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jimmycracks

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I'm 13 and just able to join! :cool: My Mom says she will buy me a knife for my brithday! Up to 100 dollars! Any good suggestions? I'd like a folder with bearing, flipper decent steel maybe? Can I get something for that and where to order? Thanks loads, I'm very excited!!!:)
 
Welcome Jimmy...great opening message. Benchmade makes some great knives at the $100 price point. Also Spyderco--the Tenacious is a great easy flipper and comes in a lot of different handle materials.

Knives Ship Free is a great outlet for knives and owned/run by honest people.
http://www.knivesshipfree.com

Mike
 
Kershaw, Benchmade, Spyderco, they all make a few decent options for under $100; but the biggest thing will be learning your steels and which ones are good for different purposes. Also local knife laws to make sure what you get is legal to have.

My personal recommendation for a 13 year olds first knife with a $100 budget, (i bought mine a $10 junk/gerber when we was 13, now almost 16 he just got a $30 Kershaw), would be a Benchmade mini griptillian with a 154cm steel blade. Almost 3" blade is plenty big rnough for a teenagers needs, and 154cm is rugged enough steel to take some basic teenage abuse.

A Buck vantage pro with a s30v blade is another fine option for a sub $100 knife, with a premium steel blade (and Buck's great lifetime warranty).
 
Don't start on a premium steel. There are so many blades in 8cr13mov and AUS8 out there in great knives well within that limit it would be wise to start out on one. The steel holds a great edge and most important, easy to sharpen back up.

I got my oldest who is 11 his first knife and I got him a Hultafors with carbon steel. Holds a spectacular edge real long and is easy to sharpen and was only $9.95. It takes unreal amounts of abuse as he learns knives.

Go to one of the big online retailers and check out the plethora of knives in your price range. Get a good steel that's easy to learn sharpening on and get a mora to go along with it and you will still be under bugget.

Good luck in your search and let us know what you get when they come in!
 
Honestly for $100 I would get a spyderco Para military 2. I am 17 and have worked up starting with a tenacious, then a delica and finally a PM2. The para military 2 is my go to for EDC and I love it. I got mine from knifeworks.com. They have them in stock right now. It's a very popular knife for good reason. The PM2 has premium steel, awesome lock, great handles and great ergonomics. If you want a basic starter knife the ones I would recomment are:
- Ontario Rat Model 1 or 2 (can be had for around $25)
- Kershaw Leek (around $40-$50 depending on the model you want)
- spyderco tenacious (around $40, great knife)
- Spyderco Delica 4 (around $60, great starter knife and VG10 is a pleasure to sharpen)
- Spyderco Endura 4 (big brother to the delica, basically if you want a bigger knife)

I own all of the above with the exception of the endura. However as I said before go for the PM2 if you want the knife I have found myself having trouble justifying another knife purchase after owning. If you want something lighter and smaller, go for the delica.
 
I personally would avoid CPM-S30V, especially in thinner blades, as it chips easily (in my experience). Kershaw's Sandvik 14C28N steel is very easy to sharpen, yet holds a great edge. The Benchmade Griptilian and mini-grip are overpriced by quite a bit IMO.

Under $100 for a flipper with bearings and good steel is going to be a difficult find, unless you look on the exchange for something slightly used. Also, I highly recommend using one of the sponsored vendors on the forums vs buying from an actual store, as most stores have a considerable markup.

My recommendations for $100 and under?

Cold Steel Recon 1, Code 4, or American Lawman in CTS-XHP steel.

Spyderco Delica ZDP-189.

At $35, the Kershaw Nura is a bearing flipper, no assist. However, the steel is the lowly Chinese 8cr13MoV.

The Kershaw Camber is an assisted flipper, at about $75. As I mentioned though, I am not a fan of the S30V blade.
 
strategy9 said:
Also local knife laws to make sure what you get is legal to have.
Click to expand...

Yep. Check into that first. You don't want to buy a knife that's not legal to carry around (when you are not in school, of course). Knife laws are state specific, and the laws can even vary by city in some states.

Check out the Kershaw Knockout if you can. Great flipper. The spring assist makes it pop open very fast.
 
WELCOME!


strategy9 said:
Also local knife laws to make sure what you get is legal to have.
Click to expand...
Agree. Double check them BEFORE ordering!


Instead of 1 knife, why not multiple knives? The Kershaw Skyline is a sweet flipper at $30~$50.


I like to shop at KnifeWorks, KnifeCenter, BladeHQ, National Knives, GPKnives, to name a few.
 
