ALL THINGS BUDGET KNIVES

yea you are correct, i wonder if it would work in my brous reloader clone

There are these from USAKnifemaker but I think they’ll be too thick like isti says, they look like is would need a machining job to fit.
I also wondered about the fit on an Enlan EL-01 but they only need 20 thousandths of an inch each side.

Awesome, I’m looking forward to getting it too.

DISCLAIMER: All blame goes to freman, I came across the 7481 while researching the CRKT Persian Folder he posted earlier. :wink:

Hold on to your wallet…I went back on CRKT’s site tonight to look at the VASP again and found this gem:

CRKT Glenn Klecker Graphite 5195 Folding Blade Combo Edge

Another must have CRKT! No bearings but I like the high tech look of the open build skeletal frame. At first I thought it was a regular frame lock, then I realized it was on the top of the frame. It has something called an “integrated Klecker Lock”

My favorite blade shape a modified drop point (also 8Cr13MoV) it comes in plain edge or with “Veff Flat Top Serrations”. I like the plain edge but again I’m drawn to the rugged utilitarian look of the Veff Serrations. Now I’m torn on getting the plain or combo edge on this one.

Could still be considered budget at $36.95

(Click on photo for link to crkt.com/graphite Folding Knife)

Cheers
beam0

I’m waiting for these

Enlan Bee EM01

my excuse is that I can give them away at birthdays. Already have a stock of knives and flashlights that are to be given away.

More folding knives with no bolsters. Does anyone have data on the torque the pivots can stand? The one with metal supporting the pivot looks uncomfortable to hold.

Typically I think the lock would fail before the liners, except on an Axis lock where I reckon the liners would fail first.
You would be talking way more force than you could exert by hand on a well made knife like the Enlan EL-01.

The pivot pin on most Chinese knives is ¼” O.D. for the larger knives and 3/16ths for smaller, you won’t break or shear that with normal use. If you are in doubt then use a fixed blade. I carry a slip joint every day and feel safe enough with that, you might snap a blade at a weak spot, typically the pivot but you would have to be putting great force sideways on to the blade to do that, not really a knifey task you’d doing. I suppose it depends weather you use your knives for cutting or as a general purpose pry bar or screwdriver, not having a go - just saying that obviously anything can break if it’s not used for the intended use.

I recently bought a Hultafors Chisel knife that would take a lot of abuse before breaking, it sits in my toolbag alongside a Hultafors Heavy Duty knife, both with high carbon Japanese steel and stropped before leaving the factory. £12.90 ($19) for the pair.


Someone who was re-handling his Hultafosr Heavy duty with Curly Birch took this picture, although not full tang it’s tough enough. For £5.95 you get a carbon steel blade ready finished, very good value and probably the best quality/money balance that you are going to get. You could do the same with a Mora and ~I’m sure many have.


Strangely the Chisel knife doesn’t have a chisel grind.
Heavy duty 4” blade ⅛” thick
Chisel knife 3” blade ⅛” thick
Ideal if you want to apply high torque with a knife.

I think these two Spydercos would be strong in the pivot area.

These are more budget priced and would be plenty strong enough.


Even the G10 bolstered one would be strong enough, anyone who’s tried to break a 6mm piece of G10 will tell you how tough it is.

Don’t know where this is going but if you buy a known brand or even a lesser known one like the Y-Start knives then they are going to be strong enough for normal use.

I’ve deliberately left Frame locks until last as they are only as strong as the cut out that lets you unlock the knife and the metal that’s left there can be worryingly thin.
I’m not knocking the SanRenMu 710/7010 in fact as they go it’s a great little knife and I own a lot of them, about ten and a couple more are on the way but this pic shows how thin a framelock can get and why I wouldn’t get worried about frame locks or bolsters.


Compared to the liners on this linerlock Enlan you can see there’s enough in the thickness of the liners to give a very strong knife, no bolsters needed.

