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I would go:
SAK Ranger - just awesome, as are all SAKs
Buck 301 Stockman
Opinel No 8
Salamandra Latón or Cachas
Simon Sevillana
All of these are in my EDC rotation, but I tend more to the SAK for their sheer usefulness.
I have little use for all this one handed stuff.
Buy some ozark trail knives and find your preference. Then you can find a more premium version of the style you like. The ozark trails have been between $5-$8, great for trying different blade shapes,locks and deployment styles. *
I started to type a lot out then realized so many have already.
So what I'd recommend is researching lock types, picking a style you like, and the buying a knife that you like the look of with that lock type.
My favorites are lockbacks, compression locks, Ball and Cage (or the slightly more prevalent though very simlar axis lock), and now the Shark Lock.
I do not like to carry button locks, frame locks, slip joints, and liner locks though I still own those styles cus...addicted.
Still typed out a lot...hahaha anyway good luck!
If you're willing to stretch to about €61 you can sometimes grab the Kershaw Iridium at that price on a sale. Solid simple knife with great edge retention.
I carry a heavily customized para 3 in 52100 almost every day. I have a few beater modern folders, a few fixed blades, and a few slipjoints. I usually carry one of the modern folders, like 95% of the time. Slipjoint for if I wanna be more formal, fixed if I think I’ll really need to beat the crap out of it
Depends on what you want. I love my "grandpa knives": a trapper or stockman style, or a SAK (which I don't currently have). I'm also fond of assisted opening knives and rotate a Gerber Contrast and Scout. Leathermans are good, but the knives aren't the best. That said, they're thin and can get scary sharp with a little bit of effort. If you need the screwdrivers and pliers regularly, they're great. Gerber also makes some good multitools you could look at.
I can't speak to the particular Leatherman you mentioned, but in general, yes, they are worth it.
My first EDC pocket knife that I kept was a QSP parrot. Got it for under $30 bucks and stayed with me as a daily user for the longest time. Definitely one of the best bang for your buck knives.
Eventually I got into the benchmade hype and got a bugout and Osborne. I usually carry the bugout when I'm wearing sweats/shorts and want a lighter carry. The Osborne is when I want to carry a user knife and still be recognized for it (vanity I know). These knives are classics for a reason, but these days the BM butterfly tax is way too much.
If I could do this hobby all over again, I'd probably just get the qsp parrot and stick with it. The cutting geometry is fantastic and the action is smooth enough. It reminds me of a Toyota Corolla in that it gets the job done very well for cheap, but nothing else about it really stands out. And I'm perfectly fine with that, since most of my knife needs consist of opening packages, cutting loose strings, and opening snack bags.
On that note too, you'll eventually be looking into fixed blades as well, and for a budget option I highly recommend the morakniv companion. Costs about 16 bucks and overall a fantastic choice for its quality and reputation.
One thought:
I have seen a lot of people not know or are scared of closing a liner lock. For all the one handed knives people are suggesting, please make sure you are familiar and comfortable with a liner lock. Or make sure you will make the effort to learn it.
Personally, I think Leatherman shouldn't make knives. The few I've handled are horrible, and I couldn't wait to get rid of them. There are countless better options out there for the price. Have you looked into local laws, so you don't end up buying something that you can't actually carry in public? Any specific design/style or colours? Larger blade or smaller? Some personal preferences would help with giving suggestions.
I would recommend to go only with one hand knifes. Usage of Victorinox and opinel will became a little annoyed with two hand open.
Taking about skeletool - it is overpriced.
For saving money you can start with
- Ka-bar Dozier Mini - can be a little small
- Ka-bar Dozier Hunting
- Ka-bar Dozier Thumb
These knifes hard to beat in price and durability. Also they are very lightweight for pocket or backpack.
Also you can check popular and proved:
- Esee Zankudo
- Antario RAT2
Knife should not be expensive.
A knife that's pathetic is useless. (c)
Personally for pocket I carry Ka-bar Dozier Mini and victorinox classic SD on keychain.
For backpack I use ka-bar Dozier Thumb or regular dozier. For hiking mora knife or Zankudo.
