- Joined
- Jan 29, 2000
- Messages
- 546
I know this forum is crawling with these types of posts, but I was reflecting while playing with my knives last night and figured I would give it a go. The following are my five favorite knives by virtue of being my favorite in a given category. The categories are: large conventional folder, small conventional folder, automatic folder, small fixed blade and large fixed blade. I would be interested to read other favorites in these categories. Perhaps I might be convinced to replace one or more on my list!
Large conventional folder: Benchmade Skrimish. I bought a Skirmish when they were first released. This is one of the few knives that I anticipated greatly, and I have not been disappointed. The Skirmish is large but not obtrusive. The handle, solid titanium with a very strong frame lock, fits my hand wonderfully in a variety of grips. The ergonomics are great and the knife is still very thin and easy to carry. The 4.3" blade has a unique and very useful design, with a broad semi-recurve and a relatively high grind. Despite the mass of the knife, it has great balance and moves quickly and precisely. I absolutely love the lines of this knife. If I had to carry only one folder for the rest of my days, it would be the Skrimish.
Small conventional folder: Spyderco Stainless Cricket. I bought the cricket on a whim. I think it was on sale for about 30 bucks when I got it, but I would gladly pay the full price to replace it if this one was lost. The Cricket, with its S-curve blade and extremely thin profile, will go anywhere. It works as a moneyclip or, as I am currently doing, clipped to my left pocket with my room key and a small flashlight attached. The blade is great for general utility, with plenty of belly for slicing and a wonderful tip for precision cutting. As tiny as it is, it tucks away easily and makes for extremely discreet carry, and the framelock makes it far more sturdy than many other small knives. I carry this knife every day in one manner or another.
Automatic Folder: ProTech Godfather. The Godfather was the first high end auto I ever bought, and it is by far my favorite. I own two Godfathersa satin bladed, burl handled model and a black and G-10 modeland will most likely buy another before I am done. The proportions of the knife are perfect for me. It is slim and incredibly light. The blade opens with authority and, despite the fact that it has no safety, I have never had a problem with the Godfather opening inadvertently. The handle is classy looking and comfortable and the knife indexes and rotates easily in the hand. The controls are intuitive and the lock-up is rock-solid. The blade, though obviously styled as fighter, is useful for anything a "gentleman's knife" should be used for, and the extremely sharp tip is more useful than one might think. Definitely the least utilitarian of my choices, but truly a joy to carry and use.
Small fixed blade: Hide Away Knife. This is the only one of my favorites that I don't own (yet). How can it be my favorite, then? Because this is one of the few times when I see a small fixed blade as legitimately superior to a folder of similar size. I was able to play around with one that a senior NCO had a while back and I was blown away. The ability to keep it in your weak hand while firing a firearm, picking something up, using a flashlight or climbing a ladder makes this concept without peer. The variety of blade configurations covers any personal preference, and the number of carry methods possible are too numerous to list here. The knife literally functions as a part of your hand, and the ergonomics are excellent. I can't wait to order mine.
Large fixed blade: Spyderco Hossom Forager. This is one of the newer knives in my collection, but it is thoroughly impressive. The high convex grind on the seven-inch blade makes it an excellent chopper. The edge came razor sharp and has stayed that way. It is blade heavy, but not enough to be cumbersome, and the combination of weight and the grip design make for natural swinging. The handle and finger choil allow the user to choke up for finer work, hold the middle for general use or slide the hand low for maximum leverage while chopping. The handle is smooth but grippy, and the design makes it damn near impossible to slip free accidentally. I own a good number of large knives, but for a general purpose outdoors knife, I think this would be hard to beat, and I would gladly take it over a Ka-Bar or most other military knives if I had to fight with one. It has earned a place on my body armor and will most likely stay there through the rest of my deployment.
Large conventional folder: Benchmade Skrimish. I bought a Skirmish when they were first released. This is one of the few knives that I anticipated greatly, and I have not been disappointed. The Skirmish is large but not obtrusive. The handle, solid titanium with a very strong frame lock, fits my hand wonderfully in a variety of grips. The ergonomics are great and the knife is still very thin and easy to carry. The 4.3" blade has a unique and very useful design, with a broad semi-recurve and a relatively high grind. Despite the mass of the knife, it has great balance and moves quickly and precisely. I absolutely love the lines of this knife. If I had to carry only one folder for the rest of my days, it would be the Skrimish.
Small conventional folder: Spyderco Stainless Cricket. I bought the cricket on a whim. I think it was on sale for about 30 bucks when I got it, but I would gladly pay the full price to replace it if this one was lost. The Cricket, with its S-curve blade and extremely thin profile, will go anywhere. It works as a moneyclip or, as I am currently doing, clipped to my left pocket with my room key and a small flashlight attached. The blade is great for general utility, with plenty of belly for slicing and a wonderful tip for precision cutting. As tiny as it is, it tucks away easily and makes for extremely discreet carry, and the framelock makes it far more sturdy than many other small knives. I carry this knife every day in one manner or another.
Automatic Folder: ProTech Godfather. The Godfather was the first high end auto I ever bought, and it is by far my favorite. I own two Godfathersa satin bladed, burl handled model and a black and G-10 modeland will most likely buy another before I am done. The proportions of the knife are perfect for me. It is slim and incredibly light. The blade opens with authority and, despite the fact that it has no safety, I have never had a problem with the Godfather opening inadvertently. The handle is classy looking and comfortable and the knife indexes and rotates easily in the hand. The controls are intuitive and the lock-up is rock-solid. The blade, though obviously styled as fighter, is useful for anything a "gentleman's knife" should be used for, and the extremely sharp tip is more useful than one might think. Definitely the least utilitarian of my choices, but truly a joy to carry and use.
Small fixed blade: Hide Away Knife. This is the only one of my favorites that I don't own (yet). How can it be my favorite, then? Because this is one of the few times when I see a small fixed blade as legitimately superior to a folder of similar size. I was able to play around with one that a senior NCO had a while back and I was blown away. The ability to keep it in your weak hand while firing a firearm, picking something up, using a flashlight or climbing a ladder makes this concept without peer. The variety of blade configurations covers any personal preference, and the number of carry methods possible are too numerous to list here. The knife literally functions as a part of your hand, and the ergonomics are excellent. I can't wait to order mine.
Large fixed blade: Spyderco Hossom Forager. This is one of the newer knives in my collection, but it is thoroughly impressive. The high convex grind on the seven-inch blade makes it an excellent chopper. The edge came razor sharp and has stayed that way. It is blade heavy, but not enough to be cumbersome, and the combination of weight and the grip design make for natural swinging. The handle and finger choil allow the user to choke up for finer work, hold the middle for general use or slide the hand low for maximum leverage while chopping. The handle is smooth but grippy, and the design makes it damn near impossible to slip free accidentally. I own a good number of large knives, but for a general purpose outdoors knife, I think this would be hard to beat, and I would gladly take it over a Ka-Bar or most other military knives if I had to fight with one. It has earned a place on my body armor and will most likely stay there through the rest of my deployment.
