Cheap knives: Any thoughts?

M

Matt Langley

Joined
Dec 25, 2002
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223
I just posted on the general discussion forum about a particular Kellam blade, which is around $12-13. Whilst I DO like expensive knives I realised a while ago that I have nothing to compare those expensive knives too. I also wondered how good or bad some of those well known cheap knives are. I ordered a Frosts Mora today simply because of it's legendary statue and it got me wondering about other blades in the same price range, and how they compared.

When I say "cheap", I mean a price of under $30.

My question is, do you believe there is a place for cheap knives which represent good value for money, or do you feel that they only exist for those who can't afford better or don't know any better?

Do you have any cheap knives, and if you have more expensive ones too, what do you use the cheap ones for?

Matt
 
I mosty use cheap knives, SRK is my main knife, cant say enough good things about it, as far as the mora goes that is a great knife for the price. I keep a stainless model in my boat when running traps and I have a hi carbon steel mora in my BOB.Those knives are great and I would reccomend one to anyone. I have a few extra just in case and right now I am turning one into a neck knife.
 
the things you care the least about are often the things you use the most. like the p.o.s. hatchet my stepfather found in our garage when we moved in. the geometry was considerably worse then a square, seriously... the edgewas around 150 degree's. after some judicial grinding, its an alright splitter, but more then that i use it all the time. ive used it as a handle to pick things up, as a hammer more times then i can remember, a thrower (horrible :rolleyes: ), and a wood splitter ta boot. also used it to bash apart roots in less then desirable soil conditions (rocks everywhere).

if it had been a 200$ gransford - i would have used it maybe twice. sure, i would have been happy and pleased with the result of those two times, but i know more abour how that hatchet feels in my hand and at work then i would have ever known about the gransford...
 
Buck 110 costs 29.99 from wal-mart, so does the Kershaw Vapor II. Frosts moras, clippers and swedish army knives are awesome cutters that can be had for 10-15.00 from www.ragweedforge.com . I have alot of knives that get abused that I'm not going to shell out alot of money for. If I'm doing yard work at a buisness I may get stuff stuck in the mower or weed eater that needs to be cut and scraped and pried out and I'm not pulling out the sebenza to do it.
 
The majority of my knives or cutting implements fall into the cheap category , especially after seeing how much some folks will drop on a knife.
I EDC a gerber and a cold steel , I love em both but wouldnt lose any sleep if I lost em and they both get used a lot , every day.
Mora knives are great cutters for the price , like the other guys , I have more than one for various uses. My knife snobbery only extends to the sort of junk you find at Swap Malls , it is usually made in China and of very dubious quality. My Buck 110 is getting a new blade put on as I type , for the money it is the best hard use knife I have owned and I'd pit it against anyone's 500$ custom so forth so on... Actually I dont know too many people willing to use thier costly knife for much else other than getting 'ooohs and ahhhs' from thier buddys , lol :D
My favorite hobby as of late is to buy a decent looking used knife on eBay as a fixer upper , gives me something to do and almost always turns out to be a bargain.
 
My most expensive knife is a Becker BK-7. I also have used my USMC Ka-Bar for over 20 years and love it. My Air Force Survival Knife is a decent blade that sees alot of use. My machetes are either from Ontario or Tramontina. I haven't had one let me down yet.

The frost's Mora are well worth the $10 price tag. They work great. I haven't used them for any heavy work but they make a great companion to a machete.

I'm cheap my nature and ancestry (Scot). I regard a knfe as a tool. I use them hard and when they give up I get another. I would love to have an expensive 4 inch fixed blade, 7 inch blade, and top flight machete. Maybe if/when I get up to the Amazon I'll spring for that kind of steel. For my purposes though the above mentined knives have not let me down. Mac
 
The pilot's survival knife isn't too bad a knife for around $30, as are the Spec-Plus knives from Ontario.

Moras rock, SAKS are really nice, the Buck 110 is a modern classic.

I use my SAKs the most outdoors, but my Frost's is getting more use lately, just sorta fun to use.

Shoot, the only thing close to expensive knives that I have are Bark Rivers, and I do use them. But, there are plenty of inexpensive but good knives out there to fit any budget.
 
I've seen some very experienced bush survivalists use cheap POS's (in my terms). I don't for a moment have any illusions that my better knives are strictly necessary in the bush - I just like them, owning and using a fine knife gives me pleasure. I don't actually need it.

The issue, when using cheap knives (or any knife) is knowing it's limitations - know what it can do and how much prying/battoning it will take before breaking.

I've learned a lot from hanging around Aboriginal people in the bush. They have no reverence for material things and do not appreciate fine craftmanship in anything beyond what it can do functionally - they regularly perform feats of survival in the bush using equipment (knives uncluded) that would leave us in awe.

They save their reverence for the land and the animals.

I, on the other hand, would not go bush without one of my favourites.......
 
Even with my taste for customs, I have a couple mora's.

For 11usd I can abuse it and not worry as much as even a 100usd factory.
 
"I've learned a lot from hanging around Aboriginal people in the bush. They have no reverence for material things and do not appreciate fine craftmanship in anything beyond what it can do functionally - they regularly perform feats of survival in the bush using equipment (knives uncluded) that would leave us in awe." Ming65

Ming,

I second that from my observations of people, rural and native, here in Brazil. They are the most pragmatic people you will ever meet. Most of them will only use primitive means when the money runs out. In the bush you are more likely to have a local ask to borrow your bic than watch him make a friction fire. He can do it, he just dosesn't have the time and he knows you have a bic.

Most of them have never seen a truly sharp knife either. Here most knives you find in the hands of locals are either the machete, kitchen knives, or stuff that belongs in a butcher shop. Mostly they rub them on a rock or cement slab until they can shred their way through whatever needs to be cut. Out in a rural village I once killed a pig with my Ka-Bar. The blade went in so fast they thought I'd missed and slipped the blade under the pig.

