What's your EDC? what do you use it for?

Around town I carry a Spyderco Manix(about $80) and a small Queen canoe slipjoint.I use it for opening letters,cutting boxes,rope etc.I love to use my slipjoint for peeling apples because the 1095 steel looks great with a nice patina on the blade.In the woods I EDC a fixed blade and my trusty slipjoint in my pocket.
 
BM Ares 735

I use it to open boxes and packages sometimes, and but some days I don't use it at all...
 
I carry an Emerson Tanto and a Falcon neck knife....I use the Falcon neck knife for everything so as not to frighten people...No one has ever seen the Emerson which I keep for self defense...which I change out with a Cold Steel Scimitar once in a while.
 
I have a number of knives, and about half a dozen Sog folders. I found that the Tomcat's handle (kraton, I think) doesn't slide easily in and out of my pocket, and so is best carried in a sheath. What I use everyday is my Sog Flash II, aluminum handle and black blade. One hand to open, knurled handles and I carried it as a cop for years and in Africa the last 2 1/2...no rust, no fuss and I use it for everything from boxes to beef!!
 
JGarth said:
Squirrel,
Treat yourself. Get a black DDR Gunhammer MG with Tritium inserts.
JGarth.
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A. I'm a bit new at this, so what is or where could I find a ddr gunhammer? I googled it and found nothing

B. I'm starting to lean towards a tanto style, if I can find one that is well made. Anyone know where to find or what model tanto are the best? I like the cold steel hatamoto, but I dont have 400$ for it, and I would like something that looks a little less...functional. I mean, I want something that has a better aesthetic than the hatamoto, but maybe in that style.

I already have a Charge TTi, so I'm good on multis, I just want a straight up knife now.

My price-range is about 0$-150$, if I found the absolutly perfect, rust-proof, indestructible, stay-sharp-forever, sexy damascus blade with a crazy cool handle, I might go 200$ (I'm in CT, so I need the blade to be under 4 inches. the perfect blade length for me is 3.99 inches :D . actually, the length is one of the most important feature. I need the blade to be 3.75-3.99 inches)

I saw a mcusta kasumi in a thread and looked the company up. theyre very attractive knives, anyone know about their durability?
 
Back to basics for me. Got rid of all of my expensive knives made overseas, and went back to carrying two Gerbers (yes, Gerbers!!): an LST Magnum and an LST Magnum Junior. They are lightweight, easy to carry in my butt pack, easy to sharpen, made in the USA, and have excellent ergonomic handles that prevent slips and stub cuts.

In my job as a disaster responder, I cut down dozens of cardboard boxes every day. These simple blades perform that task better than my expensive, serrated, multitool whiz bang knives, and I've owned several models of all of the major brands.

Just don't let anyone else know you are carrying a Gerber.

Keep 'em sharp; that is easy to do with 420HC steel. Pretty soft steel, but it cuts very well when the edge is maintained.
 
bSquirrel said:
A. I'm a bit new at this, so what is or where could I find a ddr gunhammer? I googled it and found nothing
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Darrel Ralph, custom knifemaker and collaborator with manufacturers. http://www.darrelralph.com/1mainframe.htm

I like the gunhammer myself, but then I like just about everything by Darrell.

bSquirrel said:
B. I'm starting to lean towards a tanto style, if I can find one that is well made. Anyone know where to find or what model tanto are the best? I like the cold steel hatamoto, but I dont have 400$ for it, and I would like something that looks a little less...functional. I mean, I want something that has a better aesthetic than the hatamoto, but maybe in that style.
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You might like to look at the Cold Steel Voyager or Gunsite tantos to see if you really do like that blade shape. I've gotten a number of CS tantos over the years. Just don't pay retail on CS. Go to a dealer with a decent discount.

www.1sks.com
www.knifeworks.com
www.newgraham.com

CS tantos are v-ground. Emerson and some others are chisel-ground. Be sure you know which you're getting and what you like about it.

bSquirrel said:
I saw a mcusta kasumi in a thread and looked the company up. theyre very attractive knives, anyone know about their durability?
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Mcusta are very solid knives. Look over as many models as possible. They have a lot of nice offerings.
 
I carry to many knives with to many uses. A long time ago I carried a Boker auto ots and its primary use was to open in my pocket and cut the sh** out of me.
 
Esav Benyamin said:
Darrel Ralph, custom knifemaker and collaborator with manufacturers. http://www.darrelralph.com/1mainframe.htm

I like the gunhammer myself, but then I like just about everything by Darrell.
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WOW

I looked at that site, and I am just floored

Every one of those knives is like, exactly what I want. I said earlier that I couldnt pay more than 200$ for a knife; well, I would break that rule for one of those. Unfortunately, 300$ is my actual limit...for the time being. His are 600+. so I'm bookmarking his site and saving my money. But jesus, those are gorgeous


Blade steels available:
CPMS30V (Standard)
CPM 154CM
Damascus
Stellite 6K
Hand-rubbed satin finish is standard. DLC® Coating available upon request..

