Your opinion on two knives I am debating on

I work with easily spooked customers. I think the tats get to em more than size. I love bucks but since they went to 420 hc it is hard to keep an edge on one. I am going to research a bit more on steel will and see what they offer.
 
Joshua1973 said:
I work with easily spooked customers. I think the tats get to em more than size. I love bucks but since they went to 420 hc it is hard to keep an edge on one. I am going to research a bit more on steel will and see what they offer.
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I like the bright colors for use at work too. Funny thing, a blacked out ZT 0450, which is a small knife will spook people, but something larger in blue or green doesn't bother anyone.
 
I am going to have to suggest the Steel Will Cutjack (D2) over the Modus as it has just a bit more blade. I would not flip it open in front of my clients. I find this particular situation really interesting and somewhat challenging. Price is really important as the knife is going to get beat up.
 
T.L.E. Sharp said:
I like the bright colors for use at work too. Funny thing, a blacked out ZT 0450, which is a small knife will spook people, but something larger in blue or green doesn't bother anyone.
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Exactly. My Spyderco Endura in pretty purple handles has not spooked anyone. Yet my Cheap Cold Steel Kudu will freak people out. I like bright colors for ease of finding since my eyes are getting a bit bad and colorful knives are easier to find if dropped outside than dark or camo colored knives which I have lost a few of in my day. I just with Cold Steel would upgrade their Finn Wolf steel with D2 option.
 
Good choices for landscaping work at a budget.

AUS8 doesn’t stain or rust quite as quickly as D2, but if you maintain your knife this should be a non issue. D2 holds a great cutting edge considerably longer, but if you come into contact with a rock or concrete it can chip a little more easily than AUS8 in my personal experience. AUS8 sharpens really easily as well and will respond to a large variety of stones.

The Scandinavian grind is also pretty good when used on wood, but the full flat on the ESEE is a more well rounded grind for more slicing tasks.

I don’t think you can go wrong with either choice. Good luck in your search!
 
Another that you might consider looking at is the LionSteel Big Opera. I have the small Opera in stag. It is a nice knife in D2.
 
T.L.E. Sharp said:
Of those two I'd pick the Avispa. The tri-ad lock is absolutely overkill and makes an otherwise lovely knife a bit of a chore to manipulate.

If I were shopping in your range though I'd actually buy this:
Steel-Will-Modus-F25-13-BHQ-77683-er.jpg


Steel Will Modus. D2, flipper, contrasting backspacer and lightweight.
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This^ I think the cutjack is a definite rat and avispa killer. Its pretty much the recommended budget knife on the market.
 
Lapedog said:
This^ I think the cutjack is a definite rat and avispa killer. Its pretty much the recommended budget knife on the market.
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I’ll second that. Have the Cutjack in D2 and it’s awesome. But if I was choosing between what you mentioned, I’d go Cold Steel. The Tri-Ad lockis ridiculously strong and that steel is simple to sharpen.
 
Note on the Avispa, the clip is a huge design error. I removed mine, problem solved, but if you want to clip carry, I would seriously avoid the Avispa. I really have no idea what they were thinking. Or perhaps they were not thinking. Or how the hell it got past Jeff...
 
Joshua1973 said:
Exactly. I love back locks. But in my budget I cannot find a D2 steel or anything better than aus 8 from Cold Steel. The Avispa does come in D2 but it comes in frame lock. I wish Cold Steel would upgrade their steels on their Finn Wolf and a few other budget models. And sharpening the Finn Wolf requires removal of thumb studs which can be easily lost.
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Perhaps the small fixed blade becker bk14 would work out for you as a hard use knife
 
Joshua1973 said:
UPDATE!!! I have decided to take a chance with the ESEE Avispa. Mike Perrin contacted me e mail and bluntly told me the frame lock was strong but any locking knife used hard everyday will eventually fail. I liked his honesty.
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I hope the knife works out for you and I agree that with consistent hard use, the folder is likely to fail much like your Spyderco did.

I enjoyed this thread as it made me really think about options and landscaping work is not foreign to me at all. My Condor Bushlore gets used for stuff like this (and worse) as it is relatively inexpensive, strong, and fairly easy to sharpen.

In some ways, this reminds me of an impulse sprinkler that Ace hardware sells. It's high quality and guaranteed and they do fail. I've had a couple of them replaced by Ace to this point.
 
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Pilsner said:
Note on the Avispa, the clip is a huge design error. I removed mine, problem solved, but if you want to clip carry, I would seriously avoid the Avispa. I really have no idea what they were thinking. Or perhaps they were not thinking. Or how the hell it got past Jeff...
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According to what I understand the Clip was made that way to keep the frame lock engaged and from slipping open on a fall or spine strike.. I did some research on youtube on this knife. I tend to not use a clip anyways and use my 5th pocket to store a knife.
 
Kabar Becker knives are very cost effective and well made. I have more than a couple of them. I prefer them over ESEE stuff in general.

Ethan Becker is a good man and very supportive of this industry. He is in the process of moving from Tennessee to Montana.
 
Joshua1973 said:
According to what I understand the Clip was made that way to keep the frame lock engaged and from slipping open on a fall or spine strike.. I did some research on youtube on this knife. I tend to not use a clip anyways and use my 5th pocket to store a knife.
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You’ll like it then. It’s a very nice knife.
 
Lapedog said:
This^ I think the cutjack is a definite rat and avispa killer. Its pretty much the recommended budget knife on the market.
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The Steel Will was very seriously considered but me and liner locks have a bad relationship. It is a very beautiful knife.
 
I carry this one for work, including landscaping.
lightning-black-satin-large.jpg


It rattles, has blade play and is in your price range. I bought it for rehab exercise for a thumb injury...years and 100s of bags of happy frog, perlite, manure ect. Later and it's still flicking like a champ. I drilled out the fake lube holes in the butt...few drops of oil once in a while and no worries. Comes apart easy if need be.
 
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