I visit this one family alot and every time I'm there whatever folder I have gets used for meal prep. The girls literally drop whatever knife they're using and ask to borrow mine. Their dad usually takes the opportunity to rub the blades on the "the rock" outside.

Do cheap knives have a place? Yes, the third world, and you'd be amazed at what a cheap knife can do. Mac
 
Out there in the "sticks" or boondocks as they call them in other parts of the world, riverine folk or villagers use simple, metal sharpened objects. You can call them by whatever name, they just get used.

That means slicing up fish caught in the river; cutting up a chicken or slaughtering a goat. At the end of the day, they make life easier for everybody, especially the villagers.

Since rural residents have no basis for comparison, they just use the parang they owe which their dads passed to them, and life goes on.

:)
 
High price doesn't always mean that it's a good working knife and in fact, many who buy them, don't use them, because of the fear of damaging the knife and lowering it's value.

My most expensive blade is a BRK&T NorthStar and I'm not affraid of using it. It cuts like the devil and looks good too. But, while working on tapering a 2" hickory staff, I found that it doesn't cut any better than my Mora 2000 does. In fact, because of it's better designed handle, the Mora is a more comfortable blade to use, which when coupled with it's cutting ability, makes it a better knife than the NS in my book.

I'd also suggest the Moras, CS Bushman, USAF PSK, Camillus version of the KBAR fighting knife, Becker BK-7 and I'm sure there are several other good users out there that I havn't gotten my hands on.

Speaking of kitchen duty knives, I have 3 that I picked up that are great all around knives and are deserving of sheaths. I've also handled many a paring knife that would make an excellent outdoors blade.
 
longbow50 said:
High price doesn't always mean that it's a good working knife and in fact, many who buy them, don't use them, because of the fear of damaging the knife and lowering it's value.

My most expensive blade is a BRK&T NorthStar and I'm not affraid of using it. It cuts like the devil and looks good too. But, while working on tapering a 2" hickory staff, I found that it doesn't cut any better than my Mora 2000 does. In fact, because of it's better designed handle, the Mora is a more comfortable blade to use, which when coupled with it's cutting ability, makes it a better knife than the NS in my book.

I'd also suggest the Moras, CS Bushman, USAF PSK, Camillus version of the KBAR fighting knife, Becker BK-7 and I'm sure there are several other good users out there that I havn't gotten my hands on.

Speaking of kitchen duty knives, I have 3 that I picked up that are great all around knives and are deserving of sheaths. I've also handled many a paring knife that would make an excellent outdoors blade.
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I use everything I have regaurdless of what I paid for it. But I do in fact use the "cheaper" knives I have more. And I agree I have a few kitchen knives that I have often thought of bringing with me in a sheath but thought myself being a dork. I guess I am not alone. :D
 
There is a wide assortment of excellent outdoor blades to be found for around $25 or less..


Victorinox SAKs Most can be had for $25 or under. A few of my favorites: Lumberjack, Hiker/camper, Farmer, Huntsman/Fieldmaster, Hunter and one hand Trekker/Trailmaster, all equipped with the mandatory wood saw.


Frosts Mora These are outstanding cheap knives. May favorites are the Clippers and the Swedish Army knife.


Camillus ArcLite An wonderful little neck knife with a Kydex sheath, very reasonably priced.


Cold Steel Bushman A bombproof survival knife on the cheap!


Ontario Machetes These are great for all round machete use and chopping. I like the 12 and 18 inchers with the newer molded D guard handles.


Gerber Exchange a Blade Sport Saw Much lighter, safer and more efficient than a hatchet!



- Frank
 
Let's not forget the OPINEL. They are very inexpensive (not cheap) and cut like the Devil's tounge. I also like them for their light weight and ease/fun of customizing. They are right up their with the Mora knives for their value. I like the No. 6 and 8s both in carbon and ssl
 
The inexpensive knife that I've been using lately is one that I modified for my son. It used to be a big scary looking Old Hickory butcher knife. I cut it down to a size that a seven-year-old can handle and put a new edge on it. For $1.50 yard sale purchase, I actually like it better than my Buck 119. This year, I'm going to look for another one to cut down so I'll stop borrowing his!
 
Barker45 said:
Let's not forget the OPINEL. They are very inexpensive (not cheap) and cut like the Devil's tounge. I also like them for their light weight and ease/fun of customizing. They are right up their with the Mora knives for their value. I like the No. 6 and 8s both in carbon and ssl
Click to expand...


Phew....as I scrolled down through the posts I thought for a minute that noone was going to mention Opinel!!!
 
bishop85gt said:
I'm one of the dumb one's... I have a few kitchen knives that I have often thought of bringing with me in a sheath but thought myself being a dork.
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There's an old saying, "If it's stupid and it works...................... it's not stupid!" :D Go with what works for YOU and your circumstances. Never mind what anybody else thinks of it.

(edit to add) I concur with the nods of approval given to the mora knives and the CS Bushman (and the unmentioned Mini-Bushman) as really cheap knives worth looking at. While it's a bit more than the upper limit price set, if you can get a CS SRK factory second on sale for about $35, it's a tough blade that is also a decent cutter. But IMHO it begs for a re-handle job.
 
Everyone is often looking to these elaborate knives of the past. I have seen many knives posted as trade knives Hudson Bay camp knives.
The truth be known the avarage wilderness adventurer in the case of the fur trade in North America was usually the youngest son of the farm sent to sign up with a canoe for spring and on the way out the door the mother would take one of her best Kitchen knives and send himof with it stuck in his sash. No fancy bowie or heavy duty custom job or even a big chopper just a kitchen knife.
 
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