Favorite knife brands and why

Spyderco is my favorite by far. Why?

Excellent customer service/warranty (though I have no experience with this as of yet)
Variety. They offer so many different knives with different types of handles, steel, locks, etc.
Value. Case in point, the manix 2 lw with S110V for $110~? Gayle Bradley with CF and CPM-M4 for $150~ Hope you're paying attention Benchmade.
Craftmanship. I own knives from their three main factories (Golden, Seki, and Taichung) and they have all been excellent.
Fearless--They don't just stick to what is tried and true and rest on their laurels, they are out there looking for new and better ways to do things.

LionSteel/Dpx etc
Craftsmanship--Of the three I've owned, all have been exceptionaly well built.
Unique features--Rotoblock, glass breaker, wave/bottle opener etc.
Unique designs/materials--Monoblock handles, unusual steels (sleipner, niolox)

These are my two favorite folder brands. Everything else, I can take or leave.

ESEE is my favorite fixed blade brand, for obvious reasons.
 
Buck---grew up with them---haven't bought one in years but like the ones I have

Victorinox----decent quality for cheap

Benchmade---my favorite by far---nothing comes close to the AXIS lock

Spyderco---decent quality but I no longer bother with them--my Benchmades have pushed them out

Bark River---simply beautiful
 
Gossman Knives - No BS, built tough hard use knives by one helluva nice guy!
Adventure Sworn - Beauty, function, and craftsmanship. Works of art that are ready for whatever the outdoorsman throws at them!
Victorinox - So versatile, affordable, and well built. Everybody should have at least 3!
 
Benchmade for me. I have been buying Benchmade knives since the late 90's and to date I have never received a bad one, all have had symmetrical blade grinds, centered blades, and have been sharp enough out of the box to satisfy my needs. I ABSOLUTELY love the AXIS lock and it is a major part of what keeps me buying Benchmade knives. I give kudos to their customer/Lifesharp services, fast and inexpensive. I have gotten to a point in my knife addiction where I have a few knives that I love and I don't buy that many any more but when I get the urge for a new knife I look to a Benchmade AXIS lock knife. :D
 
Spyderco then benchmade. Love everything about spyderco. The designs, CS is great and great quality. Like benchmades designs also, like the axis lock and from all of the different autos i own and have owned benchmades ary favorite.
 
Spyderco, CRK, Victorinox; integrity - constant quality.
You get what you pay for.
red mag
 
Spyderco: awesome collabs for interesting designs, traditionally great value (though not as much with the newer models), exceptional quality, top-notch customer service
Cold Steel: tri-ad lock, great value, great quality, most entertaining marketing proof vids
 
Spyderco: awesome collabs for interesting designs, traditionally great value (though not as much with the newer models), exceptional quality, top-notch customer service, compression lock
Cold Steel: tri-ad lock, great value, great quality, most entertaining marketing proof vids
 
Zero Tolerance - Good value to knife ratio
ESEE - Hell of a warranty
Chris Reeve Knifes - Immaculate tolerances; comparison yardstick
Benchmade Quality materials; neat knifes
Spyderco - Quality materials
 
Love everybodys input...

My favorite companies overall??? Hard decision but would have to come down to Cold Steel and Kershaw/KAI. I have carried a Spyderco and loved it but have only owned one and it was one of their very first production models so i can't say much about them. I currently carry a Benchmade and am swiftly falling for them but i have the same issue as with Spyderco, lack of experience. And last but not least... Smith and Wesson.

Kershaw knives for being affordable, decent quality, and very good on price for what you get.

Cold steel for dependability, cool factor, and great materials.

Smith and Wesson... most of their knives are pretty crap to be quite honest... This is, however, the average mans knife. We here in the blade community know that you can spent $10-15 extra and get a RAT-1 or a Kershaw Leek or a Blur instead of the S&W crap *Nothing against their firearms, by the way.* But the average person can walk into K-Mart and walk out with a Smith and Wesson pocket knife. (As i had many times before the good people of BF brought me to the light)

Spyderco... not much stands out here aside from the huge hole in their blades (which is... eh) but i do admit they are damn good knives.

Benchmade.. -drools for a while, forgets the topic, and starts playing with a Benchmade- Axis Locks are badass. And that butterfly is just... just... SO MANLY!
 