I know s30v is harder and more prone to chipping than 154cm, and holds an edge better. What is 6k? and is the damascus style an inlay, or is it like the ancient damascus technique? how does it hold up relative to s30v/6k?


IIBL Frame Inlay Materials:
Carbon Fiber (Standard) Maxx 3-D
3-D Fluted Damascus
Ivory
Pearl
Ironwood
Snakewood
Damascus
DLC® Coating and other Inlay materials available, just ask
 
FLYBYU44 said:
I would also look at the new Kershaw NRG, seems like a nice knife around the size of a Leek.
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Are these available already? I want one :D.

I've gone through several EDC iterations in the past several months- Leek, Benchmade 530, Waved Endura 4 (for much of the time), Salt 1, SOG Trident, Twitch II, Boker Trance, etc.

Most of these fall into the "well designed and decent quality for cheap" category. I like all of them for various reasons. However, recently I've been on a slightly more minimalist, pairing down kick, so the Benchmade 530 gets the nod- it packs a good sized blade into a package both thinner and lighter than virtually any other knife (perhaps the AG Russel featherlites are competion, but they don't have the axis lock). I don't even notice I have it, but it's there when I need it. I generally use it for general cutting tasks and sharpening charcoal in my figure drawing class. It gets a few looks, but nothing too bad- I prefer a knife that could clearly do double duty as an SD blade should the need arise.

I do enjoy the guilty pleasure of gimmicky assisted opening systems, and I'm really looking forward to the NRG (small- the large is too heavy for me) as I'm impressed by the flipper opening of the leatherman knives and this is supposed to be even better. IMO more reliable and safer than spring/tortion bar driven AO knives, and no need for a saftey.
 
bSquirrel said:
Unfortunately, 300$ is my actual limit...for the time being. His are 600+. so I'm bookmarking his site and saving my money.

What is 6k? and is the damascus style an inlay, or is it like the ancient damascus technique?
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Look over the Exchange forums before you even think of paying retail or wholesale prices. We have a For Sale: Custom Knives (Individual) forum as well where you won't get them cheap, but you will see some relative bargains.

Steel is an iron alloy. Stellite 6K, like Talonite, is a cobalt alloy. Cobalt alloys don't rust, and they have interesting cutting characteristics. But they are expensive to buy and work.

Damascus is a complicated subject, which you may want to research separately. Try a search on the Blade Discussion Forum. There is a lot of material. For information on the damascus used by a particular maker, you're best off asking him directly.
 
Esav Benyamin said:
Look over the Exchange forums before you even think of paying retail or wholesale prices. We have a For Sale: Custom Knives (Individual) forum as well where you won't get them cheap, but you will see some relative bargains.

Steel is an iron alloy. Stellite 6K, like Talonite, is a cobalt alloy. Cobalt alloys don't rust, and they have interesting cutting characteristics. But they are expensive to buy and work.

Damascus is a complicated subject, which you may want to research separately. Try a search on the Blade Discussion Forum. There is a lot of material. For information on the damascus used by a particular maker, you're best off asking him directly.
Click to expand...

I know all about the traditional method, the fantastic 2000 year old damascus swords and whatnot, I'm just wondering if

a. do they make damascus steel like they did back then?
b. or is it just a gimmick?
c. if it is a completely separate process, how does it stand up in comparison to modern day steels like s30v?
 
"Damascus" is a general term, like "steel" itself. There are many formulas for damascus, depending on which steels are used, how they are heat treated, what patterns they are made in.

Some damascus is very good, some is stainless, some is cheap and less than effective. Due to advances in metallurgy, many modern steels are a match for classical damascus, which was never as good as the legend would have us believe.

Damascus is used to designate 2 different techniques, both ancient, both in use today. One is pattern-welded and the other is wootz.
 
I EDC a CRK Mnandi. An elegant, light, beautiful knife that cuts extremely well. I use it as my food knife around the office. For my hardware duties I use the blades on my Leatherman Wave and for the super fine x-acto like cutting, I use the blades on my 58mm SAK.
 
Swiss Army Tinker. Slim and light with no useless tools. The blade is sizeable enough for most cutting uses: string off clothes, letter opener, package handler, food, cutting paper when scissors are not available and so forth. The tweezers and tooth pick get more use that I ever thought they would. Full size phillips screw driver is very handy. My handles have the pin hole and I have used the pin. Can opener and bottle opener are always useful.

This knife forms the basis of my key chain so it's always there. This leaves the option open of carrying a larger knife in the opposite pocket, which I always do:D
 
what do people think on SOG tomcat gen 2 vs gen 3?

EDIT

I just bought an sog tomcat 3rd gen and a mcusta kasumi. good choices? I hope so.
 
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