# EDC advice???



## amithrain (Oct 17, 2020)

I don’t really know where to put this so into off topic it goes (probably a risky choice). So I’ve never really gotten into pocket knives/edc and I know next to nothing. Do you all have any knife recs/advice (fairly cheap, I’ve spent too much already) for an absolute novice like me?? I trust you KKFers on knife stuff more than any other source so please lend me your knowledge knife wizards


----------



## AT5760 (Oct 17, 2020)

There’s a pocket knife thread that you can browse for what people use. Spydercos get lots of love in the sub $100 range.


----------



## Slim278 (Oct 17, 2020)

What is the intended use you expect and budget? 

Opinel and SAK are quality traditional knives with budget pricing.





__





Check this out:Pioneer Alox


Victorinox Pioneer Alox - 0.8201.26 ++ Explore the world of perfect Swiss quality online ++ Home of the Original Swiss Army knife ++ Order online ++




www.swissarmy.com












No.08 Carbon Steel Folding Knife


Our most iconic size. The No.08 Carbon Steel is the knife that started it all. Dating all the way back to 1890 when Joseph Opinel created a simple yet robust tool for the everyman, the No.08 has been featured in countless museums, books and galleries around the world. Whether you’re looking to...




www.opinel-usa.com


----------



## Barmoley (Oct 17, 2020)

How much do you want to spend, what size are you looking for and how comfortable are you with sharpening pocket knives. Also, make sure you know your local laws on knife carry. Drastically different in different states.


----------



## AFKitchenknivesguy (Oct 17, 2020)

I'm sure you can get some good answers here, but bladeforums.com is the EDC expert location.


----------



## Slim278 (Oct 17, 2020)

AFKitchenknivesguy said:


> I'm sure you can get some good answers here, but bladeforums.com is the EDC expert location.


I second this.


----------



## panda (Oct 17, 2020)

start with a kershaw leek


----------



## M1k3 (Oct 17, 2020)

Kershaw, Spyderco and CRKT (super budget option that's not complete crap) are good brands to start with.


----------



## Robert Lavacca (Oct 17, 2020)

I just use a blue kurochi higonokami. I would love a solid pocket knife one day. For now, this works great.


----------



## rob (Oct 17, 2020)

Spydeco Delica
Spyderco Sage1
Spydeco Paramilitary 
Benchmade 940
These are all recognised as being excellent EDC pocket knives.


----------



## Qapla' (Oct 17, 2020)

Budget? Blade length? Fixed or folding?


----------



## AFKitchenknivesguy (Oct 17, 2020)

Just get a Chris Reeve and get it over with.


----------



## VICTOR J CREAZZI (Oct 18, 2020)

I'm sure that mine is an unpopular opinion, but my number one rule for EDC is that the knife is cheap enough to walk away from without drama. Of course the $ amount will depend on your means.


----------



## Phip (Oct 18, 2020)

You say you're new to EDC, so I'll offer one bit of advice--figure out how you want to carry your knife first. I dislike pocket clips a great deal for several reasons: they're generally ugly, they catch on things, they create uncomfortable handles when you really have to hold the knife firmly, and they reveal to all that you have a knife. 

I carry in my pocket. For that, I insist my knives have a solid back. If the back is not solid, then keys or coins in your pocket can push it open enough to allow the tip to slash or stab you when you reach into your pocket. I loved the beauty and workmanship of my Chris Reeve, but I sold it here because of its open back and my safety concern.

My preference for safety and ease of one-handed use is a lockback. I'm in the Spyderco Native/Sage lockback camp myself. I don't like the roughness and protrusion that accompanies thumb studs. Flippers usually have ugly flipping tabs that protrude from the knife akwardly. The extra steel to cover the back of the knife adds a little weight, but it's worth it.


----------



## ThePhenom (Oct 18, 2020)

Kershaw Blur has been my EDC for years, love it.


----------



## ecchef (Oct 18, 2020)

Extrema Ratio MPC. Until I lost it.


----------



## Matus (Oct 18, 2020)

I would reiterate the question about the intended use and add a question about your budget.


