replace a newbee's knife - what to buy

T

teststrips

Joined
Jun 26, 2006
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Sorry - totally new here - first post

I carry a gerber ridge with me every day, and I can honestly say I hate the thing - link to knife - http://www.dantesknife.com/ridgeknives.JPG

Things I like about it.
Its overall closed length is about 3 inches, and I like the small size.
Has a hole to allow attachment of keys plus a belt clip.

Things I don't like
Won't hold an edge even with low usage - I sharpen it often ~2 weeks. I've sharpened it so many times that the blade is now about 1/8 inch back from the protective ridge.
Belt clip does a lousy job with thick belts.

My primary uses are opening boxes/cutting cardboard. Slicing wires in half such as a bad cat5 cable or a keyboard gone bad.

I've heard good things about spiderco knives - but from what I can tell they don't include a belt clip on their smaller knives.

I'd like the following in my replacement knife.
Will hold an edge
Has a belt clip (pref one that will do well with thick belts)
Lanyard/key ring hole
Small in size - 3 1/2 inches overall closed size or less

So, what options do i have?
 
First I would like to WELCOME you to BF!!! Spyderco ARE excellent knives, and most of their knives have pocket clips on them. I would suggest starting with either a Spyderco Delica 4, which has a blade length of 2 7/8, or there is the Dragonfly, with a 2 5/16 inch blade, or a Native, which has 3 1/8 inch blade. I hope you find something that you like!! Please let us know what you end up getting.
 
If you don't mind spending $55 (the best $55 you'll ever spend), invest in a Benchmade Mini-Griptilian. I have the bm555 model with the modified sheepsfoot blade, and love the thing. The thing fits almost everyones hands like a glove, it's super durable (the clip is threaded into the stainless steel liners) and is made with benchmade's axis-lock and supior fit and finish. I have the 440C steel on mine, which holds a decent edge, but as of 2006, they are making them from 154cm, which is a premium steel which will hold an edge for light years longer than your gerbers mystery steel!
 
michaelmcgo said:
If you don't mind spending $55 (the best $55 you'll ever spend), invest in a Benchmade Mini-Griptilian. I have the bm555 model with the modified sheepsfoot blade, and love the thing.
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I'll second that one, because if you're going to be using it to cut and strip wire, the sheepsfoot blade configuration will be great.

There's also the Spyderco Centofante 4 that has the same blade configuration in a bit slimmer package.

Be warned though, once you get your first good knife, you'll want more.
 
I'll third the Mini-Grip. The edge (440C metal with partial serrations) stayed a wicked sharp even after I played "can it cut that" all day when I first got it.

I'll second the Spyderco Dragonfly. The size is within your requirements and holds a decided edge.

I'll suggest, also, a Spyderco Navigator II. It's slightly larger than your requirements, but definitely worht a look. Hope this helps.
 
The mini-grip is a little bigger than I think I can bring myself to... Out of the above list, i think I like the Spyderco Navigator II best so far.

Is there any big store chain that carries a selection of spyderco stuff? I'd like to check one out b4 dropping 70 bucks. I saw walmart had ONE spyderco knife, but I didn't take too much note of it b/c it was bigger than what I want.
 
Welcome! Both of those knives are good, but I like the thinner profile of the Delica.

Psychopomp said:
Be warned though, once you get your first good knife, you'll want more.
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That is very true!

Vu
 
Welcome -

I have a small 2" forest green serrated edge Spyderco Ladybug on my keychain. It cuts better than some of the other knives I have that are twice its size.
 
DGG said:
Welcome -

I have a small 2" forest green serrated edge Spyderco Ladybug on my keychain. It cuts better than some of the other knives I have that are twice its size.
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This might be a good place to start. These little knives are awsome cutters. Spyderco has a great rep. as a co. and making little knives that cut and perform bigger than their size would indicate. You would be able to do this for under 20.00. Good idea DGG.:thumbup:
 
Benchmade Mini-Grip, Spyderco Delica 4, Spyderco Native, Spydercon Dragonfly, Spyderco Navigator, Spyderco Ladybug, and Spyderco Centofante are all good picks. Of these, I own a Griptilian (full size though) and the Spyderco Native; and both are great knives.

I'd also recommend a Kershaw Leek or Kershaw Speed Bump. Their Centofante is also noteable at a price that doesn't break the bank.
 
I also agree with Esav. If you don't want a 3" blade then go for the Dragonfly from Spyderco. I would also say that the Navigator II is a good choice.

Welcome to the forum. :D
 
Spyderco is easily king of the "Little Big Knives", knives that may be physically diminuitive, but have cuting prowess far exceeding what you'd expect from a compact blade

here's what I'd reccomend, in no particular order....

