New here and to knives (looking for help searching the forums)

Kershaw has numerous USA made budget conscious folders. The Leek is a classic and very useful bladeshape. I have the Needs Work, and it is a great utility knife, although it may be discontinued.
Their line of China made budget folders is also of good quality, and I have several- The Natrix, Tremor, CQC-4KXL.
Other budget knives- BRK Avispa, Spyderco's china made knives, Byrd knives, Victorinox Swiss Army knives.
Might want to look into ~doubling that budget and adding a Spyderco Sharpmaker so you can keep whatever you get sharp and useful. All knives go dull with use.
 
For under $50 you best bet is probably a Kershaw or something from Spyderco's budget lines like the Byrd knives or the tenacious. The Ontario Rat knives are also worth checking out and Cold Steel might have a few in that price range although they tend to be a bit on the larger side.
 
From a beginner's standpoint, I'd start at the bottom. Try out several budget blades of different sizes and lock types to really narrow down what you're most comfortable with, then go from there.
 
Welcome ItsKYRO! In this day and age it is very overwhelming to pick the right folding knife, as we have so many to choose from. But luckily we are able to have a great selection of them with good steels, craftsmanship, handles on them for a good price!

Most of the guys pointed you the right way already. For knife steels, charts are a good way to go for a basic understanding of the differences in the performance of steels. The main characteristics to look for are toughness, rust resistance/corrosion, ease of sharpening, edge retention. But like Blues said, don't get too fixed on decision making with just the steel used. I totally agree that it's the whole '.45acp vs 9mm vs etc..' thing. They are all going to work regardless.

For handles, most companies use:
G10-a plastic like composite material that is very durable, provides a good grip and isn't all that expensive for a company to use so it helps keep the price down.
FRN(fiberglass reinforced nylon) or grivory- which are close to the same. Pretty much just a plastic. Most people say it feels cheap like plastic on a toy, and does, but is still durable and very forgiving. This is even cheaper then g10.
Micarta- fabric layered with an epoxy to make a strong material. There's paper, linen, canvas micarta, which is just that. The material itself will even feel like canvas or linen if sanded down. This has always been my favorite handle material, but it isnt found often in folding knives.
Then comes your stainless steel(ss), carbon fiber(cf), titanium(ti), and aluminum handles which im sure you already know about.
SS-probably the strongest, but heavy.
CF-the lightest, but more delicate then most. Still strong though, but this and titanium have the higher price tags on them.
Ti-one of the strongest per weight ratio's of any metel/alloy.
Aluminium- very light weight and reasonably strong.

Hope that helped a little and wasnt too confusing. Dont get too caught up in handle materials either. It comes down to what you like to use, handle and play around with, and how it makes you feel. Having a knife you like, is like anything else (a nice tool, automobile, phone, etc..). It just makes life a little nicer/comfortable:)
 
Kershaw does offer many styles for under your budget amount. They are not the top of the heap, but they are certainly worthy of picking up in order to try out different lock types, handle materials and blade shapes. I have a bunch of them scattered around. Their warranty is impeccable in my experience.

Kershaw Guy has a great selection. His "Clearance and Bargains" section is really good for finding... well, bargains.

http://kershawguy.com/
 
Welcome! Before reading anything further, tell us what is your budget like. Therer are many quality knives in almost any price range, well, maybe $40 and above range.

A few words of your personal preferences will be helpful too, inlcuding knife weight, blade length, blade grind and profile, and blade finish.

EDIT: just saw in a later post the OP said $50 and below and midsize. I would consider buying a used but not abused Spyderco Manix 2 lightweight in cts-bd1 steel, or a new RAT 1 or RAT 2.
 
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If i had a budget of $50 my personal picks would be a
Spyderco Persistance, Tenacious, Delica(for a few bucks more).
Ontario Rat 1 or 2
And kershaw has a ton of budget friendly ones out there. Especially their Chinese stuff. Alot of dealers blowing out their stuff right now for $10-20.

Most of those knives will have g10 or frn handles and most likely aus-8 or 8cr4mov steels. Those steels are used in Chinese and Taiwanese made knives. They dont rust easily, dont usually chip. They wont stay sharp as long as alot of higher end steels, but the plus side to that is they are very easily sharpened and good to learn how to sharpen with.

