQC-8. I purchased the ZT200 even though everything I read talked about how big the knife is. I figured that it wouldn't be a problem. Well, it's a big knife. Forget weight, I wear pants and a belt so that isn't a problem at all. Forget length, I daily carry a the CQC-8 and they are pretty much the same length. The ZT200 is just thick/fat and wide. It takes up a ton of room in a front pocket. I cannot reasonably fit my hand in a lot of my front pockets if the 0200 is in there. With a little bit slimmer of a knife, like the Emerson, I can.

And yet, I would still like to have ZT302, lol

I am hoping to *finally* get a military for Christmas this year. Crossing my fingers!
 
I have the ZT 350 and my brother has a Mini Commander. They both have kind of the same handle profile but the ZT fills up the hand more. The Emerson probably slices a little better, but the ZT feels like it could take more of a beating. It basically comes down to the choice of Speedsafe or a Wave. Excellent choice either way. The blade on the 350 is advertised at 3.25 inches but its really closer to 3.5.
 
Two that I can personally recommend are the Buck/Tops CSAR T folding and the Spyderco Manix 2.

jwh
 
Cynic2701 said:
What, exactly, does tactical actually mean? I've been on the forums for a few years now, and have yet to come across what I feel is an adequate answer. Can you provide a list of attributes that you are looking for?
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For me, I can't get past what "BEST" really means. To qualify as "best", wouldn't one have to have used one knife during multiple armed encounters and have it perform better than all other knives? This would mean that one has also lost a multiple of other encounters while armed with other knives. So to determine "BEST", one pretty-much has to have killed as well as died numerous times, or at least become seriously injured. In statistical analysis, one would need a minimum of 32 samplings for a data group to have any relevance... so one would have had to survive at least 32 knife fights just to qualify a knife. So is this what the OP means by "BEST"?

-Or, does "BEST" just mean something bad-ass enough to deanimate a box of doughnuts with?
 
I EDC a Benchmade 806 1101 and a mini grip, the AFCK fits the emergency big blade philosophy of use while the mini grip is more of the everything else knife. For me, tactical means the ability to employ the tool under a high stress situation with competent technique. Because of the large blade and deep choil on the AFCK as well as being quick into action, I would consider knives like the AFCK to be "tactical".
 
Gunsnknives said:
1. Benchmade AFCK
2. Spyderco Military
3. Combative Edge M1/SR11
4. BM 950 Rift
5. Spyderco ParaMilitary
6. Spyderco Manix
7. Spyderco Police

ZT is nice but a bit more Tacticool than I like. If I were in security/LE/Military, I'd go ZT.
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I own the 950 Rift, and I like it, but I don't consider it in the same category as my ZT0301 or ZT0551.. next to them it just feels impossibly slim and delicate. I'd consider it for a purely defensive carry, but not for brutal use. Same with Spydercos. Please don't presume to lecture me about the "proper" use of a knife, I've been carrying for something like half a century, and you don't always get a choice in the matter.

If you like BM and the Axis (and there's a lot to like) maybe the 275 will "up the ante" for BM. We'll see.

I like my ZT0551 best by a large margin, but I don't think of it as primarily "tactical", to me it seems more of a general utility design with defensive use as a clearly secondary design objective. That suits me fine, but it may not be what you're going for. In that category, though, I have to admit that the $30 (if you can still find one configured the way you like it) Ontario RAT-1 is still a great choice for a sixth or an eighth the price, and even has some advantages for EDC- I'd encourage anyone to really check it out before dropping the big bucks, you may well not feel the need.
 
Tim616 said:
Tactical means one thing and one thing only. "Will it serve a defensive/rescue/emergency-situation purpose" If not, it's not tactical....

A slipjoint is not tactical. (Not practically anyways.)
An axis lock folder that deploys quickly, is tactical.

That sums it up. The word tactical is not just "what it means to me" .... It's already a defined term.

For example. I carry 2 knives, one is a working slipjoint, the other is a tactical folder for emergency use/ heavy tasks which require a large blade.

Hope this helps.
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good answer:) i like this. Its spot on.
 
I have the ZT 0200 and the term "tank" is very appropriate, same goes the Tops/Buck CSAR folder, although I do prefer the ZT.

My friend just picked up the HEST 2.0 and so far we are both pretty impressed with it.
 
I vote for the SnG as well. I had a ZT 0350 for a while though and that would be another great option at a fraction of the price of a Strider. I still like my SnG a lot more than I did my 0350. Just feels even more solid and the steel is much nicer IMO (CPM S35VN with Strider's heat treat makes for a VERY nice blade). The size is also perfect for my needs.
 
Tim616 said:
Tactical means one thing and one thing only. "Will it serve a defensive/rescue/emergency-situation purpose" If not, it's not tactical....

A slipjoint is not tactical. (Not practically anyways.)
An axis lock folder that deploys quickly, is tactical.

That sums it up. The word tactical is not just "what it means to me" .... It's already a defined term.

For example. I carry 2 knives, one is a working slipjoint, the other is a tactical folder for emergency use/ heavy tasks which require a large blade.

Hope this helps.
Click to expand...

+1, yup :thumbup:
 
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