Important knife Traits

bh49 said:
just wondering what are these top quality knives at reasonable prices?
Last time I checked Sebenza still was US made.
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Fantoni - close to flawless fit and finish, and not at the price level of a CRK.
Muela - Love their Damascus stag knives.
Taichung made Spydercos - no need to reiterate.
Shun - if you ever held their Ken Onion's and Elite's you know what I am talking about.
The list goes on. If you want to limit your choices to be US only, its your money your decision, those are some of great products you are going to miss out to say the least.
 
Kingcollin said:
What is the most important thing you look for in a knife? For me made in america is a must. And what is your favorite thing about the knife you currently have on you?
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In a folder it is overall strength which is also reliable strength. I work with machinery and need a knife which won't easily break as there are many ways i am going to use it which will stress out an average folder. Favorite thing on my current edc is a tuff choice but i will go with the materials used [Ontario XM1].
 
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For me, it must have an edge.
If it has a point as well, that's a bonus.:D
And a handle...I don't like knives that don't have a handle.;)
 
Maybe a knife that costs 13dollars can be good for lite use but put it to the test in a survival situation and it will not hold up
 
has to have a blade that will cut. lol a knife also has to work properly; cant be too hard to open, blade cant wobble, locking mechanism (when present) has to actually lock the blade open, etc etc.
after that, i like traditional type folding knives. not knocking 'tactical' or 'modern' knife types. i just dont care for them personally.
next is price. i am bad for losing knives; either they fall out of my pocket or get misplaced or i loan one to someone who tears it up/loses it for me. even if i do manage to hold onto a knife they get loaded with grit and mud. cant justify a knife that costs more than a tank of gas. lol
the final criteria is that i have to not feel like a jackass holding a particular knife. its a nebulous thing to define but i know it when i see it lol.

lately ive been carrying a fairly new imperial and it fits my needs fine. its a regular looking 'old guy' pocketknife that works properly so far, losing it means im out the price of a good lunch and i dont feel silly with it. looking around here has revealed that it has what might well be the lowest grade stainless steel blade but i dont care. (i need the sharpening practice).
when i get a little better at sharpening i think i may try an opinel (they reputedly have good steel and i like the looks of them) and/or some sort of swiss army knife.
 
it must obviously, cut
which is a complex thing, it's quality must be high, which means that geometry, treatment, materials, finish, ergos must be very good and it is a folder, mechanics must be precise, strong, safe,
design is obviously important but it's a mix of geometry, ergos and finish

there is no 1 thing that must be good or that you looks for, real quality is what is important

if you meant what I look in a knife when judging, well, I check for tolerances,finish, play, grind lines and simmetry which are more or less the above

right now I'm at home and in my pocket there is a CRK mnandi, it's light, feels good in the hand, it's beautiful, mechanics are great, it's sharp, well treated not just one thing. The favourite thing about it? hard to say, maybe design, fit/finish and weight? it's a great edc knife

Maxx
 
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I really don't care about blade steel or country of origin. I mostly just care about design and the ergonomics of the handle. I won't even buy a knife if it's not tip up.
 
00max00 said:
Then you are missing a lot of top quality knives at reasonable prices.
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00max00 said:
Fantoni - close to flawless fit and finish, and not at the price level of a CRK.
Muela - Love their Damascus stag knives.
Taichung made Spydercos - no need to reiterate.
Shun - if you ever held their Ken Onion's and Elite's you know what I am talking about.
The list goes on. If you want to limit your choices to be US only, its your money your decision, those are some of great products you are going to miss out to say the least.
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Top quality and reasonable prices are very subjective terms. Many people consider Sunrenmu is reasonable and Para2 is overpriced. Also IMHO if the list goes on, there are not enough room on the top for entire list. Very few companies can be on the top.
Regarding limitations, unfortunately they always exist.
 
Very important to me is NO or very little "sharpening choil". Important trait for function. Most spydercos are pretty good.
choil.jpg

Horrible:
busse-OffDuty-2008514.jpg

Bad:
SK0138-2T.jpg

Good:
OpinelKnife.jpg

Great:
a+%25287%2529.JPG

images
 
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Kingcollin said:
O really give me a example of a 13 dollar knife that could hold up
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Lots. Moras are great for the money. Survival situation? If you are in a survival situation, you will take care not to break your shit. A Mora will do very well. Hell, a steak knife you stole from Hoss's will do well, because you won't sacrifice it. If you look at people around the world who live as hunter gatherers, and a knife is their life, you would laugh at yourself. Their knives are small, and reliable. Flimsy by the standards on BF. Why? They don't split wood with a knife, that's stupid.
 
I've hiked and backpacked for years, sometimes a week at a time or longer) with an Opinel knife ($8). It easily performed every cutting task I've ever encountered in the outdoors. I've lost one or two but never had one break.

I remember back to the first time I'd seen an Opinel knife; they weren't very common back in the 1980s. It was on a 21-day primitive desert survival program, a knife-and-blanket sort of deal. Guess who had an Opinel? The instructor.

"Survivalism" isn't about buying a bunch of gear. The point is to make do with what you have, or learn to get by without.
 
Bob W said:
"Survivalism" isn't about buying a bunch of gear. The point is to make do with what you have, or learn to get by without.
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Best post of the thread.:thumbup:

(at least regarding survival knives)
 
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