Today's New Pocket Knives

Those are all great brands.

I believe that Benchmande knives are all USA made these days though at one time they offered "red class" that was mode in China or such. If you look at Kershaw's catalog on their website it will show which models are USA made.

From what you describe as wanted a couple that come to mind to check out are the Kershaw Skyline and the Benchmade Mini Griptilian. There are many You Tube reviews of those two knives also.

http://www.kershawknives.com/

Lock blades will spoil you

To me, a knife collecting fossil, today's knives are better than they have ever been.

Lightweight polymer handle materials greatly reduce the overall weight of the knife which allows designers to add steel to the blade. Which is where the weight should be. You may remember the Buck 110, a revolution in its era, but those heavy brass bolsters added nothing but weight. Another exceptional improvement has been in the quality of the steels. Even the 420 steels are decent, the 440’s, ATS 34, D2, etc, every steel is cleaner, better, the heat treatment better on production knives than they have ever been.

Be aware, some of the knife steels out there require a diamond hone to restore the edge. The good old India stone of the past is not aggressive enough.

As for made in America. If it is cheap, it is made in China. American knives are not $14.00. If you want an American knife, Bear knives are a good value, but you are going to have to spend $35.00 or more. Case and Queen knives, which are absolutely outstanding in materials and workmanship, well $75.00 is a good deal.

Some of the assisted openers are fast and slick enough to make you grin like you've got a switchblade. You still have to close 'em like a traditional locker, though. As hso says, the legal distinction is important but the available assisted openers available will prohibit me from ever entering the pricy world of true switchblades (not that I need one or would anyway).

Sorry to hear what happened to your brother. I used to carry a very similar Swiss Army knife. Not that long ago I upgraded to the "newer" slightly bigger Swiss Army knives that have locking blades.

Benchmade Griptillian. It is offered in two sizes, a variety of handle colors, has a stout blade, and some versions have either a thumb stud or thumb oval opening in the upper portion of the very thick blade. It features the super-strong Axis Lock, which is very easy to open, and just as easy to close. Made in United States of America. I have several , and will never own a better pocket knife.

I like Kershaw. You can look at their website: http://www.kershawknives.com/products.php?brand=kershaw
and there is an option to sort by made in the USA. I appreciate that function and have ruled out brands because of confusion over where the knife is made.

I cannot recommend a Benchmade Griptilian highly enough. The Gold line from Benchmade is really nice, but just the standard Benchmade Griptilian is still a really great knife. My Chris Reeve small Sebenza is sitting in a drawer while my Cabela's D2 mini-Griptilian is riding in my pocket.

Since you seem to be a traditionalist and fan of Buck knives, you might take a look at the Buck Knight. It's a lockback similar in design to the 110, but smaller in size and lighter in weight, without utilizing plastics in the construction. The frame is stainless steel, the blade shape is a drop point instead of the 110's swept point, 1.78" in length, of 420HC steel. And Buck has one of the best warranties in the business. The weight is only 1.5 oz, as opposed to the 7.2 oz. of the 110.

I would disagree with you that most knives are assisted or "flick open", but I would agree with you that many, many current knives are designed to be opened one-handed.

I like Spyderco quality, but they do make some of their knives in Seki City, Japan. Not a problem for me, as they are high quality, well made knives. That particular area that they are made in is a traditional area for blade-making, much like Solingen, Germany. In fact, they have been making cutlery there in one form or another since the 13th century! Spyderco also has a budget line made in China. You don't like Chinese products, don't buy them, but they are very good, well made knives.

I don't think you can go wrong with a Spyderco, or a Benchmade, or any of a number of the big manufacturers. Here are a few suggestions I have based on what I have owned and enjoyed.

Iif you enjoy the more traditional look, you have options. Case makes a regular old lockback knife that is very nice and simple and decidedly not a one-hander or an assisted opener. Here is a page with a selection of them: Case Copperlocks from Knife Center

Spyderco makes a very popular knife called the Native, that is in fact made in Golden, Colorado. Many, many people love this knife, including me. Spyderco Native

The Griptilian series of knives is very popular, and among my favorites. The AXIS lock mechanism is very secure and a delight to use: A selection of Griptilians

I personally only have one assisted opening knife, and it is a made in the USA Kershaw Blur. I like it a bunch, and I find it to be an excellent every day carry blade: Kershaw Blur

Anyway, those are just suggestions. Maybe you like them, maybe you don't. Look around, don't get sucked into ridiculous claims and internet hype positive or negative. Remember, a lock is a mechanical device, and mechanical devices can and will fail regardless of claims to the contrary. These ridiculous torture tests that you see have little to no real world meaning for 99.9% of the tasks that people will do with a knife. They look showy and cool, but are largely based in marketing hype.

