Favorite budget titanium frame locks?

C

Cajun Carry

Joined
Jun 29, 2022
Messages
83
I have been on a bit of a titanium kick recently, and of course most of these knives are pretty expensive. Looking to see if anyone has found some high quality titanium frame locks in the <$200 range.

I am planning on picking up the ZT Sinkevich 0460Ti which can be found for around $180. Would love to hear from anyone who owns this what you think about it.
 
Kizer makes excellent knives, including a wide range of Ti/Ti frame locks. It looks like some discontinued models, including the lovely-looking Zen, can be had for around $125 these days, but they make at least a dozen Ti frame locks under $200.

The WE Kitefin is within your budget. I've never owned a WE knife that wasn't worth the money, and folks seem to like the Kitefin. There are a couple other models within +$15 of $200, too.

I owned a QSP Penguin in its ordinary budget configuration, and it punched way above its price point. From what I've heard the Ti Penguin is solid.

Personally, though, I'd stretch an extra $20 and get the ZT 0450. It's a classic for all sorts of reasons, and great showcase for the brand. $200 is a funny spot for Ti frame locks: There are a million of them in that price range, but IMO a lot of them aren't terribly interesting. The 0450 bucks that trend. :)

AzVZvCB.jpg
 
Cajun Carry said:
These look sweet. I have heard good things about Toor. Didn't know they made folders.

Since you were able to handle a few, did they all seem well made or did you have to find one that was good?
Click to expand...
Mine is pretty much perfect but honestly the fit and finish seemed a little hit and miss on their first gen stuff. I’ve handled probably 12-15 of their folders (various models) and probably half had issues. The most common issues were blade play and some had the lock bar almost hitting the opposite scale. The lock bar issues were livable but I don’t like blade play on a knife. I haven’t seen any of the 2.0 merchants in person so I can’t speak to their quality.
I really think they make some cool designs but I do recommend handling them before you buy if possible depending on how particular you are. I’ve looked a few of their fixed blades over too and they seem well built but I have never used one.
edited to add a pic of the lockup on mine.
AD1198B1-0E63-4C8E-AE07-BA42B1F9A345.jpeg
 
Ontario is always good.

I would recommend the Spyderco Cricket. The first (before the Civilian) and smallest reverse-S shape, it's a powerful cutter with no wobble at all, tiny enough to fit in your watch pocket. I suppose it's a steel framelock. But, hey, it won't be a brick!

I am not a framelock guy, that is the only one I bought. I have a D2 green micarta CRKT Squid that is not bad.

I heard the Medfords coming out of China are budget and good quality, too, even comes in the same steel, D2! 😂
 
ScarFoot said:
Mine is pretty much perfect but honestly the fit and finish seemed a little hit and miss on their first gen stuff. I’ve handled probably 12-15 of their folders (various models) and probably half had issues. The most common issues were blade play and some had the lock bar almost hitting the opposite scale. The lock bar issues were livable but I don’t like blade play on a knife. I haven’t seen any of the 2.0 merchants in person so I can’t speak to their quality.
I really think they make some cool designs but I do recommend handling them before you buy if possible depending on how particular you are. I’ve looked a few of their fixed blades over too and they seem well built but I have never used one.
edited to add a pic of the lockup on mine.
View attachment 1883703
Click to expand...

Yours look super nice from what I can see. I really like the design. I think I'll head to my LGS and see if he has any in stock I can handle. Otherwise I'll probably hold off until Toor gets some more experience in folders.
 
Fixall said:
The Drop/Ray Laconico Keen is easily the best sub-$200, titanium frame lock I've ever owned or handled. It's available in several different flavors.

XNBM43n.jpg

yEsvNuM.jpg

OFZDPTY.jpg
Click to expand...


I really like these, and have had my eye out for one for a while. Purple is not a color I would typically go for, but it looks super good on this knife. Sadly, the only ones I have been able to find in stock recently have been the left handed models. Hopefully there is a restock soon, I'd love to have one.
 
Another vote for the ZT450….excellent knife. Mine came perfect out of the box, flipper fires open, drop shut action and lockup is perfect. Been EDCing this for the last few weeks and couldn’t be happier. Plus It’s not made in the CCP!!!702F6F7F-E2B2-492F-AF7F-270EE1D89DB3.jpeg
 
Last edited:
vwb563 said:
Lots of good stuff already mentioned but I would suggest checking out Defcon Knives. They build some very good TI knives and some are even sub $100 range.View attachment 1883940
Click to expand...

I had to sell my Kabuto when my cat got sick, that thing was freakishly good. The grind was nice, the detent ball felt almost flat-topped, the milling and skeletonizing and inlay and ano were all excellent. Dunno what that company's deal is but the one I had was amazing.
If you like the ZT 0460 then you owe it to yourself to try one of the top shelf Begleiters from Kizer, the KI4458 family, not the various Vanguard models (which are also outstanding examples of their work). I have the carbon fiber and the titanium, they're two of my favorites.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top