Best knife for the money

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Jraut98

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Aug 31, 2014
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I'm looking for a durable pocket knife with a blade length 3" or less but am not sure what to get. I want it for my EDC so it needs to reliable. What do you guys recommend? I've been looking at the kershaw skyline and leek so what's ur opinion on them but any other suggestions will be appreciated?
 
Little bit beefier blade and great value would be the new Ritter mini-griptilian in M390 steel. One of the best steels out on the market. Great value, but has cheapish plastic scales.
 
Kershaw Skyline is imo the best value knife I own. I found one for $30 at Wally world and it's one of my favorite EDC knives. Sandvik 14C28N same as the basic model Leek (Also an excellent choice for edc and it's available in a larger variety of steels, though the Skyline now comes in S30V and CF from KW I think?). Both are USA made. Anyway, you can't go wrong with either of those. That said, I got my first Spyderco a couple weeks ago (Delica 4 in VG-10 steel with your color choice of FRN handles). That has kept every other EDC sidelined so far. I'm sure I'll start switching up again soon but that's an amazing EDC as well, and probably close to the price of a Leek depending on the version of each.
 
From a low of $100 to about $150, I'd reco a Spyderco Sage 1 (cheapest), Sage 2 (my favorite), Sage 3 in carbon fiber, a Paramilitary 2, Caly 3 or caly 3.5. These are all Spyderco and seems to be where I hang out. All blades run 3-3.5" in length; good steels.
 
Esee avispa or zancudo, rat 1 or 2, tenacious, resilience, skyline. Those are a few good ones.
 
Best value, grab an Opinel. A Opinel #6 in either their carbon or stainless steel will serve you quite well. And the other choice is pretty much any swiss army knife that fit your needs the best. It's hard to beat these knives for price/performance.

Beyond that give us some information to work with as there are a billion different knives which are good quality that you can get cheap that would qualify but is highly subjective on personal taste and needs. The two examples I listed above are ones I doubt any of us would really argue with and are easy to come by. The Opinel is a superb knife for cutting things due to it's blade geometry and due to it's simplistic design is cheap to manufacture and they give you good blade steels with a proper heat treat all in a cheap affordable package. The swiss army knife has a good blade geometry for their blades and Victorinox is usually pretty good on sending out sharp knives, and the other tools are quite handy not to mention is almost impossible to make one of these rust and they seem to be built like tanks unless you plan on prying apart a tank it last you a lifetime.
 
The key words here are "for the money".. The Ontario Rat 1 and 2 are IMO the best values in the world at $30. The Cold Steel Mini Recon 1 is also great at around $40 with an ultra-reliable triad lock.

But Spyderco is still my favorite all around brand. They just get a little pricey. The Spyderco Paramilitary 2 is my favorite knife of all time. It will cost you around $150 though. Look at the ergonomics.. It's worth every penny.

 
As some have already said here, a Ontario Rat 1 is a great value folder, I have experience with this blade, Ive heard great things about Spyderco's value line like the tenacious and such, and some value folder Im very fond of are Cold Steel's Recons, Lawman, and small Voyager, and for most everyday users, the AUS8A that CS pairs with most folders will suffice. For the prices on these knives, you'll get a whole bunch of work.
 
The Leek is a terrific knife for the money and would be a good EDC for light duty such as opening up boxes.
 
Yes, a co-worker of mine has a small Leek he is always opening freight up with, its so funny to see him pull put this little thing and then, thwap, a little blade comes out.
 
ENLAN EL-01 is the best value in my opinion:

Pros:
- strong, sturdy folder with an excellent fit and finish
- flipper opening system
- G-10 handle with good ergonomics
- massive blade (thickness: 3.7 mm)
- several jimpings on the handle

Edit, sorry didn't see your limit on blade length.
 
Jraut98 said:
I'm looking for a durable pocket knife with a blade length 3" or less but am not sure what to get. I want it for my EDC so it needs to reliable. What do you guys recommend? I've been looking at the kershaw skyline and leek so what's ur opinion on them but any other suggestions will be appreciated?
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It is a rather broad question to ask for the "best knife for the money". The answers would all be totally subjective. Both the Leek and the Skyline can fulfill the requirements for some people but wouldn't even blip the radar for others. They are both capable, well-made knives but I've owned both and I never particularly liked either.

Some knives with blades about 3-inches that I do like are Spyderco Delica and Sage, Benchmade Mini-Presidio Ultra and the Mini-Griptillian (but less so than the Presidio). I also like several slipjoint, non-locking traditional knives but I presume you are interested only in modern, locking folders.
 
Check out the Buck 501 at the custom shop. Blade length is 2 3/4 with a nice lock back and you choose the type of blade and scales you want.
 
I think the Spyderco Delica is one of the best values for the money. The Spydero Native is right up there too. These knives carry easily.

The Kershaw Skyline and Leek are popular knives. I just was never a big Kershaw person.
 
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