which one? rat 7 or ranger rd7

S

skimmerhorn

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ranger looks great. do i need a 1/4" thick blade? i do a fare amount of backpacking in the moutains of montucky. sees that the ranger would be extra un-needed weight. i've been in the back country for years and carried nothing more than a pocket knife and fillet. just have the ideal of getting a workhorse! rats are less weight with a seemingly better sheath.
just asking for opinions. thanks!!
 
I doubt if you'd need a 1/4" blade (many of us don't need it either!)
and you will notice an increase in weight (especially compared to a pocket knife and fillet).
A rat-7 is a pretty good blade, you wouldn't go wrong getting one.

But for the customer care you get from Justin at Ranger, for the way he'll work with you
to get you what you want, need, dream about. For the durability and trust you'll have in a RD7,
whether you need it now or not, I'd get a Ranger, that's only my opinion.
nlyis0.jpg

my old style RD7, and I'll get more from him, not because I need it,
but because I like it! I like Justin...
 
thanks for the reply dantor. i'm thinking of calling justin. what options do i have as far as blade thickness,handle material,design and so forth? thought i'd try to get info before i called.
 
Just email Justin. He's a great guy to work with, and your options are pretty much limitless. He'll make you a knife to pretty much any specifications you desire. Not to mention, if you have any questions, just ask him, and he'll normally reply to you within 24 hours or less.
 
Exactly what Gunfucius said. Remember, more stuff, more cost. Start with his basic package, it will be micarta scales which I think is great and a coated clip point blade. Then figure out what you'd like, if you don't have much experience, ask us, we have lots of idea's! ;)
talk to him and ask, he'll be great ;)
 
absolutly want a drop point blade. would prefer g-10 scales with red,blue,etc.. maybe .20 thick. i tend to lean towards the non coated blades. any estimates on cost?
 
For the use you have to do, it appears a rat 7 ( 1095 steel ) is a good choice.
Cheap and light. (and a good tool )
While I'm backpacking in the woods I need a light chopper also, so the Ranger is better FOR ME.
 
skimmerhorn said:
absolutly want a drop point blade. would prefer g-10 scales with red,blue,etc.. maybe .20 thick. i tend to lean towards the non coated blades. any estimates on cost?
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I emailed him back in Enero with pretty much the same questions - G10 options and satin finish blade. He replied then it would be about $20 extra for the blade and $20 for certain scale options. I figured my RD7 was going to be about $140 more or less. Email him at justin@rangerknives.com
 
Certainly either the Rat or Ranger would work for you, both good knives. Dealing with Justin is a pleasure, the options are endless. You can allow your creative juices to flow, and you end up with a heavy duty custom. Good luck with your decision:)
 
skimmerhorn said:
ranger looks great. do i need a 1/4" thick blade? i do a fare amount of backpacking in the moutains of montucky. sees that the ranger would be extra un-needed weight. i've been in the back country for years and carried nothing more than a pocket knife and fillet. just have the ideal of getting a workhorse! rats are less weight with a seemingly better sheath.
just asking for opinions. thanks!!
Click to expand...

I would go with the Ranger any day. Need is a bit sketchy to define. Depending on your skills, you could say you didn't absolutely need any knife at all with you, so it's certainly true that you won't absolutely need a 1/4" thick knife. But could you benefit from one? Probably, if you ever anticipate doing anything that requires toughness from a knife. Justin's knives are really tough, and will survive a lot of abuse that would break many other knives. For obvious reasons, they're not the best slicers in the universe, nor are they intended to be. They'll do a great job in hard use tasks, though, from splitting wood with a baton to chopping if you're so inclined - a lot of folks dig and pry with them. Put a good edge on one, and they'll certainly cut too - not like a fillet knife, though. :D

One thing is certainly true: if something should go wrong, I would much rather have a Ranger Knife with me than a pocket knife or a fillet knife! I'm not an ultralight guy, so the weight doesn't bother me.

If you're going for a non-coated finish, I'd recommend a mirror polish. That's the best for corrosion resistance - rust just cleanly wipes off the polish very nicely. It will scratch worse than a satin finish, but if the blade is a user, what does that matter?
 
RD7 all the way. I love my RD6 and is looks so good in satin. I did however replace the sheath w/a spec ops survival sheath. Cant go wrong w/ justin, he is one of the best people I have ever dealt with.
 
One thing to consider is that there are legal problems between R.A.T. and Ontario right now, so any kind of warranty on the Ontario RAT 7 may be useless soon. Also, I have never heard a bad word about Justin or his knives, plus you have customization options.
 
The sheats for both are pretty similar, but I have to say go with Justin as well,
I have a recurve RD9 in satin, I plan on getting an RD7 plain in satin, also in orange scales to match the 9.
 
Ranger, until the RC-7 comes out.;)

Ontario has no honor and shouldn't be rewarded for it through any serious knife buyer's patronage.
 
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