Pocket knife suggestions to cut up cardboard

You should get the most expensive one.

I am frugal, so I would get a box cutter with the replaceable blades.
 
Cardboard boxes?
Been there/done that. Hundreds a day.
I sharpened down a half dozen knives over the course of a few years.

Use a retractable utility knife & save your job.

My boss (one of the bigger jerks) told me I was getting paid to open boxes & take the stuff inside & put it on the shelf, not stand around sharpening a pocket knife a dozen times a day.
 
when it comes to cardboard...

Cold Steel Tuff Lite rules them all
 
For sure a box cutter is my first suggestion.
I get tired of how cheap they are though and most of them are kind of clunky and have lots of play.
Their blades are literally designed to cut boxes though.
I find a happy medium to be a Spyderco Delica.
It's like a box cutter in some ways but the blade is thicker and the overall use experience is nicer.
I still keep a box-cutter in my tool bag to cut caulk and paint from around thermostats and door frames.
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Ok, maybe I should have provided more details so users here didn't think I'm getting a knife just to be cutting up cardboard boxes all day. My use is specifically for occasionally cutting up cardboard to burn in a fireplace. This might happen couple times a week or not at all in a given week. It's based on if I received any packages that week. I can understand the box cutter recommendation if I was cutting a lot of boxes and frequently.
I just want an all around knife that won't dull easily, including if I need to use it to trim a stick I might find outside for fetching with my dog. For automotive purposes, it's more for cutting off things if the need arises. I once had a piece of bumper detach and rub on my front wheel. I had to pull over on the freeway and was stuck because I couldn't cut off the offending piece and yet didn't want to have the car towed just for that reason (and no one to call to bring me a knife at that time). Embarrassingly, I had to borrow a knife from the police who had stopped to see what's up to cut off the damn thing.

If I really go down to it, I guess my concern is related to the apparent edge retention differences between the XHP and M390 steels. But I don't really see any sort of strong consensus in the replies here that one is better than the other. So maybe I'll just wait for few days to see if Kershaw M390 comes in stock and if not, I'll go with the Spyderco XHP steel. I guess the XHP is also nice in terms of being easier for a novice to sharpen.
 
Hal said:
Cardboard boxes?
Been there/done that. Hundreds a day.
I sharpened down a half dozen knives over the course of a few years.

Use a retractable utility knife & save your job.

My boss (one of the bigger jerks) told me I was getting paid to open boxes & take the stuff inside & put it on the shelf, not stand around sharpening a pocket knife a dozen times a day.
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You might have been doing your boss a favor if you were using your own knife. I would never use my stuff for work and would definitely just use up a bunch of box cutters and let the company pay for the replacements. Learned the hard way that using my own stuff for work doesn't result in thanks, but more like an expectation to keep doing more and more.
 
Confractus said:
I've been reading a lot about knives and at first couldn't understand why a pocket knife should cost more than $30. Then I found this chart that quantifies the properties of different types of steels.

I am looking to get a pocket knife that will hold the longest edge while cutting up cardboard and the occasional wood slicing for creating tinder. Looking at the Edge retention rankings, it seems like I need one of the super steels (although not the CPM-S110V, S90V, or the M4 due to lack of toughness/corrosion resistance). Elmax and CTS-204P seem to be out as well as they are very expensive. This left me with CTS-XHP, CPM-20CV, and M390. Now I'd like to keep the budget below $100 ($150 max, if necessary). Based on that, I have come up with these models after a long search:

  1. Spyderco C152PGY Chaparral Knife - CTS-XHP, $96

  2. Kershaw 1812BLK Dividend Assisted Flipper Knife - M390, $77

  3. MKM Burnley Fara Slip Joint Folding Knife - M390, $95

  4. Boker Kalashnikov Automatic Knife - CTS-XHP, $70

  5. Kershaw 1776OLSW Link Drop Point Knife - CPM-20CV, $72
Now because choices 4 and 5 only come in crappy green color, I'm left with #1, 2, and 3. Of these, I prefer the style of #1 and #2. Since #2 is out of stock, that leaves me with the Spyderco. Yet, reading online, it seems that the M390 will hold the edge much better than the XHP, so I don't know if I should wait for #2 to come in stock...

Since I'm new to knives and only yesterday bought the Sharpmaker to try sharpening, I have two questions:

  1. Am I missing anything in the assessment of the steels when it comes to edge retention, given my use case? I read some comments where the CTS-XHP is essentially pretty much the same as the CPM-S30V in terms of edge retention

  2. Are the above choices really the best one can do for getting a high quality pocket knife these days? I was willing to get used, but eBay searches turn up pretty much the same prices as elsewhere. If by spending a bit more I'll get a much better knife (durable), that would be worth it. Wondering what the knife veterans have to say here.
Click to expand...

This isn't perfect, as there are a lot of variables involved... But this chart can give you an idea of the relationship between the toughness and edge retention of different steels. The tests were performed by Larrin of KnifeSteelNerds and I only used data points where the hardness of the steel was between 59 - 61 hrc to help normalize the results a little bit.

knifesteelnerds-jpg.1336287


As you can see from the chart, the difference in toughness between M390, S30V, Elmax, and D2 are very similar when brought close to the same hardness. S90V, S110V if you value edge retention and corrosion resistance above all... Or 4V if you value toughness and corrosion resistance would be the standouts to me. Personally, I think people that don't work in salt water environments worry way too much about the corrosion resistance of steel. Rust is easy to prevent and pepper spots are no big deal.

