What is the best knife?

Otero

Otero

Joined
May 17, 2002
Messages
25
I'm new to knife collecting, and I need to know what others here think is the best knife and why.

I suspect that a knife is like a woman in that you can have a lot of fun with a cheap one but you really want the best you can get your hands on.

Although price is not likely to be a factor. I can eventually come up with the money even if I have to rent my dog for medical experiments.

Use is probably not the issue, either. I don't *have* a real use for knives I want to keep in new condition.

And how can quality be the deciding factor when the knife used by Brutus to kill Caesar would be a prized piece in any collection - & it's quality be damned?

So, what is the best knife, and why?
 
Welcome, Otero.
In the hopes of staving off a litany of "there's no one best knife" posts, let me start by saying that a distinction can be made between knife users and knife collectors. These two groups are generally looking for different things in their search for the "best". Based on your post I would tend to put you in the latter category. Ergo, I would suggest that the best knife for you would be the one that represents the best investment value. This means finding a rare blade made by one of the legends. The amount you're willing to pay will dictate how high up the mountain you're able to climb.

And, as you've correctly surmised, manufacturing quality can easily take a back seat to rarity and historical significance.
 
Thanks, Bronko.

What makes a knife historically significant? Because they set a trend? Are most knives of historical significance military knives?

Anyone: What does one look for in "manufacturing quality?" Harry Callahan simply replied, "Spyderco." I assume Spyderco is a well made knife, but what makes it so?
 
My favorite knife's are Strider's (GB folder, HT fixed blade). But I'm a knife user, more than a collector(due to my income:( ). Its a good thing I love my job:D

Check out the forums, read up, and find your own "BEST" knife. Good luck!

Reagan
 
My Grandad's old two-blade Robeson jack. When I was 8, there wasn't anything he couldn't do with that knife. It was magical and I wanted one just like it. Sadly, I have a bunch of knives now but none hold a candle to his. :(
 
As Bronco pointed out .....there is no one best knife.

However, based on your question I don't believe you are
even to the stage in the knife hobby that anyone here can
honestly answer your question. Suggest that you spend a lot
of time reading here and on other knife hobby forums to gain
the insight that you need to determine what YOU are interested in.

It's as I tell those I teach "When you start asking the right questions
I'll know your learning and I'm doing my job" From what I've read
you're at the very beginning of your journey. Take your time , enjoy.
 
Originally posted by Bronco
Welcome, Otero.
In the hopes of staving off a litany of "there's no one best knife" posts...
Click to expand...

I'm with Bronco on this one...there are a million reasons why it is not possible to define the "best knife"...sure, one could argue that Moran, Loveless, Lake, and Walker are among the "top" knifemakers (which is why their pieces generally cost US$3,000+) but how does one compare a forged damascus bowie to a tactical folder (for example)??? Would a Michael Walker folder with damascus blade, pearl scales, mokume bolsters and Lindsay engraving serve a soldier better than a Strider AR?? Hmmm....

The trick, then, is to find the best knife for you given your needs/tastes/finances etc. etc.

Do you prefer fixed or folder? Production (usually machine made in large quatities...e.g. Spyderco, Benchmade, CRK, etc.) or custom (usually hand-made by a "knifemaker/artist"..e.g. Kit Carson, JW Smith, Walter Brend etc.)? Art or user? If you will use it, what will be the primary purpose..e.g. chopping? prying? slicing? Do you have special needs (e.g. non-magnetic, rustproof) etc. etc. once you define your parameters, it will become a lot easier to find "the best knife"

RL
 
The best knife right now is the Victorinox Tradesman, just because that's my newest knife. The best knife is always my newest knife. That's kind of strange, considering that the Tradesman is just a $50.00 knife. Last month's best knife was a decidedly more expensive Busse Satin Jack. I'm hoping that next month's knife is another Busse. :)
 
Hi. There is no definite answer to your question, as "best" is such a totally, completely subjective term. "Best knife" to ME means the most durable, strongest, "toughest" if you will, blade that I could trust my life to without a doubt. This knife for me is a Strider. I prefer big, tactical style fixed blades.

Lurk around here for a while, and do some major reading. You'll soon find lots of "best" knives for yourself!

I believe (and hope!) that what you mean by "best" is "which knife is of highest quality?" Well, in that case, the answer again is Strider and Busse, at least for blades most people would easily trust their lives to.

There are MANY quality knives out there; Microtech, Spyderco, Cold Steel, Benchmade...just to name a very, very few. And you do not have to spend hundreds or thousands of dollars to get a good quality knife. Would I personally trust my life to a $50 knife? Uh, no. But that's a whole other story...

Like I said, just read here, look at pics, and decide for yourself.

Welcome, and have fun!

drjones
 
Buzzbait Wrote:
"The best knife right now is the Victorinox Tradesman, just because that's my newest knife. The best knife is always my newest knife."

LOL Buzzbait!
That's exactly how I feel about it. I was just hoping to find a saner approach. You know, put a little certainty into a chaotic habit.

Surely, someone around here can identify the Holy Grail of knives?
 
Medium Tom Mayo TNT. Next would be a small sebenza. Check out Chris Reeve's knives they are nice. Scott Cook (formally from CRK) makes an awesome folder and some real nice fixed blades.
 
Thanks for pointing out the Sebenza, Scott.

I went to
http://www.chrisreeve.com/sebenza.html

The photos, cut-away drawings & engineering explanations clearly define what the maker means by his use of the term, "manufacturing quality."

The Sebrenza is a great little knife!
 
Sounds like the best knives for you would be anything folding by Ken Onion or Ernest Emerson, anything fixed by Bob Loveless or Will Moran.
 
Forget Spyderco or Sebenza - start out with a Buck 110. Once you're bored with it, go to one of the more specific-use knives.

BTW, "best" for what?
 
For the $, get a CRKT S-2 for 25 bucks........rock solid and a beauty to look at too. For flickability, Buy any BM Axis knife, those things are pure gold!
...But really, any knife that suits your particular need is the "best".
----dam, I should have been a politician.
 
Some of my "best" knives are an Ed Fowler Short Camp, Pronghorn, and Fawn. If you bought a Fowler, most knife aficionados would agree that you had at least one of the best knives available (subject to all the qualifications stated by previous posters).
 
the "best knife" is the one that saves a live in an emergency !
Who cares for 5000$ or 5$ when you need to cut a seatbelt NOW!
 
I can answer that. The best knife was the first one. Chipped from a piece of flint. It must be a couple million years old by now. Probably not much of a user, but nice for a collection since it was hand-made.
 
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