I need help choosing a knife for a VERY picky friend. Please help!!

T

TheMartialWay

Joined
Jul 2, 1999
Messages
1,347

Hey guys(and gals)

I have a friend that is looking for a new folding knife. Here are his two stipulations; it must be fully serrated and it has to be bullet proof/tank like.

He is very hard on his tools and wants something that can take SERIOUS abuse. I really can't stress enough, how hard this guy is on tools . He definately does not follow the "right tool for the right job" theory.

He also does not want anything from Cold Steel, due to the difficulty of sharpening a CS knife.

He is not worried so much about lock strength, as he is about blade strength. The knife will not be for defensive reasons at all.

So, the question is: Which knife with a serrated edge has the toughest blade that will resist chipping and abuse????

Thanks a lot. I am very interested in hearing this one.

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Louis Buccellato
http://www.themartialway.com
Knives, Weapons and equipment. Best prices anywhere.
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"only the paranoid will survive"
 
i think there is a knife by spyderco,please correct me if im wrong.i believe its called the viele. you can get it fully serated.as for strength,i dont know.never handled one.
 
Hi!

The Spydie Viele is a great looking knife, somewhat on the small size though, i don't think that it would take beating and hammering that well.

Maybe he can check out a Spyderco Police? the all-steel version take a lot of beating before giving up, the tip might be a tad fragile though.
The knife that popped up immediately was the Buck Strider but to my knowledge it's not available is fully serrated.

Oh well, i guess that i'm not helping very much here, hopefully i'll at least got you some food for thought
smile.gif

Hey wait a minute, the MOD CQD is VERY solid built too, but maybe again not available in a fully serrated pattern ???

Ok, now i'm out of here!

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Be well!/Jonas aka 2Sharp

"May all your detonations be expected"

The coolest bar in the world: http://www.geocities.com/Pentagon/Camp/8373/index.html
My knives!

[This message has been edited by 2Sharp (edited 10-29-2000).]
 
2Sharp is definetly right on the money...

I had a Spyderco Police that was fully serrated. I used it decently hard...then gave in to my girlfriend when I got my 975SBT.

She used the knife as a pry bar at camp once, and when I saw it I almost flipped out...I couldn't believe what she was doing to the knife..i was sure the blade was gonna snap..

Anyway, the knife held up great and she still uses it to this day...

I am even thinking of getting her a MUDT...the Police is a bit large for her little hands...
 
ANY knife you buy off of Mike Turber can be had fully serrated.

He's got a serration-grinding-machine, remember? No refunds at that point, but...it's a concept
smile.gif
.

Jim
 
For real fun get a REKAT pocket hobbit. It has a straight edge on one side and heavy serrations on the back. A very solid knife if thats what you are looking for.
 
No stipulation of blade length so I would recommend a serrated Spyderco Standard. Very stout blade and handle and the handle (G10) is a good size for getting power behind the blade. Try Smokey Mountain Knifeworks less than $45.

SD
 
Hi Martial way. If hard use (abuse) is expected, there is much to be said for a sheepfoot blade that is thick to the tip.

Spyderco FRN Rescues take a lot of "hit" and deliver a lot of "cut". The now discontinued stainless handle version was tougher still.

A sheepfoot design might be worth looking into. An if you will forgive the "sales plug", Spyderco's large Dyad offers much.

sal
 
Thanks for the replies thus far, guys. Please, keep 'em comin'.

Sal, I will look into the large Dyad. Thanks for the recomendation.

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Louis Buccellato
http://www.themartialway.com
Knives, Weapons and equipment. Best prices anywhere.
-------------

"only the paranoid will survive"
 
You should really look at the offerings from Outdoor Edge. Both the Magna and the Impulse are monster strong folders for the money and they are very inexpensive. I know the Impulse comes fully serrated and it has proven far stronger than I expected out of 12c27.

They have a smaller size Impulse that should deliver very well for you too.

Get the metal Magna, not the zytel if he is really abusive.

