Now I'm not sure what a "hard use" folding knife is...

Good question. What constitutes "Hard use" is so subjective and everyone has their own definition.

Here's mine, every time I used my knife for a purpose beyond it's intended use I think that's hard use. While on active duty I often used my knife for reasons that went well beyond just slicing and cutting. We used our knives for so many purposes because in the field you use what you have.

Screwdriver, pry bar, hammer, cutting metal banding. When I think of hard use this is what comes to mind.

Even though I'd say it's more knife abuse then hard use.

Now, if given a choice I'd rather have the right tool for the job. Wouldn't even consider using one of my knives for any of the tasks above unless I had no choice.
 
Esav Benyamin said:
I'll tell you about a "hard use" knife. Some years ago, I bought an A.G.Russell Fruit Testing Knife and I keep it in the kitchen. Seeing cutitout's Satu with that apple reminded me of it.
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My immediate reaction to this post was 'What a FANTASTIC name for a knife'! It slightly amused me too (about as far from TOPS as it's possible to go!). I see it's also a very accurate name as that's exactly what it is, not heard of them before. Worth checking out :thumbup:

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There was a thread in the Kershaw forum discussing this.

From that thread:
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/933302-Terminology-Perception-and-Reality said:
I would consider opening envelopes and packages to be "light use". I think cutting cardboard, rope, rubber tubing, and carving wood to be medium use. However, if you do these tasks repetitively, I would consider that hard use. Cutting copper wire is definitely hard use. Somewhere along the line, we cross the threshold in to abuse.
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That wasn't meant to be definitive, but rather as a starting point for discussion on what constitutes the varying degrees of use a knife might get put through.
 
Fruit testers are a classic pattern. I had one from Hoffritz, a fruit blade and a serrated bread slicer at one end and a short for at the other -- a great picnic knife.
 
Esav Benyamin said:
Fruit testers are a classic pattern. I had one from Hoffritz, a fruit blade and a serrated bread slicer at one end and a short for at the other -- a great picnic knife.
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Yes, they look like classic picnic knives I've seen, but I'd never heard of fruit testers before. Thanks for that information, I rather like the look of them :)
 
I define "hard use" based on how much stress is applied to the knife. I've seen guys perform the following tasks using various folders, I would describe such tasks as "hard use"-

Cutting linoleum flooring all day long.

Repeatedly prying up old flooring.

Cutting roof/tar paper all day long.

Sawing/cutting sheetrock (drywall) all day long. The sawing was done with a serrated blade.

Though I wouldn't choose a folder for such tasks, sometimes on a jobsite guys will use whatever is handy at the time, especially if they forgot some of their tools or were required to perform tasks that they weren't expecting.

For some people knives are toys. For some people knives are tools that they use to earn a living and feed their families. But I don't judge why other people choose to own knives. As far as I'm concerned, you bought it, you can do what you want with it.
 
A hard use folder is one that gets put to hard use.:)
I had a Colt Ar-15K "tactical" lock-back folder.
I used that thing for everything for a few years.
Prying open paint cans, scraping rust from metal, cutting my steak, cutting tape, cutting cardboard, whittling wood, cutting rope...everything.
It was about $40, and had vertical blade-play...and the lock never failed.
It was labeled as 440 steel, and even had the much hated (by me as well) combo edge.
That was a hard use folder, even though it was vastly inferior to just about any of my current knives, because I used it hard.:thumbup:
 
Lycosa said:
Hard Use = marketing.
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Yes, heavy-duty folders are often marketed towards people who NEED a heavy-duty folder. Strength of construction, size, grip, lock strength, etc, etc, these are all things that many people look for in a "work" knife. Of course, for some people a "work knife" means a knife that's going to be used for more than opening envelopes or packages of printer ink.

Or are you implying that ALL folders are equally suited for every task? Is a Strider folder no different than one of those little Swiss Army knives with the nail file that you might hang on your keychain? If you were going to be cutting roofing material all day and had only those two knives with you which one would you choose? Which one would be better suited for "hard use"?
 
killgar said:
Yes, heavy-duty folders are often marketed towards people who NEED a heavy-duty folder. Strength of construction, size, grip, lock strength, etc, etc, these are all things that many people look for in a "work" knife. Of course, for some people a "work knife" means a knife that's going to be used for more than opening envelopes or packages of printer ink.
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My $40 Colt worked fine.;)
 
dmattaponi said:
When I baton with my SAK, I consider it hard use:-)

Honestly, I've come to view most of the talk of "hard use" on the forums, as Internet fantasy, and boys playing with their knives. Sorry if this offends anyone. Just my opinion. You're free to your own.
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I bet most of the action seen by this forum's hard use knives is flicking them open and shut... People are always saying "This is my hard use EDC but I back it up with this beater walmart Kershaw which gets most of the heavy lifting..."
 
Smokinape said:
I bet most of the action seen by this forum's hard use knives is flicking them open and shut... People are always saying "This is my hard use EDC but I back it up with this beater walmart Kershaw which gets most of the heavy lifting..."
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I have pried nails out of pallet jack wheels with my CRK ZAAN.... ;)
 
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