Please Help Me Find A Knife (with specific criteria)

Yimes

Yimes

Joined
Sep 3, 2018
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I have been on an quest for over three weeks now to find a knife with some pretty specific criteria. It is seriously cutting into my work and family time. At this point I am not sure it exists, but if it does I’m sure you all would know about it. Thank you in advance for any advice and guidance.

Here are the specs I am looking for:

A folder that locks
A non-stainless steel like M4, 52100, 1095, O1, CPM-3V etc.
Non-traditional (I have a Buck 110 and 112 in 5160 and a few CV Case knifes)
A blade at least 3.5 inches.
Priced less than $300.

Three knives that are very close but don’t make the cut for me are the BM Contego, because of the coating, the Spyderco Bradley 2 because I had one and I can’t stand the lock release and the Spyderco Police 4 because I have a PM 3 in 52100 and an Endura in V-toku so I have that shape covered.

Additional Knives I have ruled out:

Spyderco Advocate (too short and I have a Mantra 1)
Ontario Rat D2 (have one and D2 is semi stainless)
Spyderco PM 2 or Millie (see above I have the 3)

Again thank you for any help you can give.
 
Modify the lock access on the Gayle Bradley 2 ans it becomes the perfect knife! It's an easy mod. It made 100% difference fo me, from really not liking the knife at all to it becoming an instant favorite.
 
Thanks for the suggestions. I have been considering a mod on the Bradley. I’m not the most skilled person with a Dremel but I do have one. Maybe I will give it a try!
 
You're ruling out the Advocate and the Military because you have the PM3 and Mantra 1? That makes no sense - they are different knives, with different feels; and neither the PM3 or Mantra meet the criteria you listed. (I would get dropping the Advocate because the specs list the blade at 3.49", and you want/need the blade to be at least 0.01" longer)
 
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Regarding the Military, correct it does not make a lot of sense, but I guess I am looking for something outside that family. Plus I prefer tip up carry and if I remember correctly the Military only carries tip down. I could have been more specific I just did not want to make my question too long-winded.

I have never seen the XL in a non stainless steel. That would be great.

I will look at the other Manix options. Thanks!
 
Yimes said:
I have been on an quest for over three weeks now to find a knife with some pretty specific criteria. It is seriously cutting into my work and family time. At this point I am not sure it exists, but if it does I’m sure you all would know about it. Thank you in advance for any advice and guidance.

Here are the specs I am looking for:

A folder that locks
A non-stainless steel like M4, 52100, 1095, O1, CPM-3V etc.
Non-traditional (I have a Buck 110 and 112 in 5160 and a few CV Case knifes)
A blade at least 3.5 inches.
Priced less than $300.

Three knives that are very close but don’t make the cut for me are the BM Contego, because of the coating, the Spyderco Bradley 2 because I had one and I can’t stand the lock release and the Spyderco Police 4 because I have a PM 3 in 52100 and an Endura in V-toku so I have that shape covered.

Additional Knives I have ruled out:

Spyderco Advocate (too short and I have a Mantra 1)
Ontario Rat D2 (have one and D2 is semi stainless)
Spyderco PM 2 or Millie (see above I have the 3)

Again thank you for any help you can give.
Click to expand...
What dont you like about the contego?
 
I don’t like the coating on the Contego. I saw one recently on an auction site where it had been removed. I should have grabbed it when I did because it was gone later that day. If someone told me it was easy to remove the coating I would probably get one.
 
The Spyderco Manix 2 comes in a broad range of steels with many of them being non-stainless. Some are sprints or exclusives so you might have to hunt around some.

But they can be had in Maxamet, M4, 4v, and 52100 I believe.
 
The Manix 2XL is a great knife - I like it better than the Military, really - but I don't know that it has been available in any of your desired steels.
The Manix 2 is smaller than your stated minimum.

What are your thoughts on D2? If you're open to it, it would increase your options. Unfortunately, a lot of the M4 offerings have some sort of blade coating.

*edited to add*
I used BladeHQs filtering - blade length 3.5 to 4 inches, and a variety of non-stainless steels (01, A2, 52100, M4, 3V, 4V, Cruwear, 1095, etc) - then narrowed the selection down to modern folders with a top price of $300.
The verdict....<drum roll>…….
The knife you seek does not exist.
Of course, that only references what is available NEW, from that retailer.

(that isn't exactly true, there was this - BHK Tree Frog (folding bushcraft knife, which is locked by inserting pins through the handle & blade).


If you liked the look of the Contego, keep your eyes open for one in uncoated M4 - they're out there.
If you're open to D2 - have fun....
https://www.bladehq.com/cat--Manual-Knives--45#/filter:blade_length:3.5:4/filter:blade_material:D2
 
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hhmoore said:
The Manix 2XL is a great knife - I like it better than the Military, really - but I don't know that it has been available in any of your desired steels.
The Manix 2 is smaller than your stated minimum.

What are your thoughts on D2? If you're open to it, it would increase your options. Unfortunately, a lot of the M4 offerings have some sort of blade coating.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the correction. I misread the length requirement.
 
I’d definitely recommend the Manix 2 if you are willing to lose less than .2 inches. If you shop around for earlier sprints you’ll have your pick at the steel. Some are egregiously overpriced in my opinion, but most fall under $300. Are they worth $250.. maybe not. But that’s just my opinion. They are to some.

My one and only is the CruWear/Carbon fiber model and it’s about as perfect as perfect could be. Steel and platform are the made for each other. So that’d be my recommendation.


Needs a picture -

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