And another thing to note is, i personally would stay away from Ebay and Amazon. There are too many fakes\copies out there now days. I will leave a link to great dealers that are part of this forum who you can always trust. Ive dealt with almost all of them with great results.
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/paid-dealer-members-list-updated-2-5-16.1089879/
 
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Is $50 a hard upper limit, or is that a preference? IMHO you can get good knives beneath that price point, but in the $50-$75 range is where you can get a good knife from several different makers without compromising on materials, fit and finish, or overall quality.

From Spyderco, you could get a Delica, Endura, Manix, Native 5, or Centofante III.

From Benchmade, you could get a Griptilian.

From Buck, Copper and Clad has a dealer exclusive Spitfire for about $60 that looks like a great bargain.

From Kershaw, the Leek, Blur, and Skyline fall into that range in a lot of variants.

Also the Ontario RAT 1 and 2 folders.
 
sharp_edge said:
A few words of your personal preferences will be helpful too, inlcuding knife weight, blade length, blade grind and profile, and blade finish.
Click to expand...
I don't think he knows enough to include many personal preferences other than a medium sized folder. You have to start somewhere. To suggest the search function here is tough too if you don't know what to search for. Generally speaking, I'd say keep it simple, a medium grade steel, and a knife sized about like the Spyderco Endura. That is in fact my favorite size of EDC folder. I compare all my knives to it. Learning to sharpen will become important. It is a life long knowledge base that you will use from the kitchen to your pocket. Nobody likes a dull knife. They're dangerous.
 
22-rimfire said:
I don't think he knows enough to include many personal preferences other than a medium sized folder. You have to start somewhere. To suggest the search function here is tough too if you don't know what to search for. Generally speaking, I'd say keep it simple, a medium grade steel, and a knife sized about like the Spyderco Endura. That is in fact my favorite size of EDC folder. I compare all my knives to it. Learning to sharpen will become important. It is a life long knowledge base that you will use from the kitchen to your pocket. Nobody likes a dull knife. They're dangerous.
Click to expand...

You are right that suggesting merely to use the search function is not much helpful (and that is why I did not suggest it). However, I think most beginners should know whether they prefer long or short blade, lightweight or hefty knives, drop point or tanto orofile.

Spyderco Endura is indeed a good starter folder.
 
Endura is also over his price limit.
@OP: Don't use the search function on here, use the search function on knifecenter.com. It allows you to specify price, blade length, blade shape, etc. Once you have found something that appeals to you come back here to search for reviews on the knife or ask people if it's worth getting.

Otherwise you are going to get a crap ton of suggestions that aren't even close to what you are looking for.
 
Hey everyone, thanks for all the replies. There's been so much good info to take in and I appreciate you all being willing to help a newbie out.

madcap_magician said:
Is $50 a hard upper limit, or is that a preference? IMHO you can get good knives beneath that price point, but in the $50-$75 range is where you can get a good knife from several different makers without compromising on materials, fit and finish, or overall quality.
Click to expand...

It's a preference. I just got married last week so I am now learning how to share my money, want to keep it lower than 50 if possible!

sharp_edge said:
You are right that suggesting merely to use the search function is not much helpful (and that is why I did not suggest it). However, I think most beginners should know whether they prefer long or short blade, lightweight or hefty knives, drop point or tanto orofile.
Click to expand...

Medium blade (I believe the common is around 3-4 inches?)
Not super light but not so heavy it will pull my pants down! lol
I'm thinking either a clip or drop point would be best.

I'm going to do as someone suggested and look on a knife website narrow it down and then ask you guys about your opinion based on my results.





On a side note...
I had to go replace my leatherman today do it being lost/stolen and my wife said she wouldn't mind having her first EDC knife. Yay so now I need to find two! lol. She wants something very light weight that can be kept in her scrubs pocket, has a easy to pull out blade is forgiving (not easy to cut yourself when pulling out the blade) to those inexperienced with knives other than box cutters, and is a good knife to use for box cutting and basic wear, etc. Also she's very small and petite.

What do you guys think for my wife? :)
 
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I'll 2nd or 3rd or whatever the Spyderco Delica or Endura.
 
Hey man, I'm pretty new to knives, and even newer to flippers being primarily into my fixed blades for hunting purposes.

