What is the best Pocket knife you can get for $50?

When you say "pocket knife", I assume you mean a folding knife that is comfortable to carry in a pocket for use as needed. I'm not thinking of a weapon or knife for routinely processing game. I think a Victorinox Swiss Army knife is useful and easily carried in a pocket. I have a Pioneer and a Farmer that I carry. The blades do what a knife is designed to do...cut stuff. The can opener and bottle openers and awl, etc. get useded as much or more than the blades...They are non-threatening and are well made and reasonably priced...I've carried one frequently during the past fifty plus years...Not "tactical" but practical.
 
If you can stretch the budget by only $5, you can have a Buck Spitfire in S30v, with Bos HT for only $55.
 
Douk-Douk, svord peasant, opinel, buck 110, buck vantage, various sak's, various kershaw's, spyderco's budget lines, etc.

There's a ton of sub $50 quality choices, what's "best" depends on what you're looking for in a knife.
 
Victorinox is probably the best knife there is dollar for dollar. There's also Case knives and a variety of imports. You might want to check out the Traditional area, they'd have a lot of ideas.
 
Yes, I'll go with an SAK. If you could only buy one. It'll give you the most utility.

I'll also 42nd a RAT. I've only got thr AUS-8 ones here, they're easy to maintain and VERY sharp. If you find you like the RAT, you could then consider a PM2 later. Same sort of deal - full flat grind, better steel, better lock
 
This :
Boker Plus 01BO188 Titan Drop Knife with 3-3/4 in. Straight Edge Blade
Freekin’ Ti and Freekin’ $43 with shipping !
440C blade steel and the heat treat is great.
GREAT edge geometry and GREAT handle / opening ergonomics. I would buy this thing at three times the price.
Easy !
 
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What are your local laws with regard to blade length, lockability and clip carry?

Except for my Delica and my Case Teardrop Wharncliffe, my whole collection is $50 or less. All nice imo

1967 Camillus Cub scout (mine originally)
LM Micra
LM original PST
Spyderco Dragonfly 2
Opinel #8, beech and bubinga
Zancudo D2, surprisingly not mentioned yet
SAK super tinker, classic sd, Rover, cadet
Sanrenmu 7010

I'd be happy to share my experiences

Good luck
 
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I see a lot of people suggesting something in D2. How easy is D2 to sharpen for a beginner? I ask not only for myself but for the OP too.
It seems he is on a budget and may not want to spend more for a Spyderco sharpmaker or another guided system than he does on a knife right now.
 
If you like flippers, check out the CRKT Swindle.
A very well made flipper on bearings with a wharnie type blade.
Really nice, and fun, knife for $40.
Joe
 
dryflytrout said:
I see a lot of people suggesting something in D2. How easy is D2 to sharpen for a beginner? I ask not only for myself but for the OP too.
It seems he is on a budget and may not want to spend more for a Spyderco sharpmaker or another guided system than he does on a knife right now.
Click to expand...
Good point and here's a solution. Choose one of the nice knives in AUS 8 or 8cr13 /14 MOV that are easy to sharpen for under $30 and the Lansky rod sharpener has a lot of the good found in the Spyderco Sharpmaker but it's around $15. Total cost less than 50 bucks, maybe way less.
Lots of good choices:
Crkt Drifter or Pilar
SRM 7010
Aus 8 Zancudo or Avispa or Rat 1 or 2
Cold Steel Tuff Lite
Several Kershaw's and SAK's

Etc etc etc

What do you think of my solution?
 
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For a long time I thought the Tenacious was my best folder for under 50.00. Then I got the Rat 1 with d2 steel. Now that is my recommendation.
 
bryan123 said:
Good point and here's a solution. Choose one of the nice knives in AUS 8 or 8cr13 /14 MOV that are easy to sharpen for under $30 and the Lansky rod sharpener has a lot of the good found in the Spyderco Sharpmaker but it's around $15. Total cost less than 50 bucks, maybe way less.
Lots of good choices:
Crkt Drifter or Pilar
SRM 7010
Aus 8 Zancudo or Avispa or Rat 1 or 2
Cold Steel Tuff Lite
Several Kershaw's and SAK's

Etc etc etc

What do you think of my solution?
Click to expand...
I sharpen freehand on a Norton JB8 because many people in the sharpening forum here told me that was the stone I wanted. And I want to learn to sharpen freehand obviously. I have a few Bucks, a Mora, a Kershaw in 8CR13MOV, and some mystery steel knives. I can get them all kinda sharp so far. The only one I've been able to get sharp enough to shave hair off my arm is the 8CR13MOV Kershaw. I would really like something in D2 but I worry I won't be able to get it very sharp until I gain more experience.
I know 8CR13MOV isn't the best steel or even near the top of list but in my experience it is easy to learn on. It's also inexpensive enough that if something guess wrong it's not the end of the world. So I really like your suggestion of that steel.
Until OP gets a couple of knives he won't want to send it out to be sharpened. I also doubt he would want to send a less expensive knife for sharpening too often, as it wouldn't take long at all to surpass the cost of the itself just in shipping. It's really something he should learn to do IMO. Because what good is a dull edge or a knife that is your only knife but you don't have it right now because it's shipped out somewhere.
 
Yep, that is a very open ended question; since the answer depends on when and how you plan to carry, what you expect to use it for, and how 'public friendly' you want it to be.
For convenience (size/carry) and quality, Spyderco is at the top. The Buck mini Spitfire looks like a great American made option for less than Chinese Spydercos. I have been very happy with their 420hc.
Since it's your first knife I would suggest staying under 3 3\4" closed length. (Because if you are not accustomed to a knife in your pocket, a biggie like the RAT could drive you nuts, and make you self-conscious when you take it out.)
 
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bryan123 said:
Good point and here's a solution. Choose one of the nice knives in AUS 8 or 8cr13 /14 MOV that are easy to sharpen for under $30 and the Lansky rod sharpener has a lot of the good found in the Spyderco Sharpmaker but it's around $15. Total cost less than 50 bucks, maybe way less.
Lots of good choices:
Crkt Drifter or Pilar
SRM 7010
Aus 8 Zancudo or Avispa or Rat 1 or 2
Cold Steel Tuff Lite
Several Kershaw's and SAK's

Etc etc etc

What do you think of my solution?
Click to expand...


I'd recommend this. Learn to sharpen on the Rat 2 so when you get into higher end knives you'll have an idea of what you are doing and you won't be out much if you destroy the blade. I love my Rat 2 and have been carrying it every day for months. I can get it fairly sharp with my inferior sharpener( Work Sharp, let the hate rain) and while it doesn't stay super sharp for long, it's easy to resharpen.

The Buck Vantage can be found for a shade over 50 bucks on amazon. Mine has gotten very smooth over the years and gets razor sharp with the s30v steel.

Everyone else recommend some really good options for around 50 that are highly regarded. The delica 4 can be had for about 65 on amazon, and cheaper used. Mine is currently in the mail! Kershaw Cryo and Blur are also up there too.
 
dryflytrout said:
I see a lot of people suggesting something in D2. How easy is D2 to sharpen for a beginner? I ask not only for myself but for the OP too.
It seems he is on a budget and may not want to spend more for a Spyderco sharpmaker or another guided system than he does on a knife right now.
Click to expand...

D2 can be miserable to resharpen unless you have a sharpening system like Lansky etc.
 
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