Heavy Duty medium sized folder.

O

Onesharpkid

Joined
Nov 2, 2008
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Howdy fellas, I currently work for an electric company and I'm out in the field every day. The locales range from the suburbs and more urban areas to out in the sticks. I'm digging through bushes, walking through fields and going down into basically every small hole where they can put a metering system.

I'm looking for a heavy duty medium sized folder that can cut through small branches, rubber hoses, nylon rope basically anything that is gonna trip me up. It needs to be able to take a beating (i.e. being dropped from about 5 feet, dropped into water, kicked and run over) I need the grip to be secure in wet and dry weather and stay sharp with little TLC, very corrosion resistant (lot of manufacturing plants and farms using god knows what type of chemicals) and a one hand open. Locking mechanism must be extremely secure as well.

Also It can't be to conspicuous because I walk through a lot of schools, offices, and businesses. Price should be around $100-150.

If you have any questions for me lemme know. Thanks guys!
 
small sebenza or a mini griptillian would fit the bill i think

edit: maybe not the sebenza considering the price range- the ZT folders might be owrth a look, also a good old buck 110 is strong, reliable and non agressive looking
 
Fully serrated Spyderco Endura or Delica. Tough enough for a beating and cheap enough that you can afford 2 at your budget just in case you lose one.
 
Welcome to the forums!

Take a good look at Kershaw's ZT line. I'd recommend the 0500 MUDD, since you mentioned "dropped in water". The pivot is sealed, and I can tell you from personal experience you can bury it in the mud and muck and it still functions flawlessly. You can read some user reviews here. Made in the USA, and carries a lifetime warranty,
 
No question a spyderco manix or minimanix is exactly what you need. Probably the minimanix.
The new Darryl Ralph framelock looks good but i forget what it is called.
Both these knives are 99% as good as the Sebbie but half the price.
 
I don't think from the description that you want a knife that costs a lot. Personally I prefer what I call tool box beaters for such a task. Tool box beaters should be easily replaced, readily available from a number of sources and capable of withstanding the same level of abuses as you would expect from a higher priced model. They should exhibit high corrosion resistance to the point that you don't hesitate to wash it off in a puddle or stream if need be or even lost outside in the elements and found again after days or even weeks and potentially still be able to get back to work for you with little worry about them. They should also hold a relatively good edge and if possible be easy to touch up on any old sandstone flat rock in the field, as least on the plain edge part of the cutting edge.

A few come to mind that are inexpensive but can do the job.

Any Spyderco H1 bladed Salt knife should work, especially in a serrated or if you can find it a partial serrated one. Not sure they offer that last one but it would be good either plain or serrated.

The Emerson HardWear line makes one called the Endeavor. That fits the bill.

Any of the Cold Steel Vaquero or Voyager folders are good beat em ups with a crap load of law enforcement to back up what they take daily.

All of these are available for anywhere from $45 to $65 and would make a very good highly reliable yet durable folder for what you describe and if you lose it, bust it up, break it or it gets stolen so what! Buy another one and beat it up too.
 
The task list you give sounds to me like a wish list a Spyderco Tasman Salt would write. ;) A serrated hawkbill works really well for the sorts of things you are talking about (at least it does for me). The H-1 steel, in fact the whole knife, is rustproof. I have yet to find a chemical that will bother the FRN handle or the H-1 blade. It is available in either black to stay low-key or bright yellow to look more tool-like and less weapon-like. It is also a lot easier to see when you drop it in the brush. MSRP is close to a hundred, but you can usually find them in the $60 range, give or take a little. Don't let its light weight fool you, this thing can really take a beating.
 
Any of the mentioned knives are very good, but based on your description of what you need out of the knife, I'd personally get one of the Spyderco Salts in H1. Not sure which model, but I'd go check out a few & see which one was the most comfortable & seemed to be the best size for what I needed. The other nice thing about the Spydies is that you get them in SE if that's what you need.

Good luck.
 
First off - have been on this search for a little over a year. Llet me give a very strong endorsement for the knife I carried and used for 4-5 years straight for similar purposes - Kershaw 1580 Boa. One of these served me very well. Really - the only downside was i found out that my Spanish shop floor name at one plant i wired on again/off again was "The guy with the big knife". This is a tactical looking knife - but is a tool that will get the job done for you.
What I've ended up with is a Emerson CQC-14 - which i think might serve your well. 2.7" blade is pretty legal anywhere you can take a knife (maybe not Chicago?) - grips are really grippy and you've got to cut something with one to appreciate how great the ergo's are on this knife.Easy to sharpen - which i agree is more important than how long between sharpenings.
Plain jane black clip - pretty well disappears against black jeans . Wipe a black magic marker over the top of the liners and they get close to invisible as well.For me the Wave is puzzling ? Rarely have i hated a feature on a knife as much as the wave - fortunately easily removed.
I realize this is near the top of your price range and STR's advice about the Taiwanese Emerson's is worth noting - just haven't been able to find one of these to handle yet! Although it is overtly Tactical - the CRKT Lightfoot M-1 is a 3" knife -scary sharp and with the LAWKS feature can be very securely locked open - if you can find one - they go for about $50.00. Excellent grippy handle - black clip.
The 3" heavy use utilitarian folder group isn't all that big - a lot of the knives with this size blade are basically gents folders - nice office tools - but no good for chopping stuff up.
 
I second what STR said. The CS Voyager, Spyderco Pacific Salt or Byrd PS Cara-Cara. These knives will take a lot of abuse, perform and not set you back a ton if you lose it.

I used a Voyager one time to cut and splice a crapload of Romex on a job when someone walked of my lineman pliers. Took a little longer but went home on time and got the edge back in 5 minutes on a DMT stone.
 
You should do yourself a favor and check out the Cold Steel Pocket Bushman!!! This blade is the epitome of 'tough' with is Ram Safe lock it practically morphs into a fixed blade when you open it. The handle and liners are integral and made of one piece of stainless steel to simplify and strengthen it. It's cost will not upset you either at just $21.20 from www.yourcornerstore.com you can't beat the price. Even if you get another more expensive blade, you should just get this thing anyway it's so cheap just for a comparison.
 
An Emerson or a Spyderco. The Mini Commander is my favorite EDC it's been hogging my pocket for the past week or the Spyderco Mini Manix(if you can find it for a good price since it's discontinued then get it) or a Para Military, I don't own one but I've heard that you can't go wrong with one.
 
Welcome to Bladeforums!

Some of your requirements almost contradict each other, for instance, secure grip and inconspicuous. It has to be reasonably large for the grip and durability. Also, every knife needs sharpening, sooner rather than later. Get a small diamond rod sharpener, easy to use and portable.

I suggest the Ka-Bar Mule with a combo edge (part-serrated). They come in clip point and tanto, and in your case the tanto might work best. It is a more durable tip for digging and prying. The Mule does have a low-ride pocket clip, so you can carry it inside your pocket if you don't want to use the belt sheath. Under $45.
 
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