Review Question about Rough Rider quality in relation to other brands

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ErikMB

Gold Member
Joined
Jul 27, 2017
Messages
870
Hi All,

I am just getting into this hobby (obsession) of making pocket knives and trying to learn about it.

I have purchased some examples from Case, Rough Rider, Boker, Marbles, Elk River, Schrade, Klaas, and so on, and I am trying to compare them so I can learn.

The Rough Rider ones I have received appear to be outstanding. The fit, finish, walk, talk, and general beauty are really good. These are very pretty knives.

I got some of the "cinnamon" models and I noticed that there are striations in the scales, implying they were 3D printed from some kind of plastic, and that the coloring is painted on as opposed to being part of the scale material. This means that the beauty will wear off as it is rubbed. The other examples I have do not have these "cheats."

So, I am wondering what people think of Rough Rider quality in general. What should I be looking for to get a deeper understanding of what they do well and what they do poorly? Imagine standing there, making your own slipjoints, and using Rough Riders as examples of what to try to emulate.

I prefer to buy American or European, of course, but let's discuss this from a craftsmanship angle.

Thanks heaps ahead of time for everybody's wisdom. I appreciate it.
 
I have a rough rider improved muskrat that I got for Christmas one year, and a timberlands hunter that I threw in on an order to get free shipping. No complaints, they are well made, and do the job of a knife just fine, and are very affordable. 440a isn't the best steel, but it works well imo. The timberlands edge was ground a bit high on the tip, but easily fixed to my liking.

I think they are just fine as working knives. No worries about hurting or breaking them because they are so cheap, you can replace them easily.
 

Rough Rider & Related Slipjoints

Hi, I've had these about a week now. I've never had these patterns, so it's been fun trying them. The fit and finish is a little variable between the three. The green mini-trapper is far and away the best for fit and finish. I'd put it against any production slippie out there. It walks...
www.bladeforums.com www.bladeforums.com
 
Rough Riders are Chinese knives made cheaply to a price point. They are fine for what they are, but aren't going to approach the quality level of something like a knife from Great Eastern Cutlery, Tuna Valley, Albers Cutlery, older (or Bose) Case knives, or any of a number of custom makers. All of those will cost more, but are worth it. For the record, I own knives from all the aforementioned companies, and zero RRs, so my opinion is worth what you paid for it! :D
 
What would I notice if I held a RR next to one of those other, high quality knives?

I understand the difference in materials but what about the workmanship? The design features?

I am trying to learn what I can for the slipjoints I have started making. I've only been at it for about 2 months, still learning. There are a lot of details to learn, my brain gets overwhelmed sometimes. 🤣
 
ErikMB said:
What would I notice if I held a RR next to one of those other, high quality knives?

I understand the difference in materials but what about the workmanship? The design features?

I am trying to learn what I can for the slipjoints I have started making. I've only been at it for about 2 months, still learning. There are a lot of details to learn, my brain gets overwhelmed sometimes. 🤣
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As someone who's held several RRs (at the last BLADE show at a table) and...well, plenty of knives from the companies I mentioned, you'll immediately notice better fitment, better action, better walk and talk, better snap, better finish on better scale materials, or in cases where RR is using something the other companies use, like micarta, you'll see better overall attention to detail. There's a reason why knives from GEC and the others cost more: quality costs. Now, that said, RRs DO (sadly) compare decently against many lower rung current models from Case Knives, because their QC has been out to lunch for the past few years. And the issue there is that the Case knife will have cost you between $50 and $70, and the RR was like $18 to $23. The best way to buy Case knives is to go somewhere you can examine them in person, because otherwise about 7 times outta 10, you're looking at possibly having to send the knife back for some issue (which will usually be cosmetic). If there's simply nowhere around you that sells them, I highly, HIGHLY recommend contacting one of the supporting Forums dealers here, like SMKW or BladeHQ and asking them to inspect the knife before they send it to you for: blade-rub, scale fitment, snap, or any other element that seems important to you.

That said, RR knives are good for those who are just starting out with Traditionals, and don't really know what patterns they might like yet, so it's a good cheap way to do that.
 
Also, I invite you to come on over to the Traditionals section where many more folks would love to discuss the pros and cons of all the knives I've talked about:

Here!

You'll find a ton of threads, and even better, a ton of them with pictures, so you can peruse a bunch of knives you may not have seen yet. See you over there!
 
Thanks, Quiet, much appreciated.

I have a few Case knives and they are pretty good, no defects that I can see or feel. Same with the RRs, though.

My EDC has become an old, used Schrade whose spey blade I broke when trying to restore it. It's tough for its size and has become a good friend, kinda like an ugly but loyal and reliable dog who sort of adopted me.
 
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