----------



## amithrain (Oct 18, 2020)

Price would be as cheap as possible bc I don’t trust myself not to lose it. Intended use is just for whatever needs cutting day-to-day. Cutting cardboard, opening packages, prying open stuff, sniping loose threads, etc


----------



## DrEriksson (Oct 18, 2020)

amithrain said:


> Price would be as cheap as possible bc I don’t trust myself not to lose it. Intended use is just for whatever needs cutting day-to-day. Cutting cardboard, opening packages, prying open stuff, sniping loose threads, etc



Still not that much info, but Ontario Rat-1/2 are some great value budget knives, which are also good for one hand opening. SpyderCo Delica is a really iconic knife, if you go up a bit in price. For a longer version, check out the Endura and Endela. 

As mentioned above, Opinels are a bargain, but a bit larger and hard to open one handed. 

These knives are also safe. Not a good idea to buy a gas station knife and cut your fingers off.


----------



## Slim278 (Oct 18, 2020)

Get an Opinel to start with. They are quality yet cheap, easy to sharpen and get screaming sharp, easily modified either handle or blade shape and are at a price that you wont cry so hard should you loose it. Don't be discouraged by the handle shape as they are light and ride nicely in the pocket. Pick a size that you think you like and you can progress from there.


----------



## tcmx3 (Oct 18, 2020)

AFKitchenknivesguy said:


> Just get a Chris Reeve and get it over with.



buy once, cry once.

a Sebenza is still the best knife you can buy. Ive tried to find something better and failed. It just gets all the details right.

If I couldnt afford that I'd get the CQI Spydiechef (which is a horrible name because like basically all other pocket knives it's ground WAY too thick but it's a good edc knife).


----------



## AFKitchenknivesguy (Oct 18, 2020)

redisburning said:


> buy once, cry once.
> 
> a Sebenza is still the best knife you can buy. Ive tried to find something better and failed. It just gets all the details right.
> 
> If I couldnt afford that I'd get the CQI Spydiechef (which is a horrible name because like basically all other pocket knives it's ground WAY too thick but it's a good edc knife).


I have more EDCs than I care to acknowledge, but I usually grab my sebenza (I have 3) before I leave.


----------



## tcmx3 (Oct 18, 2020)

AFKitchenknivesguy said:


> I have more EDCs than I care to acknowledge, but I usually grab my sebenza (I have 3) before I leave.



me too.

recently got both sizes of the CKF / Phillipe Jourget FIF collaboration knives. Big $$$. Not as good as a Sebenza.

The only thing Ive found that's legitimately competitive is Shirogorov but you pay an INSANE amount and then you have to deal with their warranty situation. CRK will rehab their knives, basically no questions asked as long as youre a reasonable person doing reasonable knife stuff. That's a big plus.

My large 21 was made in 2009. Since then Ive gone through multiple Striders, MKFs, a Hinderer or two, etc. etc. etc. and it's baffling to me how wrong all these high end knife makers get it. Just grind it to cut and use chicago style allen screws to bolt it together. 

Not hard, and yet CRK is the only company that gets it (although their newer screws are different to no advantage I can intuit)


----------



## AFKitchenknivesguy (Oct 18, 2020)

Luckily I haven't gotten any of those makers yet, but good to know. Most of my big time, expensive knives are ABS/MS gentleman knives, usually damascus, and I have my CRKs for all purpose, and brands like Benchmade, Spyderco, and ZT for rough stuff.


----------



## Barmoley (Oct 19, 2020)

I've had a few sebenzas and they are good knives, but I wouldn't buy another. They are too heavy and too blocky for what they are. I prefer spydercos these days. There are a few benchmades that are good such as griptilian and the new bugout. ZT and giant mouse have a few cool models as well. I like Spyderco the best though, different steels different locks and just a cool company that caters to knife enthusiasts. Military, police, para 2,3, native, etc. Sebenzas are ok...

As far as getting a really cheap EDC, I wouldn't, you want a quality knife, doesn't have to be expensive, but needs to be decent. You want a good lock and decent steel, you want a handle that is somewhat comfortable, all of that costs money. You can buy a decent folder for $140-$200, some are even cheaper. Know your laws though, some states might not allow concealed carry of pocket knives and then you have to have a pocket clip so that the knife is no concealed. For example in CA you can't carry any fixed blade concealed.