I think you need to inform your mother that this new knife is just the beginning of a lifelong collection/obsession. You may be able to convince her that she needs to start paying you extra for chores, or find a way to help you start saving money to buy the next knife.

Though not on bearings, a great, first, quality knife that I got my son when he turned 14 was the Kershaw Junkyard Dog II with a composite blade. Great steel, great ergonomics, simple and smooth to operate, and built to take a beating, and survive.

If you're going to get into this hobby the right way, you will also need to find a decent sharpening system, and learn how to use it. It can be as simple as a couple of ceramic rods; medium and fine are all you should need, initially. Or get one of those little draw-through crossed-ceramic things (NOT TUNGSTEN!).

Now, again, about that job... Yes, you're going to need one. Once you start down this road, there's no turning back. Enjoy the ride! :D

Oh, yeah. Happy Birthday!
 
Boris74 said:
Don't start on a premium steel.
Click to expand...

Don't get me wrong, my kids first real knife was a cheap utility slip joint actually, then at 13 I gave him a $10 skele framed 2" Gerber. As he's about to turn 16, I just got him a little basic 2.5" Kershaw Shuffle in 8cr13mov... So hardly anything premium, just a handy blade to learn with. When he graduates I'll give him a $100+ blade.

On the flip side this kids mom gave him a $100 budget... So why not start with a premium steal to start an early appreciation for them? I wish someone would've gave me a $100 blade at 13, lol.

I'm not saying he should get d2 or anything that tough, but if his 1st blade is 154cm or cts-xhp, or a svandik (hopefully he doesn't lose a finger), i say go for it. I mean, yeah, my kid wouldn't get one, I sure didn't, shoot, my own edc is a 8c13mov CRKT, (and a crappy Gerber scout I abuse at work), and it is, along with aus8 or 420hc, 440c, a good basic starting steel, no frills steel... But this kid got an opportunity here to start off nicer then average and ahead of the curve! I say go for it... Get something nice he can truly like, and learn to apppeciate it and maintain it. Plenty of time for average steels in the future. Those cold steals in cts-xhp arent a bad bet either. The code 4 in all 3 blade styles is on my "to do" list at the moment.
 
Daniel Dorn said:
If you're going to get into this hobby the right way, you will also need to find a decent sharpening system, and learn how to use it. ...... ; medium and fine are all you should need initially

Oh, yeah. Happy Birthday!
Click to expand...

+1

Only thing I would add is possibly a leather strop. Care for your blade, it won't need sharpened as much. With the age of the internet, watch some videos about how to hone/sharpen a blade the right way.

A quality knife is well complimented with a good system to keep it sharp.

A sharp cheap blade > a dull expensive one when you need to make a cut, and blade sharpening is imperative to true knife ownership.
 
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Welcome to the forums, Jimmy. Nice to see other kids here. :)

For $100, I'd get a Kershaw Knockout, and a Becker BK15. That pair will cover just about anuthing you'll ever need a knife for. :thumbup:
 
Spyderco Stretch VG-10. $76 at Knifeworks. Would be perfect for a first knife.
 
I remember being frustrated as a young person, trying to sharpen a "super steel" that was so hard that it took me an hour or more to get it right. I like the advice to choose a steel that is easier to sharpen. I don't know what that would be besides carbon steels like 1095 or 01 tool steel. When it comes to the fancy steels, I rely on the forum and the manufacturer for info.
 
I was 13 when I got my first knife! My older brother gave me a spyderco harpy, and I've had it for 17yrs now. I think benchmade and spyderco would be a good way to go. They often use vg10 or 154cm steel which I think are good quality steels that I love and can be sharpend relatively easy. My picks would be benchmade presidio/griptilian or spyderco delica.
 
I thought I might post a couple pics to give you some ideas of size comparisons and what I carry.
Here is my current EDC rotation of folding knives:
IMG_1252.jpgIMG_1253.jpg
from left to right:
- Spyderco dragonfly 2 in VG10 steel
- Spyderco Delica 4 in VG10
- Spyderco Para Milirary 2 in CPM-S30V steel
- Kershaw Blur in S30V steel.
- Benchmade Griptillian in 154cm steel.

I also usually carry some sort of multi-tool. I would also highly recommend getting an alox swiss army knife. Here is a pic of the two I switch between (the cadet in black and the farmer in silver):
IMG_1255.jpg

For $100 you could get any of the knives. Or, the dragonfly, delica, or blur and an alox swiss army knife.
 
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