- Joined
- Aug 16, 2011
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- 1,386
As sort of a tangent to the "empty your pockets thread", I thought I'd post all the folding pocket knives I've accrued. Some I bought because I thought they looked cool, but most I bought for day-to-day use. As an office worker, I don't have much need for something that could skin an elk. My main requirements are opening packages, breaking down thick cardboard boxes for recycling, and slicing up whatever I brought for lunch so I don't have to use a wimpy plastic knife. Also, it should be small and light enough to carry around and not too threatening looking. Most are either Spanish or Chinese made, and none cost more than $20 except the fallkniven and maybe the Roper.
Left Column:
1: "Teja Pastora" navaja from Martinez Albainox (Spain). I carried this one daily until recently. This knife is very well made, no wobble and locks up nicely. It snaps closed with just the right amount of force. The blade shape's super useful for slicing up food, and the blade's thin enough that it slices through cardboard no problem. It has a little too much belly to be good at opening packages, though. I bought the carbon steel model and the box says "acero carbono", but it's definitely stainless steel. I don't think the scales are real wood, they're plastic.
2: Navaja from Pallares (Spain). I carried this one for awhile too, and I tried sooooo hard to like it. It's from a company that's been making knives for generations. The blade is carbon steel and fully convex ground. Other than that it's a piece of junk. The blade wasn't even close to sharp, it wobbles side to side, and it doesn't close tightly. The plastic body bends if you push on it hard (there's no metal frame), and the edges aren't finished so it digs into your hands. This is the very cheapest version they sell of this knife, the other ones are more expensive with nicer handles. Maybe the fit and finish are better on those, but this one's just very poorly made.
3:Navaja from Celaya (Spain). Very similar to the first knife except larger and less well made. I think the scales are real bone. The blade wobbles side to side a little, and it doesn't snap shut when you close it. It could come open in your pocket. It's an okay knife but I like the Martinez Albainox one much better.
4: TL-29 knife from Camilius (USA). Probably ww2 era, bought it in an auction out of curiosity.
5: "Punta Clasica" Navaja from Extremena (Spain). Another disappointment. Carbon steel blade. It uses a vibroloc very similar to an Opinel. You twist the ring around the bolster to lock it open or closed. But the ring doesn't fit very well like on an Opinel. The handle's very comfortable, but really really fat. Too fat to carry in your pocket for such a small blade. They make longer versions which might make the fat handle worth carrying around. It'd probably make a great camp knife. The blade's nice and sharp and I like the shape. I don't trust the lock, though.
6: "Castor" navaja from Aitor (Spain). These knives are becoming popular. Carbon steel blade. Very well made, very sharp, very useful blade shape. The only down side is that it snaps closed like a bear trap. If you accidentally closed it on your finger, it might hit bone. I bought a larger one of these to use as a paring knife in the kitchen, but it stays open all the time.
7: "Pastor" navaja from Aitor (Spain). Stainless blade, it's basically a Sodbuster style knife. The blade wobbles back and forth, but it's because there's a small void between the metal liner and the wood scales. A little superglue fixed that. This one closes with just the right amount of force. It's a nice, well made knife, but sort of boring from an aesthetic point of view.
8: "Castrator" navaja from Martinez Albainox (Spain). It's a traditional bull castrating knife. I bought it because it looked cool. It's very well made, but I can't think of any use for it.
9: Higonokami knife (Japan). Traditional Japanese friction folder with laminated blue steel blade. I understand that when Japan outlawed the carrying of katanas, many of the sword makers started making these little guys. I carried this one for awhile. It's razor sharp but I found the edge to be too brittle. If you're cutting food on a ceramic plate and you hit the plate a little too hard, you'll chip the edge. And heaven help you if you hit a staple when you're cutting up a cardboard box. It also has a tendency to open in your pocket.
10: Douk Douk knife (France). Another simple traditional friction folder. The handle's just a folded piece of metal so it's really light and thin. I carried it for awhile, but it's a little too difficult to open and close. You need both hands to open it and you have to be very careful when you close it.
Middle column:
11: Opinel #6 (France). This one's my wife's, I have a larger one somewhere. She uses it mostly for peeling and cutting up apples. In a lot of ways this is the perfect pocket knife. Sharp carbon steel blade that's neither too thin or too thick, lightweight wood body, easy to open or close, secure blade lockup with the ring around the bolster. But it can be difficult to open or close if the handle gets wet and swells. You can open and close it with one hand if you practice, but it isn't exactly convenient.
12: Fallkniven P3G (Sweden). This is the first pocket knife I ever bought, and the only one I have that cost real money. I think the blade is VG10 laminated steel and the scales are micarta. It's convex ground and the sharpest knife I've ever owned. It has a frame lock, and opening and closing it is like opening and closing the door on a luxury car. I don't carry it because I'm afraid to lose it, and the blade's a little too short to be useful with food.