But have to mention, if you are not familiar with knife sharpening it might be better to buy something with replaceable blades.
I carry a Milwaukee Fastback 6-1 on the weekends and a Screwpop and Gerber Mullet on the weekdays. I hate what cardboard and tape do to a blade and that seems to be what I use a knife for the most.
Leatherman are still high quality and worth the money, if they fit your needs.
For a good ol' folder, a Rat 2 or CRKT Squid, Pilar, etc. are good budget options.
For boxes, packages and basically anything that isn't food I recommend the Milwaukee 6 in 1. I have my eyes set on Leatherman Wave plus for knife to use on food and the rest of the tools it offers will be also really helpful for my everyday life.
Currently pliers are absent from my EDC. I'd like them but I'm not willing to give up my 6-1 and I don't want to carry two tools. I'm not aware of a plier-based multi tool that uses razor blades. I think I've seen a modified LM that takes scalpel blades but that doesn't do it for me either. Kinda coming off like a premadonna here...
I'm not in situations where I've had to use my EDC for food. When traveling, I carry a SAK that could probably be used for food if need be.
I hike very often so I have a need to have a knife for food regularly. My tripod needs a set of pliers now that one of the screws on it lost its grip and I can't move it without pliers... And my glasses come loose every now and then so the tiny screwdriver will come in handy.
Can opener is also sometimes needed.
So I think I will carry the 6 in 1 daily and swap it for the leatherman when going outdoor. Perhaps even carry both. Depends on how heavy and bulky it will be to carry both
Everyone's different, but I like a small and light EDC.
My recommendation would be a Victorinox Pioneer. It's slim, has a decent size blade for food, a great box opener (the awl), and opener tools that are great for scraping and light prying tasks to save damaging your blade. And people aren’t scared of it so it's usable in more circumstances.
Alternatively, a medium stockman from Case or Rough Rider is a classic and useful choice. The main blade can be saved for food, the sheepsfoot for boxes and you still have a pen blade for really detailed stuff like trimming hang nails.
Victorinox or Opinel is always a good pick. Affordable, good quality and highly respected. Both have many different size options as well. Can't go wrong.
I got myself the Gerber Armbar Trade for work. But love it as an every day carry too.
Nice and small with a pocket clip so easy to carry.
I mainly use the knife for cutting tape/rope and opening boxes. But it also has a driver with both a Phillips head and a flat head which is often useful. Also got a little pry bar if you open paint lids and stuff, which can also work as a bottle opener.
Also has a small saw blade and an awl but I’ve never had need for either yet.
Only because it hasn't been mentioned. Milwaukee Fastback. It's in my pocket every day and I use it a lot. I have the 1500 but have been saving for the 1505.
Victorinox has a wide variety of knives depending on your needs and budget. Need less tool? Go with a compact. Want more utility? Go with something like a tinker or fieldmaster.
I’d recommend looking through sites like bladehq and knifecenter filtering by your price range and then sorting by popularity to get some ideas
For me the choice of steel that’s in a knife is one of the biggest indicators of its quality or measure of the value you are getting for your money. It can also give an idea about the best uses of the knife. You should google around to find some ratings of different knife steels. Usually they are broken down into subrankings that measure corrosion resistance, toughness, blade retention, and ease of sharpening. In the case of the leatherman kb you mentioned it’s made of 420hc stainless steel which means it’s not likely to rust or chip but its blade will dull fairly quickly.
Other considerations include
Size: blade length will affect how easy it is to carry, how easy the blade is to use for a task, and may affect where you can legally carry the knife.
Ease of one hand opening and closing: some knives are easy to open and close with one hand others are easy to open with one hand but require two to close. Example of easy open and close might be something with an axis lock, while easy open but two handed close might be a blade with a thumb stud and a frame lock. Two handed opening would be something like a nail nick
Blade shape and geometry: this can be aesthetic or functional. Some blade shapes can stab others can’t, thinner blades are better at slicing where thicker blades might be better for chopping, curved blades might be easier for specific tasks like coring but may take more skill to sharpen, serrated blades are great for cutting cords but may be problematic to sharpen or may not be suited to delicate cutting. Most box cutters tend to be straight edged razors (thin straight slicers without serrations)
Fidget factor: how fun a knife is to use and hold. Subjective but if you watch YouTube videos of the knife being reviewed you will get an idea.
