Byrd by Spyderco Meadowlark 2

03/27/2017 by Jake

-Price Paid: $19.77
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Less than 1 Month

Comments:

Ive had this knife for a little under a month and it is awesomen the fit and finish is adequate in my opinion. It opens very smoothly and locks up tighter than my delica 4. Im very impressed, the 8cr13mov holds its edge quite well, and is also very easy to sharpen. Ive used the delica 4 for a long time and this one is just as good in my opinion just the vg10 will hold its edge for about an extra day of regular use. Its an incredible value.

Kershaw Brawler

03/11/2017 by Teebone

-Price Paid: $20.00
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for 1 year

Comments:

This was my very first pocket knife given to me by my grandfather for high school graduation. I have enjoyed this knife a lot and it seems to handle most situations. Initially this knife was my go to for everything but since has taken a backseat to my higher quality knives. For the price this knife is a bargain. It cuts well has a solid lock up and deployment. Mine is deployable from both the flipper tab as well as the thumb stud. Unfortunately the ergonomics on this knife are lacking a lot. The jimping on the handle is in all the right places but it does not provide any grip. Also for the size of the knife the handle feels way too thick and bulky. Overall for the price this is a good knife and I would recommend it to people.

Zero Tolerance 0770

03/11/2017 by Teebone

-Price Paid: $200.00
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for 3 months

Comments:

This knife was bought because I had a bass pro shops gift card I went to the knife counter and was look at knives and this one simply felt the best in my hand. I was willing to buy whichever knife I liked best that day I had completely ignored pricing. Not only did it feel the best but I was also able to get one with the carbon scale which I love the carbon is a beautiful weave. (Coming from a racing background I have seen many types of carbon and this was a very aesthetically pleasing weave.)
Moving on the how the knife functions out of the box the knife was not razor sharp but it had no issue cutting paper, tape, and other commonly cut items. The part that stuck out the most to me with the performance of the blade was that while I was cutting it felt exceptional in my hand. The weighting of the knife feels nearly perfect which allows it to be easily controlled. Then while it is being carried it just disappears in your pocket often making the user feel like the knife is not even there. This knife had been my EDC for the past few months but after recently getting a XM-18 this knife has been losing most of its pocket time.

Byrd by Spyderco Meadowlark 2

03/06/2017 by Brad Bentler

-Price Paid: $26.00
-Used for Light Duty/General
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

My knife is the g-10 version. It is like having a g-10 delica with finger choil. I love this knife. The steel is pretty good but not like the vg-10 of the delica. It is very easy to get razor sharp. It holds its edge for awhile too. Definitely not a junk steel. You can usually destroy the edge with 8cr14mov and easily get it back into shape. This is a great little budget blade with a strong midlock and a scalpel like blade. Good ergonomics for a small knife. I just don't see many drawbacks to this knife. It also comes in frn, stainless and now even titanium scales at a reasonable price. I highly recommend this knife.

Ontario RAT 1

03/06/2017 by Brad Bentler

-Price Paid: $23.00
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Less than 1 Month

Comments:

I bought this knife to possibly add to my collection and review. I have read alot about this knife. Until recently when I bought my first Emerson I had stayed away from liner lock knives. I heard so much good about the Rat 1 that I would finally get one. All the hype was true. This is a great knife. It has a great lock and the whole knife feels very ergonomic to me. You could use this knife for just about anything and could even press it into a more tactical role if needed. The knife arrived perfect. There were no flaws in mine at all. Very sharp and even centered blade. I just tested a buck vantage in this same price range and this knife blows it away. I gave the Buck Vantage to a friend but I will be keeping this for my collection. I'm carrying it now along with my Emerson. It seems to be able to do whatever I want with it. Just a great knife. Almost perfect. I wish the pocket clip wasn't painted but it's really not a big deal. Buy this. You will love it!!!

Boker Kwaito

02/27/2017 by Joe

-Price Paid: $89.00
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for 6 months

Comments:

Bought this and wasn't disappointed. Slim, razor sharp, light. Fits well with a suit.
Tek-Lok was add on but worth the add.

Buck Bantam

02/26/2017 by Brad Bentler

-Price Paid: $19.00
-Used for Light Duty/General
-Owned for 1 year

Comments:

I have several Buck Bantams. One was for my son and another was a gift to me. Unfortunately I don't have much good to say about them. The Bantam has a nice blade profile and finish and actually came very sharp out of the box. Both knives held the edge fairly well. I do not like the pocket clip on the bantam but the knife does carry light. It is light. It is all plastic construction with non-adjustable pins and pivot. The lockup is a joke and both of ours have side and up and down play. If you put much pressure on them while gripping them they can unlock. Not good. The blade centering is very poor but it doesn't seem to affect the function of the knife. I know that this knife is made in the USA and is a Buck but I think that it is a poorly made knife. A good blade in a terrible handle. I would send them both back but the flaws are in the design. These knives are a step above junk knives and are actually fairly durable though. My son still carries his and mine just stays in the cutting block in the kitchen for daily use. We use our knives daily and I like Buck knives but I just really would not recommend this knife. I think a person would be better off paying 5 more dollars to get the Buck Vantage which is a better built knife with a safer lock. Sorry Buck, I hate to be harsh but this knife is a loser.

