How much would you spend on a knife?
- Thread starter Stuey
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Anyone own a Chris Reeve Sebenza? It is supposed to be the holy grail of EDC. I do not own one but have wanted one for some time. It is in the $300-$700+ Range, pretty steep for an EDC but it is supposed to be one you hand down to your grandkids grandkid.
rlitman
Well-known member
Heh. I have a few of their kitchen knives in VG-10. They make a spectacular chef's knife, but I personally think VG-10 is too brittle for a daily carry knife.
I've had a few blades in 154CM, and was generally happy with them, except for my Leatherman, but I attribute that to the heat treat more than the alloy.
I will say that my current Leatherman Charge TTi has an S30V, and that blade has been wonderful to me.
For a "production" carry knife, I've paid as much as $90 for my Leathermans. The $130ish retail is too much for me.
When I lost one Leatherman Charge, I started to carry the Wingman which I got for $20, until I could come up with a belt attachment that would not risk losing another. Now that I've got a homemade kydex holster for my Charge with a Tek-Lock belt clip, I'm back to carrying the Charge.
For a real hand-made carry knife (I've got a few from Allen Elishewitz and Koji Hara, plus one that was a collaboration between the two of them), $600 is about my limit.
BrokewrenchLS1
Well-known member
Meh. Sebenzas are too expensive for me to use as a daily beater. They're nice knives, though. I don't have much use for "showcase" knives since you wouldn't be able to beat on a Sebenza without it showing the wear, drastically. It'd still work fine, but it would be ugly as hell.
I spent about $250 on my Zero Tolerance 0300, but I've beat the **** out of it and it's still sharp enough to shave with. It takes one hell of an edge, chops as well as it slices, and it's built like a tank. Bigger than most people would want to deal with EDC. For a daily knife as tough as the ZT 0300, I'd probably go up to $300-325. I don't have a Strider because they're just too damned expensive.
In contrast to my EDC, the best fixed-blade hunting knife I have is a $25 Marttiini skinner. Simple, big enough to gut a deer without getting hung up all over the place, sharpens and cleans easily, and it's the absolute opposite of the whiz-bang tactical ****. Some guys carry "deer knives" and it makes me wonder if they've ever actually gutted a deer, or if they just hack the deer in half, pick it up, and let all the juicy bits plop out. How one maneuvers a 7" blade inside a rib cage is a skill I haven't quite figured out.
mrjaw14
Well-known member
VG-10 too brittle for EDC? That's spyderco's bread and butter steel...please explain why you think it's too brittle. I've never had any issues with it
I guess it depends what you consider an EDC. For me it is supposed to be a sharp blade that you use to do basic day to day cutting. Nothing more. It is a tool just like any other and really just serves to be a connivence to have a blade for basic stuff when no tools are around. You wouldn't use a torque wrench as a hammer, so why use a knife as a chisel?
BrokewrenchLS1
Well-known member
VG10 Spyderco blades have a tendency to chip. I have a Police that I don't use a whole lot since I'm worried about snapping the blade, because it's so brittle compared to 154CM or S30V.
BrokewrenchLS1
Well-known member
I wouldn't use it as a chisel, but I have used it to chop down thorn bushes around shooting range targets, to cut wire and thick cord at work, and to chop small bits of wood - normally the little "wedges" left when you cut with a circular saw and can't overcut to get a clean corner. I wouldn't use a lighter knife for that - I bought the ZT 0300 specifically because those knives are designed, and intended, to be beaten like a *********.
RCStocker
Well-known member
I guess I am cheap.
$3 was what I paid for my last pocket knife at a yard sale. It is made in the US and is at least 65 years old. The steel is so good that I can still shave my face with it after cutting a stranded wire. It really hold an edge. I think the most I have paid for one is $10 and I have a box full of them. I buy estates and odd lots when I can find them. Ther are always knives in the lots. I save them and all my sons, grandsons and grand daughters have them. They just pick out what they want. If I had to pay more than $20 for one I would go without it until I found another one cheap.