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Spyderco . The knives naturally. In addition, it's difficult to not like, and even admire Sal for who he is, how he treats people as well as all the other things involved with cutlery. The selection of materials, performance over looks or style, the whole thing slanted to performance rather than looks or latching on to "high speed operators" to sell knives. The mule team has benefitted the buyers much more than the company when it comes to production capability and scheduling. With a lower than normal markup the production time devoted to mules could make the companies owners more than the time and materials devoted to allowing steel junkies like me to try a steel that Spyderco has no intention of ever using in a production knife, say 52100, for instance. :) Then, look at their production steels. VG10, S30V, S35VN, ZDP 189. CTS XHP, Elmax, M390, S90V, S110V, soon 10V, CPM M4, CPM Cruwear, 3V, O-1, many, many more

Kershaw and ZT. I still like them, their products and have respect for Thomas W.

Buck. Especially the Custom shop models. It's amazing what some of the old BG42 customs sell for now. :) CPM 154 Bass Pro 110's. Got to love these!

GEC. Especially the 1095 and O-1 models. Still waiting for an Ebony #42 LB trader. I have several but the ebony model I want eludes me.
Queen. Especially the D2 Mountain Man !

Ontario and Ka Bar. 1095, 5160, Ranger lines, Gen 2, etc.

Svord - Got to love that L6 Von Tempsky Bowie and Rangers. The large one is a beast.

Not production but

Phil Wilson
Big Chris

Two custom makers that are at the top of their game and will get the most performance they can from their knives. Bonified "super steel" is where they really hit that extra gear and seperate themselves from the crowd. I could easily think of 5 more knives I would love to get from eacxh maker.

I wish though.
 
Victorinox. GREAT tools at GREAT prices. ICONIC brand. Innovative products and manufacturing. OUTSTANDING quality control. EXCELLENT customer service. Lifetime warranty. No one comes close, and Victorinox makes tens of millions of knives each year.
 
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Kershaw is probably my favorite because of their budget lineup. They make awesome knives for under $20 shipped - that, like magic, cut stuff pretty much just like the spendy stuff. Many of the other makers are just pricing themselves into the stratosphere. Honorable mention to Cold Steel for making killer knives at decent prices, and the huge, sick blades that no one else will make.


Kershaw Shuffle: $18.32 shipped.
 
My favorites, innocent particular order are:

- Victorinox: Excellent quality and selection of tools.
- Kershaw: Quality at a price I can afford.
- Ontario: Tactical folders that hold up at Jarbenza prices.
- Spyderco: My first "tactical" was a Spydie;)
- Leatherman: Their knives leave something to be desired (IMHO), but all multitools are judged by the standard they set.
 
Protech, because the owner is a knife lover through and through who genuinely cares about the people who buy his knives. Also, their regular production knives are an outstanding value, and their custom shop knives....well...have you seen them? Good lordy they are beautiful! Collector grade without a doubt.
 
CRK,Spyderco,Benchmade,Kershaw,Fallkniven,Victorinox,Leatherman,Survive knives,......
 
Victorinox
Spyderco
Chris Reeve

Lately and for the most part, I only carry Victorinox and Spyderco. Both are very different from one another, but I like their purpose-driven designs. Victorinox is, IMO, the quality standard bearer for all large-scale knife companies. The largest knife company in the world, Victorinox still has an amazingly high consistency of QC for the number of knives made per day, per year. And their prices are very inexpensive for what you get.

As far as Spyderco, I find them extremely ergonomic, practical, lightweight, and easy to carry, whether clipped or down inside the pocket (the latter is how I carry mine). And there are models for every budget.

Jim
 
I like knives that allow me to put the clip on the left-hand carry side.

I started out with Benchmade and later found Spyderco.

I really like the story behind Sal and Spyderco. Kudos to them.

I like that Benchmade replaces blades (for a fee) and Spyderco sharpens serrations. If Benchmade would sharpen serrations and Spyderco would sell replacement blades they'd both be perfect.
 
leghog said:
Victorinox. GREAT tools at GREAT prices. ICONIC brand. Innovative products and manufacturing. OUTSTANDING quality control. EXCELLENT customer service. Lifetime warranty. No one comes close, and Victorinox makes tens of millions of knives each year.
Click to expand...

Do they offer an SAK with a clip point? I would love to have a Pioneer with a clip point instead of a spear.
 
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