Looking for the perfect EDC

S

Shaggy DA

Joined
Aug 16, 2014
Messages
113
I'm new to this forum but I have been reading articles from this site for almost a year now. I really don't know why I'm just now joining though...Guess because I'm starting to actually 'get into' knives. As of the past couple of years the only knives I've known about are the ones at Wal-Mart, sporting goods stores, etc. I started getting my lists together for my 72 hour bag and I knew I would need a knife that most of these places just wouldn't be able to provide so I started looking for survival knife reviews online and happened across 'The Hellion.' For me, this is THE best survival/outdoors knife. It's 5160 spring steel so it's not brittle and easy to sharpen. It's also 3/16 of an inch thick with a heavy coating on it to protect it.

Unfortunately, this just isn't a very practical knife for every day carry. I've got a cheap Kershaw made of 8Cr13MoV that I'm just not a big fan of. With this said, let me get to the question I've been meaning to ask since there are FAR too many knife makers for me to buy and 'test'. What is the BEST every day carr knife for me? This is what I'm looking for:

1.) I want a folding knife
2.) Blade needs to be a straight edge with at least 3" working blade on it.
3.) It HAS to be stainless and I want the toughest, hardest, edge retaining steel! What I mean by that is that I don't care how brittle the knife is I want something that I can throw a wet sponge in the air and slice it in half with! I say that because this knife will be ONLY for slicing. I'll use it to cut rubber hose, string, tape, and leather.
4.) I would prefer a liner lock though it doesn't really matter to me.
5.) It has to be around $400. I've seen the Chris Reeve Sebenza reviews, videos, etc. That is the closest that I have found to what I'm looking for BUT it's not sharp enough! Like I said, I'm looking for something as sharp as obsidian. I know that's not possible, but something close. ;)

I think that's all my criteria: Stainless, straight edged, 3" working blade, VERY high Rockwell hardness, takes a SUPER fine cutting edge, and around $400.
 
By straight edge do you mean plain edge (no serrations) or literally straight like a wharncliffe?
 
I have been quite happy with my very first ZT ( 0770CF). The sharpness is up to you and I suggest stropping to get that hair splitting edge. It is just a tad larger than the Spyderco Delica which is a knife I like.

There are other Spyderco's that would probably suit you for a lot less money.
 
MSRP $249.95...much cheaper on-line of course.

The Spyderco Bradley Air is perfect...the CPM M4 steel and thin wharncliff blade is a natural for your use. It will hold a very sharp edge for a long time, and will resharpen reasonably easily.

length overall 5.96" (151 mm) blade length 2.55" (65 mm) blade steel CPM M4
length closed 3.41" (87 mm) cutting edge 2.37" (60 mm) weight 1.3 oz (37 g)
blade thickness 0.089" (2.3 mm) handle material Titanium / Glass Fiber Laminate
 
Unless you know how to sharpen, you are going to be greatly disappointed. The steel material has very little to do with how sharp it is, but more of how long it keeps it's edge. That said, even the best steel is going to lose that hair popping edge after use. If you don't know how to sharpen, pick up a sharpmaker and spend the rest of your money on something you like and don't put a lot of thought into steel. There is no magical steel, but most decent knife makers today are using some great stuff that will be more than acceptable for edc. Spyderco makes some great slicers if that's what your looking for.
 
Shaggy DA said:
I'm new to this forum but I have been reading articles from this site for almost a year now. I really don't know why I'm just now joining though...Guess because I'm starting to actually 'get into' knives. As of the past couple of years the only knives I've known about are the ones at Wal-Mart, sporting goods stores, etc. I started getting my lists together for my 72 hour bag and I knew I would need a knife that most of these places just wouldn't be able to provide so I started looking for survival knife reviews online and happened across 'The Hellion.' For me, this is THE best survival/outdoors knife. It's 5160 spring steel so it's not brittle and easy to sharpen. It's also 3/16 of an inch thick with a heavy coating on it to protect it.

Unfortunately, this just isn't a very practical knife for every day carry. I've got a cheap Kershaw made of 8Cr13MoV that I'm just not a big fan of. With this said, let me get to the question I've been meaning to ask since there are FAR too many knife makers for me to buy and 'test'. What is the BEST every day carr knife for me? This is what I'm looking for:

1.) I want a folding knife
2.) Blade needs to be a straight edge with at least 3" working blade on it.
3.) It HAS to be stainless and I want the toughest, hardest, edge retaining steel! What I mean by that is that I don't care how brittle the knife is I want something that I can throw a wet sponge in the air and slice it in half with! I say that because this knife will be ONLY for slicing. I'll use it to cut rubber hose, string, tape, and leather.
4.) I would prefer a liner lock though it doesn't really matter to me.
5.) It has to be around $400. I've seen the Chris Reeve Sebenza reviews, videos, etc. That is the closest that I have found to what I'm looking for BUT it's not sharp enough! Like I said, I'm looking for something as sharp as obsidian. I know that's not possible, but something close. ;)

I think that's all my criteria: Stainless, straight edged, 3" working blade, VERY high Rockwell hardness, takes a SUPER fine cutting edge, and around $400.
Click to expand...