$3 was what I paid for my last pocket knife at a yard sale. It is made in the US and is at least 65 years old. The steel is so good that I can still shave my face with it after cutting a stranded wire. It really hold an edge. I think the most I have paid for one is $10 and I have a box full of them. I buy estates and odd lots when I can find them. Ther are always knives in the lots. I save them and all my sons, grandsons and grand daughters have them. They just pick out what they want. If I had to pay more than $20 for one I would go without it until I found another one cheap.
mrjaw14
Well-known member
when used for it's intended purpuse I've never had one chip....but I will give you that 154Cm and S30v are better, allbeit more expensive options...just shocked me a bit to hear that said about VG-10.
may I ask what the situation was where you chipped one?
By the sounds of your environment and how you use your knife you would probably be better suited for a fixed blade knife. Or cary a pocket EDC and a machette
I like the "industrial" look of the Seb, but to each his own.
I also came across this knife last night that is pretty awesome looking. It is modeled after the Japanese "Higonokami" which is their basic EDC which hasn't changed since the 19th century and are known as "living fossils"
http://www.kacperhamilton.com/www.kacperhamilton.com/ZAI_HIGO_TOOL.html
bart1
Well-known member
See my comment on Stuey's site.
I have had my 'Benz for 10 years or more. I have used it pretty hard and it still looks fine to me. The tumbled finish holds up much better than satin or blasted.
My hunting knife is a Kellam Heidi, one of the early numbered ones. I bought it from Jouni LKellam (father of Heidi) at a knife show I used to go to every year. I agree these are much better than a 12" bladed Bowie for cleaning whitetail.
The Sebenza is elegant like a G Wagen Mercedes
bart1
Well-known member
Here's a pic of mine:
Link?
Those are very nice looking tools, simple yet presumably effective.I like the "industrial" look of the Seb, but to each his own.
I also came across this knife last night that is pretty awesome looking. It is modeled after the Japanese "Higonokami" which is their basic EDC which hasn't changed since the 19th century and are known as "living fossils"
http://www.kacperhamilton.com/www.kacperhamilton.com/ZAI_HIGO_TOOL.html
I like the industrial look of the Sebenza as well, but these days I'm in a lot of urban and officey environments where more elegant knives draw less attention. A knife is a tool but too many people who don't use them as such can only see them as weapons.
There's not a lot of demand for >$350 knife reviews so I'll back-burner the idea for a couple of months.
http://toolguyd.com/how-much-would-you-spend-on-a-knife/#comment-115983
bcradio
Well-known member
Maybe $20 for a carry-a-round knife or a little more for a wusthof.
$150, which is about what a Benchmade 940 goes for.. Once I bought mine, I no longer had the urge to buy anymore knives. Very simple, strong, slim, smooth and super fast, easy one handed opening. As fast or faster than an auto. Just depress the axis lock and flick your wrist. 
Read the reviews on Amazon.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000QA9G2W/?tag=atomicindus08-20
Read the reviews on Amazon.http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000QA9G2W/?tag=atomicindus08-20
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bart1
Well-known member
Yeah I saw thanks.
I think the small would suit me well.
I also think I would get the Tanto blade it looks pretty awesome.
bart1
Well-known member
turbowoodworker
Well-known member
Slightly off topic but I started a tradition with my son that some may find interesting. My son just turned three and since he was born, on his July birthday and at Christmas I buy a different small Case ** knife for him. I put a note in the box with a penny (for the purchase of knife from me,unlucky to give knives as a gift, so my Dad said). Someday he will have a box of nice pocket knives and some nice notes from Pop. I just hope he doesn't find them and take one to school and get kicked out forever. (I hate this zero tolerance ****, but I grew up when a boy was judged not by his sneakers but by the quality of his jacknife).
I have a few Tanto blades and you may be right.
I like the Insingo a lot more than the standard Seb though.
Insingo
Standard
BrokewrenchLS1
Well-known member
I actually chipped the first Police that I had, got lucky and could return it for a new one. I was using it to bone out a deer hindquarter, and hit a bone just enough to stick the blade and chipped it. I think one part of it is that Spyderco knives typically have thinner blades than are the usual now, so you don't have the thicker spine and grind to aid against chips.
Nothing against Spyderco knives though, I have a few and they're damned nice.
