$50 fixed blade revisited

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I posted recently soliciting suggestions for a fixed blade, general use,outdoors knife to replace my Grohmann #1. My criteria were a $50 price tag, about a 4"-5" blade, secure sheath and a keen, plain edge. I've surfed around and narrowed it down to three choices, and I'd appreciate some feedback.

1. Becker Crewman - maybe a bit too much knife, but I've become infatuated with it. It seems to be very high quality. Is it excessive for ordinary camping and outdoors use?

2. Benchmade Rant DPT - the size is right and I read good things about this brand. The grind looks like it would make for a good slicer and easy sharpener.

3 SOG Field Pup - seems similar to the Rant in size, shape, and grind. I know nothing about this brand.
 
I'd go for the Becker. As I said in the last thread, it's a substantial knife compared to your DH Russell #1, but that's not necessarily a bad thing ;) .

You may want to look at replacing the handle slabs at some point down the road.

Cheers,

Mike
 
CRKT Corkum First Strike... I got the smallest one from my B&M at $40 and its a great carry knife, though the kydex sucks and I ended up making a classier leather sheath and mirror polishing the knife. So, knife plus leather plus a few sheats of Si-Carbide paper should equal about $50.
 
IMHO Crewman if it will have to work, you can also look at new Gerber LMF II but its a bit dearer
 
AG Russel used to have some Ek Nightfighters made by Bark River. I dont know if they are still availible, but they would be my my choice for a $50 fixed blade. The blade was about 6", and made of A2, with Kraton handles. Looked like a really winner.
 
averageguy said:
Cold Steel Master Hunter.
Click to expand...

You would really have to get it throught mail order to get it at this price.

http://wwww.midsouthshooterssupply.com might have it.

What about the Cold Steel Mini Bushman? The 5 inch Kabars would be good. They better have better edges that the regular Kabars out of the box though. I like the crewmac but I think it should be narrower. What about the Becker Companion?
 
I'd go with the Becker. I have the Becker neck knife and used to have a Machaxe(had to sell it while out of work). Great solid knives, they hold their edge well, and the price is right. Good luck with your decision.
 
What are your regular outdoor activities? If you are expecting to do some camping at a national park or somerhing like that, the crewman may be too much of a knife. But then, it may be better to have more knife than you'll need than less. I don't own the crewman. I'm basing my comments on the information available about the crewman in the net.

My question would be, how much does it weight?

For regular camping use, my vote would go to the CS Master Hunter. It is a good slicer, strong, and versatile. whosalehunter has it for $52.00
 
I have a BK&T Crewman. Though it is a great knife for heavy use, I do think its blade is a little too thick to be a general camp knife. It is certainly a more classic design style. It weighs twice what the Rant does.

I don't have any experience with the SOG Field Pup. I really like the looks of the handle. It is almost half again the weight of the Rant!

I have handled the Rant DPT and find it feels great in the hand and do think the blade would make a good general camp knife.

I find the blade thickness and grind has much to do with how the blade will function as a general purpose camp knife. It seems you wouldn't go too wrong with either the Rant or the Field Pup.

Here are some blade thicknesses and knife weights:

Crewman ------0.188" ---12 oz.
Falkniven F1 ---0.180" ---6.0 oz.
Becker Necker--0.150" ---2.5 oz.
Rant DPT ------0.139" ---6.2 oz.
SOG Field Pup --0.130" ---3.5 oz.

I included the Becker Necker because I really like that blade. A version with a real handle and a bit longer blade would make a great camp knife.
 
Dr. Thor, I thought the same thing about the BR NF... That is until I got one. Save you're money, it is a POS. There was a thread on it awhile back & I gave a detailed report after recieving mine...

King Grinch, unless you have really small hands I think you might be likewise disappointed in the 5" Kabars - the handle is just too short IMO. And I'm a relatively small dude.

I'm partial to carbon steel so I'd go with the Becker - or even the CS MH. Or heck, as long as you can handle it first to make sure there are no QC issues, Ontario makes a couple smaller fixed blades that are decent & cheap:
http://www.knifecenter.com/kc_new/store_detail.html?s=ONSP21
http://www.knifecenter.com/kc_new/store_detail.html?s=ONSP25
 
The Cold Steel All Terrain Hunter ought to be a good one for a very low price. You can buy one for around $30, and the blade is Carbon V steel.
 
Thanks all for the input. I'm liking the Cold Steel Master Hunter, and I'm adding it to my list of contenders . . .

What, exactly, is a "concealex" sheath? The Master Hunter comes with one.

I'll read some reviews and see if I can handle any of these in a store somewhere, and then I'll post my decision when I make one.
 
Its a hard plastic moulded sheath similar to Kydex. The sheaths from CS are pretty good IMO. I found the Rant to be a little flimsy. I would go with the BK10 and work on the edge and handle if you dont think they are just right.
 
I've had and used both the CS and Becker extensively.

The CS Master Hunter is a good choice.
The Becker Crewman is a good choice.

If your outdoor chores will include much in the way of skinning / dressing of wild game, you will find the CS Master Hunter a better knife for that type of work. If your outdoor chores are more of the typical "Camp Work" kind of thing, I'd go with the Becker. It's bigger - significantly so - and I find the handle to be a little out-of-proportion to the blade... but I'm one of the guys who really likes Becker's handles, so for me it's a lot of *good* handle. ;) All around, I think the BK5 is the most practical and "general purpose" of the Becker line.

Some rumors claim they're both made out of the same steel (by Camillus.) In either case both are really good buys and both will give good service. Only thing I didn't like about the Master Hunter was the Kraton handle, and that's purely subjective.
 
I have heard some worrying stories about rapid wear on Cold Steel Krayton handles. Otherwise I prefer them to Becker handles. Actually, I prefer ANY handles to the Becker handles. They are too slippery, and in my case this lead to accidents. However, it is said that sandpaper will cure the slipperiness, so I guess that is not a reason to reject the Beckers outright.
 
I'm starting to lean towards the Becker Crewman (for today, at least). I don't need a knife for dressing game - my knife use tends towards the typical slicing and cutting chores that one would find while camping or around the property at home. From what I've read, the Crewman is sharp and has great slicing ability for such a stout knife. I do like the idea of indestructible "survival" quality even if I don't really foresee myself needing those capabilities. If I feel the need for a smaller knife, I could always keep my Grohmann.
 
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