The Surprisingly Good

Billy The Hungry said:
Absolutely nothing! I was thinking about the Rat 1 and 2 knives when I wrote that. I personally feel that for $40, those knives are grossly over priced. AUS8 and slick plastic scales are outdated, especially for $40.

They're great knives though.

Maybe a better example is a Spyderco Tenacious. I think they're going for around $50 now. I remember when they were $30. I had one, and pawned it off. It microchipped horribly.
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Isn't it D2 though? I have one of each, of both kinds of steel. My bone white scale/black D2 RAT 2 is my favorite, followed by D2 orange RAT1
 
Hashishiin said:
Isn't it D2 though? I have one of each, of both kinds of steel. My bone white scale/black D2 RAT 2 is my favorite, followed by D2 orange RAT1
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Happy Weekend to you, if you don't work the weekends!

Rat knives come in AUS 8 and D2. The D2 ones are a little more expensive.

My biggest gripe is the scale material, honestly.
 
Chronovore said:
BTW, that "trident" blade shape makes this knife feel like a big brother to their PF818, which was also designed by David Chen.
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Absolutely! The PF818 is also an amazing knife not only for the price. It probably has one of the best action for a knife this size. Honestly, for the price, Petrified Fish makes some of the best knives around.
 
Billy The Hungry said:
Happy Weekend to you, if you don't work the weekends!

Rat knives come in AUS 8 and D2. The D2 ones are a little more expensive.

My biggest gripe is the scale material, honestly.
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You too, my friend! The D2 ones are more expensive yes, but if I recall, it was by a margin of literally three dollars or so, unless they changed that. Also, you know what is weird? ONLY the KnifeCenter exclusive micarta RAT, is made in China.
 
jnaught said:
~$20

Ka-Bar Dozier Folding Hunter, AUS-8, backlock, plastic handles

Everything you need, nothing you don't. Near perfect design (in my book: ergos, blade shape, hollow grind), incredibly light, does everything I've needed.
It has two drawbacks:
-the steel needs to be sharpened frequently
-you have to pick a side with the thumbstud: I'm a lefty, and swapped it, but now I can't open it with my right hand

I have several much nicer knives, but would be content with this in my pocket 99% of the time. I could write a decent essay on its fine qualities.

ArUS87p.jpg
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It is indeed an excellent knife: I bought one in late 2004 (the model w/the oval opening hole). Too bad they didn't offer it in D2 back then!
 
My two favorite budget knives have been mentioned: Utilitac II and CS Voyager. Have one of each. Bullet proof and tough as nails. The Utilitac II is my hiking knife. Love it..

I now have my attention on Harnds. The "Falcom" is intriguing, misspelling aside.
 
Hashishiin said:
You too, my friend! The D2 ones are more expensive yes, but if I recall, it was by a margin of literally three dollars or so, unless they changed that. Also, you know what is weird? ONLY the KnifeCenter exclusive micarta RAT, is made in China.
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That is very interesting! I wonder if that is a mistake?
 
Chronovore said:
Harnds has been around for years but usually seems to fly under the radar. They are a sub-brand of Flyer Industrial, which is also the parent company of Tonife.

There has been limited testing on these. One Harnds knife passed an XRF test via LTK. In a cut test by Pete (Cedric & Ada), a Tonife in 8Cr14Mov did relatively well. In a more in-depth cut test by Outpost 76, a Harnds in 14C28N did well and was within the performance range of other known brands using 14C28N. Between that and my own use over the years, I don't doubt the veracity of their steel stamps.
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I recall the owner of Harnds posting on here and asking for a vote on blade steel and the majority advised 14C28N...
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads...959/?msclkid=48e6c4e9c7bd11eca4eefc01eecc0a54

I own the Time model. I love the ergonomics and it's a great user knife. As my second encounter with 14C28N I've came to the conclusion that I hate the steel. 14C28N performs like a zirconium oxide (ceramic) blade. It looks good on cardboard and rope tests because it's hard edge is cutting soft and fibrous material. Cut anything that involves putting tension to the edge and 14C28N chips just like a ceramic blade. 14C28N would be absolute junk if put on a full-tang knife for hard use.
 
Billy The Hungry said:
Happy Weekend to you, if you don't work the weekends!

Rat knives come in AUS 8 and D2. The D2 ones are a little more expensive.

My biggest gripe is the scale material, honestly.
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I thought you would have said because OKC is having Taiwan only harden the AUS-8 at 55-56rc. Taiwan can do 58rc on AUS-8, but not on $30 folders that have liners. I don't mind FRN, but the texturing job is the lightest I've ever seen on nylon. I personally don't know why OKC bothered to contract Taiwan if all they want to do was cheapskate the RAT as much as possible.
 
Frotier76 said:
I thought you would have said because OKC is having Taiwan only harden the AUS-8 at 55-56rc. Taiwan can do 58rc on AUS-8, but not on $30 folders that have liners. I don't mind FRN, but the texturing job is the lightest I've ever seen on nylon. I personally don't know why OKC bothered to contract Taiwan if all they want to do was cheapskate the RAT as much as possible.
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I don't mind a softer, easier to touch-up steel for an EDC, as long as it can get very sharp.

I despise having slick scales.
 
Frotier76 said:
I recall the owner of Harnds posting on here and asking for a vote on blade steel and the majority advised 14C28N...
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads...959/?msclkid=48e6c4e9c7bd11eca4eefc01eecc0a54

I own the Time model. I love the ergonomics and it's a great user knife. As my second encounter with 14C28N I've came to the conclusion that I hate the steel. 14C28N performs like a zirconium oxide (ceramic) blade. It looks good on cardboard and rope tests because it's hard edge is cutting soft and fibrous material. Cut anything that involves putting tension to the edge and 14C28N chips just like a ceramic blade. 14C28N would be absolute junk if put on a full-tang knife for hard use.
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That's interesting. That's not in line with a lot of other user experiences. At least to me, it sounds like something is wrong.

First, what exactly are you cutting and what is behind the thing that you are cutting? Second, I'd wonder if it was an issue with the heat treatment but you said this is the second time you've experienced this. What was the other knife, besides the Harnds Time? Third, it could be a "factory edge" issue. Generally, factory edges don't get the care you might give an edge when sharpening by hand. Heat can be generated by grinding. It can fatigue the steel right along the edge, which can manifest in a variety of ways. Often, the peformance of a knife will improve over time with subsequent sharpening. That is because you are getting rid of the fatigued steel and getting down to what is hopefully better steel. (This depth of this effect from the factory grinder can vary greatly.)
 
Rat 2, it's a great smaller carry knife. Lightweight, thin but big enough to do real work, easy to sharpen and cheap.
 
It is called Miguron Akri. I’ve never heard of the brand before, but I liked the design, and I am always intrigued by original non-imitation cheap knives.

The blade is 3.5” in 14C28N. I am not fan of front flippers, but the action is really good. I paid $48

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Dimashkieh said:
It is called Miguron Akri. I’ve never heard of the brand before, but I liked the design, and I am always intrigued by original non-imitation cheap knives.

The blade is 3.5” in 14C28N. I am not fan of front flippers, but the action is really good. I paid $48
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I'm curious to hear from more people who have these. Reports have been mixed so far.
 
Chronovore said:
I'm curious to hear from more people who have these. Reports have been mixed so far.
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So far my only dislike is the jimping on the front flipper. It is too rough. Otherwise, there is nothing I can complain about, especially for this price. That said, I only had it for a couple of days, and I used it to open a couple of packages. It is not the sharpest out of the box.
 
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