There is no "best" knife, budget or otherwise, and the term "budget" itself can depend on the buyer.
I have personal preferences but that's entirely different.
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QSP kings of the budget realm
- Thread starter Londinium Armoury
- Start date
There is no "best" knife, budget or otherwise, and the term "budget" itself can depend on the buyer.
I have personal preferences but that's entirely different.
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You enjoy moving the goal posts and denying what most everyone else can see. This isn't a discussion. I'll have no further part in it.
One last thing. You can't even carry either knife, right? I know I know, for work.Definitely not for knife fighting on the mean streets of London....
Have a happy Easter!
Is there a reason you're acting like my 4 year old son after I told him no snacks before dinner? Are you okay there buddy. I didn't know using my knives at work was a problem. Grow up you're acting like a little baby.
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I'd disagree with there being no best knife, I definately think my Sebenza 21 is the best knife in my folding knife collection. Your opinion on what is your best knife may differ of course.
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Man, first off, you started a thread with a bold statement for a title. Then you want to argue with anyone who has a different opinion than yours. You keep reiterating the same things as you said in your first post.
BF is for knife discussion, not arguing to get people to agree with you. You probably don’t agree with me, and I’m ok with that.
BF is for knife discussion, not arguing to get people to agree with you. You probably don’t agree with me, and I’m ok with that.
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Doesn't seem like you are okay with people disagreeing with you to me. Seems like you have a problem with me discussing my opinions of QSP. Can you quote any of my posts where I have said or even hinted that people can't have a different opinion?
It seems like you have a problem with me saying QSP make the best budget knives.
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L
Londinium Armoury
You need to learn to use the edit function instead of posting multiple times in a row.
I normally don't buy budget or sub $100 knives, but I do have a civivi mckenna damascus and it's fantastic.
I've never been enthralled by the Rat 1 either, but part of it is my dislike of thumbstuds.
While I agree that the action of a bearing flipper, the Rat was not made for fidget factor. It's design is a knife you can beat the hell out of. If you do manage to break it, well it's not going to break the bank to replace. It's like a Timex watch. Inexpensive, but not cheap. Takes a licking and keeps on ticking.
Fidgety knives are a fave of mine, help calm me down when I have anxiety attacks. I'd rather have that than take meds. That said, if I had a job that required heavy use in a dirty environment, I wouldn't carry a bearing flipper.
I would most likely carry a small inexpensive fixed blade such as an ESEE Izula. Don't have to worry about disassembling to clean it, or that it might break at the pivot.
You need to learn to use the edit function instead of posting multiple times in a row.
I normally don't buy budget or sub $100 knives, but I do have a civivi mckenna damascus and it's fantastic.
I've never been enthralled by the Rat 1 either, but part of it is my dislike of thumbstuds.
While I agree that the action of a bearing flipper, the Rat was not made for fidget factor. It's design is a knife you can beat the hell out of. If you do manage to break it, well it's not going to break the bank to replace. It's like a Timex watch. Inexpensive, but not cheap. Takes a licking and keeps on ticking.
Fidgety knives are a fave of mine, help calm me down when I have anxiety attacks. I'd rather have that than take meds. That said, if I had a job that required heavy use in a dirty environment, I wouldn't carry a bearing flipper.
I would most likely carry a small inexpensive fixed blade such as an ESEE Izula. Don't have to worry about disassembling to clean it, or that it might break at the pivot.
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No problems here with your opinions. I also don’t need to quote your posts because their tone tells me all I need to know.
Also, Victorinox makes SAK’s in other handles than red.
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If I had one complaint about the QSP Copperhead, it would probably be to replace the bearings with bronze washers. I do find I have issues with bearings when I get sawdust inside the pivot. Not sure how that would effect the action though, it might lose some of it's smoothness, but would make it a better tool for dirty jobs. It's not so bad though because at least I can take it apart and clean it out.
