Rough Rider fixed blade

onojoe

onojoe

Joined
Aug 4, 2013
Messages
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Hey Guys, I cam across this Rough Rider on one of the auction sites. Its looks are what really caught my eye, I think it would make a nice EDC fixed blade or desk knife. Super inexpensive, so I want to see if anyone had one of these and what were their impression. They describe it as Rough Rider Fixed blade slim design. Anything you guys/gals can share would be appreciated. Picture borrowed from the web
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I've only got one RR fixed-blade, a small drop point blade handled in their smooth tobacco bone. For the price, it's a solid, attractive piece of 440A that came sharp, with a nice protective sheath, and feels like it can hold up to any duty for which you'd employ such a small, sleek blade. RR is a company that seems to produce overall decent to outright good cutlery, great for daily users, possibly even collecting if you're not immune to a little cherry picking or exchanging to get a good tight one. :o



With fixed blades there's certainly fewer moving parts to worry about compared to slipjoints, but the large RR & related slipjoints thread has a lot of forum users' impressions and a ton of photos, including a couple of RR's fixed blade offerings.

I don't think I've seen that one at all, so I can't offer anything more specific than an overly-general opinion of the company's offerings, but perhaps the thread will be helpful. Good luck in your search,
 
I see that one in every issue of smokey mountain knife works, and they also usually have some better looking colt stuff.

For the price, you'll probably just have to check it out.
 
I have but one Rough Rider knife. It is the 1203 "melon tester" (AKA the "Toad Stabber"). The only reason I bought the knife is because the tapered-point, 4 1/2" blade is, in the vernacular of the late, great Jim Croce, "meaner than a junkyard dog"!

The only trouble I have with most of the RR offerings is a lack of durability in the edge-holding department. Their heat treatiing isn't quite as good as Colonial's with the same 440A steel. Colonial's "assisted opening" pocket knife with 440A steel is hardened to a Rockwell hardness of 58. This makes the "softer" 440A steel hold an edge much better than the company that won't take the time to make certain their steel is hard enough to retain its edge, regardless of composition.

Heat treating and hardening are half the battle!
 
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Captain O said:
I have but one Rough Rider knife. It is the 1203 "melon tester" (AKA the "Toad Stabber"). The only reason I bought the knife is because the tapered-point, 4 1/2" blade is, in the vernacular of the late, great Jim Croce, "meaner than a junkyard dog"!

The only trouble I have with most of the RR offerings is a lack of durability in the edge-holding department. Their heat treatiing isn't quite as good as Colonial's with the same 440A steel. Colonial's "assisted opening" pocket knife with 440A steel is hardened to a Rockwell hardness of 58. This makes the "softer" 440A steel hold an edge much better than the company that won't take the time to make certain their steel is hard enough to retain its edge, regardless of composition.

Heat treating and hardening are half the battle!
Click to expand...

I might agree, except I've read too many good reviews of RR edge holding, plus your highlighted statement makes no sense.
 
Okay, I happen to know that Colonial heat treats it's 440A to 58Rc. To what does RR heat treat it's 440A? (A much better way to frame the question).
 
You have access to a Rockwell tester then?
 
Since the folks who own RR do not publish their hardness spec, you need a tester to perform a comparison based on Rockwell hardness.

The fact that a company does not publish their hardness spec is meaningless. I note that neither Case nor Buck currently publishes their hardness spec. Yet Buck is known for its superlative heat treats.

So, you are left with direct, side-by-side, comparisons of performance. There are an awful lot of folks on this forum who have stated how satisfied they are with RR performance.
 
A token search of some knife hangouts online shows some people reporting their own anecdotal results of ~HRC 57-58 for their RR blades.
 
Anecdotal doesn't equal definitive. Either it's factual, or isn't. How does someone contact China to ask this question? Is it an "ancient Chinese secret"? (Remember the old Calgon advertisement)?

How can this be determined?
 
The horse is dead already. Let's quit beating it.
 
TsarBomba said:
A token search of some knife hangouts online shows some people reporting their own anecdotal results of ~HRC 57-58 for their RR blades.
Click to expand...

This makes sense, because while I can't confirm it I believe speculate that RR makes Steel warrior knives which are Rockwell tested to about 57-58 ( frost cutlery is affiliated with smkw who owns the RR brand )
So I would have no problem believing that the rough rider folders have the same hardness as Steel warrior knives .
 
I believe Steel Warrior is made by Frost, though I don't know if they use any shared supply chains or have other materials/equipment in common.
 
knarfeng said:
I note that neither Case nor Buck currently publishes their hardness spec.
Click to expand...

I don't know how to break it to you, but Buck specifically states both their blade composition and the Rockwell hardness to which their steels have been tempered.

If you check their website you will discover how both transparent and precise they are. I also checked Case and asked about their blades' composition and hardness. They were more than happy to oblige me with their statistics through an electronic correspondence.

A bit of research goes a long way.
 
OP It does look interesting, what's the size of that knife please? The only RR fixed I have is a garden beater knife often used fore cutting turf, it retains its edge very well....

All this talk of rockwell testing and edge retention, what exactly has been your experience then Capt O? Been carrying out long term tests or what? I often wonder EXACTLY what people are subjecting small pocket knives to, hours of cutting rope, wire...harvesting tough vegetables, whittling for days on end, mass castration of animals...firesticks, cutting harness leather??? I have many RR pocket-knives and they not only arrive sharper than most other knives, they certainly stay keen better than CASE or Buck knives, and neither of those are slouch performers for pocket tasks either.

Thanks, Will
 
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