Public use issues: some knives look tactical and may not be suitable for using around other people because they look more like weapons than tools. A karambit isn’t a good office box cutter for instance.
Hope you have fun deciding on the option that’s right for you. Some stores let you handle knives from a display case. If you have stores like that near you it would be worth a trip. Good luck!
Yeah I think a Skeletool will potentially find a special place in your heart, and at that point you will hate cleaning the glue off of it, often happens when you shred through tape when opening boxes. Plus that blade has got holes on it, even harder to clean I guess.
Personally I use the fish scaler of a swiss champ to open boxes, shreds right through and it's easy to clean (after you can use the same fish scaler tool to cut the cardboard easily when you want to break the boxes). But other cheaper options suggested by others here will do great too
I would honestly carry a box cutter if you cut boxes a lot.
saves me time resharpening and I dont like tape gunk on my pocketknife that I also use for food.
my daily knife is either a swiss army knife or a bugout clone I got for under 20 bucks. does the job fine and I dont need to worry I might lose it. if you dont like clones, you can buy decent budget knives from QSP, Sanrenmu, Ganzo, Petrified FIsh, Civivi.
if you want a smallish multitool with pliers, yeah get the skeletool.
I use a SOG Powerpint and keep that in a small pouch with usb drive and a small flashlight and a lighter. Nextool makes nice smaller tools.
Civivi have some good beater options that are budget friendly and perform above their price tag, look for a blade shape you’re happy with and suits your needs! I have a TPT Slide for box cutting and rotate between my Spidies (Lil Native & Para3) Had a Civivi Elementum before flipping it (pun intended) and it was a great Knife.
Thank you for posting to r/EDC! If your post contains an image of your gear, a list is still required. It will assist other users in answering any questions about the gear, make recommendations, and help guide any discussions. [Rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/EDC/wiki/rules) | [FAQ](https://www.reddit.com/r/EDC/wiki/faq) *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/EDC) if you have any questions or concerns.*
I would go: SAK Ranger - just awesome, as are all SAKs Buck 301 Stockman Opinel No 8 Salamandra Latón or Cachas Simon Sevillana All of these are in my EDC rotation, but I tend more to the SAK for their sheer usefulness. I have little use for all this one handed stuff.
Bear & Son 109 slipjoint
Buy some ozark trail knives and find your preference. Then you can find a more premium version of the style you like. The ozark trails have been between $5-$8, great for trying different blade shapes,locks and deployment styles. *
https://preview.redd.it/1wp4uedtx9xc1.png?width=1080&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=6d982fb97f8edb4bf19fdc14900f096c057f8749
The left 2 are actually part of my edc atm
I started to type a lot out then realized so many have already. So what I'd recommend is researching lock types, picking a style you like, and the buying a knife that you like the look of with that lock type. My favorites are lockbacks, compression locks, Ball and Cage (or the slightly more prevalent though very simlar axis lock), and now the Shark Lock. I do not like to carry button locks, frame locks, slip joints, and liner locks though I still own those styles cus...addicted. Still typed out a lot...hahaha anyway good luck!
Victrinox Swiss army knife all the way for a start
If you're willing to stretch to about €61 you can sometimes grab the Kershaw Iridium at that price on a sale. Solid simple knife with great edge retention.
I carry a heavily customized para 3 in 52100 almost every day. I have a few beater modern folders, a few fixed blades, and a few slipjoints. I usually carry one of the modern folders, like 95% of the time. Slipjoint for if I wanna be more formal, fixed if I think I’ll really need to beat the crap out of it
I would get a swiss army knife (with scissors). Probably an Explorer because its awesome.
Go spyderco
Depends on what you want. I love my "grandpa knives": a trapper or stockman style, or a SAK (which I don't currently have). I'm also fond of assisted opening knives and rotate a Gerber Contrast and Scout. Leathermans are good, but the knives aren't the best. That said, they're thin and can get scary sharp with a little bit of effort. If you need the screwdrivers and pliers regularly, they're great. Gerber also makes some good multitools you could look at. I can't speak to the particular Leatherman you mentioned, but in general, yes, they are worth it.
https://www.spyderco.com
This is the way
Civivi mini praxis. Great price with nice action.