13: I think this one is from Sanrenmu, but it could be Enlan. Either way it's from China. I bought it because it looked cool, but obviously it's not the most useful blade shape. I thought it might be good for wood carving and whatnot, but I kept scraping my knuckles on whatever I was cutting. Fit and finish is great, though.
14: Sanrenmu 763 (China). The scales are G10 and it uses a clone of Benchmade's Axis lock so you can open and close it really easily. You basically pull the little knob on the side back and just flick it open or closed with your wrist. These are pretty popular knives and I carried it for awhile. I found the blade was too thick to cut through cardboard very well, and so short that the thumb stud would get stuck in whatever you were cutting.
15: Sanrenmu H03 (China). This is obviously a clone of one of the smaller Spyderco knives, except with a bottle opener in the back. It's light and well made. I had it on my keychain for awhile but I eventually snapped the tip off trying to open a plastic laptop battery.
16: Enlan L05-1 (China). I'm probably going to carry this one next, people seem to really like them. It's a very well made knife with liner lock and a fully flat ground blade. The blade's a little thinner than your average Sanrenmu or Enlan, but I think that's a good thing.
17: Enlan EL-01 (China). This is probably the most popular Chinese pocket knife. It's an absolute beast. There are videos on youtube of a guy battoning through a cord of firewood with one, and another of a Russian guy stabbing through aluminum and steel plates and cutting all sorts of thick metal cables. The scales are G10 with a thick metal frame underneath. It's a liner lock but it has a flipper so you can open and close it with the flick of a wrist. It's too big and heavy for my needs, though. I also think the blade is a bit too "stabby" shaped. Whenever I've used it I've been afraid of poking my fingers. It's very well built, but I know there's a guy out there who sells modded ones with teflon washers and such. I like playing with mine but I have no use for it. Even for outdoors and camping, for the size and weight of it you might as well bring a fixed blade.
18: Sanrenmu 710 (China). This is the other most popular Chinese pocket knife. People call it a "poor man's Sebenza". The handle is a solid piece of metal and it uses the thickest scale lock I've ever seen. The thing is probably indestructible. Unfortunately it's also very heavy so I haven't carried it yet. I also don't find the all metal build to be as comfortable to use as G10 or Micarta scales either. But if you need a knife for less than $20 that you could subject to any kind of abuse, this would be it.
Right column:
19: Rough Rider 824 (China). I'm carrying this one today. I guess you'd call the style a trapper knife. The big blade locks using a "Blade lock". Meaning to unlock it, you press down on the spine of the smaller knife. It works pretty well, but you need two hands to close it. You can open it with one hand because of the "Spyder hole" on the back, though. It's a little big and a little heavy, but I think it might be close to ideal for my requirements. The big blade has enough belly for cutting up food and the little "sheepsfoot" blade is sort of like a little box cutter. The small one is way thicker than it needs to be so I might grind it down a little.
20: Rough Rider Canoe Whittler (China). I love this knife, it's just too little for food stuff. The big blade has a locks with a back lock. The two smaller blades are really really thin so they cut through paper and cardboard like a razor. The steel's a little soft, but that's better than being brittle I guess. I tried prying something open with it and the tip bent rather than snapped. I wish they made a larger one of these.
21: Roper "Laredo Stag" Trapper (China). One of the few Chinese made pocket knives out there with carbon steel blades. I think I paid closer to $30 for this one, but there's cheaper versions out there with simpler scales. The scales on this one are 1/4th stag and 3/4th wood. I don't know what kind of wood it is, but the oil from your palm makes it almost glow. It's really pretty. The fit and finish isn't as good as Rough Rider, the blades do have a little side to side wobble to them. It doesn't wobble enough to affect how it performs, I just find it annoying. I carried this one for a long time and I was able to get a fantastic edge on it. I think the steel is 1065 carbon steel, which is a little soft for a knife, but sharpens easy and stays sharp. I like it better than whatever stainless they use in the Rough Riders. If it had a lock back I'd still be carrying it.
22: Rough Rider "Dogleg Jack" (China). Nice knife but too small. It's about the size of the Canoe Whittler but I didn't care for the looks of it. The first one they sent me had an extremely wobbly blade to the point of being unusable. I e-mailed the vendor and they replaced it while letting me keep the wobbly one. It was the only Rough Rider I ever bought that had anything less than perfect fit and finish. The replacement was nice and solid, though.
23: Steel Warrior lockback whittler (China). I heard good things about Steel Warrior (A frost cutlery brand) but I found the knife to be flimsier than Rough Rider. The blades are thin and bendy, they wobble a bit, and the blue dye on the scales comes off in your hand. Maybe I just got a bad piece, but I wouldn't buy another Steel Warrior.
