Bradford guardian3 opinions

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Xisix

Joined
Mar 16, 2020
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Hey everyone, I just ordered a Bradford guardian 3, Sabre grind, with the 3D handle scales yesterday, and I’m pretty excited. Anyone else have or carry one? What’s your opinion?
 
I have one and I think it is a very good design for a knife of that size. I have large hands and it still works well, but really big hands and I think it would be too small.
 
I think it’s the best small fixed blade around.
I have a DLC 3V model thst I haven’t used enough!
The coating is less durable than anticipated, but ultimately it means I need to use & scratch it more. 😁
 
I own one with a sabre grind and 3D scales (green micarta). The ergos are really good for me. Fit and finish is good, but not great.
The only point of nitpicking is the leather sheath. It works well but whenever you draw the knife, there will be flakes of leather raining. Mine hasn't stopped yet.

Long story short: What BD_01 said in his first sentence.
 
I have a full flat M390 with contoured cf, and a sheepsfoot in Vanadis 4E and contoured micarta, both riding in Armatus Architect sheaths.

They're really excellent at their intended role, a fixed replacement for an everyday folding knife.
 
I have a full flat G3 and a sabre ground G3.5, both with contoured scales. Easily my favorite small fixed blades, and having them reliably keeps me from buying other ones. They are really excellent.

I have the kydex sheaths for both, and I defintely recomend those as well.
 
I love mine, FFG, 3D scales, nimbus finish with M390 steel, I've EDC'd it for the past 3 months, it's replaced any folder I carried and it's required basically no maintenance since I got it with the exception of some light stropping, it's the sharpest knife I've gotten out of the box to the point I didn't feel the need to put my own edge on it. I've carried that thing in the rain, sand, mud and in my sweaty nasty pocket cutting and picking at all sorts of crap, I've had no rusting and no edge problems despite how hard (therefore quite brittle) and thin the metal is. It really is my favorite ~3 inch blade. Also with the kydex sheath, it has pretty low profile in the pocket or in your waistband for a fixed blade. That being said, my one gripe with the knife is the sheaths, both the kydex and the leather sheath feel pretty *meh* compared to the kydex sheaths on my Esee knives but or the leather on my Bravo 1, but it’s really not a huge deal. Also their customer service was top notch, I called them and the lady I talked to really helped me figure out what options I wanted for my knife, how she felt their M390 steel was better than their CPM-3V, her own personal preferences etc etc and hooked me up with a bunch of discounts to boot so suffice to say, I have a pretty high opinion of Bradford as a company.
 
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The Bradford Guardian 3 is my favorite small fixed blade. I’ve had many, but stuck with the sheepsfoot stonewashed M390 with contoured scales and both leather and kydex sheaths. Perfect backpacking/camping knife!
 
I did like that it hides pretty well when on the belt horizontally. I personally felt the handle was a tad small for my liking. For whatever reason I wasn't feeling a lanyard for this one. The leather sheath is a nice touch. Ultimately ended up carrying the RMJ UCAP for the most part.

On a semi-related side note the Bradford paring and santoku kitchen knifes are pretty awesome as well!
 
Great little blade. I am 6'4 and it still fits my hands just fine for its intended purposes. Gives a bit more meat than a folder and a good compliment scout carry. I agree with others on the standard leather sheath though. I wanted to like it but it just didnt work for me. The retention is fine I guess but the nature of the belt loop requires that every time you want to take the knife off or put the knife on, you need to take your belt completely off which can be a real pain if you are relying on that belt to do other things like hold your pants up or hold up an EDC firearm if thats your thing.

I wound up getting an aftermarket Kydex job and added a Tek-Lok to it as well to make getting it on and off the belt easier and it resulted in my carrying and loving the guardian 3 more.
 
I don't have the Guardian 3 but I did own a Guardian 4 in the saber grind with camo scales and DLC coating on the blade. It was an excellent knife with possibly the keenest edge I've ever experienced out of the box. I ended up selling it only because the Guardian 4 was a bigger blade than I cared to carry with any regularity. In that respect, I think you're on the right track by getting the Guardian 3. The 3" range is what I look for in a knife these days.

On a side note: I was so impressed with the cutting edge on my particular example, that I emailed the company through their website, to let them know. I actually heard back from the owner, who appreciated the input and told me that they had just switched to a different grinding method. It was a nice touch that left a positive and lasting impression with me. Best of luck to you!
 
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