new here and want some opinions

Welcome to the best forum pertaining to everything sharp, you are in good hands here..:thumbup:

as this thread progresses you will find a lot of people will slam gerber, their mystery steel etc.. personally I haven't dealt with gerber in years so maybe things have changed I don't know..

I will say this, if Buck has served you well in the past give them a second look... they now have a new line called "Vantage".. they have the pro series, avid series and so on..

great knives and some walmart's, pro bass, and other box shops carry them, so you can check them out locally.. I have a Pro Vantage and it comes in S30V steel, its a flipper with a liner lock weight's in at 4oz, great deep concealment..

if you're up to buying used at the top of screen there is a tab that says 'Exchange' check in there on the production knives there are a lot of good used knives that people sell here fairly reasonably..

good luck in your quest...
 
Bucks are definelty considered though I do like trying new things. What do you guys think about the jeep knives. theyre made in America apparently
 
even american made doesnt mean good quality, the only 440 stainless im willing to take a chance on are older knives, and the kershaws. otherwise its pretty common to find a mediocre heat treat on a mediocre steel.
 
Dakota, you are jumping around to a lot of different styles. Case are great but mostly traditional style folding knives most without a lock or clip. Gerber overall are pretty cheap but the ones I handled felt low quality. For a folding knife with a pocket clip that locks you can get a Benchmade, Spyderco or Kershaw in close to your price range and get a much superior knife. Stay away from SOG or knives branded by gun companies or things like Jeep. These companies source out their work and don't actually make knives.
 
Yeah, I think you need to think more about what you want.

For instance:
Do you want something to "clip" to your pocket or is that not a big deal?
- This keeps it our of your way when going into your pockets and gives you more room in your pocket for keys, phone, money clip, chap stick, etc. It also makes it easier to grab your knife.

Do you want to be able to open/close with one hand?
- I find this a must as many times I only have one hand to use b/c I'm holding an object in the other.

Is weight a factor?
- Depending on how you answer the "clip/no-clip" question above, this could be a factor. A big hunk of metal in your pocket, not secured by a clip, can be annoying to say the least.

Think about those things (and a few more) and narrow your search a bit more. Also, take advice given unless you just like throwing money away.
 
All the spyderco and benchmade are out of my price range. I had a kershaw once I wasn't impressed . I like pocket clips not to heavy 1 hand open isn't a big deal. I prefer it big enough can hold onto it so nothing real small. And I don't like open handle designs. Also I had a spyderco once it was dent but I don't care for there handles they feel cheap.
 
If you're in St. Louis, you owe it to yourself to drive a little ways to Grand Prairie Knives. Their site says they are 20 min from the arch. I've never been in person, but have had excellent service ordering from them. Good luck.
 
I looked at there store online they look pretty good. I'm going to go to a place called dicks sporting goods they have a good selection I'm told. If I don't see anything I like there ill go to grand prairie. It's about an hour from me but it may be worth it. We shall see
 
Hey Dakota, welcome to BF! I know alot of folks on here seem to diss Gerber but I carried a Gerber f.a.s.t Draw as my edc for over 3 years and it performed like a champ, I never had to sharpen it!, and it only ran me $30. You can get it at Wak-Mart. But a Kershaw is another great choice as is a SOG. I now carry a SOG Flash II and its awesome, though it costs $50. And despite what many will say-S&W folders are really good too, especially for the price. I have a s.w.a.t a/o($35) and its a tank, the M&P line is nice too. Also check Boker out, their Kalashnikov models are really good users. The Bear Grylls stuff just isn't getting very good reviews at all, and if you wanted that fixed blade you should just the Gerber Prodigy-its basically the exact same knife. Hope you find something that works out well for you, this is the place to ask for a lot of great info/opinions.

PS- I've yet to buy a Spyderco but people seem obsessed with them so I plan on buying a Tenacious asap. Its only like $35, same as the Persistence if you want a blade just under 3"
 
Gerbers seem to perform decently. I was gifted one of their AO's last Christmas and have used it quite a bit around the house. It takes a good edge and sharpens easily. Previously I had a gerber Ez-out (mid nineties) and it wouldn't take or hold an edge, so perhaps the quality is different now. I do think that there are more trustworthy knives out there to be had for similiar money. By trustworthy I mean that the quality has been tried and true across the product line. Buck is in that category as well as kershaw. Both make excellent knives in your price range. Personally, I would probably get a buck 110, or an avid vantage. For kershaw I would get a skyline or a zing. Hope you find something that suits your needs. Good luck.
 
I had a spyderco the blade was good but I didn't care for the handle. It couldn't be taken apart and was just plastic.
 
Well guys I bought a buck quickfire. I know a lot of people who will just write it off because it doesn't have super steel but it is very well built . I like it so far. I liked it and a kershaw scamp I believe is what it was called and an us made sog flash. The kershaw wad nice but it was made in China. The sog felt to light but seemed decent but had the black coated blade so i decided the buck was the best choice. What do you guys think. I ended buying the last quickfire they had so I got a 10% discount since it was the show model
 
Buck's 420HC is highly respected as an entry level steel around here thanks to Paul Bos' heat treats who does all of Buck's knives. I think you have a belief that most new knife people have about chinese knives, there are a few that arent that bad, yes there are many companies that produce quite a bit of cheap, gas station knives, but many respectable companies (Kershaw, buck, benchmade, Spyderco) outsourced to certain ones and for good reason, great prices, great value. if you dont like Chinese knives for a political reason well thats up to you. congrats on your new buy!

as to the spydie you had, thats how all of their Gen 2 stuff was, they have all been changed so they can be dissassembled now, with the exception of sprint runs like the catcherman which used the old FRN mold.
 
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Yea I try to buy American when I can. The kershaw definelty wasn't lacking in quality it felt great in the hand. I have haven't had great luck with kershaws though I had a 30 dollar one I bought at Walmart it was highly praised for its value . It held an edge ok but it was brittle it chipped easily. My bucks have always been tough and sturdy. The sog wasn't bad felt kinda light though and coated blade . Coated looks good new but it looks bad scratched up.
 
Ah well it sounds like you prefer a tougher blade. In that case you'd probably like steels like aus8, 440c, 13c26, d2, 8cr13mov for future buys
 
Ah well it sounds like you prefer a tougher blade. In that case you'd probably like steels such as aus8, 440c, 13c26, d2, 8cr13mov for future buys
 
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