ALL THINGS BUDGET KNIVES

I think you can clip that accessory around your belt and the knife to it then.

On the right panel with the peg, there’s a slot cut with a tab. You could slide a strap into that, then after wrapping the strap around, lay over the excess and then close up this retainer. Or, it could be used to secure something to a belt, like a flashlight with a hand strap—after securing this retainer to the belt, lay the hand strap over it then close it up.

I’m actually in Weehawken, right near Hoboken border, so I put Hoboken as it’s a far more recognizable name. Yeah, tons of businesses in that city. Very expensive place to live! But great for night life after work, that’s for sure.

Safety lock so kids can’t play with it? Clamps around the knife and doesn’t let the knife open? Complete guess, I really have no clue what that is for. :smiley:

That’s a sort of MOLLE clip. For example you can attach additional storage cases to your MOLLE compatible backpack by it.

Wow!

Titanium and D2 for $18!

If it were an assisted-opener, I'd be all over that.

(Of course that's asking for a lot.)

Well, look at it this way — for a 2” blade, assisted opening is really not necessary. Certainly not a defensive knife. I imagine if it were disassembled and washers replaced with something slicker, it might be possible to open one handed with little trouble.

But I have to say, for the price it’s a great deal. I just wish this seller wasn’t also offering fakes. Some knives are shown with Benchmade logos but title and description don’t say it. Others look like Kershaw clones. I avoid patronizing fake knife sellers. If they can make knives this good, I can’t understand why they just don’t make variations so they’re not clones.

18USD sounds impossibly cheap, this must be a textbook example of corner cutting?

This is a tiny knife. Not much blade material. Titanium isn’t nearly as costly as it used to be, but marketing in some higher end areas gloss it up for price premiums. The frame of this knife is light. It’s not aluminum. It’s not stainless steel. It truly is titanium. As for the steel being true D2? I can’t confirm. However, it doesn’t feel as soft as 8Cr13Mov when I hone it. I haven’t tried a rust test (D2 may be very strong, but it is corrosion prone). But overall, the finish of the blade, the hollow grind shape, and the edging… it’s good quality.

alright, I see. I really like my CRKT KISS, but the steel is too crappy for me. I wonder if the steel would be better.

Found this classy knife with S35VN and titanium.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Top-Quality-Tactical-Knife-S35vn-Stainless-Steel-Titanium-Folding-Pocket-Knife/113789541835?\_trkparms=aid%3D111001%26algo%3DREC.SEED%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20160908105057%26meid%3D8b33e91c93304158a5a5a094fa94cc84%26pid%3D100675%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D15%26mehot%3Dlo%26sd%3D113789541835%26itm%3D113789541835%26pmt%3D1%26noa%3D1%26pg%3D2380057&\_trksid=p2380057.c100675.m4236&\_trkparms=pageci%3Ae3f2fb5c-1933-11ea-b60f-74dbd180f3b2|parentrq%3Ae22548ca16e0a4e9226e3131ffcd4d06|iid%3A1

The grey version with ldt logo is much cheaper on Ali.

Is it real S35VN?

I once bought an LDT knife from that store on Aliexpress. It looked like a ZT knife and was stamped “Elmax”. It was an incredible bargain at only $12…

D2 is a popular stamp for the same reason that reputable manufacturers like Bestech and Civivi keep making blades out of it. It sells. In the case of unscrupulous companies or questionable rebranders, the actual steel could be a lot of things. It could be junky 3Cr13Mov. It could be properly treated 8Cr13Mov. For $20 or less, the latter would still be a good deal. The problem is that we don’t get to know up front.

I finally finished my general-use testing of that “D2” Gocomma knife that was all the rage here a while back. Edge retention was surprisingly good but that doesn’t mean it was D2. During my week of testing, I actually noticed the same knife on a number of sites listed as the Petrified Fish CF-1815 in 8Cr13Mov. Based on my use, that would make sense for properly treated 8Cr13Mov with good edge geometry. At the $12 I paid for it under Gocomma, that’s a stellar deal. The Petrified Fish version comes in a few more colors and costs $16.99 but that’s fine. I just wish Gocomma had given us an accurate label.

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32981069881.html

I’m still learning how to edit video and do YouTube but I’ll eventually have a review up for it. I’ll share it here when I do.

This is my first D2 knife and if there’s a telltale way to know it from honing, sharpening, & use, it’s unknown to me… other than D2 is supposed to be more difficult to sharpen than 8Cr13Mov due to greater hardness. It does feel like that on my honing rod. My inspiration to buy the knife wasn’t so much the blade material as the design, size, and titanium. And the body sure feels like it. If the blade is 8Cr13Mov that is properly heat treated, I really won’t mind. For the price, it was still worthwhile. I lubricated the pivot point and it smoothed out nicely. It’ll be interesting to see how it holds up over the long haul.

I have no idea. It would be hard to tell without testing it with an XRF alloy analyzer.

I see. thanks.
maybe in the future I’ll have permanent access to a XRF setup. that would rule out some things, but doesn’t tell everything. I see plenty of variation in D2 performance, when people test edge retention. that would be the heat treatment or something else.

Another budget knife that had tickled my interest. AliExpress had a good sale on it (now back up to original price) so I took a shot. Will know in a few weeks. And yes, it’s a flipper, while seemingly devoid of a lock. No liner or frame lock. Wasn’t in description either. Btw, that slot feature looks like it could be a wire insulation cutter when blade is closed. Curious to try that out.

That’s a cool compact sized frame-lock flipper! :+1: Have a look at my short action video here. It’s the mini budget version of the SNECX Buster by Green Thorn.

You are right about that. Ingredients can vary for different samples of D2. There are lots of other factors such as heat treatment, tempering, blade geometry, whether or not the factory grind fatigued the edge, etc. As a result, just being D2 isn’t a guarantee of incredible edge retention. I forget who first said this but you can think of knife steel like cake. Quality ingredients matter but so does the skill of the baker!

Thanks for the video link — cool! Looks like fabulous quality for the price. So it’s a frame lock? How strange, because the frame photo with it opens doesn’t reveal the frame presenting a typical lock. But then I can see in your video that the frame lock is engaging. Maybe they took the blade open photos without the frame engaged.