[Akathriel]

I'm not really into knives but am looking for a small folding pocket knife, probably about a 2" blade although a little bigger wouldn't be the end of the world. Just something that'd be useful on a day to day basis, and isn't a pain in the ass to unfold. I was eyeing the SOG topo mini (the black blade especially looks very nice), but I am a little bewildered and looking for recommendations.

Also what are the advantages of a partially serrated blade? Cutting rope and hacking wood?

Oh yeah, dont think this will be an issue but the price should be under one bill please.

Thanks guys.

 

[Trippytiger]

Well, go figure, the title and description of the eBay listing were wrong - the seller had an Endura for sale, not a Delica. And the Endura is way bigger than what I wanted! So I'm definitely getting a refund there.

You'd think that that would be a chance for me to come to my senses, but you'd be wrong. Just made an offer on another Delica on eBay for about the same price. Hopefully that one goes properly!

 

[j-dawg]

Cool thread. Funny, I actually sold most of my knife collection to get into head-fi gear. I still have a Microtech D/A LCC and a Benchmade 42-400 Balisong (Ti handle, zen pins, spring latch & pocket clip).

The nicest pieces I sold were an original Brend Nemesis III and a 1st gen Ultratech. Actually at first I was going to sell the safe queens to fund an all-balisong collection. But then I decided to get back into classical guitar and I really didn't need to be slicing my fingers every time I buttface an arial trick, so that idea croaked before it even started. Decided on a PCDP & Minidisc collection, which brought me to head-fi. So yeah... now that I've replied, I'll have to go shifting through this thread looking for fellow bali flippers and Microholics. I'm pretty sure I'm "j-dawg" on Microholics.org, knifeforums.com and bladeforums.com so say hi if you're ever there.

 

[j-dawg]

My CF handled D/A-LCC

And the 42-400

 

[Old Pa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trippytiger /img/forum/go_quote.gif You'd think that that would be a chance for me to come to my senses, but you'd be wrong. Just made an offer on another Delica on eBay for about the same price. Hopefully that one goes properly!

Absolutely nothing wrong with collecting nice practical tools like knives.

 

[Trippytiger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old Pa /img/forum/go_quote.gif Absolutely nothing wrong with collecting nice practical tools like knives.

Except for all the money that costs!

 

[marvin]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Akathriel /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm not really into knives but am looking for a small folding pocket knife, probably about a 2" blade although a little bigger wouldn't be the end of the world. Just something that'd be useful on a day to day basis, and isn't a pain in the ass to unfold. I was eyeing the SOG topo mini (the black blade especially looks very nice), but I am a little bewildered and looking for recommendations.

I generally don't like black coated blades unless they're carbon steel. It's not necessary on stainless and it'll look funky once it starts to wear.

As for suggestions, Spyderco has a lot of nice knives in your range. The Spyderco Cricket, Spin, Dragonfly, and Co-Pilot are all around $50, ~ 2" of blade, good VG-10 steel, and pretty inoffensive. Kershaw has the Chive and Shallot in this price class. The steel (420HC) is worse, but they're assisted openers and are pretty slick. The first tenths of an inch of movement are hand powered, but an internal spring takes over from there.

At the upper end of the price range, take a look at the Spyderco Poliwog. Short blade (< 3") but features a full grip.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Akathriel /img/forum/go_quote.gif Also what are the advantages of a partially serrated blade? Cutting rope and hacking wood?

Serrations are useful for two things. First, they're good at slicing fibrous materials, like rope, meat, bread, etc. Second, they dull slower for the average user. The tips on the serrations take the brunt of the impact with surfaces, say plates, tables, etc, which saves the shallower grooves. Also the increased cutting area means less wear for any given area. Disadvantages, they don't push cut as well, the cuts leave a ragged edge, and they're hard for the at home user to sharpen.

Partially serrated is supposed to give the best of both worlds, but sometimes it works, sometimes not. It sucks on Benchmades, works fairly well on Spydercos.

 

[Old Pa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trippytiger /img/forum/go_quote.gif Except for all the money that costs!

Still, beats the hell out of beanie babies.

 

[Trippytiger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old Pa /img/forum/go_quote.gif Still, beats the hell out of beanie babies.

The shipping costs alone would empty out my bank account.

Speaking of shipping, my Starling is on its way, and I got that other Delica. I'm definitely looking forwards to getting them.

 

[appophylite]

I currently have 3 knives: A 2 inch folding blade Victorinox Swiss Army knife, a Leatherman Super Tool 200 and a Sheffield 3" folding blade.

I actually broke the Sheffield using it at -50 on the slope when the frame lock snapped in two trying to fold the blade away. I'm currently looking at two models to replace it with: a Gerber Paraframe with serrated blade or a Ruko serrated blade. Does anyone know anything about either of these two model knives. I'm trying to keep the new knife I buy at about $25 or less and available locally unless the knife qualifies as an expensable tool, in which case, I'm going to go with a Spyderco. Any info on that particular Gerber model or Ruko knives in general would be a big help.

 

[Old Pa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by appophylite /img/forum/go_quote.gif I actually broke the Sheffield using it at -50 on the slope when the frame lock snapped in two trying to fold the blade away.

Extreme conditions still call for a fixed blade knife. Partially serrated blades are excellent for fast emergency cutting of heavy materials like rope and webbing. Partially serrated blades should be paired with drop point designs as you have to be able to get past the point (without involving it) to get to the serrated cutting portion. You don't want to stab the guy you are cutting the seat belt off of.

 

[Trippytiger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by appophylite /img/forum/go_quote.gif I actually broke the Sheffield using it at -50 on the slope when the frame lock snapped in two trying to fold the blade away.

An aluminum handled Paraframe II might be a good choice for conditions like that if you can't use a fixed blade. Aluminum doesn't become nearly as brittle as steel does at low temperatures, so the framelock should be much less likely to snap under stress in cold weather. It will shrink a lot more in the cold than steel would, though, so it may wind up trapping the blade, or at least making it harder to open/close.

 

[Old Pa]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Trippytiger /img/forum/go_quote.gif An aluminum handled Paraframe II might be a good choice for conditions like that if you can't use a fixed blade. Aluminum doesn't become nearly as brittle as steel does at low temperatures, so the framelock should be much less likely to snap under stress in cold weather. It will shrink a lot more in the cold than steel would, though, so it may wind up trapping the blade, or at least making it harder to open/close.

Although even with an aluminum handle, the frame lock (the part that shattered) will probably be made of steel. But what about titanium? How it titanium's low temperature performance compared with carbon and stainless steel? (Since we've got a budding mechanical engineer to quiz

)

 

[ilikemonkeys]

My Benchmade Model 750 Pinnacle just sold for almost 300 bucks on ebay last week. I think I bought it for 80.

Woo hoo! I think I'll keep it at home a little more often.

 

[Trippytiger]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old Pa /img/forum/go_quote.gif Although even with an aluminum handle, the frame lock (the part that shattered) will probably be made of steel.

Well, that could be, I guess. My assumption was that the handle and framelock would be all one piece like the framelock knives I have.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old Pa /img/forum/go_quote.gif But what about titanium? How it titanium's low temperature performance compared with carbon and stainless steel? (Since we've got a budding mechanical engineer to quiz )

And to think, I was going to sell my materials engineering textbook! It's a little light on information on this topic, but it does say that titanium alloys don't exhibit a drastic change in mechanical properties as the temperature decreases. Of course, most titanium alloys are pretty brittle to begin with, so there's always going to be a greater risk of fracture compared to aluminum or similarly ductile metals. The same goes for high-carbon steels and other high-strength alloys.