A Good Folder Knife

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Yes, you are correct.

Benchmade collaberates with a number of companies to produce high quality knives and markets them as various brands . H&K is one of those collaberators.
 
I have an H&K branded Benchmade auto-folder. Good knife, but not quite up to the standards of the real thing. Half the price though, and still perfectly suitable for EDC.

R
 
Part of what I need in a folder is a clip to hold it in place, and an easy means of opening/closing with one hand.

Don't get me wrong: I really like SAKs. They just don't meet my daily needs at all.
 
I've rotated between a Benchmade Griptillian and a Spyderco Endura Wave 4 for the past 3 years. This Christmas I got a Kershaw OD-2 1770 http://www.kershawknives.com/searchresults.php?brand=kershaw&search_by=searchform&search_value=1770&x=0&y=0 and I absolutely love it. The blade is 2.25 inches and it's only 5.25 inches overall. I love my griptillian and endura wave 4 but they can be a bit large when I'm wearing dress clothes or business clothes. The OD2 is inconspicuous and very handy - and it only retails for just under $30...not too shabby.
 
Don't get me wrong: I really like SAKs. They just don't meet my daily needs at all
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I agree entirely. Bluntly, I straight up love SAKS. When I was a little kid, they were the thing that I coveted most. As an adult, I have a SAK (actually, two) that I use frequently and enjoy a great deal, but not as an EDC knife. Not to say that they can't or shouldn't be used as such, just saying that for me personally, they don't fit my needs. (though I do keep one in my EDC bag...)
 
JShirley said:
Part of what I need in a folder is a clip to hold it in place, and an easy means of opening/closing with one hand.

Don't get me wrong: I really like SAKs. They just don't meet my daily needs at all.
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I very much dislike having a pocket clip hanging out of my pants advertising the presence of a knife, or scratching my car paint or furniture if I happen to brush up against it. Victorinox DOES make some one-handed openers with locking blades, though, like the Trekker and RescueTool models.
opplanet-victorinox-rescuetool-knife-54900.jpg
 
Well, I guess that's why God made variety. :)

I think I'm more comfortable with a SAK as a pack/ruck knife. Maybe I should replace the fork and spoon I currently keep in my backpack.
 
zxcvbob said:
Opinel #8. Get the one with carbon steel instead of stainless. It's about a 4" blade, but it's thin and the knife is very light -- it disappears in your pocket even if you're wearing dress slacks.
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No offense,but i'm just curious why you would suggest carbon steel for EDC over stainless?
 
but i'm just curious why you would suggest carbon steel for EDC over stainless
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I can't speak for Bob, but I imagine it has more to do with the knife than a specific steel choice. Opinels are cheap and appealing to a large number of people who enjoy using a traditional design.

But even if I am right about that, carbon steel isn't without it's merits in a EDC blade. I personally wouldn't choose it specifically over a good stainless blade of some sort, but I wouldn't say no to it either. For me, it boils down to ease of care and the ability to get a really super sharp edge with much less effort than stainless. It's a compromise, but for guys that are good at sharpening (I am not, sadly), it's a compromise they are likely to make.

Ask Arfin Greebly why he likes carbon, as I think he regularly carries one of a bunch of carbon steel blades, and I bet he can tell you more about it's positive side than I can.

Maybe I should replace the fork and spoon I currently keep in my backpack.
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Curiously, I have a few different options in this regard: In the hills, I use a spork. In my EDC pack, I have an old Hobo kit that I got from someones dollar box at a gunshow in my pre-teen years. Made by Kabar, I think. Back when my buddy Ben and I used to shoot robins and build little campfires to cook and eat them, that kit made me feel like a visiting Emperor, even though fire charred Robin pretty much sucks. I also bought one of those new CRKT eat'n tools, and while it is lacking at a lot of specific things (not great for soup, for example), it's handy as a shirt pocket when you don't have a better option to shovel chow down.
 
