replacing a cheap knife

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Professor_Jack

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Jul 5, 2015
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so, before if became legal here in texas to carry autos, my EDC knife was a gerber paraframe. Its always served its purpose, but something i've had a problem with is the hinge bolt loosening after only a short time.
it's not a huge hassle, i've managed to collect a small army of allen wrenches. The knife is also pretty tough, i managed to drop one off a house while working on the roof, and it survived a hard impact on the concrete without any real damage.
but it's not perfect, and therefore i have an excuse to shop for more knives.
So, for similar cheap price, can anyone suggest a knife that's still along this basic kind of design philosophy, but with a more reliable hinge?
 
I think something from the (Ken) Onion line of Kershaw would serve you well as a replacement. The Leek cost a little more, but it's a popular knife at an affordable price.

Esee makes good budget knives too like the Zancudo. I think it's similar in shape to the Leek but the Leek is an all metal knife. Zancudo has handles of the fiber type. Micarta/G10, one of those.

Boker has very nice all metal knives at that price range too.
 
Kershaw has a pretty good selection of affordable liner locks and such, so you could check out their website and play with the different filters to see what knives come up and if you see something you like, look around for it on other sites to find the best price.
 
For what you said regarding your knife drop accident... do you plan on using it for work? I am asking because the Kersaw Leek might not be what you are looking for. I have one and its needle like tip will not survive much if you are rough with it. And in a construction environment... rough use is probably what it is going to see. Also it is thin and slippery when wet, so maybe you will be better served with a RAT 1 or RAT 2 (if you want it smaller) as already suggested.
 
Loctite is your friend when you add it but your enemy of someone else put it. Any Kershaw made with 8cr13(or 14)mov steel which is most, will be around the same quality blade or slightly better at not getting dull. But the rest of the knife will likely be better.


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quite a few knives pivot screws will loosen. Make sure you buy some medium strength lock tite. Lots of great autos around, HK, Kershaw, Piranha, Protech, etc.
 
as far as autos, i really only like double-action otf knives. that's just m'preference.
Double-edged knives are also still illegal to carry.
i do see a few of those kershaw knives that i might like to grab though.
i do feel dumb for not thinking of loctite for the knife though, since i've used it on plenty of other projects.
 
Paraframe is a $20 knife, so not many options for "a similar price"

Ontario RAT 1 can be had for $25-$30
Real Steel E77 can be had for around $22 and is a far superior knife than most at this price
Kershaw Clash is a Ken Onion design and can be found for under $25

First thing I do with most of my knives is loc-tite the pivot screw and adjust correctly. They never come loose after that.
 
What about the KaBar Dozier? IIRC, it is about twenty bucks, super light weight and comes has AUS 8 steel. You can get it in different colors too.
 
I have both the Kershaw Link and the Gerber Air Ranger, I think either would probably suit your purpose well. However the Aluminum handles on the Air Ranger nick and scratch fairly easily if dropped from pocket height onto sidewalk. So if you want a knife that keeps on looking good.... Probably not the best choice.
 
CascadianAaron said:
Paraframe is a $20 knife, so not many options for "a similar price"

Ontario RAT 1 can be had for $25-$30
Real Steel E77 can be had for around $22 and is a far superior knife than most at this price
Kershaw Clash is a Ken Onion design and can be found for under $25

First thing I do with most of my knives is loc-tite the pivot screw and adjust correctly. They never come loose after that.
Click to expand...


these are actually really pretty
 
If you want a cheap but reliable OTF. You could do a lot worse than the Taiwan made Lightning.
But as far as "bang for the buck", I feel the quality to price ratio on Ontario knives is the best.
RAT 1 or 2
Utilitac II in any of it's many configurations.

Just my twopence
Happy hunting!
 
Might want to check out the Case sodbuster that's in the $25 range. A definite good knife at that price.

There's also Buck which I think I might be your ticket. Lotta options, good options, at $25.

Buck Parallex
knives003.jpg


Bantam
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Apex
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Trigger
BU0865BKSa.jpg


I think Buck is still made in US. Not sure.
 
NorthernSouthpaw said:
If you want a cheap but reliable OTF. You could do a lot worse than the Taiwan made Lightning.
But as far as "bang for the buck", I feel the quality to price ratio on Ontario knives is the best.
RAT 1 or 2
Utilitac II in any of it's many configurations.

Just my twopence
Happy hunting!
Click to expand...

I gotta agree, the Lightning is a solid otf for the price. Also, I've got a large variety of knives ranging from $20-$800 and I was very impressed with the Ontario Rat as well. The Rat model 2 is about the same size as a Paraframe, but much better quality. I'd say it's right on par with any of my Benchmade liner locks, and some of them cost up to $200
 
CascadianAaron said:
Paraframe is a $20 knife, so not many options for "a similar price"

Ontario RAT 1 can be had for $25-$30
Real Steel E77 can be had for around $22 and is a far superior knife than most at this price
Kershaw Clash is a Ken Onion design and can be found for under $25

First thing I do with most of my knives is loc-tite the pivot screw and adjust correctly. They never come loose after that.
Click to expand...

BTW, browsing an online knife store a few days ago, I came across the Assited Opening version of the RAT 1! A bit more expensive, a better steel and G10 scales instead of plastic. Maybe worth a look. Not a full auto, but closer than a manual opening.
 
Trigger said:
I think Buck is still made in US. Not sure.
Click to expand...

If it is USA made it will say USA on the blade, otherwise it is China made



Mikel_24 said:
BTW, browsing an online knife store a few days ago, I came across the Assited Opening version of the RAT 1! A bit more expensive, a better steel and G10 scales instead of plastic. Maybe worth a look. Not a full auto, but closer than a manual opening.
Click to expand...

The G10 assisted opening Rat 1 is not better steel...same AUS8 as the regular Rat 1

You can however get the Rat 1 in D2 for a little more $$ (but not with the G10 and assisted opening).
 
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