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What makes a quality knife?

2K views 21 replies 17 participants last post by  elstupido 
#1 ·
What is the functional difference between a $125 knife like Cold Steel and a $600 knife like a Randall?

Less brittle? Harder steel and better edge retention?
 
#2 ·
Once you get into the $125 dollar range, you are pretty much at the peak performance level. You can get very good steels (S30V/154CM), great handle material(G10/Micarta), and nice designs for that price. You can go higher to get "super steels" or carbon fiber, but the knife won't perform appreciably better. The main reason to spend more is for hand built quality from small batch makers. The difference is more aesthetic than functional sometimes, but like anything else, exclusivity costs more.
 
#3 ·
A $600 Randall Made just barely scratches the surface in terms of performance.

There are some exceptional generalists in knives, you can easily see a performance increase between certain $200 bushcraft knives and a $300 bushcraft knife.

When you look at choppers, there are many that look the part but perform like crap.

Usually there is a delicate balance between the hardness of the blade, the toughness of the steel and the thickness of the edge.

A thin edge improves almost everything, premium steel with a good heat treat can allow a thinner edge so spending more than $125 can give big performance increases for any type of knife.
 
#5 ·
One is a production company that holds from on par with to just a bit better than most production companies.

The other is an American Legend.

Randal is better. CS has copied them. And well they should if its legal. Not the other way round.

I love CS KNIVES. But I don't lie to myself.
 
#6 ·
To be clear, you won't see a performance advantage from a Randall. They are a good knife, but you are paying for nostalgia and name. They make old school designs with old school materials. There are much better knives available. Especially for the money they demand.
 
#7 ·
Depends on what the knife is for. Are we going to filet a fish or chop down a small tree? Different designs. Different steels. Even different bevels. Price is not directly proportional to "functional difference."

Sometimes a $10 Mora is the right knife. Often it's not.
 
#17 ·
all excellent points about custom made knives. the reason i got into making knives is i had these designs in my head. i use top shelf materials to make my knives and i can see my ideas come to life. if you are lucky, other people will like your designs as well. it as much art as it is a tool when you get into full customs.

Archangel





What model is that firearm? Good job on the knives by the way!
 
#11 ·
You inquired about "functional difference".

The explanations above describe material/Rockwell/nostalgic differences.

1. usage not defined/ Fileting fish or cutting sugar cane or batoning redwood trees?
2. model numbers so that two knives performing the same function can be fairly compared?

As the man wrote, a $10 Mora can be a functional equivalent to some models.

If you assumed a predicate that the first Randalls were intended to perform as combat knives, then the longer the knife, the more distance there was between the two combatants and thus whichever knife was longer is the winner in functionality.
 
#13 ·
I don't know because the most I've ever spent on a knife was $130 for a Benchmade Osborne designed 940. I got a steal on because it usually retails for about $185 at online retailers.

From my experience I can speak to the differences between less expensive and pricier production knives.

I've owned Kershaws and Gerbers. The two Benchmades that I own are hands down better than all of the other less expensive knives that I've owned.

Why? It really isn't one thing. It certainly isn't the blade steel because for EDC I don't care about that very much as long as it's decent quality. For me it's about the sum of all of the parts with good tolerances and workmanship built in. What I end up with is a Benchmade Griptilian 556 that I conservatively estimate that I've opened and closed between 15 and 20 thousand times. I've also re-profiled the edge twice. And guess what , it works as good now as it did when I bought it. I expect that my experience with the 940 will be the same.

Both of my Kershaws crapped the bed after roughly 2 years because of the torsion bar. It's too bad really because the Leek was a slick little number. I really loved the blade shape.

A coworker recently chided me for spending that kind of cash for a knife. He told me that the M Tech that he bought at the truck stop was just as good. I told him to put it through its paces for a few years and get back to me. It may or may not be of good quality. Only time will tell.

I'm not a knife snob. I realize that what I spent on my Benchmades is nothing compared to what I could spend on a knife. I look at it like this: If you want or need a knife that your going to pull out and use once a week or even once a day for everyday tasks, then a lower priced knife from a reputable manufacturer will serve you well. If you're like me and you use a knife a lot, then you may look into options from higher end manufacturers like Benchmade or Spyderco or the upper tier SOGs and such.

Use what you like and like what you use.
 
#15 ·
A knife should generally be steel; not break too easy; not bend too easy; hold an edge pretty well. Honestly, a prison shank made out of a bed spring and some duct tape, sharpened on a concrete floor, will do the trick. Above that, the differences are like which sights are a little easier to see and which grip angle is a little more comfortable on guns.
 
#20 ·
all excellent points about custom made knives. the reason i got into making knives is i had these designs in my head. i use top shelf materials to make my knives and i can see my ideas come to life. if you are lucky, other people will like your designs as well. it as much art as it is a tool when you get into full customs.

Archangel





Archangel, nice work. That balisong is sweet indeed!

Did you make the Japanese sword? Katana? Or wakizashi?

I've studied Kenjutsu and Iaido as well as some Kendo. That sword just grabbed my attention. :))
 
#21 ·
Geometry and heat treat is everything. Price is deceiving.
Add in the alloy and you have got it right. There is only so much that can be done with crummy steel but a good steel with good heat treat gives you lots of potential.

Some people might not believe this but most mass produced knives are ground to avoid warranty returns and they perform very poorly.

With the right edge geometry performance can improve dramatically.

The chance of getting a $125 factory made knife with optimum edge geometry is almost zero. A $600 Randall Made might have it, I don't know. They certainly do not have premium steel.

Every time I see someone say $125 gets a good knife, I have to think they don't use their knife or they have never used a good knife.
 
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