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No offense,but i'm just curious why you would suggest carbon steel [Opinel 8] for EDC over stainless?
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Because you'll never have to sharpen it. It holds an edge for a very long time, and can be honed back razor sharp with just a few licks with a steel and/or leather strop. I've never had a stainless (or rostrfrei) knife that was so easy to care for. OTOH, that could just be because the Opinel has such a thin blade with a simple grind to it, and most of my stainless knives have been thicker.
 
GCBurner said:
I like the Victorinox Swiss Army knives. The "Tinker" models, Small Tinker, Tinker, and Super Tinker, are the least expensive models that include a Phillips blade screwdriver, which I've found is a handy gadget to have on you in all kinds of situations; those retail from $23 to $35.
The knive blades are good steel, and really hold an edge a long time in ordinary use. They have a lifetime warranty, and stand behind it; one of the back springs broke on one of mine, and I sent it back and got it fixed, no charge. I've got several, but the two I carry the most often are the Explorer, which includes a corkscrew for opening the wine for a picnic, and the Spartan Lite, which includes a built-in LED flashlight. Both look very non-threatening and non-tactical, and get used pretty much every day for one thing or another.

http://www.swissarmy.com/MultiTools/Pages/Product.aspx?category=multitoollights&product=53451&
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I couldn't write it better myself. I work in a company with a no weapons policy. The innocent look of the knife is important - something grandpa carried and would cut up apples to feed you as a kid type of look.
 
Because you'll never have to sharpen it
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Now, that's what I'd like to find in a blade. I can't say as any of my carbon or stainless fit that bill.
 
The innocent look of the knife is important - something grandpa carried and would cut up apples to feed you as a kid type of look.
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A Case Peanut in CV like the top right knife fits that description perfectly. Small and very socially correct yet they will handle just about any cutting chore you can think up including small game.

weeknives.jpg \
 
The ones I find myself carrying most often are the Kershaw DWO and the Buck 444. I don't disagree with any of the suggestions above but I've found that for most daily jobs a smaller blade actually works better.
 
I am a big Kershaw fan - right now my EDC is a Kershaw Blackout - an assisted opener, decent blade, has retained it's edge through various uses, is light in the pocket and has a clip. I've also carried a RAM and a Needs Work G10 - I'll rotate them depending on my mood. I keep a Blur in each car (rescue version) - these are less of a tactical looking knife and come in many different variations but also are assisted openers.

Blackout:
K1550-2.jpg



One of the Blurs:
K1670RD-2.jpg
 
OK. HAHA. I ended up choosing a SAK Pioneer. I got it yesterday. It is pretty damn awesome. Now, you guys have got me into a EDC frenzy, and I am looking into other knives as well. I dig the cases, so I might get one. So many choices. I feel that the SAK Pioneer was an excellent choice though. It was what I was wanting. Non tactical looking, yet extremely functional. Not big either. I can't tell that it is in my pocket. Overall, I am satisfied, but keep the suggestions rolling. I am all ears, and may buy more. I am kinda digging the Kershaw Leek model.
 
GarMan said:
OK. HAHA. I ended up choosing a SAK Pioneer. I got it yesterday. It is pretty damn awesome. Now, you guys have got me into a EDC frenzy, and I am looking into other knives as well. I dig the cases, so I might get one. So many choices. I feel that the SAK Pioneer was an excellent choice though. It was what I was wanting. Non tactical looking, yet extremely functional. Not big either. I can't tell that it is in my pocket. Overall, I am satisfied, but keep the suggestions rolling. I am all ears, and may buy more. I am kinda digging the Kershaw Leek model.
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Excellent choice, it should last a lifetime. Unless you forget it's in your pocket when you go to the airport, in which case it will wind up on eBay with all the other TSA confiscated SAKs. I've bought several from there, at pretty good prices. ;)
 
+1 for Kershaw!
I carry a Leek every day, and it is a great little knife for the money.
 
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