"Cheaper Than Dirt" Rough use knife

Well,

My son came over today to show me the knife. It is full tang, heavy as hell. The black finish is badly worn, but who cares. The back is slightly dented in spots from him using the back as a hammer. No sign of being bent from using it as a pry bar (he opens crates with it). He keeps a filed edge on it, no dings.
The sheath is cheap nylon with a stiff liner of some sort.

Overall, for 14 bucks, it's a good tool to throw in a tool box or keep behind the seat of the truck. Not flashy, won't win a beauty contest, but neither will I. If it breaks, oh well, it's just 14 bucks.

He also brought the box it came in. Of course it's from China. It says on the front "Spear Point U.S.A. Defender" and the brand is just "D".

I appreciate a fine blade as much as anyone here. I own several Benchmade's one Dozier, a Case, ect. You can use this knife though for things I wouldn't dare touch with any of my favorite knives. I felt like someone punched me in the stomach when I broke the tip off of the Case I got for fathers day. So I'm ordering one, maybe two, and I plan on abusing the crap of it.

P.S. I never thought this post would get this many replies.

Thanks all, cool website you have here.
 
The back is slightly dented in spots from him using the back as a hammer.
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Hammering nails or breaking things apart like a hammer?

As for aersixb9, I just now read his other posts. I guess my digging stick comment will probably be ignored.:) Anyway, if you're serious about learning about knives, then welcome to the forums. If you're just trolling, then at least you're amusing, so welcome to the forums.:D
 
ashtxsniper said:
I have owned both and the S&W model is way better is has a sturdy sheath and a diamond sharpening stone. The copy has no stone and the sheath is horrendous. You can Get the S&W models for around $30.00 on the bay.
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Funny that you mention a company that's notorious for ripping off other manufacturer's knives and then patenting the design for themselves. :D :thumbup:
 
symphonyincminor said:
Funny that you mention a company that's notorious for ripping off other manufacturer's knives and then patenting the design for themselves. :D :thumbup:
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Why is it funny that he mentioned a knife that's almost identical to the one the OP posted about? It's completely in the context of this thread. The whole Dyad thing has been done to death, but I'm sure if you start a thread in W&C, you'll get all kinds of responses, but I really see no reason to hijack this one.
 
kiahs said:
Why is it funny that he mentioned a knife that's almost identical to the one the OP posted about? It's completely in the context of this thread. The whole Dyad thing has been done to death, but I'm sure if you start a thread in W&C, you'll get all kinds of responses, but I really see no reason to hijack this one.
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While it's completely within context, I just found it funny that he would would recommend a knife (three[!] times) sold by a company that's doing no better than what these CTD cheapies are doing. Knock-off's from a company that produces their fair share of knock-off's.

By the way, this entire thread began it's spiral into banality and hijacking with post numero 14. :D

More than anything, I'm interested on your views of these CTD beaters when you get your hands on them. Agree with you about testing products before declaring them junk and garbage (johnny reb, Rat Finkenstein, et al.). While using and appreciating quality knives is great, there's still a use for cheap beaters like these (I think). Not everyone can afford Busse or Swamp Rat (or Scrapyard, for that matter).
 
symphonyincminor said:
Agree with you about testing products before declaring them junk and garbage.
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Yeah, I have a tendancy to take anyone's opinion with a grain of salt. A lot of times the general opinion on a knife coincides with mine. A lot of times it doesn't. Two examples.

1.) I had been using a small Wal-Mart Machete and a Large no-name Colombian machete for all my machete needs. I put a convex edge on both, and they had been used for clearing, chopping, copperhead decapitation, etc. After several comments on the forums about the junkiness of the WM machete, and the greatness of the Tramontina, I bought two. A 12 inch and a bolo. Both came with flat edges, which was not a suprise, most machetes do. I took the 12" to the belt sander and gave it the same edge the WMM had. Then I tested it on a 4x4. The first swing took a 1/4' chunk out of the edge. Took another swing, and another chunk came out. Ground the entire edge down so that it was even again, and took it back out. Deciding to leave the 4x4 alone, I walked into the woods and cleared some saplings that had grown up on a trail. After a couple of minutes the edge was blunt and chipped in places. I probably just got a bad one, but I've had no desire to test the bolo since.

2.) I won an MTech kerambit on ebay for a few bucks.(I know, I know) When it arrived, they had sent me the wrong knife. Instead of the MTech, I received a blatant Emerson kerambit rip off. It was an exact copy, wave and all. No markings except for a sticker that said "China" that fell off when I opened it. Now I wouldn't have bought this knock-off on purpose, but sending it back would have cost more than I paid for it. After looking it over, half expecting it to fall apart in my hands, I was very suprised. It was flawless. The fit and finish was fantastic. The grind was perfect. The lockup was solid, spine whacks didn't bother it at all.