I work in construction and use my knives a lot. They get a lot of abuse, where they need a sharpening every night. Cutting coil pipes, cutting geotextile cloth that is sometimes wet and muddy.

So far I have a Delica 4 which is my weekend knife. Bought a Kershaw Zing that lives in my lunch bag for fruit cutting duties.

And the knife that gets the abuse? Trusty old Opinel no.7 in carbon steel. I've been putting it through those paces for almost a year, and not a tear would be shed if it broke because it's so cheap. The steel has a nice patina to it now so it doesn't rust much. And I pop it in a container with silica gel when I get home to keep the blade free moving.

Edit.
And for your wife? If she's worried about pointy bits perhaps look into sheepfoot shaped blades. As to a specific blade I can't help as I haven't used one. Goodluck
 
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My suggestion for your wife is a Spyderco Dragonfly 2. They run about $50-60 range, but its always been one of my favorite knives. Small enough to fit in a watch/coin pocket on jeans, and just big enough to get all your fingers on it. It pretty much is a folding box cutter with a clip point. And its extremely light and easy to sharpen.
 
Welcome, KYRO. There's all kinds of things to learn about knives around here. But you don't have to. For a first EDC under $50, look at Buck, Kershaw, Spyderco. If you like the styling, you're probably good to go. If you're careful, and you care, you can find something American made. If you end up with something from those brands that's made in China, you're probably still OK. Columbia River, CRKT, makes some appealing stuff, but it's almost all imported, and you gotta watch the steel they use in the blades.

If we're talking modern folders, with a pocket clip, IMO, a 3" blade is just right for EDC. 3.25" is doable. Bigger is, IMHO, getting big. I like keeping it around 3-3.5 ounces, too. For a more traditional knife, Buck and Case make a complete selection. Pick your handle material and blade shape. The steel's mostly the same.

Think about how you wanna open the knife. Assisted is fun, but can freak out some bystanders. It can be hard to open the knife quietly. Same with flippers. Thumbstuds and holes allow one handed opening, a little more discreetly.

A Lansky Turnbox will make it easy to keep a keen edge on whatever you buy.

A few knives in your price range that I've enjoyed:
Kershaw Scallion, Skyline, Injection (an amazing deal right now), Blur
Lots of folks like the Kershaw Leek, but it's never really worked for me. I have a Cryo that I'll give you if you wanna pick it up.
Buck Vantage
KaBar Dozier Folding Hunter
I haven't owned a Spyderco Tenacious, but my friends have. You could do worse. A great intro to Spyderco.

Have fun shopping!
 
number9 said:
Welcome, KYRO. There's all kinds of things to learn about knives around here. But you don't have to. For a first EDC under $50, look at Buck, Kershaw, Spyderco. If you like the styling, you're probably good to go. If you're careful, and you care, you can find something American made. If you end up with something from those brands that's made in China, you're probably still OK. Columbia River, CRKT, makes some appealing stuff, but it's almost all imported, and you gotta watch the steel they use in the blades.

If we're talking modern folders, with a pocket clip, IMO, a 3" blade is just right for EDC. 3.25" is doable. Bigger is, IMHO, getting big. I like keeping it around 3-3.5 ounces, too. For a more traditional knife, Buck and Case make a complete selection. Pick your handle material and blade shape. The steel's mostly the same.

Think about how you wanna open the knife. Assisted is fun, but can freak out some bystanders. It can be hard to open the knife quietly. Same with flippers. Thumbstuds and holes allow one handed opening, a little more discreetly.

A Lansky Turnbox will make it easy to keep a keen edge on whatever you buy.

A few knives in your price range that I've enjoyed:
Kershaw Scallion, Skyline, Injection (an amazing deal right now), Blur
Lots of folks like the Kershaw Leek, but it's never really worked for me. I have a Cryo that I'll give you if you wanna pick it up.
Buck Vantage
KaBar Dozier Folding Hunter
I haven't owned a Spyderco Tenacious, but my friends have. You could do worse. A great intro to Spyderco.

Have fun shopping!
Click to expand...

Do some of those brands do specific knives where they only do American made?
I'll look into the turnbox.
Thanks for the suggestions.

Also about the cyro, when you say pick it up do you mean buy it from you or literally drive to pick it up? Lol.
 
The new syderco efficient looks like a good buy, and maybe a delica or dragonfly for the wife.
 
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