The other thing you can think about it a custom made knife from any of a number of fine makers. It's more coin, but maybe you are at a point in your life where you want something a little fancy or one of a kind or maybe you just want something truly made by hand in America by a real American craftsman. You're going to pay for it, but you're also going to know that your carrying something made by one person, just for you. Ask around, but there are plenty of makers on here and other places that can point you in the right direction.

If you haven't noticed, most of the traditional makers are now outnumbered by new names, many of them US based. It started with Gerber offering the LST, and then Spyderco with a thumbhole opener and pocket clip. Fiberglass reinforced nylon, thumb opening, and top of the pocket carry have completely changed pocketknife use.

The next big changeup was the Walker Liner Lock, and possibly the biggest contribution, because he didn't (or couldn't) get a patent on it. Within ten years, just about every knife maker in the mass production world offered a liner lock. And some weren't all that good.

In terms of the new materials, they do have shortcomings. FRN is not stiff, and requires metal liners to hold it's shape. In smaller knives it's not a problem, over 3" and you'll find even Spyderco abandoned it. Secondly, that S30V steel is incredible, and retains it's sharpness almost as well as it is difficult to resharpen. Diamond hones are the minimum to work on it.

Any lock isn't guaranteed to always work. Aside from dirt impeding the lockup, a short, thin leaf design is prone to walk out when the blade wobbles against the bushings now used. Teflon washers tend to squeeze down, and adjusting blade play between easy out and secure lockup can be problematic.

I've found that over the 35 years I've been carrying one, 22 of those with time served in the Army Reserves, one particular type is what I now prefer. It includes the Benchmade Vex, Spyderco Tenacious, or Boker Plus M-type. It's a droppoint, plain edge blade in midgrade steel, with nitrided or titanium surface hardening, a G10 scaled frame or liner lock with clip.

You can remove a clipped knife, open it, cut, close it, and put it back in the pocket - one handed - in the time it takes to dig out a traditional pocket knife and get it open with two hands. It has nothing to do with tactical - for the working guy, it's simpler, faster, and he has his other hand free to hold onto whatever he's working on. Many tradesmen and suppliers use a knife like that everyday. It's now the standard pattern workingman's knife, whether a simple FRN lockback, or a Strider SnG.

As for Swiss Army knives, my favorite one is the Rucksack. It locks. But it did give me my worst cut - which is what any knife will do if we don't pay attention.

For what it's worth, I have nothing but the very best things to say about my Benchmade Mini-Griptillian.

+1 for theNative.

Spyderco makes a very popular knife called the Native, that is in fact made in Golden, Colorado. Many, many people love this knife, including me. Spyderco Native

Click to expand...

Native on the left.

State and local laws vary widely as related to auto-opening or "switchblade" knives. This is one of the reasons that you will have a hard time purchasing such a knife unless you are in the military or a LEO. Depending on your state and local laws, you may be able to find auto-opening knives locally.

Personally, I prefer a knife that can be opened with one hand so much that I can't imagine ever again purchasing one that requires two hands to open. With that said, I learned to open my old Buck 110 with one hand. Many of the current knives are much easier to open with one hand even if they aren't auto-openers.

I've become a fan of Benchmade's knives over the last few years but there are other U.S.-made knives that are just as good I'm sure.

One thing I want to expound on with the Griptilian, the locking mechanism. The Axis mechanism is smooth and strong, it's what sets these knives apart from all others. It makes opening one handed extremely easy, I have complete confidence in it's locking ability, and yet it's also really easy to close when you are ready to. It's very easy to take the knife apart to clean it and put it back together.

I get by with the KaBar Dozier folder. Simple, light, made in Nationalist China/Taiwan.

I've got a spyderco endura in my pocket right now...for such a big knife, its super light and handles like a much smaller knife...best edc knife I've ever bought...can be found on amazon for around 50 bucks
FRN handle and a Full flat grind

I have to go +1 on the Kershaw Blur. I was on the fence over the Kershaw Blur versus the Benchmade Griptilian. My boss has the Benchmade. They're both great USA made knives as far as I can tell. I like the lock mechanism on the Benchmade better but went with the Kershaw because of price ($70 vs $100 for the Benchmade).

After carrying it for nearly a year I love everything about it. Great steel, one hand opening, terrific grip. I opted for the black blade.

I had a really nice Buck folder (can't remember the model) that was normally around $50 and I got it for $12 at Basspro. Some one stole it from my house a couple months later, but it was a great folder and extremely sharp and light weight. I've always been a fan of Buck knives.

Good luck in your search! Handle as many of them as you can.