Looking for a knife to last a lifetime.

The endura and delica are great knives HOWEVER they are back lock knives, and back locks have a habit of getting gunked up.

Now I don't know about knives lasting a lifetime.... I tend to get bored long before that, but I have had a swiss army knife spartan in my life for some 20 odd years. That should qualify. I would go for a 3 or 4 knife solution to be honest, you can still get pretty good quality and stay under 120 bucks.

Example
Victorinox spartan, tinker or other SAK of choice (all around day to day beater) + Mora companion (dirty jobs knife) + Byrd Cara Cara 2 g10 (tacticool folding knife, I prefer the ergonomics on the cara cara 2 to the endura) + Opinel #8 (folding food knife)

That should set you back about 80 bucks.
 
Delica + endura are probably your best bet. you can even snag one in plain edge and the other fully or partially serrated if it floats your boat.

both will be more than enough quality to last a life time. I could potentially see some loosening up if they are subject to harsh impacts on a frequent basis, but same with most knives.

or get a $110 knife, and an opinel as the second knife ;)

available in a variety of handle colors, handle materials, and blade steels:
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I agree with those who said the Spyderco Endura and Delica combo, as well as the suggestion of the SAK.

Also give some thought to the Svord Peasant and Mini Peasant. As inexpensive as it gets, great steel (although non-stainless) and incredibly simple. They will cost a fraction of what you want to spend and if you want to get close to your limit you can upgrade to some really nice ones . The other great thing about the Svord Peasant is they're incredibly easy to disassemble and clean/maintain.
 
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Everyone suggests their favorite brand, I say mix match it will let you know what you like more, that way if you decide you don't like the axis lock then you haven't spent that much on 2 knives you dislike... Same could go for the spyderhole, or kershaw speed assist. I think you will be fine with whatever you get from one of the recommended manufacturers here.
 
HotSwat said:
I think you have good intentions, but your budget is a little low for something that will last a lifetime. There are a lot of $60 knives that will do just that, but if you can afford internet and an computer, you can probably buy a $60 knife at least once a year for rest of your life.
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$60 is more than enough to but a quality knife that will last a lifetime

Within that budget, it's easy to find a traditional folder that'll last a life time (and beyond). None of the traditional folders I've ever owned cost even as much as $60. If anyone wants a life time traditional folder for less than $60, I recommend he buy any Case and be done with it. And truth be told, it doesn't matter if it's CV or stainless.

We know he can do the same for a "tactical" folder, as he puts it, too. His budget is more than enough to meet his requirements.
 
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Almost any knife from a reputable manufacturer will, if you maintain it and don't lose it, last a lifetime. I would recommend you look at the Voyager series from Cold Steel. You have three blade styles to choose from and a medium (3" blade) and large (4" blade) should only run you about $90 shipped. Use the leftover cash to get yourself a basic sharpener and you're good to go.
 
Ipistol said:
I'm looking for two folding knives. Traditional, tactical, slip joint.
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For a traditional folder, consider Case's stockman or medium stockman. Not my thing (Cases with 3 blades, but that's just me), but they offer much versatility in a pocket knife. Vast majority can be found for less than $50. Often less than $45. Sometimes less than $40. Three blades: clip, sheepfoot, pen (medium stockman) or clip, sheepfoot, spey (stockman). Medium Stockman is 3 1/4" closed. Stockman is 3 5/8" closed. Either of these, regardless of handle material or steel type, will easily last you the rest of your life.
 
I would take a look at the Buck vantage line they go from $25 to $90 depending on the blade and handle materials you want.

At the upper end you get S30V steel at the lower end you get 420HC. I find 420HC to be a pretty good steel in a budget knife and S30V is maybe my favorite of all. So, you have quite a range to choose from there.

Best of all, Buck has the Forever Warranty. Anthying goes wrong with the knife as long as Buck is in business they will fix it and send it back looking pretty. So if the thing falls apart 5 years down the road (unlikely in my experience) you can send it to them and they will either fix it or send you another knife.
 
Cold Steel Voyager, large & medium, will cost you under $90 together. I also highly recommend the Spyderco Delica & Endura, which will cost you slightly under $120 together if my calculations are right. These costs do not include shipping.

I own Voyagers and an Endura, they're both awesome knives. The Voyager is definitely the stronger and smoother knife (with the unbeatable Tri-Ad lock, which makes it a heavy duty knife, as opposed to the Endura which I would consider light to medium duty), and offers a more secure grip with better ergonomics (at least for me), but the Endura and Delica are going to be slimmer and lighter with better edge retention & rust resistance, with a little more brittleness & difficulty in sharpening, as well as a higher price. A small downside to the Voyager as opposed to the Endura or Delica is that its clip will eat your pockets if you don't do a little light sanding under it.

Either one should last you a darn long time and offer you immense levels of enjoyment. You could even go for a Voyager & Delica or Endura. I can pretty much guarantee you'll like both.

Or, here's a thought! How about a large Voyager or an Endura and a Swiss Army Knife from Victorinox! Well within your budget, and there's so much more you can do with a SAK than a standard folder. My EDC always includes a Victorinox SwissChamp along with a larger folder like the Voyager and Endura.
 
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+1 for the Spyderco Endura and Delica. For the larger knife you could also go with the Spyderco Manix 2 which is more heavy duty then the Endura for not much more money.
 
First thing to come to my mind was Spyderco Tenacious + Spyderco Ambitious. i suppose its the budget version of the Endura Combo. but all in all. spydey-co seems to win this round
 
Delica or any other Spyderco lockback comes to mind. I like to think Benchmade's Axis lock would also endure the test to time but I've heard of the omega springs breaking. But Benchmade will take care of it of course. Supposedly titanium framelocks will gaul themselves to 100% lockup eventually, but I've never heard of that happening.

But in my opinion the best and most enduring knife type out there would have to be a Balisong. They technically don't have locks. They're just orientated into a position where the blade has no where to go I guess. There is no way the lock can fail. It's the simplest locking knife type out there. You'd be hard pressed to break a Benchmade 42 unless you're abusing it.
 
As a point of reference, I still have and use a SAK Hunter that I was given in 1969 and a Buck 110 that I bought in 1971.
 
I like darkaether's suggestions. Ukpk is a bit hard to find you might also search for the slipit model as well.

PS if you've never purchased a spyderco before don't mess around and get a ffg blade. It stands for full flat ground. Do a search on the forum for it if need be.
 
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"Looking for a knife to last a lifetime. ...fairly easy to clean and maintain and not have to worry about things getting trapped inside to cause a build up of bacteria and rust."
- Ipistol

the downside is that
one either loves
spyderco's signature look
or not at all.
but nothing beats an all stainless steel folder.
though there could be grip issues.
washing away with warm water or detergent works great.
no tacky plastic scales that might fall apart.
no screws (if clip is removed) or rivets to be seen.
all equates to lesser break downs.
so for a possible life time of trouble free knife use,
consider....

Spyderco Delica4 Stainless Steel
2.875" (73 mm)
blade steel VG-10
C11_L.jpg


Spyderco Endura4 Stainless Steel
3.875" (98 mm)
blade steel VG-10
C10_L.jpg
 
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