I have a few more floating around, I'll post pictures when I find them.
Left Column:
1: "Teja Pastora" navaja from Martinez Albainox (Spain). I carried this one daily until recently. This knife is very well made, no wobble and locks up nicely. It snaps closed with just the right amount of force. The blade shape's super useful for slicing up food, and the blade's thin enough that it slices through cardboard no problem. It has a little too much belly to be good at opening packages, though. I bought the carbon steel model and the box says "acero carbono", but it's definitely stainless steel. I don't think the scales are real wood, they're plastic.
2: Navaja from Pallares (Spain). I carried this one for awhile too, and I tried sooooo hard to like it. It's from a company that's been making knives for generations. The blade is carbon steel and fully convex ground. Other than that it's a piece of junk. The blade wasn't even close to sharp, it wobbles side to side, and it doesn't close tightly. The plastic body bends if you push on it hard (there's no metal frame), and the edges aren't finished so it digs into your hands. This is the very cheapest version they sell of this knife, the other ones are more expensive with nicer handles. Maybe the fit and finish are better on those, but this one's just very poorly made.
3:Navaja from Celaya (Spain). Very similar to the first knife except larger and less well made. I think the scales are real bone. The blade wobbles side to side a little, and it doesn't snap shut when you close it. It could come open in your pocket. It's an okay knife but I like the Martinez Albainox one much better.
4: TL-29 knife from Camilius (USA). Probably ww2 era, bought it in an auction out of curiosity.
5: "Punta Clasica" Navaja from Extremena (Spain). Another disappointment. Carbon steel blade. It uses a vibroloc very similar to an Opinel. You twist the ring around the bolster to lock it open or closed. But the ring doesn't fit very well like on an Opinel. The handle's very comfortable, but really really fat. Too fat to carry in your pocket for such a small blade. They make longer versions which might make the fat handle worth carrying around. It'd probably make a great camp knife. The blade's nice and sharp and I like the shape. I don't trust the lock, though.
6: "Castor" navaja from Aitor (Spain). These knives are becoming popular. Carbon steel blade. Very well made, very sharp, very useful blade shape. The only down side is that it snaps closed like a bear trap. If you accidentally closed it on your finger, it might hit bone. I bought a larger one of these to use as a paring knife in the kitchen, but it stays open all the time.
7: "Pastor" navaja from Aitor (Spain). Stainless blade, it's basically a Sodbuster style knife. The blade wobbles back and forth, but it's because there's a small void between the metal liner and the wood scales. A little superglue fixed that. This one closes with just the right amount of force. It's a nice, well made knife, but sort of boring from an aesthetic point of view.
8: "Castrator" navaja from Martinez Albainox (Spain). It's a traditional bull castrating knife. I bought it because it looked cool. It's very well made, but I can't think of any use for it.
9: Higonokami knife (Japan). Traditional Japanese friction folder with laminated blue steel blade. I understand that when Japan outlawed the carrying of katanas, many of the sword makers started making these little guys. I carried this one for awhile. It's razor sharp but I found the edge to be too brittle. If you're cutting food on a ceramic plate and you hit the plate a little too hard, you'll chip the edge. And heaven help you if you hit a staple when you're cutting up a cardboard box. It also has a tendency to open in your pocket.
10: Douk Douk knife (France). Another simple traditional friction folder. The handle's just a folded piece of metal so it's really light and thin. I carried it for awhile, but it's a little too difficult to open and close. You need both hands to open it and you have to be very careful when you close it.
Middle column:
11: Opinel #6 (France). This one's my wife's, I have a larger one somewhere. She uses it mostly for peeling and cutting up apples. In a lot of ways this is the perfect pocket knife. Sharp carbon steel blade that's neither too thin or too thick, lightweight wood body, easy to open or close, secure blade lockup with the ring around the bolster. But it can be difficult to open or close if the handle gets wet and swells. You can open and close it with one hand if you practice, but it isn't exactly convenient.
12: Fallkniven P3G (Sweden). This is the first pocket knife I ever bought, and the only one I have that cost real money. I think the blade is VG10 laminated steel and the scales are micarta. It's convex ground and the sharpest knife I've ever owned. It has a frame lock, and opening and closing it is like opening and closing the door on a luxury car. I don't carry it because I'm afraid to lose it, and the blade's a little too short to be useful with food.
13: I think this one is from Sanrenmu, but it could be Enlan. Either way it's from China. I bought it because it looked cool, but obviously it's not the most useful blade shape. I thought it might be good for wood carving and whatnot, but I kept scraping my knuckles on whatever I was cutting. Fit and finish is great, though.
