Budget Beater - $50 or less?

bluemetalchurch said:
Good morning,

I'm looking for a budget folder in a decent steel for a true beater knife. I've got my eyes on the Ontario Rat 1. It has good reviews, is a big blade, and seems to be a good value. With that being said I'm not crazy about the aesthetics of it at all. I'm wondering is there something better out there? Better looking, better steel, better lock, etc. that I'm not thinking of or missing. I'm looking for something along the lines of the Rat 1 - not looking for small knives.

I appreciate the input!
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I prefer the Ontario Utilitac 2 over the RAT 1, for a pure beater.... but, hell, that's just me and I am weird. :D
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I have a Rat 1 and the tenacious. I find the tenacious is able to do everything I need as a working knife/beater without being so huge like the Rat. So much wasted realestate on the Rat.
 
Pilsner said:
It’s a fine knife as well for the price. But the RAT-1 has that FFG... ;)
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But..........swedges. ;)

SharpieB said:
For a couple of bucks more (maybe $60US?) the Manly Peak in D2 is an amazing knife. The Peak is almost identical in size as a Buck 110 but with a modern spin.
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I picked up a Peak about a week ago and it has not left my pocket..... It's kinda scaring me. :D
BMCGear BMCGear The Peak is one heck of a knife for the money.
The grind on the OHO / FFG Peak is pretty thin and slicey. Just a heads up since I don't know what kind of beating you put on your beater.
 
flatblackcapo said:
But..........swedges. ;)


I picked up a Peak about a week ago and it has not left my pocket..... It's kinda scaring me. :D
BMCGear BMCGear The Peak is one heck of a knife for the money.
The grind on the OHO / FFG Peak is pretty thin and slicey. Just a heads up since I don't know what kind of beating you put on your beater.
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Same here. I have about 100 knives and my 2 Manlys are getting tons of pocket time. They are fairly recent acquisitions so we are still in the honeymoon phase, but they have such a thin profile (and blade) that I can barely feel them in my front pocket. I will be adding a Manly fixed blade and likely a black/red Peak in S90V when they are available.:thumbsup:

Not to derail, so I will add that some of my favourite other knives are Steel Will’s D2 offerings. I own 4 Steel Wills and they are also fantastic values.
 
I have both, and they are both fine knives. The RAT 1 finds more pocket time for me, and it has definitely taken a beating and never missed a beat. It still even looks almost like new. If there is something better at this price point, please tell me, because I want one! I also have owned the Tenacious, the Modus (close relative of the Cutjack) and others, but for my money, this is the most bang for the buck.

For those who want an even less expensive knife, the Byrd Cara Cara 2 in G10 is hard to beat! "Poor Man's PM2"

flatblackcapo said:
I prefer the Ontario Utilitac 2 over the RAT 1, for a pure beater.... but, hell, that's just me and I am weird. :D
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Thanks for all the recommendations so far. I will say a few things as you guys have given me a few things to think about.

1. The Civivi line of knives is interesting to me. Not typically a fan of flipper these days but it's interesting.
2. No D2. Just not a fan of that steel. I'll take Aus8 over it typically.
 
Sounds like you're after a folder. I think the broken skull can be had for right around that price on discount sale (seems like it's on sale a lot) and is a very solid knife. The handle is thin which makes it carry nice but it's not the best for a ton of cardboard or wood carving. I use it a lot in the summer for yard work as it gives a lot of edge and doesn't drop my shorts to the deck from weight.

The rat 1 is a good choice and the esee/BRK avispa is pretty similar but with a more of a spear point and a frame lock. I think the kizer begleiter is close to $50 also and is a really nice knife.

kershaw skyline XL is one that could be interesting, I've never tried as I found I don't like flippers but it is intriguing.
 
bluemetalchurch said:
Thanks for all the recommendations so far. I will say a few things as you guys have given me a few things to think about.

1. The Civivi line of knives is interesting to me. Not typically a fan of flipper these days but it's interesting.
2. No D2. Just not a fan of that steel. I'll take Aus8 over it typically.
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Manly makes that Peak in cpm-154 but that pushes the price up to about 80 bucks (with shipping )
 
bluemetalchurch said:
I didn't see any available on his site. Are there other locations? Google didn't give me much.
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I just looked and it looks like they are out of stock on the OHO but still have this one.
Edit : it looks like they are no longer a paying dealer.
I'll shoot you a PM.
 
bluemetalchurch said:
I didn't see any available on his site. Are there other locations? Google didn't give me much.
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The US site doesn’t have them but they are available on their Canadian site. I would email them as they tend to only put what is in stock on their websites.
 
BladeHQ has a score deal on Kershaw Skylines right now. Also, the Kershaw Emerson CQC and Injection are priced about what a six pack of good craft brew will run. I'm no Spyderco guy really, but I have to say that the Persistence/Tenacious platform is hard to beat at the $50-ish dollar level.

One of my favorite beaters in this price range? The Cold Steel Ti-Lite. Don't know why... the stiletto is pretty much one of the more useless configurations to me, but I'm a sucker for it.

You already know this, but punching in "Folding Knife" and your price range will give you pages and pages of choices over at BladeHQ and Knifecenter. I do this sometimes when I have "X" number of dollars left in my wallet at the end of the month and want to see what's out there.
 
If you want budget fodler i would consider Ruike and Real Steel folders made of 14c28n stainlessteel . Steel holds edge almost as VG-10 and sharpens fast.
 
Lot of choices in that price range, if you get a chance, check out some of the offerings by Civivi, picked up a couple, and they are very impressive for sub 40 folders. Also give a look at a Stagear "Ausus" folder.
 
Lots of great choices here. The utilitac will be more of a work horse as the rat 1 will be a slicer. The budget folder market does have a good selection. Utilitac, rat 1, tenacious, avispa.
 
I bought a Rat 1 as a beater and I was blown away by it.
I know it's not sexy but the feel in hand is surprisingly good. It's very smooth and it cuts like butter.
If I lost my Rat 1 i'd buy another one the very next day.
 
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