The stronger the better. Since a folding knife is usually your only tool at hand, the more things it can do the better. So the question isn’t “Is it strong enough?” It is “Is it as strong as it can be without significant loss elsewhere?”
I was surprised how quickly I got a very sharp edge on my Hultafors. Thanks for your previous post about them. I may get another some time to re-handle. I have some teak wood left over from fixing my son’s kris that I could use either for that or for the Eye brand Sheffield table knives.
I like those Spydercos a lot, but have enough knives for now.

When I began this thread, I knew that (for me) the definition of "budget knives" is ever evolving. As I spend more time looking into the universe of knives, the $$$ ceiling for "budget" gradually rises like an elevator to infinity!

I'm now fishing the ocean of "low cost" custom fixed blade knives. I suspect that the simpler mechanics/parts/assembly of fixed blades may put more of my money into the knife itself. Also, these knifemakers seem to be, well, more artistic.

Here's a sample of one I landed this week:

Yep, gorgeous damascus and Boxed Elder Burl wood (dyed purple/eggplant). Sheath is custom grey leather.

Think I'll be fishin' in these here waters for a spell!

Two big knives, one small knife.

Timber Rattler Scarab
Cold Steel Espada XL G10
Victorinox Minichamp Midnite

Needless to say, the Victorinox is the one I carry everyday.

I got my Sanrenmu 6029LUC-G. Wonderful quality but I hope the styles turn more to my taste.
The last thing in the “Instruction” is “Note All knives sold in mainland China do not have a lock, since they are not subject to the carrying ban-law.” I think I read someone in Britain refer to a law that favored locking knives, though I can think of no good reason for such a distinction. Perhaps Hong Kong also has such a law left from British administration.
More interesting, they sell all non-locking knives in China and one sees mostly locking knives in the US, so locking is a matter of style and popular taste rather than an agreed upon advantage. And that might be part of why liner locks are more popular relative to back locks than they used to be. It is probably easier to have both locking and non-locking versions of a model if it is a liner lock than if it is a back lock that requires a different spring configuration. Also, the lack of a metal bolster would not matter as much without a liner lock, which weakens the liner rather than weakening the blade as back locks do. (Admittedly, the fiber glass handle makes up for some of this.) So the bolster-less style may originate in the Chinese market more than in those where locking knives are preferred.

Not entirely true as far as there not being agreed upon advantages. Some locks are stronger, some easier to manipulate one handed, some only work with one hand (lefty or righty), some are cheaper, some will self adjust with wear. There’s a lot that goes into a good blade lock.

Made from the right materials, I prefer a frame lock. Next for me is the axis style lock, then liner, then lockback. In a general sort of way that ends up being in order of long term lockup stability (not necessarily strength, I avoid using folders hard enough to damage the locks from prying, banging, etc), but implementation matters and some companies get it right and some don’t.

Hi, anyone knows where i can buy knife washers?
i think the ones in my Navy k607 need replacing.

the knife doesn’t open smoothly, so i took it apart to find out why.
turns out the inner circle of the washers is very rough.
it kinda looks like this.
it’s not my pic. i found it by googling. but my washers look just like that.
i tried to smooth out the edge with a screw driver and put the washers back and lube it of course. it did make the opening a little smoother but still not as smooth as i hope.
so i think the washers have to be replaced. I tried searching aliexpress and did not find any.

There are lots of places online. Do a Google search for knife parts and you should turn up a few stores. I’d recommend phosphor bronze.

This link for washers was posted earlier. Hope they are proper sizing for your Navy.

http://www.lazylizardgear.com/store/c13/Washers_%2526_Parts.html

wow, the international shipping is really expensive. ( i am in canada). thanks anyway.

If someone find a good shop for international shipping (for example on aliexpress), please post it.

I wonder if normal bronze washers in big box stores and such contain phosphorous like alloy 544 phosphor bronze. It's widely accepted that phosphorous increases the wear resistance and stiffness. So maybe it's already in most common bronze washers. I don't know this. Just wondering.

You’ll spend half your life lapping the washers to finally get a pair of them thinned out to the correct thickness and parallel out of bronze hardware store washers(this is critical if you want them to not be a huge disappointment). Order some of the real deal online and be patient and you’ll end up spending far less of your life frustrated.

Introducing "Bush Hawg":