Not sure what to buy next. :|

S

Smooth_Operater

Joined
Apr 8, 2013
Messages
394
Guys,
I have been looking at all the threads of people asking about knife suggestions and I hate to add another but I’m just looking for some friendly advice. Wife, daughter, house, and other misc. obligations are keeping me from just buying every knife I want.

My plan is to buy just a couple of knives a year. This is to enjoy each new purchase for a while and carry it to make sure I really like it. Also, part of the fun (for me at least) is the hunt (i.e. researching, reading reviews, and watching videos of knives). What do I plan on using the knife for? I can best answer that by telling you all what I do every day. First off, I am a surveyor for the government and spend 90% of my time in the field and about 50% of that time in the woods. After work, I pick up the little one and cut up her afternoon fruit for snack. The nights when my wife isn’t home yet, I use my knife for some food prep. Also, now that it is Daylight Savings Time, I will be in the yard a lot more with yard work. I mostly wear jeans or cargo pants to work so it will spend its days clipped there. My current knives are: Spyderco Sage 1, Spyderco Native FRN, Spyderco Ladybug, Benchmade Mini-Grip , two Buck Vantages ( 1 pro and 1 avid), Victorinox Huntsman, and a Spyderco Manix 2 (that I will sell to my coworker because I don’t care for the weight of it).

Knives on my radar are: Spyderco Para-Military 2 (worried about the length but love that it weighs only 3.9 oz), Spyderco Sage 2 (Like to Ti handles), Benchmade 940 (I love the 940-1 but can’t afford it), Spyderco Domino (Blue G-10 one from Bento Box Shop. Kinda don’t want to spend THAT much), Zero Tolerance 0566BW (not to fond of the weight but like the blackwash), and a Spyderco Southard (Just to regular brown one). Steel doesn’t really matter to me that much since I think that they all are good. Size? Anything from the size of my mini grip (2.89” in think) which has been used the most lately to maybe the size of a PM2 (3.5” I think?). Price? I have a soft cap at $200.

P.S. If there are any that you guys think I should really consider outside of these. Send them, this is just what I can think of that I like off the top of my head.
 
Going over all your requirements and what you want to use it for and your fondness for the knife not being too heavy - you might want to consider the Kizer Ki3404A3 Knife

[video=youtube_share;NDoUirMmANQ]http://youtu.be/NDoUirMmANQ[/video]

Smooth_Operater said:
Guys,
I have been looking at all the threads of people asking about knife suggestions and I hate to add another but I’m just looking for some friendly advice. Wife, daughter, house, and other misc. obligations are keeping me from just buying every knife I want.

My plan is to buy just a couple of knives a year. This is to enjoy each new purchase for a while and carry it to make sure I really like it. Also, part of the fun (for me at least) is the hunt (i.e. researching, reading reviews, and watching videos of knives). What do I plan on using the knife for? I can best answer that by telling you all what I do every day. First off, I am a surveyor for the government and spend 90% of my time in the field and about 50% of that time in the woods. After work, I pick up the little one and cut up her afternoon fruit for snack. The nights when my wife isn’t home yet, I use my knife for some food prep. Also, now that it is Daylight Savings Time, I will be in the yard a lot more with yard work. I mostly wear jeans or cargo pants to work so it will spend its days clipped there. My current knives are: Spyderco Sage 1, Spyderco Native FRN, Spyderco Ladybug, Benchmade Mini-Grip , two Buck Vantages ( 1 pro and 1 avid), Victorinox Huntsman, and a Spyderco Manix 2 (that I will sell to my coworker because I don’t care for the weight of it).

Knives on my radar are: Spyderco Para-Military 2 (worried about the length but love that it weighs only 3.9 oz), Spyderco Sage 2 (Like to Ti handles), Benchmade 940 (I love the 940-1 but can’t afford it), Spyderco Domino (Blue G-10 one from Bento Box Shop. Kinda don’t want to spend THAT much), Zero Tolerance 0566BW (not to fond of the weight but like the blackwash), and a Spyderco Southard (Just to regular brown one). Steel doesn’t really matter to me that much since I think that they all are good. Size? Anything from the size of my mini grip (2.89” in think) which has been used the most lately to maybe the size of a PM2 (3.5” I think?). Price? I have a soft cap at $200.

P.S. If there are any that you guys think I should really consider outside of these. Send them, this is just what I can think of that I like off the top of my head.
Click to expand...
 
It sounds like you have the smaller sizes covered already and since weight is an issue, I'd 100% recommend a PM2. It has a nice size blade but as you can tell from the weight, it carries small.

If you want something a bit more beefy but still keeping the blade short- I'd check out the ZT0350 if you don't mind the assisted opening.

The 940 is cool- but the mini grip is a better all arounder at that smaller size IMO... and if you want a dressier knife- just wait to purchase a 940-1 at a later date (you can find them for ~$200 on the exchange).
 
Out of all of those you mentioned I would have to say a Para Military 2 will do you well! Hopefully that means something coming from a huge ZT fan!

Good luck in making your decisions!
 
Spyderco Stretch.

For a user, its about as good as you can get. While it's simple design & weird blade shape might not be too sexy, it's an outstanding performer. The blade is 3.5" but the OAL is under 8" (and a third of an inch shorter than the Para 2). The simple lock back design, to me, is the best for an EDC knife. I own a couple high-end framelocks and linerlocks, and while they are a joy to operate, I'm always paranoid about using them too much or too hard and blowing thru the life of the lock too quickly.