Phil
 
If he is looking for a tough blade he should definately look at the M-2 knives from Benchmade. Of course they dont come fully serrated but a partially serrated M-2 Axis or AFCK is plenty tough.

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Dennis Bible
 
Personal opinions aside, which knife on the market has the best(Toughest?) steel for resisting fractures and handling edge abuse?

Which steel would have those properties, Ats-34, M-2 etc.?

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Louis Buccellato
http://www.themartialway.com
Knives, Weapons and equipment. Best prices anywhere.
-------------

"only the paranoid will survive"
 
The ideal solution would be a blade in say 1084 with a decent temper in the 52-54 RC range. The toughness here would be extreme and it would resist chipping very strongly. Put a primary convex grind on it, with say 3/16" or 1/4" blade stock and it will be decently strong. However I can't think on any production blades actually made with those specs .

The next best thing would be a high end custom but you are now going to be paying a decent price, which is probably not practical. One thing which does come to mind of a similar nature is the Ti-MPF from Mission, but its price and wait time are similar to high end customs. The Busse Combat folder would be a good choice but it isn't even out yet. Strider is an obvious choice but I don't think offers a fully serrated model.

What I would look for is a sabre flat grind on one of the softer stainless steels. Stay away from the thin, hard ATS-34 blades with full flat or hollow grinds grinds. They will be far too weak and brittle. A decent choice would be the Zytel Endura from Spyderco, the AUS-8A can be chipped out but it takes some doing. The folder grip is also (surprising to me) strong enough to allow you to exert enough force laterally to snap the blade in half (I did it a couple of times on the one blade).

The main problems here are the tip is rather weak, he will snap it fairly easily and the steel is a bit too brittle for the kind of use you are describing. However there is also an AUS-6A version, I have not used it, but I would bet on it to be more durable. The Rescue as others have offered is probably even a better choice (assumnig the grip strength is there) depending on if he wants a point or not.

You can also check out CRK&T and Outdoor Edge for a suitbale model as they both offer knives in AUS-6A and 420J2 respectively. The latter being near ideal for your purposes and I would be very interested if your friend managed to chip out a blade made from that, assuming a sensible heat treat.

-Cliff

[This message has been edited by Cliff Stamp (edited 10-31-2000).]
 
not2sharp,

For real fun get a REKAT pocket hobbit. It has a straight edge on one side and heavy serrations on the back.
Click to expand...

I'm affraid those are not serrations, REKAT call them 'teeth.' Unlike serrations, they can't be used to cut things.

Louis,

Which steel would have those properties, Ats-34, M-2 etc.?
Click to expand...

M-2 is definitely tougher than ATS-34. I haven't had the chance to buy a Whitewing knife yet, but CPM-3V is supossed to be up there.

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Reynaert
 
2Sharp is right about the CQD being a beast. http://albums.photopoint.com/j/ViewPhoto?u=1092947&a=9512486&p=31271823
We carry em and my wife gave me one as a present (sweetheart that she is). It does not come fully serrated, only plain edge or partial serration. We've never had any problems with our Spyderco folders, they are great knives for the money (but you'll have to look somewhere else, we don't carry them)
biggrin.gif


Dan

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Shamelessly promoting his wife's buisness
smile.gif


http://www.gogetemgear.com/

[This message has been edited by Javahed (edited 10-31-2000).]
 
Your best bet might be to get a strong knife, e.g., large Sebenza, BM 710hs, REKAT Carnivour, Buck Strider, or REKAT Sifu, and have the full serrations put on afterwards. I think Mike Turber can do the serrations for you for $25 or so. Since most of the bullet-proof knives out there don't come fully serrated, this might be your answer. It'd be a little more trouble, but you may not find exactly what you want if you limit your search only to knives that come from the factory fully serrated. You could also take your friend to a knife store and see what he likes, then have it fully serrated if you can't buy it that way.

Good luck. Let us know what you decide on and how it works out.

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Jason aka medusaoblongata
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"I have often laughed at the weaklings who call themselves kind because they have no claws"

- Zarathustra
 
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