Delica, a great starter Spydie, and for many, the only knife they'll need
Dragonfly, a watch-pocket sized Delica, for all intents and purposes
Cricket, this watch-pocketable LBK constantly surprises me with it's cutting ability, the Reverse-S blade profile and thin hollow ground blade make the Cricket a true cutting demon, and as an added advantage, sheeple see it as nonthreatening or even "cute", if only they knew about it's amazing cutting ability, they'd be scared <evil grin>
Kiwi, another LBK that can ride unobtrusively in jeans watch pockets, fits your hand *amazingly* well due to the dual deep finger choils, the wharncliff blade has a surprisingly thick spine for it's size

any one (or all ;) ) of these would make a great intro into the world of high quality cutlery, however, as hhas been stated before, knives are addictive, it's impossible to own "just one"

once you're hooked on LBK's keep an eye out for the Spyderco Dodo, it's been discontinued, and is getting harder to find by the day, the Dodo has a cult following on BF and the Spyderco website, it's an incredibly good utility blade, arguably Spyderco's best *functional* blade....

other Spyderco highlights to look for;

the Dodo, as mentioned before, i really can't reccomend it highly enough

Hawkbills (knives with a curved, downward pointing blade) are incredibly useful utility and general use knives, excelling at almost any duty, except maybe food prep, the Harpy and Tasman Salt are great EDC examples, and for a defensive blade, the Civillian has no equal for pulling, defensive cuts

any of the knives in the Salt series are also great as well, when Spyderco says H-1 steel *does not rust*, they *mean* it, it's been conclusively *proven* both here and on the Spyderco website that H-1 will not rust, i've tested it myself, i cannot get my Pacific Salt to rust, it's not a sales claim, it's a proven *fact*, H-1 Does...Not...Rust!

I had a testing chamber i filled with salt water from the cold Atlantic Ocean, right off York Beach, Maine, put in a bubblewall spraybar to create highly corrosive salt spray/foam, and put in the Pacific, a cheap butterfly knife, a Sheffield "stainless steel" hawkbill cheapie, and a 420J2 Buck Metro keyring knife.....

the Sheffield began to rust in *one hour*, the butterfly in 23 hours, the aluminum scales on the Buck showed oxidation after 30 hours, and at the 36 hour mark i stopped the test due to rust contamination in the water (from the Sheffield, mainly), the Pacific was absolutely unscathed....

sorry for the tangent, but whatever Spydie you go with, you can't go wrong
 
teststrips said:
I like the looks and size of the kershaw centofante - but am unable to tell if this has a lanyard/key ring hole in it from the pictures I'm finding... are the 3 little round dots just there for glamour or do they go through - can anyone verify? - There were some good pics here. http://www.kershaw-knives.net/Kershaw-Ken-Onion-Centofante-KS1615.htm
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Sorry teststrips, I missed your requirement about a lanyard hole. I suggested the Centofante because it's a sheepsfoot blade (great for slicing) and is somewhat dressy (perfect for on the job).

The 440A isn't a super steel, but should keep an edge better than the AUS-6.
 
The Robin is one of Spyderco's "Byrd" line, it's a seperate line of Spyderco-designed knives made in China, they're not meant to compete with Spyderco knives quality or fit-and-finishwise, they're designed to be an excellent value knife, getting decent reliability and performance at an affordable price

that said, they *ARE* very nice knives, just not Spydie-level performance and quality, very close though, i'd say 80-90% of Spyderco performance

the Robin i handled in the store was a little stiff and gritty feeling, like there was sand (or more likely, metal filings) in the pivot area, i'm sure it'd smooth out with use

as far as actual Spydies go, I just picked up a Dragonfly for $22 at my local shop, and have been quite impressed with it, Scary-Sharp, and *NO* bladeplay whatsoever, good solid lockup, a very nice little knife....

for a pocket-sized Spydie I still reccomend the following;

Inexpensive models (generally under $35);
Jester
Dragonfly

Mid-Priced (around $40-50)
Cricket
Kiwi
Delica
Salt 1

Expensive ($60+)
Dodo
Harpy
 
For stripping cat5 cable, you might want to look at a partially serrated blade. Some of the larger serrations are just the right size to strip the outer jacket and not nick the inner wires. I save the first serration on the blade to do this, and the rest to cut the full wire to size, so at least the first one stays good. Open boxes with the straight part. I've been doing cables for years with just my knife and crimpers.
 
If I had your requirements, I don't see very many choices beyond Spyderco and Byrd knives. The Byrd knives are very cost effecitve, although I pick the lighter ones (3.1 ounzes might not seem much, but for that weight you can get a large blade SAK, many 3inch blades, or even an Endura 3).

But I applaud you posts, providing background information, things you have used for reference, and improvements you want to see. There are too many "what knife do I need" threads without any additional details started by people lacking the will to help us help them. If you don't know what you need, then you are better off watching some informericals or reading some magazine advertisements to convince you of what you really really really must have.
 
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