I have USA made Buck slipjoints with springs so weak the blades won't close. I've had a US made Schrade lockback blade snap from falling into carpet, and finally fall apart after having the blade reground. My Ka-Bar USMC arrived with the bade bent 1/4" back from the tip. The list could go on and on. My point is that any company can make a good knife, and any company can make a bad one. I don't concern myself with brands anymore. As for knives that are made in China, I can't spit in my house without hitting something made in China. I'm not gonna discount a perfectly good knife for being made in China any more than I'm gonna throw out my computer, tools, appliances, or any of the hundreds of other things I own from China.
 
symphonyincminor said:
While it's completely within context, I just found it funny that he would would recommend a knife (three[!] times) sold by a company that's doing no better than what these CTD cheapies are doing. Knock-off's from a company that produces their fair share of knock-off's.

By the way, this entire thread began it's spiral into banality and hijacking with post numero 14. :D

More than anything, I'm interested on your views of these CTD beaters when you get your hands on them. Agree with you about testing products before declaring them junk and garbage (johnny reb, Rat Finkenstein, et al.). While using and appreciating quality knives is great, there's still a use for cheap beaters like these (I think). Not everyone can afford Busse or Swamp Rat (or Scrapyard, for that matter).
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I was not so much recommending S&W as I was just saying if you have to have one of these knives the S&W is the best. Read into it a little more.
 
Just ordered these. I didn't get them from CTD. I got them from SMKW. I'll give a review when they get here.
 
UPS dropped these off a couple of hours ago. I got a three piece set that included a spear point, bowie, and a small khukuri style. The spear point has a "saw back". All knives have soft rubbery handles, not the hard plastic. The sheaths are nylon with no inserts. All are claimed to be 440 steel with a lifetime warranty.

Initial impressions:

Bad: The bowie has a noticably bent blade. Spear point's guard is lop-sided. The sheathes could be better. The coating is bubbled in places on one knife, with slight rust forming. They are thinner and lighter than expected.

Good: They look pretty cool :). The handles are very comfortable. The grinds are even and the bowie could shave a little out of the box.

I'll test 'em out and give a review when I get a chance. (this weekend or next week some time) On a side note, I picked up a Ryan Plan B with this order. It's a heck of a deal for 12 bucks.
 
ashtxsniper said:
I'm glad all the S&W's I bought were uniform.
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How thick are your S&Ws? These are thinner than I expected and I was wondering if the S&Ws are any thicker. These are about the same thickness as the thickest part of the Plan B, quite a bit thinner than my Ka Bar USMC.
 
Thicker than my Ka-Bars. I would say slightly under 1/4" I will have to mic it but I would guess between .20 and .22 inches.
 
I agree that the fixed blade Smith & Wesson I bought is well worth the money. It's going for a great price at Smoky Mountain (eknifeworks.com). It's the Homeland Security Tanto, $29.95. I also very strongly recommend Ka-Bar knives, but they're a bit more.
 
ashtxsniper said:
Thicker than my Ka-Bars. I would say slightly under 1/4" I will have to mic it but I would guess between .20 and .22 inches.
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Was your non S&W the same thickness? The ones I received are marked with the "Maxam" brand. Do you remember the brand of your non S&W?

Ironhorse, how thick is the CTD knife?
 
I received mine from Cheaper Than Dirt a few days ago. It was the spear point version (they called a clip point...whatever). It was in great shape, none of the bent blade thing or finish blisters described above. The sheath was cheap nylon with a stiffener. The edge was terrible but a few minutes on a stone fixed that.

I took it in the backyard and started beating, batoning, and chopping everything that would stand still long enough. Pecan firewood, low hanging limbs, even a chain link fence. I'm sure my neighbors are convinced that my cheese has finally slid off my cracker.

Can't say there was a razor edge when I was done but it was still functional. Didn't bend, ding, or anything. The handle was not too bad either. It was Africa hot outside so by the time I called it quits I was soaking wet. The rubber handle didn't slip around, no blisters or hot spots on my hands.

Overall, the knife is a good knockaround, throw in the toolbox or camp kit kind of blade. It is way to big and heavy for any kind of carry though. Worth the price IMHO.
 
It appears that the Maxam brand I received is probably not the same as the ones CTD sells. Even though they look alike, the Maxams seem to be thinner and lighter than how the CTD is described. I'll go ahead and pick one up on my next CTD order.
 
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