Quality of cheap knives?

A

avpshadowman

Joined
Apr 13, 2000
Messages
225
My second post
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anyway, you probably have seen this type of post before, but im just wondering what are the quality of jaguar knives and tomahawk knives? Im more into the liner locks which ive seen for a very cheap price at
http://www.familydefense.com/knives.htm

Because the price is so cheap (ranging from 4-7 american dollars) im just wondering if they are even reasonable quality, since jaguar balisongs seem to get good reviews.

Daniel
 
No, no, no. Never buy a foreign rip-off knife. All they ever do is steal a honest design and very terribly replicate them. There is a good reason why the're so cheap. Because they are pieces of crap.

Take my advice, buy a real knife. There actually exists quality and worksmenship in them. The real designers deserve the credit for making them, not the imposters.

Quality of them: Well put it this way, their blade steel is the epitomy of cheap, 420. Their grinds are round and don't cut. Their handles are even softer and cheaper. Their lockbacks are weak and don't hold. Their liner locks are badly fitted and rattle out of the box. They replace strong materials like G-10 or carbon fiber with cheap plastic and scrap metal.

Their only possible use could be for something it could actually cut, butter.

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A real knife collector is always broke.
 
I've seen sites like the one in question before but this was the first one that played "America the Beautiful" when you load the home page. There's a lot of patriotic stuff to be found on that page.

Funny, I wasn't able to find a single American knife company represented.

For a real thrill, check out the "economy knives" page (Yes, the above link points to the "quality knives" page).

rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr
 
Hehe, nice quote david, i think ill memorise that one
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however, the jaguar knives are made by the same company which makes the balisongs which people seem to like? so if the balisongs are supposed to be good, why shouldnt these knives be of *reasonable* quility? considering im only a student with no job
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cost is a big factor on whether i buy something, but i also dont want to buy a piece of junk which was described in full detail by david hehe,

thanks for replying

daniel

ps. if you can get me websites with quality knives but not too expensive, i would appreciate that.
 
A low quality knife is worse than no knife at all, 'cause you will be expecting it to work, and plan accordingly, then it will fail, leaving you 'up a creek without a paddle,' so-to-speak. That is, assuming you are not injured in the process of it breaking.

Define 'quality but not too expensive.' Benchmade and Spyderco are both thought well of (although I can't for the life of me see how anyone can like a knife as ugly as Spyderco, but that's my definition of ugly, and I'm sure someone else thinks the exact opposite) (that means no flames; I know this is just my opinion, and I don't need 10 or 20 people to tell me so). To me, paying several weeks' salary every year for knives isn't 'too expensive,' because I value knives to that extent. To others, this is excessive, and to still others, I'm a lightweight in the field.

--JB

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e_utopia@hotmail.com
 
If you try every Jaguar in the store you can probably find one with a good lockup -- but even that one will be made of age-hardened cheese. If your budget is limited look at low-buck knives that don't say "stainless" on the blade -- carbon steel puukkos or if you must have a folding knife (Feh!) look at Opinels. There are a lot of dealers on the net ... you might start with www.discountknives.com

-Cougar Allen :{)
Thou shalt not fold thy knife!
 
P.S. Don't buy anything made in Pakistan, no matter how low the price seems! Don't take it as a gift, don't take it if they pay you to haul it away. They'll break in half on you when you least expect it.

Anything that's made of carbon steel and isn't made in Pakistan is likely to be usable, though, even if the price is low.

-Cougar :{)
 
The reason why the Jaguar balisong knives seem somewhat highly regarded is because of availability. When you compare it to the other avalible balisongs such as the "Rostfries," and Bear MGC's, they rank higher in quality. But when you compare Jaguar folding knives to other brands such as Spyderco or Benchmade, they don't even remotely compare.

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A real knife collector is always broke.
 
Columbia River Knife & Tool (CRKT) makes high-quality knives in the low to mid-price range. These are quality pieces and the low-end stuff from Jaguar or Fury can't even come close. You'll pay more for the CRKT's, but they are generally less expensive than comparable pieces from Spyderco or Benchmade.
Jim
 
Or how 'bout this? Why not buy a reasonably-priced quality folder (e.g., Spyderco or whatever) and one of the Jaguar knives which catch your eye. Test drive 'em both, then tell us what you find out.

If they performed the same for what you need/want, then sell the Spydie/Benchmade/whatever here at BF -- you'll get at least half back what you paid for.

If the Jaguar fails, then you're only out $7-$10 -- not much for a worthwhile lesson which you'll be able to build on as you acquire more knives in the future.

But if you're only going to go with one for one, might as well be one backed by a no-frills warranty.

(OR: buy the Jaguar, and if/when it fails, kick yourself for not having bought a better folder in the first place!)

.02 --
Glen
 
I second CRKT - lots of "bang for the buck".

Camillus might be another option - I found their Sierra for $20 and some lev-r-locks(sp) for $30 on the net.

Good luck!

Jim
 
Hey Cougar! Don't be so hard on the Pakistan stuff. The big ones make great canoe anchors. They were one of the original proponents of the frangible throwing knife.
And besides that, they give the folks that buy Frost Cutlery somebody to look down on.
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Dave
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Attention: Some assembly may be required. Batteries not included.
 
Take a look at Gigand too. www.gigandknives.com . I don't own one, but I have read good reviews and they do use a good steel. If you're interested in a defensive/ all purpose knife that's fairly cheap, look at CRKT's M16 spear points with the zytel handles. I handled one and would have bought it if they hadn't asked how old I was
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. The fit and finish on this knife was incredible considering its price, and the flipper is an awesome defensive feature. The cheapest I have seen them is at http://www.discountknives.com/Columbia/Columbia2.html . Check them out.
 
Hey, after the first two posts, thought i wouldnt get any information, thanks for the sites, ill actually consider getting a gigang adverturer series, they look great and for only 25 bucks, arnt gonna burn an hole in my pocket.

anyway, you guys have answered all my questions, thanks a lot

daniel
 
Another suggestion -

The Outdoor Edge Impulse. Nice knife, low price.

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AKTI Member #A000832

"Sometimes you eat the bear, and sometimes, the bear eats you."
 
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