Buck Vantage Select Large

02/25/2017 by Brad Bentler

-Price Paid: $23.00
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for 3 months

Comments:

I bought this knife to review and add to my collection. The knife came very sharp out of the box and holds an edge fairly well for not being a premium steel. The high hollow grind is great and the finish on the blade is OK but nothing great. Ergonomics are ok. The knife carries very light and thin and the pocket clip carries deep and works well. The thumbhole is pretty small but it is usable to deploy the knife. The flipper action on mine is not great either. The pivot seems tight and a little gritty. The lockup is solid and engages a little earlier than I like but seems pretty solid. The liners are pretty thin and the handles a little slippery. It has gotten smoother with use. The blade centering is not perfect but it doesn't rub and in no way hinders the function of the knife. This knife has the famous Buck forever warranty and if you have any issues Buck will take care of you for sure. All in all I think this is an OK EDC knife. It is not great and I can think of similar priced alternative options. This knife is made in the USA and that may be important to you. There are not many other good USA made knives in this price class. It also has a really good warranty. Buck knives are legendary. With that said I think the Vantage is a good value knife but nothing great about it. There are also other higher priced options available in the Buck Vantage line that I have heard have better materials and fit and finish. All in all I would recommend it as a budget EDC knife.

CRKT M16-14T

02/17/2017 by earl

-Price Paid: $70.00
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

Like Del, I've carried this knife all over the world. It has been to Iraq, Afghanistan and other places on duty tours. It isn't a fixed blade knife, but it is the next best thing, depending on what your mission is. I carry more ammo and used this as a backup. The pommel end will crush a skull, which is all you can ask of it when the time comes. The Tanto tipped version will penetrate most anything a good hefty stabbing thrust will come up against. It's saved my ass more than once, although blood will stain the blade significantly if not cleaned up ASAP. As a folder, I would recommend it to anyone using it in place of a fixed blade if you're trying to trim weight on your ruck/patrol kit. The knife is outstanding for a folder and will do the job of a combat knife quite well. Worth the money.

Spyderco Para 3

02/15/2017 by Matt

-Price Paid: $120.00
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Less than 1 Month

Comments:

Spyderco has outdone themselves again! This knife is essentially a mini Para 2. Overall, I like the size much better. While the paramilitary 2 is great, the Para 3 is unrivaled. When it comes to the Para 2 vs the Para 3, the Para 3 is far more pocketable, but still retains the beautiful compression lock and G10 grips. The steel is still S30v, which is a long time standard for Spyderco. Spyderco didn't really depart from the shape, and the ergonomics still work well even for bigger hands like mine.This knife has identical smoothness during actuation as its larger counterparts. In short, this knife is exactly what you'd expect in every way, and it's awesome in every respect!

Benchmade 550HG Griptilian

01/04/2017 by David

-Price Paid: $90.00
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

Some blade play when originally purchased but most of my Benchmade axis locks came with a little play. Blade design is really nice, the modified sheepsfoot has good cutting ability while being different from other blades. steel is good (154CM). handle scales are plastic but Ok, a little short for larger hands. A good light weight knife but too expensive for what you get.

Ontario SP50

01/03/2017 by John

-Price Paid: $85.00
-Used for Outdoor/Survival
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

I have owned two Ontario SP50 knives. I still own one and gave the other to a friend. Both have arrived with very sharp blades and excellent fit and finish. The steel used is 5160, which is a tough, carbon, non-stainless steel. It is the type of steel that should be used in a large knife meant for outdoors use, and I should mention that Ontario has an excellent heat treat on these knives for the hard use intended. I have used the SP50 extensively in the woods and it has held up well to batoning, chopping, and other camp type chores. The blades are ¼” thick which provides plenty of strength while the full flat grind allows for thinner edge geometry to allow for deep bites into wood when chopping and allows you to make feather sticks and perform other relatively fine cutting chores, keeping in mind the thick blade stock. The knife is moderately blade heavy. The handles are relatively thick but well designed and the kraton construction provides some cushioning during impacts and a good non-slip grip. The kraton also insulates the hands from temperature extremes and I find these types of handles are much better in the cold then exposed metal tang handles are. Edge retention is good for the type of steel used and heat treat. When it comes time to resharpen the knife it is easy to put an edge on 5160, especially when comparing it to steels like Elmax, s30v, CTS-XHP or other high end stainless steels, although 5160 will not hold its edge as long. If you are comparing it to low end stainless steels such as 420 then you may find it a little more difficult to sharpen, but then 5160 is a much better steel all around than 420. Overall, if you are looking for a quality, reasonably priced, large outdoor knife that can hold up under some tough use this one is definitely worth a look.