Best of 2018

But the best one would have to be my Knife or Death Behemoth Chopper!
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Best of the year? I've had a few. CRK Large CF Inkosi, Large Micarta Damascus, Shiro HatiOn Lite, Brian Nadeau Mini Typhoon (x2) and a couple others. But, I think without a doubt, my Chuck Richards Counselor 2.0 has been my favorite addition. Just a great knife that is built to use! Fancy but tough as nails.

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Velitrius said:
Paid for my oldest son's first year of college.
Hell of a pile of knives that could have been bought with that hell of a pile of cash.
But the kid's damn well worth it, so I'll forego a few vices of my own for a couple years.
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Congratulations! It’s a good feeling to help a son through college. I’m working on that myself. Well done, sir.
 
And my winner is...

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Bastinelli RED

Neither my nicest nor my most expensive, this knife just seems to do everything well. Slicing, piercing, comfortable to carry, comfortable in the hand and deploys like a bolt of lightning. What makes it my 'best' of 2018, though, is that it was an impulsive, sight-unseen purchase that turned-out to be great.
 
Of the 9 knives I bought this year, the best is of course the last one I bought, a BM 943 (wanted this one since '17). Closely followed by the 484 Nakamura.
 


Here’s all my knife purchases for the year. I wound up with a Spyderco bias; they’ve been killing it IMO! A few notable notes:

-Most plesantly surprised: Pac Salt. I bought it for a sailing trip, with low expectations other than corrosion resistance. Turns out it’s an amazing knife! Maybe the Endura crowd is onto something.

-Best EDC: Tough running, but the Kapara narrowly beats the Spyder Monkey due to blade length.

-Overall favorite: Wow, another tough decision...I mean, look at the competition! Prior to November, I probably would’ve said the Rhino. I’ve been amazed at how many big things this little knife can do! Ultimately though, I’m still crushing hard on the Kapara so I’ll give it top spot in a very competitive field.

-Least favorite: Ok, this isn’t a slam, but if I had to give up one of the knives I purchased last year, it would be the Gent. The Gent is a good knife. Quality and materials are great for the price. Emotionally though, it just doesn’t move me. In my rotation it’s become a travel knife. It’s plenty capable for any reasonable EDC needs, but if it gets nicked out of my checked baggage I’ll be able to live with the loss.

-Honorable mention: Can you believe it’s such a good year for knives that a Sebenza 21 Thuya and Spydiechef are lost in the pack? They’re definately not lost; both are AMAZING knives!

ETA: If I have any money left at the end of next week, I’d like to finally treat myself to a ZT 0609 before New Years. Kids and wife come first this time of year though.
 
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I'm very pleased with the few blades I got in 2018.

Puma Hunter's Pal
Grohmann Yachtsman
CS Canadian Belt knife

The Puma and CS are users for hunting and the Grohmann is a falconry knife.
 
Uncle Timbo said:
Hey Jonny - is that one a safe queen? :D
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Hey Timbo! Well, it's been a safe queen for the last month or so. Haven't had a chance to get outside to do anything. Christmas and kids' sports have us running ragged! Merry Christmas to you and all yours Timbo!
 
91bravo said:
Hey Timbo! Well, it's been a safe queen for the last month or so. Haven't had a chance to get outside to do anything. Christmas and kids' sports have us running ragged! Merry Christmas to you and all yours Timbo!
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Yea, just joshing ya, that baby looks well loved. I'm sure Nathan's proud of you.
Merry Christmas to you and Jeannie down there in all that SUNSHINE!
 
This year I picked up:
Benchmade x Shinola 485 - it’s a pretty knife but I ended up not liking it after I carried it quite a bit. Traded it for the next knife on my list.
Spyderco PM2 - I went with a used BBS model. The knife was awesome but I just didn’t like the blade finish(the previous owner had stone washed it). I sold this one but I plan on picking up another.
Bradford Guardian 4 - The 3D handle is amazing and the FFG cuts so well! I really like the CPM-3v steel. If I had to pick a fault, I’d say I’m not a huge fan of the stock leather sheath, but that was fixed by ordering an Armatus Carry sheath.
Bradford Guardian 3 - I liked the 4 so much I picked up his little brother. I’ve carried the 3 more, but I love using the 4.
Spyderco Mantra 3 - my first flipper! I like the knife a lot. The scales a grippy, the wire clip is damn near perfect. It’s a good size and it disappears into my pocket.
Massdrop + Laconco Keen - I really wanted to like this knife. The grind was great, the purple handle was gorgeous and it had a great finish. It flipped really well, better than than the Mantra. I felt like I’d break the clip, didn’t like how it carried, and overall it just didn’t work for me. I sold this one.
Spyderco Spydiechef - there is something about this knife. The steel doesn’t hold an edge as long as I’d like. The action is a little stiff. Sometimes the lock sticks a bit. But I love everything about this knife. It’s got character I guess?

I started this year owning 3 Benchmade knives and a handful of Kershaws. My favorite knife this year was the guardian 4. But overall I have to say that Spyderco won me over with quirky knives that are functional and great to carry. I still think they’re still pretty ugly(except the Spydiechef...something about this knife...).
 
91bravo said:
I know you are Unc! Thanks! But sunshine??? I don't think so, it's been raining for the last 2 weeks here! Come take it all away!
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Very little sunshine for me either. We're like 25 inches of rain above the normal year total at this point and we have another week to go in 2018. And I don't live in the places that were hit really hard by hurricane/tropical storm rainfall this year. Rain keeps me out of the woods. Snow... love it as long as I can get around and keep my objectives reasonable for the conditions. I would love to play around with that knife 91bravo, but I know the amount of use I have for such just does not justify the acquisition unless I just want it.
 
I like big choppers and they take the place of an axe for me. I love axes and have a few, but haven't touched them in years. So I can justify the need for a large knife/chopper!
 
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