Ranger RD4 or RAT RC4?

S

SlickFlyFisher

Joined
Aug 24, 2008
Messages
11
Hi guys,

I'm on the verge of purchasing a new fixed blade. I'd love to hear

your feedback on these two knives. Please list your Pros and Cons,

any interesting stories related to these blades, pics of your knives,

anything! Please! I've been doing research for months and I've finally

narrowed it down to these two knives. I need some last minute help

on this one, guys. You've come through for me in the past, so I'm back

asking the professionals again. Also, I love the MOLLE system for

mounting a sheath horizontally. From what I understand, RAT has a

MOLLE system for it's sheaths, is there a good place to get a MOLLE

system for the Ranger RD4? If I'm not being specific enough with my

questions, please hit me with some feedback and I'll clarify.

Thanks again,

Slick
 
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I'm not sure the RD-4 is available at the moment as ranger has come under the Ontario knives umbrella.

The RD-4 is a huge knife relative to the RC-4. The same could be said of the Ontario TAK which is more similar in size to the RD-4. I think the RD-4 beats the TAK hands down and is made of better steel. The RD-4 is built like a tank and also handles like one. What used to be so nice about Ranger knives was the relative ease it was to have Justin customize them. You could get a satin blade or coated blade or colour handles. Without Justin's custom shop improvements then the RD-4 loses some of its great advantages.

The RC-4 is a much more compact knife. Smaller handle, thinner scales and thinner blade (unless you bought a thinner RD-4). Fit and finish on the RC-4 is much better, unless you went for one of the custom RD's. Personally I think the RC-4 is a better knife but that is only if you are after the more compact merits its possess. The color morphs on the RC-4 (desert tan and orange G10) are also really impressive.
 
I'm leaning towards getting the Ranger RD4 because I like the thicker blade, among other things... Unfortunately, I don't know too much about profiling blades. So, this question might sound stupid to the veterans around here, but here goes:

Is it possible to partially change the edge of the blade? For example, from the choil to the middle of the blade (roughly 3/5 of the blade) would keep the factory-made edge so it'd good for battoning. And the remainder of the blade (middle to tip) would be narrowed to become more effective for slicing.

Please pull me out of the fire,
Thanks,
Slick
 
I dont think you would have to worry about changing part of the edge and keeping the other part the same. Justin puts a pretty thick edge on his knives, but many ranger owners thin out the edge to their liking. I really dont think you would be sacrificing much in doing this. It will cut a lot better, and will still hold its own in batonning and hard use. I am curious to see if Ontario's version has a thinner edge than how Justin makes them. I really like my RD4, awesome knife.
 
The RD4 is a very impressive hunk of steel. You can thin out the edge a little and make it an even better performer:D
 
Awesome knife. - How do I go about thinning out the blade? What geometry would you recommend? I'd like to optimize the blade's cutting/slicing ability while still maintaining it's battoning capabilities. Thanks again, Slick
 
dont waste time thinning out the blade, just remove most of the shoulders too the edge. if you want a thin blade, do yourself a favor and buy a different knife.
 
I dont have a Ranger RD but i have an Afghan, its kinda close, but anyways its my favorite knife. Rangers are beefy, the Grind is a little thick but you can thin it out.
 
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