Knife advice, 3 Categories of knives to start building my collection

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soapboxpreacher

Joined
Apr 3, 2010
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Hey guys new to the forums so be gentle. I have done some initial research and have determined to start with a few categories. Want to do see if you guys can help me on these 3 types of Blades Sizes, styles, and categories (Let me know if I am missing one category or not) to begin my collection. Here's my break downs:

To start with I am looking for a 6-7" Long Fixed Blade Survival/Camp/Utility (fighting not really necessary) style that I can bayonet (split logs, believe I am using the term right) with, Chop, fillet fish (might be tough for blade thickness in the 6-7" will start to approach .25"), all-around function. Something with a Kraton Handle or Micarta (Not as big on, but feel free to educate) or like (no Zytel). Full Tang for strength with the Tang out the back for hammering or pommel if needed. I have initially found the Rat Cutley RC-6 and the Fallkniven A1 to be very good in this category. Cold Steel SRK in cold I have seen issues with blade breakage! And Becker BK7 looks nice but I dont think are as nice as the A1 or RC-6, but certainly cheaper than the A1. Might need to do 2 knives in this category to cover it one heavy, one light, would like to do just one if I could to start. Price would be under $200 if I can.

Next would be a fixed, lighter weight smaller blade 4.5"-5.5" length Similar to a Sog Seal Pup Elite or Gerber LMF II. S1 is nice but a little steep on the price side. Becker BK2 looks nice in this category. I am looking for something that can travel well...lighter yet versatile, good to carry and pack with when I am away from my camp site or biv. LMF II has a huge Sheath and is heavy but seems liked were the Seal Pup Elite is lighter, smaller with no Metal Pommel out the back...something I believe to be pretty nice but might not fit this category. Once again Camping/Survival/Utility. Serration...I am torn on, might not be bad for vein cutting or rope so that function is nice. Same with this one...2 knives to cover it. Price would be under $100.

Folding I thing I found. Grabbed a Benchmade 580...wow is that nice!!! Assisted opening and build well...steel inner liner. Locking is great!! And the Openning mechanism is really the best I have seen. And Zytel...ok Zytel but still at this small blade size it seems to be more than acceptable. I looked at the some Kershaw including the Blur and passed for the 580...glade I did. Really nice!!

Let me know what you guys think! Thanks again!
 
Le me be the 1st to welcome you soapboxpreacher I think your suggestions are all fine knives.:thumbup:
 
First welcome to BFC, though you should be warned that if you spend much time here at all having only one knife per category isn’t going to last.

In your fist category I think your going to be hard pressed to find a knife that beats the RC-6 for what your going to pay. Its been my “go to” fix blade for about a year and I’m very pleased with it.

In your second category I’d also look at some of the offerings from ESEE particularly the RC-4.

The benchmade 580 is a good knife, though on the two I’ve had I didn’t care for the grind. Why did you pass on the Blur? You can get some great steels at very good price points with the blur. The Kershaw Junk Yard dog II, Lahar, Spyderco Stretch II, and Manix 2 are fantastic “entry level” knives.
 
your right on with the Rc-6...extremely good quality, warranty, and price... For a smaller fixed blade, you might look at the RC-3...from what i hear the 6 and the 3 make a great team!

for folders, my favorite are spydercos...mainly the paramilitary and the military...

But welcome the BFC, now go hide your wallet...FAST:eek::D:D:D
 
Preach to me! Get the RC-6 and a Bark River, look them up, I reccomend the Bravo series.
 
Seems pretty nice for the second category fit (BK2). Not nuts about the handle (Grivory) but the thickness of the blade is really nice 1/4" compared to the RC-3 1/8"! 1095 Steel..ok not as good in the wet stuff but still a nice steel has serviced our boys well for a long time! I do like the tang thru design on the RAT nice to put a lan on it, Becker does full tang but not with a loop (Not sure if that would be missed or not).

Some additional comparison, the BK2 is also longer 5.25" Where the RC-3 is 3.375" blade making it shorter than the category I am trying to fill. Rat RC-5 might be better fit to the BK2 but then The RC-5 is a better knife by far and large! But then again I am approaching a Fallkniven S1...which fits the same category, is lighter better VG10 steel, tang protruding for light hammering or pommeling and I believe the Handle is Kraton...I really like Kraton. The thing that sucks is now the price point is getting out of range...but not that far. Might be worth it.

