Best water friendly fixed blade?

flippinFlippers

flippinFlippers

Joined
Sep 28, 2015
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68
Hello,

I am looking for some water friendly knives. Well, A knife. Used for kayaking, boating etc. Something that will get wet regularly and not rust and doll. I am familiar with the Spyderco Salt series, but am curious about other options. Any ideas? Thanks!!
 
Nothing will beat the salt series outside of a cobalt (not steel) blade.

Otherwise something like a buck in 420hc, Sandvik 12c27 like a stainless Mora, n680, or n690 would all be considered to be pretty much more rust resistant compared to many other stainless alloys.
Even a cheaper 420j is one of the more rust resistant alloys, commonly used in cheaper dive knives.

Most any stainless from a reputable manufacturer would do well enough though so long as it is cared for; cleaned and dried before storing away.
 
best i dunno, but certainly useful
51hHjnukhuL.jpg

http://www.cressi.com/catalogue/details.asp?id=923
 
One of my custom Ti blades with carbidized edge.
 
In my experience, and order of "rust-proof-ness", is as follows:

H1/LC200N, used only by Spyderco, I really dig serrated H1 in all my Salts
12C27/Krupp 4116 used by Mora, Cold Steel, many budget companies and blades use this steel, easy to sharpen and maintain, gets crazy sharp, holds its edge a bit better than...
420/440A, when properly done like Buck, Kershaw or CRKT is really stainless, takes a very sharp edge very quickly and dulls as quick, but it's usually enough for most folks

You also have Boye's Dendridic Cobalt and Titanium alloys, but those are not exactly steels or conventional edge materials. Hope it helps!
 
The spyderco salt fixed blades are really good. I love my Stellite 6K blades the most for being around water. I hear Carbidized Ti knives are great, might not be the best choice if you gut fish though. Boyes knives are good. I see a lot of N690co fixed blades out there, those would be great.
 
Just about any knife steel can be used for water related activities, as long as they are wiped down and dried religiously after use. Especially salt water. Prolonged exposure is the real problem, a knife left to soak or put back in a sheath wet and forgotten. In 2-3 weeks most stainless blades will develop some "staining" although Aug6, 420j2, tend to be a little more resistant than others, A carbon steel blade will develop black patches and pitting in that time. So if you are strict about cleaning, wiping and drying all your gear, including your knife, most knives with synthetic handles and sheaths should do.
G. Sakai ( fornerly Gerber Sakai) is the only maker in Seki Japan that makes H-1 knives. Not carried by US stores but can be found online pretty easily- the G.Sakai "Sabi" series. Fixed blade "water-use" knives in various sizes. G.Sakai makes all the Seki knives for Spyderco including the H-1 models, and they are not very expensive. While not the hardest or most edge retentive, if you participate in an activity where you "may" end up leaving your knife unwashed between uses, H-1 is the way to go. H-1 simply will not rust.
Smallest is the Sabi 1 with 3.6inch blade.
new-sabi-11_zpsixnytlgp.jpg

Largest is the Sabi 5 with a 5 inch blade.
sabiknife5-or_zps43milpze.jpg
 
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I have the Sabi 3, which was my favorite fixed blade until I got the Aqua Salt

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Excellent sheath, was a pleasure to carry,

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and with that thin stock and grind sliced like a Demon,

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tough enough for camp chores and most duties, and full tang, nice ergos

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steel was extremely easy to sharpen, and made me fall in love with H1 together with the Salts from Spyderco

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I recommend Sakai knives based on that one, it really surprised me!
 
Edited due to not noticing your statement about being familiar with the Spyderco salt series.
-------
Statement below is taken from Boye's site, and is his/their claims, not mine.


Advanced Metallurgy for the Saltwater Environment

Extreme cutting and edge holding
Total resistance to saltwater corrosion
Fast sharpening on an ordinary whetstone
Compass safe
Boye Dendritic Cobalt is a super-performing, non-rusting cobalt-based alloy that excels on tough fibers such as hi-tech rigging line, deck line, and net. Not a steel, it is a mixture of cobalt, chrome, nickel, tungsten, silicon, iron, and carbon. It cuts aggressively and keeps cutting. It is completely impervious to seawater corrosion, and is non-magnetizeable.
Each Boye blade is permeated by a dense, branching, "dendritic" network of hard carbide crystals (see photo at right). At the cutting edge, these carbide crystals produce micro-serrations, which can be felt with the fingertip and heard when the knife slices through rope. The crystals help the edge keep its shape and integrity over time (i.e. exceptional edge-holding) and enhance its penetrating power, for deep cutting action.
Each sharpening exposes a fresh set of hard carbide micro-teeth.
 
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I would suggest something from the Spyderco Salt series. I have a Salt 1 that I use as my beach knife; I swim with it.
 
I'm with the others on the Spyderco Salt series, the only pocket knife I carry when I'm fishing salt water.
 
I keep a Gerber River Shorty on my flotation vest when I'm in my kayak. It may not be the best, but it is mostly for emergencies for me. Usually have a SAK in my pocket too. So a Spyderco Salt series or a SAK and the shorty would work well together for me.

One of the Mora fixed blades wouldn't be a bad choice either.

The thing about kayaking, you loose knives and I don't want to invest too much on something like that.
 
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If you want worry-free and maintenance-free, the Spyderco Salt series with H1 is the only way to go.

To give you an idea how good the H1 is, a few years ago my son worked for a pool maintenance business. He was opening bags of pool chemicals and chlorine every day. He started with his S30V Native, and after one day the blade was covered with rust spots (those pool chemicals are strong oxidizers). I then got him a Dragonfly Salt, and he used it for months afterward without a single spot of corrosion. And he said that he didn't even bother wiping the blade off or rinsing it after use.
 
It's already been recommended multiple times but can't recommend the Spyderco Salt series enough for anything salt water related
 
There are many options. My favourite is a custom made for me by Neil Blackwood out of stellite 6K. It will not rust, keeps a working edge a very long time, can be sharpened in the field and cuts well because of its "lubricity". Talonite is very similar but like stellite isn't a great chopper. I actually find that in fresh water and in light salt water like the high arctic Busse knives hod up very well and are easily cleaned if you need a big knife, and who doesn't? There are many commercial kayaking knives to lash to your pfd and diving knoves of all kinds, like Beta titanium, are also very useful. i like one smaller knife on my pfd and a bigger knife lashed on deck in a kayak or to a thwart or on me in canoe.
So many options, so little money.
 
Everyone talks about the Salt folders, and I agree 50% with them. 100% on the Salt series, but 0% on the folders (you stated fixed blade).
Here are three extremely nice all around fixed blades,

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which happen to be at the same time three unparalleled knives for salt and watery environments

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They perform almost everything you need, they can't rust and have excellent sheaths as well as a great warranty, not mentioning the fantastic ergos, incredible balance and overall performance and cutting power

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Three beasts for those times when rust can be a problem!

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