Favorite knife brands and why

G

GBell14

Joined
Aug 3, 2014
Messages
53
What are your favorite knives all this is personal preference and what are some positive things about them?
 
Himalayan Imports and Spyderco. H.I has the best customer service around and their blades are the strongest i've ever used and at great prices. Spyderco for being the best folders i've had in the past(rarely carry folders now as i've sold nearly all). If only H.I made folders tho.. now that would make me start carrying again.
 
The first good knives I got into were Spydercos, and I think very highly of them. They have great, ergonomic designs, and cutting edge steel options. They're also pretty competitively priced. In the past year, I've evolved my tastes towards simple, clean, robust designs with less flash. I've winnowed down my Spyderco collection and exploded onto the CRK scene. Right now, CRK is by far my favorite knife company. They are the highest quality, best constructed knives I've experienced. They also hold their value like nothing else. You can recoup almost all your expense on the secondary market, in the case that they aren't for you.

Essentially, at the $250 and below pricepoint, I think Spyderco has the best designs, steel, and quality available. Above $300, CRK's are where it's at.
 
My favorites are case fixed and folders, buck fixed and some of the folders, schrade folders, kabar fixed. The steel is great takes and holds and edge well and reasonably priced and some great designs overall.
 
Spyderco and Benchmade make great reliable production knives with premium materials at an affordable price. Kershaw is my favorite for blades under $50 especially when you can grab some of their U.S. made knives in that range. CRKT is good for production versions of customs without eating your wallet too bad. Cold Steel makes some of the toughest knives under $100. Case is just about perfect if you're into traditionals. Mcusta has unbelievable fit and finish for the money.

For me, I'd rank my most purchased brand from favorite to least like this:

Spyderco
Benchmade
Mcusta
Kershaw
Cold Steel
CRKT
 
Protech, because I believe that they deeply care about the knife community, their customer service is top notch, and they make an amazing product especially for their price point. It doesn't hurt that their custom shop knives are out of this world.
 
Buck and Schrade are the brands I started out with, but we're talking '60's and '70's.

Latter, as I became a more active hunter, I discovered the edge Bob Dozier's D2 had over the steels I was using.

Years later still, when I got involved with trail clearing and bushcraft type chores, I became enamored to the convex A2 blades of Bark River.

Today my Dozier's and Barkie's are joined by quite a few Customs, many from makers on this Forum.



Big Mike
 
Buck - great quality for the price, and a family owned business
Kershaw - variety of designs, and not outrageously priced
 
Buck, GEC, Spyderco, Benchmade, Kershaw, ZT, Bark River, BKT, CRK.

For the most part these are my favorites due to innovation, design, value, integrity, customer service, quality, longevity. For the most part I feel they are companies that all care about their products and the people that buy them. They do not make a perfect product and not everything they make is priced where I would like it to be but 99% of the time when I purchase a product from any of these companies I feel good about it and that is really all that matters to me.
 
Great thread! About time for some positivity!

Busse and kin - brutally beautiful. Flawless ergos and functionality. Ironclad warranty. Absolutely without question my favorite knives. Once you have held one you are never free....

Al Mar - custom quality at production prices.

Spyderco - nuff said. Never had a bad one ever.

Emerson - haters gonna hate, but they are damn good knives. Try one and you'll understand.

Benchmade - again, nuff said. Never received a bad one.

Tops - again, haters gonna hate, but if you sift through the gimmicky weird holes and marketing bullshit, there are great knives to be had.

Z to the mother effin' T - what can I say? Damn near perfect knives for great prices (for what you get). Almost unparalleled quality.

Kershaw - you guys knew this one was coming next, right? Kershaw/Kai has been turning out great stuff for many years. At great prices. They will most likely continue to do so.

CRK - the Sebenza isn't the "Cadillac of knives" for no reason. Yes, they are pricey, but worth it.

That was just off the top of my head. There are MANY others I will surely think of right after I hit "send"!

Not sure they count as "brands" but I have a chit load of custom knives that I have nothing but positive things to say about. I'm sure I'll wind up adding more to this later!
 
See - I told ya! Adding:

KaBar/Becker Knife and Tool - great knives for the price. Made here!

Ontario - same as above.

ESEE - same as both of the above, but IMO a notch above.
 
Case XX. It was the first knife I bought with my own earned money. 36 years later, I still have it. I also like:

TOPS
Entrek USA
Bark River
Blackjack
 
Case - I grew up with these knives. My parents and grand parents have gifted me several through my growing years.
Kabar - Same as case. I grew up with a traditional Kabar knife. It was a hand me down, but I liked it.
Zero Tolerance - My son gave me a ZT 0350 for my birthday. Been hooked ever since.
Emerson - My first 'modern' folder. For daily work use, I carry these.
Fallkniven - F1 and recently purchased a PXL wh. Awesome blades both!
Helle and Mora - My Scandi grind blades. While my Helle's have turned out to be safe queens, my Mora's have been used ALOT!
 
Spyderco: Thier products match my liking, I find the Spdydie-Hole to be better than a stud, and their costumer service is top-notch
 
In addition to many of the brands mentioned above, which I will not repeat, I would add Victorinox Swiss Army knives to the list. They are high quality knives that sell at very affordable prices. The extra tools come in handy, and there is a huge variety of sizes and tool combinations. There is something very classic about a Swiss Army Knife. Because they are non-threatening, they can be used in almost any setting.
 
Traditional--GEC; so much character

Modern folder--Emerson; perfect formula, form and function

Fixed--Busse; beast!
 
Favorite Brands.... Victorinox, Great Eastern Cutlery (GEC), Spyderco, Bob Dozier customs, Kabar, and Blackjack as made by Bark River. I like them because these makers produce knives of consistant quality. I like ZT, but I don't have enough experience with them yet.
 
Kershaw - The first knife I ever owned was a Kershaw, so I'm biased when it comes to them...but they do have good quality control and in my opinion have the best affordable assisted openers on the market.

CRKT - They have some unique designs that I like quite a bit, such as the Bear Claw and the Ripple.

Spyderco - Best overall quality of the knives I own, in my opinion.
 
It's been 30+ years of carrying a pocket knife on a daily basis for me. I've carried everything from tiny keychain size to beefy 4" tactical folders. What I feel most passionate about is my three 3" Hinderer XM-18s. A Slicer, a Spanto, and a Wharnie. I kinda get annoyed when carrying anything else these days. For me, they're the perfect balance of toughness and portability.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top