I am literally shaking my head........:rolleyes:

OK..... Lets see.....

Sabenzas arent sharp enough? Sharpness is dependent on your sharpening abilities and what you are using to sharpen you knife. You can get almost all knives to the same sharpness level (with slight variations between different steels of course). Sharp as obsidian? I dont know how sharp that is, but I bet you could get most blade steels sharper than that
You say you want the "toughest, hardest, edge retaining steel!". I believe what you are saying is that you want a very wear resistant steel, run at high hardness, and dont care if it cant take lateral stress because you wont need it to. "Toughness", as it pertains to steel, is generally understood as the ability to withstand lateral stress and or impact (theres different types of toughness). So your sentence contradicts itself....
You are new, so Ill hold back from tearing your post apart anymore. I shouldnt expect that you would know all of the terminology and what not, but I would suggest you spend some time on here and soak up more knowledge before asking something. That way you know the "language" a little better, and we can help you more easily:)

As to which steels take a sharper edge, Im not sure. Most of mine all take similar edges, but its hard to tell what the "maximum" sharpness is for any of the steels, unless you have a very consistent sharpening method and many levels of progressively finer abrasives. Overall, I think any steel you get will be able to take a good enough edge to do what you need to do, and they will all be fairly close in regards to the sharpness they can achieve. And as far as high HRC, most manufactures dont run their blades super hard, because they are afraid of their customers chipping or snapping them. However, I would look into M4. It is usually run at over 60

Oh, and slicing ability has a lot more to do with the geometry of both the blade in general, and the edge itself, than it does the sharpness. (The blade geometry refers to its grind, shape, general thickness, how thick it is behind the edge, etc. The edge geometry refers the angle at which it is sharpened, whether or not it has a microbevel, whether its convexed or a traditional V, etc etc)
I have knives that are very SHARP, but dont slice very well because they are too thick, their grind sucks for slicing, etc. Generally you want a thin blade with either a full flat grind or a nice hollow grind, if you are looking for slicing ability
 
Last edited:
Going along with Krissig12, I think you need some more information on what you're looking for, and Maintenance, Tinkering & Embellishment is a good place to learn it. Studying sharpening first will introduce you to to the best steels for your purpose, and how to keep them that way.
 
You may not realize it but you killed a lot of options in being too detailed and certain in what you want. :)

I'd go one of two ways:

1.) f you have a $400 budget and want a fine, tough knife buy a Chris Reeve knife. Now. While you can and have the inclination.

From there on everything in your collection will likely be cheaper and you'll own the benchmark of all folders, whichever CRK you buy.

2.) Pull back just a bit and let some people suggest some good 'first knives,' regardless of all these criteria you set forth, and you can spend some time studying those....maybe zero in on something that really suits you.

I bet if you're patient these folk can find a little better knife than that "Hellion" for your survival needs too.
 
First I would like to thank you guys for a warm welcome and the suggestion about the Spyderco knives. I have been wanting to check one out and have seen a couple of good video reviews on the knives. Even one about using to the sharpmaker. I think I am going to check out the reviews on the Spyderco Bradley Air. The blade is a little shorter than I would like but it's the perfect style knife I am looking for and I like the titanium handles. Does anyone know of any other similar knives or which blade material is getting the better edge retention? I've heard lots of good things about S30V, VG10, CPM M4, and ZDP 189. Anyone have a favorite out these four? If so, why?
 
Shaggy DA said:
First I would like to thank you guys for a warm welcome and the suggestion about the Spyderco knives. I have been wanting to check one out and have seen a couple of good video reviews on the knives. Even one about using to the sharpmaker. I think I am going to check out the reviews on the Spyderco Bradley Air. The blade is a little shorter than I would like but it's the perfect style knife I am looking for and I like the titanium handles. Does anyone know of any other similar knives or which blade material is getting the better edge retention? I've heard lots of good things about S30V, VG10, CPM M4, and ZDP 189. Anyone have a favorite out these four? If so, why?
Click to expand...


They're all good steels man. Like I said, stick around for a while and you'll start picking up on the general consensus for each
Oh and be careful with video reviews. They are horribly unreliable when it comes to accurate info
 
Like Krissig12 said, sharpness has little or nothing to do with the type of steel. Sharpness is all about edge geometry and your sharpening skills. Period.

Don't obsess about which steel is best. One thing you need to understand is that there is NO perfect steel. Edge retention, susceptibility to corrosion, ease of sharpening, hardness/brittleness... all steels are a balance of these (and other) characteristics and no single steel is good at all of them. Every steel is a compromise in one area or another.