If it were me, I'd be waiting for the newly announced K390 Wharncliffe Delica to be released. My Delica Wharncliffes slice though cardboard better than any other knife I own (I work in a warehouse and cut a LOT of cardboard). If I couldn't wait for the release, I'd be on the hunt for a HAP40 or S30V version of the Delica Wharncliffe.

Also 204p, M390, and 20cv are all basically the same steel, just by different companies. They should perform roughly the same.
 
For cardboard I prefer serrations. But I don't see the need for anything expensive. How about a serrated Endura, oreven Tenacious? I own both of thiose, and they tear up cardboard boxes real good.
 
Confractus said:
Ok, maybe I should have provided more details so users here didn't think I'm getting a knife just to be cutting up cardboard boxes all day. My use is specifically for occasionally cutting up cardboard to burn in a fireplace. This might happen couple times a week or not at all in a given week. It's based on if I received any packages that week. I can understand the box cutter recommendation if I was cutting a lot of boxes and frequently.
I just want an all around knife that won't dull easily, including if I need to use it to trim a stick I might find outside for fetching with my dog. For automotive purposes, it's more for cutting off things if the need arises. I once had a piece of bumper detach and rub on my front wheel. I had to pull over on the freeway and was stuck because I couldn't cut off the offending piece and yet didn't want to have the car towed just for that reason (and no one to call to bring me a knife at that time). Embarrassingly, I had to borrow a knife from the police who had stopped to see what's up to cut off the damn thing.

If I really go down to it, I guess my concern is related to the apparent edge retention differences between the XHP and M390 steels. But I don't really see any sort of strong consensus in the replies here that one is better than the other. So maybe I'll just wait for few days to see if Kershaw M390 comes in stock and if not, I'll go with the Spyderco XHP steel. I guess the XHP is also nice in terms of being easier for a novice to sharpen.
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Do you really need the knife to focus on edge retention? Most knives handle occasional use really quite well.

And then you could focus on other advantages.

Say for example a Swiss Army knife doesn't have super tough steel, but it basically won't rust, it looks normal and has a host of specialty tools. Like a little saw for cutting wood.
 
If it were me, I would go with good old S35VN. The edge retention is very good, about the same as CTS-XHP, and it’s toughness is better than M390 and 20CV. But, mostly I find it much easier to sharpen on a Sharpmaker than M390 and especially S90V and S110V etc. since that is your setup and you intend to resharpen it, being able to effectively do Sonia important. Unless you have diamond rods that is.
 
Confractus said:
Ok, maybe I should have provided more details so users here didn't think I'm getting a knife just to be cutting up cardboard boxes all day. My use is specifically for occasionally cutting up cardboard to burn in a fireplace. This might happen couple times a week or not at all in a given week. It's based on if I received any packages that week. I can understand the box cutter recommendation if I was cutting a lot of boxes and frequently.
I just want an all around knife that won't dull easily, including if I need to use it to trim a stick I might find outside for fetching with my dog. For automotive purposes, it's more for cutting off things if the need arises. I once had a piece of bumper detach and rub on my front wheel. I had to pull over on the freeway and was stuck because I couldn't cut off the offending piece and yet didn't want to have the car towed just for that reason (and no one to call to bring me a knife at that time). Embarrassingly, I had to borrow a knife from the police who had stopped to see what's up to cut off the damn thing.

If I really go down to it, I guess my concern is related to the apparent edge retention differences between the XHP and M390 steels. But I don't really see any sort of strong consensus in the replies here that one is better than the other. So maybe I'll just wait for few days to see if Kershaw M390 comes in stock and if not, I'll go with the Spyderco XHP steel. I guess the XHP is also nice in terms of being easier for a novice to sharpen.
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I suggest cruwear. I lean more towards xhp
M390 cv20 is a great steel but a pita to sharpen.
 
Any Spyderco in K390, there’s different models/sizes to choose from. K390 holds a good edge and is novice friendly to sharpen.
 
Many knives will do what you need. I don't like compression locks because they create a hot spot with intensive and/or prolonged use..

The thin blade of a Chaparral is well suited for most EDC roles including cutting cardboard.
Hollow grinds like the GB2 or the Swayback are my personal favorites.
A serrated edge, esp wharncliffe or sheepfoot shaped is also great.

The Maxamet and S110V blades on a Manix should do most everything. Or my latest knife the Military in S110V and its long handle will make any cutting task easy.
 
My absolute best cardboard knife was my (since stolen.....by my mother-in-law) Spyder Delica. Runner up, Spyder PM2.
 
It sounds like OP is not using the blade to breakdown boxes all day long, but it's for occasional use. I think it is just a matter of personal choice between those knives. Personally, I much rather to strop often to keep an "average" steel really sharp, than to choose between either spending a lot of time sharpening or keep on using a semi-dull knife.
 
It’s all fun and games until your pivot is full of grit and you hit a staple or two.
Of course this is in a factory setting, where cardboard is nothing like cutting open toys on Christmas morning and an occasional phone book for fun.
 
As many have said, get a good box cutter. You will save yourself so much time sharpening and the thin stock cuts better than any edc blade. Good luck with your descision.
 
i wouldn't be too quick to write off
the capabilities of humble box cutter.
ok maybe the blade is short.
but edgewise.. it does cut some.
moreover, a dull box cutter blade
only requires replacements perioically.
it don't cost much really...
 
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