BrokewrenchLS1
Well-known member
Heh, true enough. I went from a CRKT to a Kershaw Tyrade (which isn't a small knife) to the ZT 0300 primarily because I'm tough on knives, but I don't beat them past their limits. I can use the 0300 to cut stranded wire at work, slice up a pear for lunch, gut, skin, and butcher a deer, cut open boxes, and trim my fingernails with. It's the versatility that makes me like it.By the sounds of your environment and how you use your knife you would probably be better suited for a fixed blade knife. Or cary a pocket EDC and a machette
If I could get away with carrying a fixed blade every day (in Maryland where I work, not a ****** chance), I'd have one of these with me every day.
http://spartanbladesusa.com/index.p..._id=75&zenid=9e49867e735b775dc0258d87d4766959
J HAV
Well-known member
I EDC a ZT 0300 as well. It's a $200+ knife and I beat the hell out of it... Don't buy any knife and be afraid to use it. It defeats the whole purpose of owning a very important survival tool. Hell, if I even had a Kingdom Armory HOG I would use it ALL the time lol... Very expensive but they were built to be used VERY VERY hard
Rust
Banned
Really? ..this thread is serious?
I could probably kill 3/4 of the posters in this thread with a broken bottle.
I could probably kill 3/4 of the posters in this thread with a broken bottle.
J HAV
Well-known member
If I could get away with carrying a fixed blade every day (in Maryland where I work, not a ****** chance), I'd have one of these with me every day.
I could carry a BECKER BK2 down here in Texas
J HAV
Well-known member
True... But I think it would be a little more comfortable to carry a pocket knife than a broken bottle
Rust
Banned
True... But I think it would be a little more comfortable to carry a pocket knife than a broken bottle
I could probably take the knife you are carrying and use that instead.
Rust
Banned
Sorry, I had a friend who was stabbed to death.
Thats why i'm a firm believer in the NRA.
Carry on with your ....pocket knives.
Thats why i'm a firm believer in the NRA.
Carry on with your ....pocket knives.
scarrylarry
Well-known member
Okay I'll chime in a bit.I was a meatcutter for many years Victorinox steel was the knife of choice for most.I like a Buck fixed handle for hunting and also a Buck plastic handle folder for general use, alot of guys like Frosts fixed blades for the outdoors.An expensive knife or a cheaper one is not much good if you can't sharpen it.I personally think a blade that is too hard takes too long to sharpen and one that is too soft wont hold an edge long. I like knives around 56-60 on the Rockwell hardness scale.Invest in a set of good water stones Norton makes some nice cased ones ones and choose three different grits coarse one for taking out serious nicks,medium for the next step and then a fine one.Lot's of information on the web
scarrylarry
scarrylarry
lwlobo
Well-known member
I'm a supporter of the NRA as well, but I don't think most people on here are carrying knives for security but for utility.
A good pocket knife is an indespensible part of being a honorable and useful man.
A good knife is a beautiful thing, as is a good gun or a quality tool.
A friend at work showed me one of these Hogue EX01 knives yesterday, I was blown away and now want one very badly. It is a Allen Elishewitz design and the design and build quality are simply superb. I'd probably prefer a 3.5" version.
Check them out:
http://www.knifeworks.com/hogueex014tacticaldroppointbladewithg-mascusgreeng-10handles.aspx
Exceller8
Well-known member
$150, which is about what a Benchmade 940 goes for.. Once I bought mine, I no longer had the urge to buy anymore knives. Very simple, strong, slim, smooth and super fast, easy one handed opening. As fast or faster than an auto. Just depress the axis lock and flick your wrist.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000QA9G2W/?tag=atomicindus08-20
The 940 is an amazing knife and worth every bit of $150.
Mechanicxxx
Member
- Joined
- Nov 1, 2010
- Messages
- 11
$210 for an Emerson CQC 7
$150, which is about what a Benchmade 940 goes for.. Once I bought mine, I no longer had the urge to buy anymore knives. Very simple, strong, slim, smooth and super fast, easy one handed opening. As fast or faster than an auto. Just depress the axis lock and flick your wrist.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000QA9G2W/?tag=atomicindus08-20
I'm in the same boat. Bought a Benchmade Elishewitz Stryker in 2000 and all of a sudden stopped looking at any others for an EDC.
I did buy a Buck knife last year, but that was a fixed blade Bucklite Max for field dressing game. I think it was $20 on sale a Bass Pro.