Best Folder for under $30

robinsteele

robinsteele

Joined
Nov 29, 2005
Messages
38
I want to get my brother a folder for Christmas. Money is especially tight this year, so my budget is under $30. He digs meaty knives with a tactical flavor. Any ideas?

I am leaning towards the Boker-Magnum Ray Fighter. Thoughts on this knife would be appreciated too.

( I know, I know...Buy cheap, get cheap. But my wallet wins most of our arguments. :o )
 
Forgot to add, he will probably only use it to cut feed sacks, hay string, and other random ranch chores. He also doesn't like serrated blades. In all likelyhood, he will only carry it for about a year (i.e. until next Christmas when I can afford a better one.) ;)
 
Definitely check out the Spyderco Byrd line, the Spyderco Tenacious, Kershaw Skyline, Kershaw Storm.
 
You might check out the Buck Bantams. We have the middle sized one and it is a really nice knife. I think it was only $18 from knifecenter. The largest one is only $5 or $6 more.
 
Kabar Dozier.
Byrd
Boker

Plenty of solid Knives around.

I have the Spear point Dozier and for $20-25 Dollars its great value.

ka4066c.jpg
 
Note that the "tactical flavor" on many of these is absent, e.g., the Skyline, Tenacious, etc.


:thumbup:
 
Dude, I got my G10-handled plain-edge Byrd Cara Cara for like $27 in a store. It's freaking fantastic; he'd keep it longer than a year unless he managed to FUBAR it all up.

Spyderco Byrd Cara Cara G-10

the steel isn't the greatest but the 8Cr13Mov will take a mean edge, the knife is rock solid and has great ergos. It's tip-up left or right paw, hole opener, lockback, meaty and tough and great. Get him that.
 
robinsteele said:
I want to get my brother a folder for Christmas. Money is especially tight this year, so my budget is under $30. He digs meaty knives with a tactical flavor. Any ideas?

I am leaning towards the Boker-Magnum Ray Fighter. Thoughts on this knife would be appreciated too.

( I know, I know...Buy cheap, get cheap. But my wallet wins most of our arguments. :o )
Click to expand...
Spyderco Tenacious.

Certainly qualifies as "meaty", and is a knife of amazing quality for the price.

C122_L.jpg
 
More refined looking than the Tenacious, but built by Mcusta to a very high standard, and featuring superior VG 10 steel is the Browning Ice Storm. A very similar Mcusta costs more than three times the very affordable $26.99 that CDNN asks for it. This is one of the few really amazing bargains in the knifeworld. I'm sure that all other owners will agree. I notice that the red one is now out of stock at CDNN, but you can still buy the rather special looking gold-handled one. Myself, I have the gold one and I gave the red one as a xmas present.

31eeFH6v1hL._SS500_.jpg
cdnn_2028_2203515


To give a better idea about the quality finish, a close up of the red one which you can still find at other online dealrs, but at more than $30 (linked from a previus discussion here):

2451739397_f3cb267d61_o.jpg


For a more hardcore tactical look, I think that the Boker Trance drop-point and the Boker M type offer similar good value as the Tenacious. I have them all, but if choosing, I would pick the Ice Storm without hesitation. It's special.

01bo595.jpg

01bo560.jpg
 
No_b00st said:
Dude, I got my G10-handled plain-edge Byrd Cara Cara for like $27 in a store. It's freaking fantastic; he'd keep it longer than a year unless he managed to FUBAR it all up.

Spyderco Byrd Cara Cara G-10

the steel isn't the greatest but the 8Cr13Mov will take a mean edge, the knife is rock solid and has great ergos. It's tip-up left or right paw, hole opener, lockback, meaty and tough and great. Get him that.
Click to expand...


Yep, Byrd G-10 Cara Cara all the way! You will be shocked at how well constructed this knife is at the $30 price point. Equal in all ways to a $100+ Spyderco with the exception of blade steel. Tight lock-up, sharp blade, strong clip, and a nice grippy handle. Not too heavy either.
 
If you want the very best price - performance ratio the choice is easy.
Go for a Opinel.

If you want to spent more, all other knives mentioned above are very nice
 
Kershaw cyclone or mini cyclone from smoky mountain knife works. Best listed so far, IMHO
 
bigasswiteboy said:
get an ontario rat folder form http://yourcornerstore.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=867_2055_2069&products_id=20925
Click to expand...

Good reference.. depending on how "tactical" your brother likes his knives, I think the Ontario RAT-1 is one of your best options. I think it's comparable to a Tenacious in terms of quality, and it has the whole black coated blade thing going on. Solid lockup, decent blade steel (AUS-8), and multi-position clip.. check them out.
 
spend a little less on yourself and spend a little more for your brother. If your budget is THAT tight, bring a tuna salad sandwich to work instead of eating fast food for a few days, and shazam!... you have the extra $10 it'll cost to buy a nice Spyderco Native that is made in Golden, CO, USA, Earth. He'll dig it 10 times more than something that says "Taiwan" on the blade, and you'll have 10 times more pride in your gift. Go down to Walmart, and do it now, or you might not get one before they sell out for X-mas.
 
archieblue said:
spend a little less on yourself and spend a little more for your brother. If your budget is THAT tight, bring a tuna salad sandwich to work instead of eating fast food for a few days, and shazam!... you have the extra $10 it'll cost to buy a nice Spyderco Native that is made in Golden, CO, USA, Earth. He'll dig it 10 times more than something that says "Taiwan" on the blade, and you'll have 10 times more pride in your gift. Go down to Walmart, and do it now, or you might not get one before they sell out for X-mas.
Click to expand...

ehhhh, I don't be any means support the level of outsourcing companies in our country are undoubtedly guilty of, but I have 2 or 3 imported knives, and I gotta say, I enjoy/trust/am more impressed by the Tenacious than I ever was with the Native.

Not trying to blaspheme, I know there are a lot of guys on here that love their Natives, but it is possible to buy quality imported products. China is growing ladies and gents, whether you like it or not.

And, as a side note, how are you going to encourage him not to buy something that's imported, but then suggest he buys his non-imported product from Walmart?
 
> you have the extra $10 it'll cost to buy a nice Spyderco Native that is made in Golden, CO, USA, Earth. He'll dig it 10 times more than something that says "Taiwan" on the blade

There is nothing wrong with a Native. I didn't buy one but I played with it and it seemed rather good at the price. But, in my opinion the Browning Ice Storm is in another league of refinement for less money if you shop carefully. So yes, it's made in Japan. Like Honda, Subaru and Lexus. And savvy buyers know how superb the quality is.
 
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