Cheap knives: Any thoughts?

Mora. Opinel. Okapi. any number of local blades...
Good stuff- delivers the goods- has for years...
 
I would got with a CS SRK. I got mine for around $60 and dwn right love it. It is a good survival kife for a good price.
 
For me, there are good knives, and good knives for the price. Cheap (good) knives fall into the second category.

For example, I consider the SRK or Bark River knives good knives. Period. I consider the Moras to be good knives for the price. They don't come close to some of my more expensive knives, but for under $10, they are a great value.

Then there are the rest. I lump my Opinel in with the cheap crap. Very difficult to get a good edge, and will go dull on the first or second cut. Good geometry, lousy heat treat, lousy knife. For the same price range, they get outperformed by my Moras 10 to 1.

YMMV.
 
I own Busse BA3 for a while now, but still did not tell to my father. He considers any knife for more than $10 a waste of money, even though he likes making knives himself (I gave him photos of Ray Mears Woodlore knife http://www.bushcraftuk.co.uk/reviews/review_woodlore.html. He made one knife for me and one for my brother. He initially found the knife very odd and thought to change it a bit - increase a bit blade length, change handle - but then decided to make exactly what he saw. As a result, he was very impressed how practical the knife was. However, he reduced the thickness of the blade that it be more convenient for cooking).
Actually, I use Victorinox almost every day in the kitchen. When I go to countryside for walking I take Victorinox again. I really have no need in a fixed blade. However, if I could get a light Busse with something like 2 -2.5 mm thick 10-12.5 cm long and 1-2 cm wide blade in a shape similar to scandinavian knives I would definitely consider one.
Regards,
 
Matt,

Many good posts already... My own answer is YES. Cheap knives definitely have a place for regular use.

There are many things I hate on this planet, and one of those things is people who own dozens of high-end knives and don't know how to use them. I'm sure the roman people were collecting high-end spears and body armors when the barbarians attacked with their "primitive" gear. Under-equipped, poorly fed, poorly organized, they nevertheless could conquer an empire because they had the spirit, and could use the little they had to it's fullest extent. The romans were superior in numbers, organization and equipement, but they had lost their testicles thanks to complacency: they thought that gear, organization and "power" could replace skill, guts and work.

The cheapest blade on this ugly earth will outperform any high-end knife put in the hands of someone who can't sharpen it or use it well. Recently I've lent my Camp Tramp to a moron, and it took him 23 whacks to chop through a 2" diam. pine branch (yes, green !!!). Such a waste of a good blade made me sick. I felt like slapping that guy in the face.

Until last year, I chopped my way through life with a 7$ Tramontina machete. I bought it when I was a kid, and it followed me everywhere since. Cheap as it can be, I've used it for so long that it feels like it's a part of me, and I think that counts. This intimate relationship with a tool, which equates to a "skill factor" is, to me, much more important than the tool's quality.

In good hands, of course, a quality tool unfolds and is able to express it's full potential. And that is a beauty to watch. But skill is not bought, and good tools can't replace skill.

Just my humble opinion...

Cheers,

David
 
Frost's SWAK, SAK Farmer & Ontario 12" machete. Cover's about anything you need a blade for and costs about $50.
Gene :)
 
Recently, I bought three pcs NIB Frosts Mora Camping (unfortunately discontinued almost 30 years ago). I must say these knives display, IMHO, the optimum interface of price and quality.

The 5,7 long blade sports the nordic V-shape primary edge bevel. The steel is mirror polished Sandvik 12C27, the handle is made out of some kind of hard wood and a leather sheeth is enclosed as well. Alltogether: $21 !!



Sorry for the lousy pic quality. The stain on the blade is from removing a sticker. In addition, I've drilled a lanyard hole into the handle. It's a riveted 2/3 tang costruction.

~Paul~
 
I'm not real big on cheap knives because I have been bitten by them before. However, I'm also not afraid to use my expensive knives. My EDC the 705BT on the top in these pictures shows that. (by the way, the pocket clip wasn't polished, that is from wear) ;)

707front.JPG


707clip.JPG
 
I have carried a Camillus Air Force Survival Knife for over 25 years, 3 homemade sheaths, untold sharpening stones, tasks that have varied from digging holes,opening cans, to cutting veges for the cook pot, and never once felt the need for anything better.

Would I use it in the kitchen or dresssing out a deer? No.

For 98% of all field work, it does the job, and does it well.

Cheap does not mean useless.

And, I note the very good point of several posters, the Buck 110 is hard to beat in most situations.
 