The blade shape makes it a great slicer, and I love the belly on it. The large Spydie hole makes for very easing opening, and after a few months of use, the knife flies open. It's much easier to open than the Endura that I used to own. The FRN handles are super grippy, and keep the knife very light weight (3.4oz). As do the skeletonized full length stainless liners. It's also very slim and easy to carry.

Best ergo's I've ever felt on a slim knife. The forward finger choil (w/ jimping) allows you to choke up on the knife for detail work. The aggressively shaped spine (although not pretty) is great for sliding the thumb up for detail work (choked up position). Reverse grip, and natural grip positions are both flawless.

For about $80 you can get the knife in VG10. At $100 you can get it in ZDP-189. I went for VG10 knowing that I really like the ease of sharpening. ZDP-189 is probably my favourite steel for a high-end folder, but not necessarily a hard user (I'm a career firefighter and carry this knife everyday at work as a backup to my fixed blade).

Here's an old pic that I thought would be usefull, so you could see a size comparison with the Stretch and my Mini Grip.
2mxrdzp.jpg
 
drrickso said:
It sounds like you have the smaller sizes covered already and since weight is an issue, I'd 100% recommend a PM2. It has a nice size blade but as you can tell from the weight, it carries small.

If you want something a bit more beefy but still keeping the blade short- I'd check out the ZT0350 if you don't mind the assisted opening.

The 940 is cool- but the mini grip is a better all arounder at that smaller size IMO... and if you want a dressier knife- just wait to purchase a 940-1 at a later date (you can find them for ~$200 on the exchange).
Click to expand...

This is what I actually been leaning towards. I want to find a pm2 in the brown handle (s35vn since i have a few S30v knives.). I may wait till I see one on the exchange and buy it.
 
whitty said:
Out of all of those you mentioned I would have to say a Para Military 2 will do you well! Hopefully that means something coming from a huge ZT fan!

Good luck in making your decisions!
Click to expand...

It does. I love my mini grip because of the axis lock. So much so that I bought my wife one last year. But the pm2 has a nice compression lock. I been trying to get a little variety in my collection.
 
ZT is getting ready to release a couple smaller knives. The ZT 900 is already out. The ZT0808 hasn't been released yet. You can go to ZT's site and check them out.
 
My first choice will be the 940-1 if you look around you can get one way below map price . That said I'll take the PM2 over the regular version . The PM2 is a great knife one of my all time favorite .
 
I would recommend the regular 940. If you compare it to the PM2 it has the same blade length but just feels like a smaller knie. I like the fact that it takes up less pocket space and seems to be less intimidating to people. The action is awesome and I love the axis lock. I like the aluminum handles because it gives it a more solid feel.
Rpo2Vwz.jpg
 
Onojoe. How is the green aluminum handle wearing? That's my worry with that knife. I'm currently emailing a guy on the exchange to see if he will sell his earth brown pm2 for $150. If so, I may go with that.
 
The aluminum handle will wear with time and look nice or ugly how ever you want to see it . I like to see normal wear on aluminum handle knives but hate to see a big ding from dropping it . Get the brown PM2 great choice .
 
Smooth_Operater said:
Onojoe. How is the green aluminum handle wearing? That's my worry with that knife. I'm currently emailing a guy on the exchange to see if he will sell his earth brown pm2 for $150. If so, I may go with that.
Click to expand...

I have a 940 which is my very favorite knife to handle, but it ends up not going in my pocket because I worry about chipping up the green. I saw one that had been in a pocket with keys for a while, and it had a good deal of shiny silver where the anodized green had chipped. I tell myself that that would be fine, cause it's a user, so I should just toss it in the pocket and let it show some wear...but then I leave it on the shelf anyway.
My PM2 gets more pocket time, but for me the 940 is a more balanced, smooth, and sexy knife.
 
mwally said:
Spyderco Stretch.

For a user, its about as good as you can get. While it's simple design & weird blade shape might not be too sexy, it's an outstanding performer. The blade is 3.5" but the OAL is under 8" (and a third of an inch shorter than the Para 2). The simple lock back design, to me, is the best for an EDC knife. I own a couple high-end framelocks and linerlocks, and while they are a joy to operate, I'm always paranoid about using them too much or too hard and blowing thru the life of the lock too quickly.

The blade shape makes it a great slicer, and I love the belly on it. The large Spydie hole makes for very easing opening, and after a few months of use, the knife flies open. It's much easier to open than the Endura that I used to own. The FRN handles are super grippy, and keep the knife very light weight (3.4oz). As do the skeletonized full length stainless liners. It's also very slim and easy to carry.

Best ergo's I've ever felt on a slim knife. The forward finger choil (w/ jimping) allows you to choke up on the knife for detail work. The aggressively shaped spine (although not pretty) is great for sliding the thumb up for detail work (choked up position). Reverse grip, and natural grip positions are both flawless.

For about $80 you can get the knife in VG10. At $100 you can get it in ZDP-189. I went for VG10 knowing that I really like the ease of sharpening. ZDP-189 is probably my favourite steel for a high-end folder, but not necessarily a hard user (I'm a career firefighter and carry this knife everyday at work as a backup to my fixed blade).

Here's an old pic that I thought would be usefull, so you could see a size comparison with the Stretch and my Mini Grip.
2mxrdzp.jpg
Click to expand...

Well spoken. IMO THE classic EDC from Spyderco. Love the 940 and the PM 2 but carry the Stretch.
 
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