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Which dagger / double edged combat knife is a great value?

Walking Man said:
While I dislike Cold Steel, I've owned the Tai Pan, and feel it's very light and well balanced, and a pretty good deal for the money.
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I'm of the same mind on the Tai Pan, a good modern full size dagger. I like my Randall 2-8 more but was favorably impressed with the way the Tai Pan handles (more than I thought I would). I do agree that the stock sheath is a little cumbersome in design but you wouldn't lose the dagger from it easily. I was curious as to side loads. I don't know what steel that one un the video was. I'm pretty sure mine is AUS-8.

Martin Knives is the new poor man's Randall and they make the same timeless dagger form.

When you can find them, De Leons are built like tanks and done by someone that's been there. I still see a lot of the Ralph Bone influence shining through.

One medium dagger I was tempted to try out was the Boker Deitmar (sp?) but I don't know if they are even still made. They looked servicable.

I don't know what the Czech sword manufacturer Lutel has to offer that might not have a bulky medieval gaurd but they might do a good size rondel, I just don't remember.

It always seems like it would be nicer to be on the other side of a big pond. It's not just blades that makes it seem so.

Edting to add the Lutel link, they've moe of a variety than I thought.
http://www.lutel.cz/


Cheers

Hotspur; I'm fond of medium size fixed blades
 
I have the CS Tai Pan. I doubt there is a better dagger for the money. I have had it for many years without a fault to be found. Value wise I would look to Ontario every time. The Tai Pan was 100 buck when I got mine. Yes I am old.:D
 
What about the Protech Walter Brend Elite Combat Dagger?
Just saw one for sale on the exchange... looks pretty nice.

FYI I have 2 SOG Dessert Daggers. IMO it was one of the best knives they produced --and one of the best balanced knives I own...
 
MassMatt said:
I feel like so many Gerber fans/apologists say things like "ok NOW they suck, but back THEN....", but Ugh, I saw and held one of them years ago, back in the 80's (when they had a reputation) and it sucked. Bad balance, unsharpenable. Maybe Gerber "won't tell you what steel they use" because they use cheap crap! Or perhaps you think they have some sort of supersteel which none of the metalurgists of the many many other knifemakers have any clue about? If so, why not hype their steel?

Gerber was overrated THEN, they are far below standard now.
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Everyone is entitled to an opinion, MassMatt. Mine is that I happen to really like that old Mark II. Lighten up, will you?
 
robertmegar said:
Which is a good knife except for having no guard which could mean bye bye finger if you stab with it.



Yeah and I know a BlackOps operator too.



This one time, in band camp, I was attacked by hordes of cardboard boxes and my trusty DarkOps knife saved me and my BFF friend.
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On a side note: if you feel so incompetent while stabbing with a knife you can always put a guard on...regarding my comments about the grip just imagine hissatsu with a guard and compare it to the A-F grip...can you now comprehend what I was trying to say ?

As a matter of fact that person who owns a A-F Boker is my cousin and he is just an ordinary factory worker,assembling front lights for some not so cheap italian cars, it just didn't seem relevant to mention who exactly owns it...and btw I'm totaly not interested in your band camp avantures with other guys...
 
ashtxsniper said:
You obviously have no clue what you are talking about as you post couldn't be more wrong.
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I think it's you who has no clue whatsoever what I am talking about and neither about daggers and their grips. You should handle real dagger before speaking who has got not clue okay?
 
Gentlemen, please don't call each other names or attack each other personally.
Ash, if you think Z said something patently wrong, please point out what exactly he was wrong about. He might learn something, or he might surprise you with a legitimate alternative opinion.
There's no need for ad hominem attacks. At least I didn't see anything that called for it.

I love custom daggers of all kinds. My favourite is a Brian Lyttle damascus made with a narwhal handle and round guard. Too nice to use, really.
The A-F has been reproduced by many people, with different quality levels. Just avoid the folder, of which the early versions were downright dangerous to the user.

More pictures! Please! :)
 
ashtxsniper said:
Boker Applegate Fairbairn Combat knife
Cold Steel Peace Keeper
Cold Steel OSS
Cold Steel Black Bear Classic
Cold Steel Taipan
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That looks like a very good list. But according to quite a few reports the quality of Boker and Cold Steel has been uneven over the years. Gerber too.
I've had outstanding knives from all three, relatively good value too, if you can get a discount or find a sale, but my folding A-F was, I'm sorry to say, garbage. And a san mai C-S I bought for my son wasn't heat treated very well and chipped too easily.
I wish there were a double edged Busse or Fehrman. Infi and CPM 3V are outstanding steels.
 
glen200300 said:
What about the Protech Walter Brend Elite Combat Dagger?
Just saw one for sale on the exchange... looks pretty nice.
Click to expand...
I'm sure they look nice, but they are pretty dang expensive for what you get.
I'm sure they are high quality, but I really think they are way overpriced.
 
So you have a cousin who let you hold his AF. I know my AF daggers I own just a few of them.

100_1310.jpg
 
If not for 440c I'd be buying AF right now, that is nearly perfect design for me (note I say for me). I'm actually going to be in the market for a knife in a month or so. And I'm doing a little bit of research for now. Anyway always preferred daggers, and my first choice was the AF, however the 440C isn't that good in my opinion on anything longer then about 2 inches, its very good for slicing, but is rather brittle. I've got a benchmade push blade, (I forget the model number) its also somewhat dagger shaped, and its ideal for self defense, but as a tool its useless.

But in the end of my knife search i realized, that i have destroyed every single one of my knives (I used them to the ground basically) granted none of them were over 100 bucks. So I decided to buy this time something more expensive in hope it will last longer and will be actually a better value. When I looked at it that way Strider's warranty, got me sold, they say that they will resurrect my knife no matter how i use it. I've also seen some strider daggers, I'd for it if I was looking for a knife and not a display piece, just because of that warranty (I'm leaning towards MT or sniper models)
 
To the dude whose handle here is...
"thor_of_asgard"
A great US handmade dagger with a true resale value would be a Randall No2.
It's marked "E" in this photo line-up.
-http://www.randallknives.com/images/catalog//military2-big.jpg

However since you wanted "best steel", which would mean that a Mercworx Shiva in SV30 would probably be beyond your budget.
-http://www.mercworx.com/images/ProductImages/Knives/mwShiva.jpg

So what's wrong with a CS Taipan anyways?
It functions all the same. But personally I particularly dislike rubber handles, as I don't think such soft materials would have a longer life span than say, metal alloy or composite laminates.
But if it's a nice dagger you want, than look no further than a 3rd pattern presentation F-S from WKC, Solingen. New home of the Wilkinson F-S.
-http://www.wkc-solingen.de/newshop/deutsch/ukfs.html
 
Wow, ashtxsniper is a real coool guy.

I own one Böker AF and bought it in 1998 at a german gunshow at Nürnberg from Rex Applegate. It was his last show because he died the same year.

I also own a Böker Smatchet, the first limited version.

And I´m sorry but I dislike both weapons. The CS Peacekeeper is much better balanced and the handle is superior.
 
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