14: Sanrenmu 763 (China). The scales are G10 and it uses a clone of Benchmade's Axis lock so you can open and close it really easily. You basically pull the little knob on the side back and just flick it open or closed with your wrist. These are pretty popular knives and I carried it for awhile. I found the blade was too thick to cut through cardboard very well, and so short that the thumb stud would get stuck in whatever you were cutting.
15: Sanrenmu H03 (China). This is obviously a clone of one of the smaller Spyderco knives, except with a bottle opener in the back. It's light and well made. I had it on my keychain for awhile but I eventually snapped the tip off trying to open a plastic laptop battery.
16: Enlan L05-1 (China). I'm probably going to carry this one next, people seem to really like them. It's a very well made knife with liner lock and a fully flat ground blade. The blade's a little thinner than your average Sanrenmu or Enlan, but I think that's a good thing.
17: Enlan EL-01 (China). This is probably the most popular Chinese pocket knife. It's an absolute beast. There are videos on youtube of a guy battoning through a cord of firewood with one, and another of a Russian guy stabbing through aluminum and steel plates and cutting all sorts of thick metal cables. The scales are G10 with a thick metal frame underneath. It's a liner lock but it has a flipper so you can open and close it with the flick of a wrist. It's too big and heavy for my needs, though. I also think the blade is a bit too "stabby" shaped. Whenever I've used it I've been afraid of poking my fingers. It's very well built, but I know there's a guy out there who sells modded ones with teflon washers and such. I like playing with mine but I have no use for it. Even for outdoors and camping, for the size and weight of it you might as well bring a fixed blade.
18: Sanrenmu 710 (China). This is the other most popular Chinese pocket knife. People call it a "poor man's Sebenza". The handle is a solid piece of metal and it uses the thickest scale lock I've ever seen. The thing is probably indestructible. Unfortunately it's also very heavy so I haven't carried it yet. I also don't find the all metal build to be as comfortable to use as G10 or Micarta scales either. But if you need a knife for less than $20 that you could subject to any kind of abuse, this would be it.
Right column:
19: Rough Rider 824 (China). I'm carrying this one today. I guess you'd call the style a trapper knife. The big blade locks using a "Blade lock". Meaning to unlock it, you press down on the spine of the smaller knife. It works pretty well, but you need two hands to close it. You can open it with one hand because of the "Spyder hole" on the back, though. It's a little big and a little heavy, but I think it might be close to ideal for my requirements. The big blade has enough belly for cutting up food and the little "sheepsfoot" blade is sort of like a little box cutter. The small one is way thicker than it needs to be so I might grind it down a little.
20: Rough Rider Canoe Whittler (China). I love this knife, it's just too little for food stuff. The big blade has a locks with a back lock. The two smaller blades are really really thin so they cut through paper and cardboard like a razor. The steel's a little soft, but that's better than being brittle I guess. I tried prying something open with it and the tip bent rather than snapped. I wish they made a larger one of these.
21: Roper "Laredo Stag" Trapper (China). One of the few Chinese made pocket knives out there with carbon steel blades. I think I paid closer to $30 for this one, but there's cheaper versions out there with simpler scales. The scales on this one are 1/4th stag and 3/4th wood. I don't know what kind of wood it is, but the oil from your palm makes it almost glow. It's really pretty. The fit and finish isn't as good as Rough Rider, the blades do have a little side to side wobble to them. It doesn't wobble enough to affect how it performs, I just find it annoying. I carried this one for a long time and I was able to get a fantastic edge on it. I think the steel is 1065 carbon steel, which is a little soft for a knife, but sharpens easy and stays sharp. I like it better than whatever stainless they use in the Rough Riders. If it had a lock back I'd still be carrying it.
22: Rough Rider "Dogleg Jack" (China). Nice knife but too small. It's about the size of the Canoe Whittler but I didn't care for the looks of it. The first one they sent me had an extremely wobbly blade to the point of being unusable. I e-mailed the vendor and they replaced it while letting me keep the wobbly one. It was the only Rough Rider I ever bought that had anything less than perfect fit and finish. The replacement was nice and solid, though.
23: Steel Warrior lockback whittler (China). I heard good things about Steel Warrior (A frost cutlery brand) but I found the knife to be flimsier than Rough Rider. The blades are thin and bendy, they wobble a bit, and the blue dye on the scales comes off in your hand. Maybe I just got a bad piece, but I wouldn't buy another Steel Warrior.
I have a few more floating around, I'll post pictures when I find them.
How do you say "castrator" in Japanese? Might be able to remove the blade and temper it down to reasonable hardness. 
), I dont see the point of paying $1500 or more for an everyday folder. If you collect them and display them and they hold their value then ok its an investment. If Im going to invest in a colllection its going to be something thats already old and increasing in value of something I can actually use forever. A handful of overly priced makers come to mind but no need to mention them here. HI stuff is functional and collectable so I have no problem spending on them.