I really enjoy my SS Endura but that's the worst knife for getting dirt inside the pivot because it's pinned shut. That's actually the reason I use it as a beater knife now, because the pivot has junk in it that won't come out so I gave up on keeping it in good condition, now it's my most abused folding knife.
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Well I'm discussing my opinions on why I like QSP knives. I still prefer Boker slipjoints and sheffiled traditionals over SAK's, even in their other colours and wood versions. Their fine nothing wrong with SAKs. I prefer my Boker Barlow still to my SAK's.
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Uh huh.
Shorttime
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QSP does quite a nice modern traditional.
Flat, evenly finished blades
Good centering
They're using good CNC equipment, that's for sure.
Where they fall off a little is when it comes to the hand finishing
I'm a fan of modified wharncliffe, but I don't think this qualifies.
Even the edge retention is good. Better at least, than some companies whose executives live the States.
Using the word "king" implies that one company rules by Divine Right over the others, or else it's just a handy way of meaning "the best". QSP seems to have invested heavily in good machinery and good manufacturing process, which means they make an objectively good knife, but you ain't never gonna get a majority agreement about anything on Bladeforums!
Flat, evenly finished blades
Good centering
They're using good CNC equipment, that's for sure.
Where they fall off a little is when it comes to the hand finishing
I'm a fan of modified wharncliffe, but I don't think this qualifies.
Even the edge retention is good. Better at least, than some companies whose executives live the States.
Using the word "king" implies that one company rules by Divine Right over the others, or else it's just a handy way of meaning "the best". QSP seems to have invested heavily in good machinery and good manufacturing process, which means they make an objectively good knife, but you ain't never gonna get a majority agreement about anything on Bladeforums!
ferider
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Very much agree with that. Plus I have some rules - like don't buy from _Mainland_ China if I can avoid it, for hobbies in particular. Call it politics, but after being locked down for more than a year, I feel it's a little more than that.
Now, the OP very much confirms Ken's point by picking a $65 knife as "budget knife". A Buck 110 goes for $49.99, for instance. Is it a budget knife ? I worked for 3 weeks in a factory as 14 year old, to buy my first $200 camera. A Buck 110 was too expensive for me then. So it all depends ....
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QSP does quite a nice modern traditional.
Flat, evenly finished blades
Good centering
They're using good CNC equipment, that's for sure.
Where they fall off a little is when it comes to the hand finishing
I'm a fan of modified wharncliffe, but I don't think this qualifies.
Even the edge retention is good. Better at least, than some companies whose executives live the States.
Using the word "king" implies that one company rules by Divine Right over the others, or else it's just a handy way of meaning "the best". QSP seems to have invested heavily in good machinery and good manufacturing process, which means they make an objectively good knife, but you ain't never gonna get a majority agreement about anything on Bladeforums!
Is that the QSP Worker? I like the look of them, will probably end up getting one, I was looking at the snakewood and G10 versions a few weeks ago. Couldn't decide which one I liked more so never ended up buying either.
The title of this thread is just to catch peoples attention, I thought it would catch peoples attention more than "QSP make some very good budget knives" kind of clickbaity I guess, I'm a bad man.
Nice knife though, I like that it has torx construction and isn't pinned. That's always a nice bonus.
Shorttime
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Yep! The Worker. No worries, I've seen even more "clickable" titles than yours!
The black G10 is very smooth, and needs some care when you open or close the knife, unless you have enormous bear paw hands. I haven't dropped it yet, and as long as I stick to two-handed opening and closing, it shouldn't be a problem.
It is on the larger side, if you're going into very non-permissive environments,
so that's something to be aware of. The fact that it almost has to be opened and closed like a traditional should help with the NKP's, though.
Mine did come with a scratch in the blade finish, right from the factory.
It's a $40 knife, and nobody should expect perfection at that price. It doesn't bother me at all, because it means I don't have to worry about putting the first scratch on it!
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Yep! The Worker. No worries, I've seen even more "clickable" titles than yours!
