Inexpensive fighting/combat knife?

In many ways the perfect cheap fighting knife is a big second hand butcher knife. You can pick them up in garage sales & thrift stores for <=$5. They are easy to sharpen and statistically probably used in more violent confrontations than any other type of knife in the US or UK.
If you win your fight, you may become a defendant and most juries will find it easy to relate to having a butcher knife. It makes things a little easier for your lawyer.
 
Kabars are great!! but I would rather have the 10 inch large heavy bowie for combat than the 7 inch standard knife!!! And the cold steel oss is a bad fighter if you don't mind buying cold steel!!!
 
bladefoolish said:
I've never been quite sure what a "fighting" knife is, other than any knife you use in a fight. For instance, the Gerber Mark II looks badass, but I suspect that it's a lot less useful than, say, the KBAR that's been mentioned here for most uses a knife gets put through in any sort of combat zone.

My thought is that, before picking the knife, decide what style or method of knife fighting you will use and/or train in. That will often dictate the general requirments of the knife.

The KBAR is a good choice, but not because of how "deadly" it may be, but because it is also well suited to function as a general purpose utility knife.

Is this something you plan on carrying? If so, you should buy something that is legal to carry in you area -- (1) why buy a self defense knife that won't be with you all the time, and (2) if you ever have to use it, you will come out a lot better under the law if it's legal.

My two main fixed blades I carry for self defense purposes are a benchmade outbounder and a benchmade nimvarus cub (the nimvarus might be a good choice). I believe that a 4" blade will be sufficient for any sort of self defense purpose I might have.

Now, if you want something to repel the hordes of zombies breaking through the wire, get something big, badass, and swingable.
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Typical traditional fighting fixed blades are Bowie knives, Bowie knives are proven over time in real fights. A person would have to be a real idiot/stupid/crazy to fight someone holding a large Bowie.

Now knives like the Gerber Mark II are killing knives, it is in a sense a dagger, they are NOT fighting knives.

But then butcher/kitchen knives and shivs likely kill more people each year.

Depending on the laws in the area were you live you have to conform with the laws so carry what you can. Likely most of the time it will be a small folder.

In my state I can carry anything I want unconcealed, but common sense tells me not to carry my Bowie knives out in the open when in town.
 
No love for the 119?

119.jpg


oh well,the Ka-Bar's a good choice too!:thumbup:


Good luck man:)
 
By the way guys, what makes a fighting/combat knife tick? Looking at the Voron-3, it's a lot different from what you guys have been suggesting:

voron.jpg


Most of you suggested bowie, while this knife is a spear point.

I'm not saying you guys are wrong, perhaps Kizlyar got their designs wrong, but what makes a fighting/combat knife?
 
Probably the first thing to do is differentiate between "fighting" and what most of us have come to accept as "combat" knives. A fighting knife is just that, a knife with an associated style or tradition of fighting/killing. Large bowie knives, daggers, and a number of other designs from all over the world fit into that category. A modern combat knife is a bit different, while there's nothing stopping it from being used in a fight (and vice versa), the primary design considerations are not the ability to pierce into or dismember/disable another person. They are more tools to be relied on for general utility as well not being so large as to encumber the soldier.

As such they tend to have blades under 8 inches long, fairly stout in thickness while not being too heavy. Durability, ease of sharpening, and the ability to cut what needs to be cut. Basically a general purpose cutting and light prying tool. They can come in all blade shapes, spear point, bowie style, even a few double edge/dagger blades (but these tend to be more fragile, without offering greater utility, so not often the best choice).

Many american knives tend towards a bowie shape out of tradition, some of the older designs used the upper clip as a second sharpened edge for penetration and secondary cutting use such as on a Ka-Bar or air force pilot's knife. Busse on the other hand makes a large number of their knives in a spearpoint/dropped point shape, as well as other respected makers such as CRK, Glock, and others. These aren't hard line rules, just a general guideline as to what myself and some other folks round here think of combat and fighting knives.
 
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Doug C said:
^^^^
LOL! Good one. :D

For me it would either be a KaBar or a Mark II, ymmv.

Doug
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Well you know there is a difference between something like a K-Bar and a Sykes Fairbairn type knife, made for different purposes. ;)
 
Herr_Noobien said:
By the way guys, what makes a fighting/combat knife tick? Looking at the Voron-3, it's a lot different from what you guys have been suggesting:

voron.jpg


Most of you suggested bowie, while this knife is a spear point.