I have to admit it...I bought an LMF II before I started really doing any solid research (it is less than 30-day and I look to send it back to amazon, 30 day guarantee as long as unused) handle is nice with a large protruding tang with hammer end to. Knife feels solid and grip is really comfortable. It is heavy and feels solid but the 420 steel is a turn off. Blade thickness is .185" thick blade. The sheath is so overly design and big it makes this knife carry like a much larger one. I also out of stupidity (Sametime...these are my confessions) picked up the Sog Seal Pup Elite. Its OK...light and packs well for what it is but it is a Taiwan made AUS8A steel blade, not horrible but not up to par. The more I think about it the S1 might fit here the best. Right length and width not too heavy (might actually be a minus..some additional weight might be good at this blade lenght). Let me know what you think.

I might be reading into this far too much. Since my research I have spent several hours and hours reading and posting. My wife thinks I am nuts. Just want to make the best choice. I think we can all agree on that.
 
J.Mattson said:
The benchmade 580 is a good knife, though on the two I’ve had I didn’t care for the grind. Why did you pass on the Blur? You can get some great steels at very good price points with the blur. The Kershaw Junk Yard dog II, Lahar, Spyderco Stretch II, and Manix 2 are fantastic “entry level” knives.
Click to expand...

Kershaw handle was my hang up...other than that it is a very nice knife. Wasnt as comfortable and the assisted mechanism isnt as nice as the Benchmade...I think the Benchmade mechanism will last longer. I didnt like the lock as well on the Ken Onion Blur. But it is still an awesome knife I just found the 580 to fit my hand better...was a little thicker to grasp and grip. Had them side by side and feel in love with the 580.
 
So for my #2 category I think I have narrowed it to the Rat RC-5 (Most expensive $$$), Fallkniven S1 ($$), and the Becker BK2 ($). They are all along the 5" blade size, Weight is all over the place BK2 and the RC-5 are around the same weight 16oz the S1 is half roughly 7oz! Rat being the heaviest, Steel is also different, 1095 Rat and BK2 but Cro treated so might be a little better, S1 VG-10...stainless probably the best lasting. Handle are all over once again. Micarta for the Rat (Second favorite), Kraton on the S1 (my favorite), and Grivory on the BK2 the worst of the bunch...I cant see it taking a baton beating..unless someone else has some insight on this one. I am kinda liking both the S1 and the BK2. The BK2 is half the cost. With that said, are the other 2 knives twice the knives? I have a hard time believing that. Oh and I almost forgot, the sheaths. S1 Zytel...so so, BK2 is nice so is the Rat, kydex...like the shape and design more than the material. This is a tough one...anyone have all three?
 
So far I've gone with a combination of CS Recon Scout and Fallkniven F1 Survival. I'm pretty pleased with my purchase so far but I have to learn how to sharpen them.

The F1 hasn't arrived yet but I'm hoping it will arrive before next weekend so I can take it camping.
 
The bk2 and rc-5 are too heavy for your intended purposes for your second category IMO. Hell, the rc-6 probably fits both your first and second category better than those. The first two are both good knives, but heavy for what you get.
 
The knives that you are thinking about getting are good knives no doubt but I wanted to let you know my opinion on the matter of having 3 knives do everything. If it were me getting 3 knives that could do everything I would get:

A good quality folder with a 3-31/2 inch blade
A small pocketable fixed blade with a 3 inch blade
And a chopper, nothing enormous but big enough do do a little trail clearing and batoning.

I think your two fixed blade categories are two close to the same thing. You say you want something like a RC 6 for your big blade but for your smaller fixed blade you're thinking an RC 5. In my opinion there is not much of a difference in these knives and I would opt for a smaller blade for category 2. In actuality the RC 5 could be considered the bigger blade because its just so dang heavy and thick. I'm sure you'll get all sorts of knives anyway now that you're hooked like us but just thought that this combo might make a little more sense to you. If it were my decision and I was just starting out my choices might look like this:

Spyderco Paramilitary (D2 or S30V)
ESEE RC 3
BRKT Bravo 2, ESEE RC 6

Really though it depends on what your doing with the knives. If you were backpacking it would be much different than if you were car camping etc. ...
 
Great thread!
My suggestions would be:
For your Folder - Spyderco Military (Combo Edge or Fully Serrated) or Gayle Bradley
For your Smaller fixed blade - ESEE H.E.S.T. or RC 4
For your Large fixed Blade - Dumpster Mutt DC (Scrapyard Knives)
 
For your middle category I’d suggest Swamp Rat Knives. The RatManDu is one of the great 5” do-everything knives. It runs for $138.95. The Howling Rat LM is a similar 4” blade, running for $128.95. Both are well designed and will stand up to anything.

There are complications. Neither knife comes with a sheath, so you’d have to factor in the price for a scabbard. And they are part of a currently available limited run. Catch one while you can or you’ll be stuck paying more on the secondary market.

To get one (or both) you need to pre-order. Go to the Swamp Rat subforum. Open the Ratganza Pre-order file and Bob’s your uncle.
 
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