Spyderco Tenacious v. Kershaw Blur v. Ontario Rat

L

Lasador

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Sep 11, 2019
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Over the years, when I thought of value EDC knife options, the Spyderco Tenacious, Kershaw Blur and the Ontario Rat would come to my mind the fastest. It's not so different now, because I own all three of these great knives and they have served me well in my EDC rotation. However, is the Spyderco Tenacious still a great value at over $50.00? It definitely was at $37.00. What about the Kershaw Blur at $60-65.00? And, finally, the Ontario Rat can still be had for at or even below $30.00.

For some, a smaller EDC knife like the Kershaw Leek ($40-50.00) would be preferable, but I still like some size to my knives on most days. Depends on your jurisdiction as well, I guess. If you are in to bigger knives, the Cold Steel Voyager with AUS10 steel is an outstanding knife for around $50.00.

I'm always on the prowl for newer edc options. Why? Because I'm a knifeaholic. My wife and my daughter will never understand, but maybe someone here will. Any suggestions for newer budget EDC options would be appreciated, as well as general discussion on this topic.
 
The price on just about everything is creeping up, but I think they are still a pretty good value. I've owned all three, I liked them and I feel like they are built to last, and while it's not premium steel the performance and edge holding are pretty good.

I'm warming up to some of the higher end Chinese made Kershaws, I think the Highball is pretty nice looking, I would love to know how well Kershaw does their D2, I've never tried it.
 
Yeah, I agree with you 100%! The price on knives in general has gone up, and I think it is even more pronounced with Spyderco knives though. Just take a look at the prices on the Delica 4 and the Endura 4. Hell, even the Dragonfly is way up there. I had a Dragonfly I bought for 40 bucks. Now, it's $66 on Amazon.

I have heard a lot of good things about Civivi, Kizer and other Chinese production knives which are using good steel in their knives for a cheap value. I hate to buy Chinese, but with the prices on some of these knives, it's getting hard to turn it down. With regard to the D2 steel, I've heard a lot of great things about that steel too, but I've been reluctant to try it because I live in a moist climate area and I know it's not very corrosion resistant.
 
I have two Spyderco Tenacious knives, but if I were buying today, I'd probably go for the Ontario Rat I. It looks like a better deal, even in D2.
 
Weiss said:
I have two Spyderco Tenacious knives, but if I were buying today, I'd probably go for the Ontario Rat I. It looks like a better deal, even in D2.
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I like my Tenacious a lot, but the RAT-1 feels a little better in hand and has a crazy good action. Mix that with D2 and it beats the Tenacious, at least functionally. Very practical and strong design.
 
Ontario Rat 2 is smaller than the Rat 1, has a 3-inch blade with a 2.75 cutting edge for areas where either of those might be required to make carrying it legal. I love me some Ontario Rats, although I'm partial to larger knives, thus the Rat 1 over the Rat 2. As many knives as I have now, and although I don't carry one much anymore, I still have a special place in my heart for the Rat 1. When that was the best knife I could afford, it served me so well!

Lasador said:
For some, a smaller EDC knife like the Kershaw Leek ($40-50.00) would be preferable, but I still like some size to my knives on most days.
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Good thread! I think very highly of the Kershaw Dividend. It’s more robust than the leek, it’s also made in the USA, and it is available in several different steel options.
 
I've had too many speedsafe springs break on me to recommend the Blur in good conscience. The Tenacious would be my pick. Very comfy and neutral-ish ergos + spydiehole and FFG make for a very nice little package. That being said I got mine when they were like $35.
 
I think the Rat 1 or 2 wins for alot of knife for the money.

I do believe you can have a cheap knife that can cut things for cheap.
Yet to have a well built knife that is built to last you will have to pay for it (other than the rat).
 
Lots of stuff under $50... heck there's plenty of EDC stuff for under $30 really.

Kershaw Volt is pretty cool. I like mine. The Cryo is a decently built piece too.

Couple lightweight carries for you... the Ka-Bar Dozier Folding Hunter and the Gerber LST... both very easy to carry. LST is Made in USA.

Buck really offers a splendid selection of inexpensive stuff. The Bantam and Vantage of course, and the 110 and 112 Slim Select are nice.

I had a Spyderco Persistence back in the day when they were less expensive. That budget line of Spydies is creeping up in price though.

For a great EDC for a great price, keep an eye on the Exchange here... always something unexpectedly cool and affordable popping up!
 
A d2 rat is basically unbeatable at that price point. I live in Houston, TX and I haven't had a problem with d2, 3v, m4 whatever. Now I'm primarily just pocket carrying and not mucking about, but still never an issue. D2 has 12%(?) Cr, maybe 14%..in any case, it's just a tad under what is considered "stain-less". If it were my money (and it has been), I'd take a rat 1 in d2 all day.
 
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The Rat in AUS-8 continues to be a solid value. My wife carries a Blur. It's a cool knife and 14C28N is a great budget steel. I just don't like aluminum handles and have fallen out of love with assisted opening. A big part of that is the proliferation of excellent manual actions among budget knives. More on that in a minute. First...

The Tenacious is NOT a good deal at its current price. I have a hard time justifying 8Cr13Mov on knives that cost $20-25. It's NOT a good steel relative to AUS-8, 12C27, 14C28N, Acuto 440, 9Cr18Mov, or Chinese D2. Sure, D2 can be an issue in some environments. If corrosion resistance matters though, every other steel besides AUS-8 on that list is also more stainless than 8Cr13Mov. To put this in context, the Byrd Meadowlark in 8Cr13Mov was a good deal when it cost $20. Now it costs $28.50 and I could only recommend it to someone who absolutely needed that form factor and had a severe budget restriction. Even then, I'd recommend going without and saving up.

Now for the good stuff. Have you tried Civivi? The Baklash continues to be one of their best knives. The Chronic is nice for a small knife. A lot of people are putting the Ortis up for budget knife of the year but I haven't tried it (yet). All of those use Civivi's 9Cr18Mov, which gets an excellent heat treatment and can outperform a lot of the Chinese D2. If you want D2 though, the Elementum is another gem of a small knife. Besides Civivi, I recently picked up an Artisan Arroyo. So far, I really like it. It uses their new AR-RPM9, which is a slightly modified PM version of 9Cr18Mov.
 
The Rat 2 is a great knife. I haven't used the other two mentioned.

Any of the more well known chinese knives seem to make great budget(and some also not so budget) knives: Civivi, CJRB, QSP, Ruike

Ruike in particular have some outstanding budget knives in 14C28N that, at least where I live, are about the best value you can get IMO.
 
two budget knives that i recently got that i really like and feel are great values are the cold steel double safe hunter and the cold steel bush ranger lite, both are in the $30 range and are well made and decent sized folders, the double safe hunter is slimmer and lighter

double safe hunter
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bush ranger lite
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These are some of my favorite value knives. I threw in a large Rat, and a Tenacious for size comparison.
Kizer Begleiters
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Artisan Cutlery Archeo, Bestech Scimitar, Bestech Kendo
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Civivi Baklash, Civivi Praxis,damascus, Civivi, Praxis,

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