----------



## AFKitchenknivesguy (Oct 19, 2020)

*just to add, I doubt you are ready to splurge for a CRK yet, just chatter amongst us knife nuts. Heaviness is a subjective thing; if I were working on my feet, I could see that. I'm not, so a CRK fits the bill for me...beauty and functional. Goes with my dress pants well. Your needs and perceptions may vary.


----------



## spaceconvoy (Oct 19, 2020)

I like spyderco too, nice and light, high quality without frills. I carry a delica when I go camping or do outdoorsy stuff, but it's too much for regular life. Most of the time I carry a victorinox cadet because I work with a wide variety of people and I'd prefer not to be known as the crazy knife guy.


----------



## Barmoley (Oct 19, 2020)

My favorites at the moment are para 2 and 3. For camping military or police would be my choice, but in that situation I would prefer a fixed blade. I prefer high wear resistance steels on small folders for a few reasons. Most stuff that small blades cut is cardboard, paper, tape, rope, wire, zip ties, etc. all these are high wear materials. Small knives have very little edge so they dull quickly from these high wear materials. When sharpening small edges are easier than long in a sense that less steel needs to be removed. Short blades don’t experience the forces that long blades do just from the lack of leverage, unless you abuse them and that is different. In any case, many choices, but you need to decide your use and budget first.


----------



## boomchakabowwow (Oct 19, 2020)

amithrain said:


> I don’t really know where to put this so into off topic it goes (probably a risky choice). So I’ve never really gotten into pocket knives/edc and I know next to nothing. Do you all have any knife recs/advice (fairly cheap, I’ve spent too much already) for an absolute novice like me?? I trust you KKFers on knife stuff more than any other source so please lend me your knowledge knife wizards


what's your style? you want to open it once handed, or can you dig a two handed opeening operation?


----------



## Twigg (Oct 20, 2020)

I have carried Emerson's since 2004. 





__





Emerson Knives Inc.


The Number One Hard Use Knives In the World




emersonknives.com


----------



## Matus (Oct 20, 2020)

I had a small Sebenza 21 for a few months and handled large one briefly. The action was super smooth, but the handle is not particularly comfortable. The blade size on the small one was great, but the handle was too short and boxy. The large felt too large for my taste. And I can't help it - but the HT of the S35VN felt ... unnecessarily soft and a little too thick at the edge for a folding knife. The fit & finish was impeccable though.


----------



## tcmx3 (Oct 23, 2020)

Matus said:


> I had a small Sebenza 21 for a few months and handled large one briefly. The action was super smooth, but the handle is not particularly comfortable. The blade size on the small one was great, but the handle was too short and boxy. The large felt too large for my taste. And I can't help it - but the HT of the S35VN felt ... unnecessarily soft and a little too thick at the edge for a folding knife. The fit & finish was impeccable though.



that's an interesting perspective.

IME Sebenza's are quite thin behind the edge compared to most American makers, and subsequently outcut them too (especially something like a Para 2 which was explicitly mentioned earlier which is an axe in comparison), and the S35VN is treated to the same hardness as all the other batch knife makers. I would understand if you were coming from a William Henry or traditional folder though.

what kind of tasks are you guys doing with your Sebenzas where the handle shape being blocky is really that relevant? if I do any hard work I have a Bark River 3V fixed blade that I keep in my trunk; I could smash through a concrete block with it. The fact that a sebenza doesnt have hot spots or weird finger grooves is a bonus to me. if you want more grooves, CRK makes the Umnuumzaan and if you want more than that the Inkosi.


----------



## Matus (Oct 23, 2020)

I don’t really consider folding knives to be really meant for hard work, mostly just for collecting, or carry around and open boxes or envelopes. So they can have very experimental designs full of hot spots. This makes them cool as makers can let their designing skills and fantasy go wild. 

The best tough folder I ever had was Freeman 451 (I think). I sent it back as it was useless for me though.