You asked about people's favorites between S30V, VG10, etc. That very question has started Holy Wars. But regardless of all the chest pounding it's a purely subjective topic and there is no right or wrong opinion. The truth is that no matter how much we argue for our favorite steel, all (or at least most) of the modern steels are excellent for the average user. Most people would scarcely be able to tell ANY difference between them in a blind test.

One last truth... there is no perfect EDC. But the quest of finding it is half the fun of this hobby. Most of us hope we never reach it.
 
Krissig12 said:
I am literally shaking my head........:rolleyes:

OK..... Lets see.....

Sabenzas arent sharp enough? Sharpness is dependent on your sharpening abilities and what you are using to sharpen you knife. You can get almost all knives to the same sharpness level (with slight variations between different steels of course). Sharp as obsidian? I dont know how sharp that is, but I bet you could get most blade steels sharper than that
You say you want the "toughest, hardest, edge retaining steel!". I believe what you are saying is that you want a very wear resistant steel, run at high hardness, and dont care if it cant take lateral stress because you wont need it to. "Toughness", as it pertains to steel, is generally understood as the ability to withstand lateral stress and or impact (theres different types of toughness). So your sentence contradicts itself....
You are new, so Ill hold back from tearing your post apart anymore. I shouldnt expect that you would know all of the terminology and what not, but I would suggest you spend some time on here and soak up more knowledge before asking something. That way you know the "language" a little better, and we can help you more easily:)

As to which steels take a sharper edge, Im not sure. Most of mine all take similar edges, but its hard to tell what the "maximum" sharpness is for any of the steels, unless you have a very consistent sharpening method and many levels of progressively finer abrasives. Overall, I think any steel you get will be able to take a good enough edge to do what you need to do, and they will all be fairly close in regards to the sharpness they can achieve. And as far as high HRC, most manufactures dont run their blades super hard, because they are afraid of their customers chipping or snapping them. However, I would look into M4. It is usually run at over 60

Oh, and slicing ability has a lot more to do with the geometry of both the blade in general, and the edge itself, than it does the sharpness. (The blade geometry refers to its grind, shape, general thickness, how thick it is behind the edge, etc. The edge geometry refers the angle at which it is sharpened, whether or not it has a microbevel, whether its convexed or a traditional V, etc etc)
I have knives that are very SHARP, but dont slice very well because they are too thick, their grind sucks for slicing, etc. Generally you want a thin blade with either a full flat grind or a nice hollow grind, if you are looking for slicing ability
Click to expand...

Edges on obsidian can have a higher level of sharpness than any steel can achieve just due to the nature of the material. Obsidian can actually be sharp enough to slice between skin cells without tearing them.
 
Insipid Moniker said:
Edges on obsidian can have a higher level of sharpness than any steel can achieve just due to the nature of the material. Obsidian can actually be sharp enough to slice between skin cells without tearing them.
Click to expand...

No shit? Huh. I guess you learn something new everyday! Thanks for the correction:thumbup:
 
That's interesting about obsidian. iirc, an extremely sharp steel edge is around 0.5 microns. If what I found about obsidian is correct, the edges can be as thin as 3 nanometers, or .003 microns.
 
With all this said, what is the sharpest knife any of you have ever owned and what steel is the blade made of? What type of grind is on it (I do understand blade geometry)? What was your method of sharpening it?
 
Perfect EDC for $400? Heaven forbid you lose it. A SAK is only a fraction of that price and is infinitely more useful (screwdriver/can opener etc) and you can have a spare on hand and still have $300+ left over.
 
Spyderco Stretch in ZDP-189 is an excellent slicer, and way less than 1/3 of your budget. it has a lot of blade in a compact size and the FRN scales provide great traction. It's not a Chris Reeve, but it is still a very nice knife.

Lots of other good suggestions above too, from folks with more experience than me. But my Stretch is by far the best I have personally used when it comes to edge retention.
 
Sterculius said:
Spyderco Stretch in ZDP-189 is an excellent slicer, and way less than 1/3 of your budget. it has a lot of blade in a compact size and the FRN scales provide great traction. It's not a Chris Reeve, but it is still a very nice knife.

Lots of other good suggestions above too, from folks with more experience than me. But my Stretch is by far the best I have personally used when it comes to edge retention.
Click to expand...
Excellent knife but I suspect ZDP-189 a bit daunting to sharpen for any knife newcomer. I'd suggest getting a few natural Arkansa stones of around 400 and 800 grit (higher is finer/removes less steel and polishes the edge a bit more), some sandpaper, and get an Opinel or SAK or Douk Douk and a full flat grind Delica/Stretch/Griptilian/etc in VG-10/154CM and practice sharpening as you use them. Note that the stones come in small double-sided portable forms too.

That way you will find out if you prefer "toothy" edges at lower grits, medium, or really polished edges for your work.

If toughness is what you really want, the Spyderco Air is pretty darn small and more of a gent's folder. I'd get a Spydero Gayle Bradley instead.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top