The black G10 is very smooth, and needs some care when you open or close the knife, unless you have enormous bear paw hands. I haven't dropped it yet, and as long as I stick to two-handed opening and closing, it shouldn't be a problem.
It is on the larger side, if you're going into very non-permissive environments,
so that's something to be aware of. The fact that it almost has to be opened and closed like a traditional should help with the NKP's, though.
Mine did come with a scratch in the blade finish, right from the factory.
It's a $40 knife, and nobody should expect perfection at that price. It doesn't bother me at all, because it means I don't have to worry about putting the first scratch on it!
IT's larger than I thought, that's a shame about the scratch, I guess somebody at the factory already put it to work before sending it out to the dealer. It's not the end of the world, but even at $40 it's not a good idea to send out a scratched blade.
Hows the walk and talk on it? or even the action, does it have a nice snap and pull?
Yo Mama
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Flicking open and drop shut action are not signs to me of a masterpiece of engineering. Anyone can get a blade to be centered. You can get this on a 4 dollar walmart knife.
An original design that cuts well is what I like in a company trying to find their niche in the market. Qsp looks like any other budget brand to me, seems nicely made, but don't jump out at me as a must have.
As said by a few others Civivi really is a better brand, better pricing model where you get options of different steel and materials of the same design. I'd try the Elementum.
That said Buck continues to be the king of budget, try the Sprint, spitfire, Vantage, or 110.
Shorttime
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Eh. I believe in the concept of Wabi-Sabi: the scratch is part of it's story, and it helps me remember that no knife is perfect.
The pull is very easy, though not to the point of falling open by itself, because of the lock. I imagine I could tighten it up, but I don't feel the need.
The half-stop is very soft, almost not there. I've never really felt the need for a half-stop on a locking knife, so it's not a big deal, to me.
Any knife with liners is going to have good talk. The G10 is very rigid too, which makes for a crisp "snap" when the lock engages. So, good talk, not so good on the walk.
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Reasons why the QSP Copperhead is not the best value EDC for me (in fact, it wouldn't win its way into my rotation):
1. At 3.5" it comes in larger than I choose to carry. I prefer just under 3" for EDC tasks.
2. At 5 ounces for a 3.5" blade it flunks the "ounce per inch" size to weight ratio I prefer in an EDC knife.
3. A 3.5" blade with a nearly 5" handle is very inefficient.
4. 0.14" blade stock with a high flat grind leaves it fairly thick behind the edge. My EDC tasks are much more enjoyable with a thin, slicey blade.
5. The pocket clip leaves the knife with a fairly high and obvious carry in the pocket. The clip also screams "KNIFE!!!".
6. Black G10. I'm so sick of black G10.
7. I tend to prefer open back construction. The Copperhead has a fairly sizable, solid backspacer.
I guess that's why we're all free to like the knives we like. I'd pick up a CIVIVI Pintail over a Copperhead every day that ends in a "Y". There's 7 valid reasons why a knife that seems to work for the OP would never work for me.
1. At 3.5" it comes in larger than I choose to carry. I prefer just under 3" for EDC tasks.
2. At 5 ounces for a 3.5" blade it flunks the "ounce per inch" size to weight ratio I prefer in an EDC knife.
3. A 3.5" blade with a nearly 5" handle is very inefficient.
4. 0.14" blade stock with a high flat grind leaves it fairly thick behind the edge. My EDC tasks are much more enjoyable with a thin, slicey blade.
5. The pocket clip leaves the knife with a fairly high and obvious carry in the pocket. The clip also screams "KNIFE!!!".
6. Black G10. I'm so sick of black G10.
7. I tend to prefer open back construction. The Copperhead has a fairly sizable, solid backspacer.
I guess that's why we're all free to like the knives we like. I'd pick up a CIVIVI Pintail over a Copperhead every day that ends in a "Y". There's 7 valid reasons why a knife that seems to work for the OP would never work for me.
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Fair points, I get the impression you aren't a Spyderco man haha.