For me folder is for little, mostly light tasks like slicing an apple for kids when outside. That’s why I completely reground my GM Ace Iona to a much thinner, lightly convex blade. Sebenza is too thick at the edge to cut apple cleanly. Plus I dislike hollow grinds (though Sebenza is ground with a relatively large radius). The handle to me felt too small for the blade. Just a personal taste. It is a very nice knife overall


----------



## tcmx3 (Oct 23, 2020)

Matus said:


> I don’t really consider folding knives to be really meant for hard work, mostly just for collecting, or carry around and open boxes or envelopes. So they can have very experimental designs full of hot spots. This makes them cool as makers can let their designing skills and fantasy go wild.
> 
> The best tough folder I ever had was Freeman 451 (I think). I sent it back as it was useless for me though.
> 
> For me folder is for little, mostly light tasks like slicing an apple for kids when outside. That’s why I completely reground my GM Ace Iona to a much thinner, lightly convex blade. Sebenza is too thick at the edge to cut apple cleanly. Plus I dislike hollow grinds (though Sebenza is ground with a relatively large radius). The handle to me felt too small for the blade. Just a personal taste. It is a very nice knife overall



ok I can respect that.

IMO almost all of the locking knives on the market are way too thick for apples. Id much rather have a GEC or actually a fun little one Ive been playing with lately is the Lionsteel Bestman, which has modern materials/construction but actually cuts pretty well.


----------



## Matus (Oct 23, 2020)

Yes, pocket knives with thin blades are a rarity lately.


----------



## dafox (Oct 23, 2020)

The Kershaw leek has a pretty thin blade.


----------



## Barmoley (Oct 23, 2020)

So in California you can’t really carry any fixed blade concealed and people would probably call the police if I carried one on my belt in the city. I usually carry above mentioned para 2 in 10V or cruwear, sometimes police in k390. All these are thinner behind the edge than large sebenzas I had, one was older in bg42 and one was in s35vn. Originally s35vn heat treat on sebenzas was too soft, so it was changed later after many complaints, it should be ok now. Sebenza is heavy and bulky, but these are relative and personal. It is definitely overbuilt and very nicely done. It is billed to be a hard used working folder and so I understand why they built it this way. If you don’t use it hard then the weight and the bulk don’t make sense, because it is not an especially good cutter. It is also relatively expensive. Machining on it is excellent and they are well made knives, but there are other options. These are all personal opinions. What is very obvious and unfortunate is that because of this race to the toughest folder or small knife we have a bunch of knives that work poorly as knives. Most traditional folders of 50 years ago are much better cutters than the newest and best of today.


----------



## NO ChoP! (Nov 25, 2020)

Civivi fir the sub $100 win. Well made. Extras like a lined zip pouch, key chain and multitool, sticker swag. 

This is the dammy Mastodon. Big 4" blade. Carbon fiber inlay. Deep carry clip. All stainless/ no plastic.


----------



## Rangen (Nov 25, 2020)

For me, it’s Spyderco Delica in M390. Decently thin blade, useful for food, the steel takes a very nice edge and holds it well, good for cardboard and packaging and stuff, and the Delica is a good size tradeoff for me, you can forget it in a pocket, but it’s large enough to be useful. M390 is good stuff, and I say that as someone who is perilously close to selling most of my stainless knives and going full carbon. And it sharpens very well on most anything, no need for diamonds, unlike some other supersteels.


----------



## tcmx3 (Nov 25, 2020)

so Ive been using my Lionsteel Bestman clip point for a while and I really like it. I still think the sebenza is the forever edc knife for me (though I appear to have a different experience with it as other folks seem to be getting along better with knives I personally think are poor cutters) but one thing I really like about this is that I can take it anywhere and people dont freak out about it at all. in fact, the carbon fiber / Ti thing and diminutive size seem to really make people interested in it, including people that I dont think would normally be "knife people".

I snagged this off google images (not mine) but mine looks identical, for size. 

I had to put a completely new edge on mine though and the grind is... I mean at least it's not a Benchmade? but it's thin enough where it matters, even if it's not as precisely done as a real knife company.

BTW underrated little knife that might be hard to find is the Strider SJ75. Used to have one of those I traded for an SMF. I mean I came out good on that trade but these days I'd like to have that little knife back.


----------



## Towerguy (Nov 26, 2020)

AFKitchenknivesguy said:


> Just get a Chris Reeve and get it over with.


I'm a big fan Chris Reeve knives.


----------



## Noodle Soup (Nov 28, 2020)

My EDC for about the last two years has been a Spyderco Caribbean. Not totally in love with their super stainless alloy on this one but its OK. The handle fits my had just right. The blade size and shape works perfectly for most of the things I use a folder for on a daily basis on our homestead and tree farm. The yellow and black handle is kind of ugly but you can see it if you lay it down in the weeds.


----------