I'm not saying you guys are wrong, perhaps Kizlyar got their designs wrong, but what makes a fighting/combat knife?
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I've never heard of this company, thanks for mentioning it! I am liking their designs, and prices don't seem bad at all.
 
Most of you suggested bowie, while this knife is a spear point.

I'm not saying you guys are wrong, perhaps Kizlyar got their designs wrong, but what makes a fighting/combat knife?
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To me, a fighting knife must be long enough to provide superior "reach"; sharp and heavy enough to cut through flesh and bone; and durable and easy to sharpen and maintain. So, that's why I like the Ontario Spec Plus line, and especially like the Ontario Spec Plus 6 fighter.

__1_Grand-COUTEAU-Ontario-SPEC-Plus-Fighter-ONSP6.jpg


Not only is the blade of the knife razor sharp, but so is the top of the blade from the tip and then about 1/3rd of the way back. It is fast, easy to maintain, easy to grip and easy to sharpen. It has great reach, thrusting and cutting capabilities. And, it's priced right at about $45. Besides all that, it's also made of superior 1095 high carbon coated steel.
 
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Personally, I carry a Busse. But that's a bit more than you're looking to spend.

So...

Out of the choices I've seen in this thread, I would probably go with the Buck Nighthawk. I am no longer a big fan of Kabars after I broke TWO of them batonning through hard wood. Granted, that's not a defensive use of a knife by any stretch, but they still broke under heavy use.

I do have a Buck Nighthawk, and it's a good knife. It has a really comfortable handle, and will hold up to some abuse. I haven't tried batonning it through hard wood yet though, so who knows?


As for what makes a fighting knife, per se... to me it's using a knife in a fight. Different people have different things they like. Some like a 4" edge, some a 6 1/2" edge, some a 10+" edge. Some people like a double edge. Some like a clip point. Some like a spear point. Some like serrations, some don't. Some like finger grooves. Some prefer a sub-hilt. Some prefer a double guard, some a single. Pointy skull crusher, or rounded butt? There are a lot of things to think about, and different people prioritize them differently.

Get a knife, get a training knife, get some training to figure out what works for you, and what doesn't, and finally practice practice practice.
 
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Teague said:
To me, a fighting knife must be long enough to provide superior "reach"; SIZE="6"]sharp and heavy enough to cut through flesh and bone]; and durable and easy to sharpen and maintain. So, that's why I like the Ontario Spec Plus line, and especially like the Ontario Spec Plus 6 Marine fighter.

__1_Grand-COUTEAU-Ontario-SPEC-Plus-Fighter-ONSP6.jpg


Not only is the blade of the knife razor sharp, but so is the top of the blade from the tip and then about 1/3rd of the way back. It is fast, easy to maintain, easy to grip and easy to sharpen. It has great reach, thrusting and cutting capabilities. And, it's priced right at about $45. Besides all that, it's also made of superior 1095 high carbon coated steel.
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Don't forget the clothing, possibly coats or jackets also. Or any other apparel or gear.

Gibby
 
how much do those crkt hiatsus (sp?) go for?

They look pretty wicked.
 
I'm pretty comfortable with a 119 in my right & a SubClaw in my left mitt.;)
 
Teague said:
To me, a fighting knife must be long enough to provide superior "reach"; sharp and heavy enough to cut through flesh and bone; and durable and easy to sharpen and maintain. So, that's why I like the Ontario Spec Plus line, and especially like the Ontario Spec Plus 6 Marine fighter.

__1_Grand-COUTEAU-Ontario-SPEC-Plus-Fighter-ONSP6.jpg


Not only is the blade of the knife razor sharp, but so is the top of the blade from the tip and then about 1/3rd of the way back. It is fast, easy to maintain, easy to grip and easy to sharpen. It has great reach, thrusting and cutting capabilities. And, it's priced right at about $45. Besides all that, it's also made of superior 1095 high carbon coated steel.
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Slight correction, thats the Spec Plus Fighter you posted. This is the "Marine" model:

QN-SP11.jpg


FWIW, I prefer the Freedom Fighter version. Just like the Marine Bayonet without the muzzle ring and better corrosion resistance. Cosmetically, the Freedom Fighter model is better looking. Just like the kabar style.

ONFF61.jpg
 
+1 for the voron i may have to buy one i thought they were much more expensive they are russian knives made for hard use, spartan in design and looks but suppossedly a real performer. :thumbup:
 
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