After reading Blade forums, get what you're happy with, but remember that Frost and Jaguar, Pakistan and Magnum etc are junk. I have many of these brands, I even have a Tomahawk machete in my truck right now, but I am not happy about it. Look at individual knife companies sites, such as Buck or Spyderco etc, check out their MSRP's, look on eBay at brand new knives from the same companies, browse the for sale forums on this board, generally get an understanding to what you would pay for the knife, what a good price is and how far you are willing to go for that particular knife. I am holding out on a good price for a SOG Tigershark, MSRP is 150.00, I've seen it for as low as 89 bucks, but I haven't bitten yet. On the other hand, I've been looking for a Cold Steel Ozark Hunter for a while now, nobody has it, MSRP is 70 bucks, I am willing to go above MSRP just because I want the knife! On most of my other knife wants, I will not go anywhere near MSRP. Your choice, not all cheap knives are POS, not all expensive knives are that great.
 
" remember that Frost... are junk."

I believe the Frost knives that are being recommended are the Frosts of Sweden, which is a different company from the American company of (junk) knives.
 
As has been said before, "cheap" is not the same thing as "inexpensive."

I find myself unable to hammer on and pry with with three hundred dollar knives (imagine that!), when out in the field. So, I have plenty of inexpensive knives to choose from, and I'm not afraid to use them, so they get used. A lot. Not actually abused, though.

I've got a SAK, and a Pukko in my survival kit, and they both do a fine job of cutting stuff up. Didn't cost too much, either.

Now what I draw the line (at carrying), is stuff that is bad quality, shoddy workmanship, or unsafe operation. I just skip over crumby executions, to the functional, inexpensive knives out there.

CHEERS
 
I got my bushman in the mail today, I don't like the sheath, how do you wear it, not used to that kind of sheath. The knife seems pretty good, look forward to trying it out. Have to get a something to plug the ends if I wanna store stuff in it.
 
The sheath is one of my biggest gripes about the Bushman. Actually my only gripe when I think about it, I like the knife itself. The sheath is designed to wear between the belt and your trousers so that belt tension keeps it in place. Its like the old trade knife sheaths. Personally I find it awkward to use. Hard to get the knife out and to resheath it.

I gave my large Bushman to my brother in law but have considered getting the msaller one. If I do I'll drop a couple bucks extra and get a kydex sheath for it from O/ST, Sheath Mechanic or the like.

I have a number of "cheap" knives that I really like. A couple of Mora's, a pile of Frosts (of Sweden) 700 series blades, a couple of Cold Steel Trade Knives from their old Red River and Hudson Bay lines as well as an old Ka bar and USAF PSK. I also have some higher end custom blades. I do plan on using those as well (most I got over winter and haven't given them a good work out yet) but I gotta admit that I'll do more with a Mora or a SWAK than I'd likely try with a more expensive blade. I've used those a lot in the work shop, around the house, in the yard etc for stuff that's really pretty rough on a blade. I don't mind that so much when its a $10-$15 blade though.

Another "cheap" but good style is the various trade knives like mentioned above. Cold Steel doesn't do them any more but you can still get Russell Green Rivers and some other lines very inexpensively and they're designs that have worked well for a couple hundred years now.
 
Trout Tamer said:
" remember that Frost... are junk."

I believe the Frost knives that are being recommended are the Frosts of Sweden, which is a different company from the American company of (junk) knives.
Click to expand...

Yes FROSTS of Sweden is not Frost USA ( which is probably truley Frost China or somewhere else.............)

SAK, Mora, Opinel........................ all excellent " cheap" knives!!!!!!!!
Martin
 
the Frosts I was talking about are the same POS Frosts that old man Jim Frost puts his name on, I believe he owns Smoky Mtn Knife works.
 
I could be mistaken here and someone correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe the type of sheath that is issued with the Bushman was designed originally to be worn with a sash, which when used, adds a variety of options to the wearer. The sheath was threaded onto the sash and then the sash did a couple more wraps around the waist and helped to hold the sheath in place and the knife secure. The original sheath also had a piece of rawhide built into the leather, so that the knife didn't cut through. I suppose that a thin kydex insert would have the same benefit.
 
Not sure about the sash. Do you mean the original style trappers/trade era sheaths? If so that sounds like it has some merit to it and the sheath may well work better that way than with a modern belt. The belt seems to put too much tension on the sheath mouth, making the knife harder to get out and closing the mouth of the sheath up when the knife is removed.

The Bushie sheaths do have a hard plastic or kydex insert inside them.
 
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