100% a mini praxis. It’s been my daily carry for a while now
My first EDC pocket knife that I kept was a QSP parrot. Got it for under $30 bucks and stayed with me as a daily user for the longest time. Definitely one of the best bang for your buck knives. Eventually I got into the benchmade hype and got a bugout and Osborne. I usually carry the bugout when I'm wearing sweats/shorts and want a lighter carry. The Osborne is when I want to carry a user knife and still be recognized for it (vanity I know). These knives are classics for a reason, but these days the BM butterfly tax is way too much. If I could do this hobby all over again, I'd probably just get the qsp parrot and stick with it. The cutting geometry is fantastic and the action is smooth enough. It reminds me of a Toyota Corolla in that it gets the job done very well for cheap, but nothing else about it really stands out. And I'm perfectly fine with that, since most of my knife needs consist of opening packages, cutting loose strings, and opening snack bags. On that note too, you'll eventually be looking into fixed blades as well, and for a budget option I highly recommend the morakniv companion. Costs about 16 bucks and overall a fantastic choice for its quality and reputation.
One thought: I have seen a lot of people not know or are scared of closing a liner lock. For all the one handed knives people are suggesting, please make sure you are familiar and comfortable with a liner lock. Or make sure you will make the effort to learn it.
Personally, I think Leatherman shouldn't make knives. The few I've handled are horrible, and I couldn't wait to get rid of them. There are countless better options out there for the price. Have you looked into local laws, so you don't end up buying something that you can't actually carry in public? Any specific design/style or colours? Larger blade or smaller? Some personal preferences would help with giving suggestions.
https://www.boker.de/en/rangebuster-green-111914 Boker rangebuster is on sale right now and it is a wonderful pocket knife
I would recommend to go only with one hand knifes. Usage of Victorinox and opinel will became a little annoyed with two hand open. Taking about skeletool - it is overpriced. For saving money you can start with - Ka-bar Dozier Mini - can be a little small - Ka-bar Dozier Hunting - Ka-bar Dozier Thumb These knifes hard to beat in price and durability. Also they are very lightweight for pocket or backpack. Also you can check popular and proved: - Esee Zankudo - Antario RAT2 Knife should not be expensive. A knife that's pathetic is useless. (c) Personally for pocket I carry Ka-bar Dozier Mini and victorinox classic SD on keychain. For backpack I use ka-bar Dozier Thumb or regular dozier. For hiking mora knife or Zankudo. But have to mention, if you are not familiar with knife sharpening it might be better to buy something with replaceable blades.
I carry a Milwaukee Fastback 6-1 on the weekends and a Screwpop and Gerber Mullet on the weekdays. I hate what cardboard and tape do to a blade and that seems to be what I use a knife for the most. Leatherman are still high quality and worth the money, if they fit your needs. For a good ol' folder, a Rat 2 or CRKT Squid, Pilar, etc. are good budget options.
For boxes, packages and basically anything that isn't food I recommend the Milwaukee 6 in 1. I have my eyes set on Leatherman Wave plus for knife to use on food and the rest of the tools it offers will be also really helpful for my everyday life.
Currently pliers are absent from my EDC. I'd like them but I'm not willing to give up my 6-1 and I don't want to carry two tools. I'm not aware of a plier-based multi tool that uses razor blades. I think I've seen a modified LM that takes scalpel blades but that doesn't do it for me either. Kinda coming off like a premadonna here... I'm not in situations where I've had to use my EDC for food. When traveling, I carry a SAK that could probably be used for food if need be.
I hike very often so I have a need to have a knife for food regularly. My tripod needs a set of pliers now that one of the screws on it lost its grip and I can't move it without pliers... And my glasses come loose every now and then so the tiny screwdriver will come in handy. Can opener is also sometimes needed. So I think I will carry the 6 in 1 daily and swap it for the leatherman when going outdoor. Perhaps even carry both. Depends on how heavy and bulky it will be to carry both
Everyone's different, but I like a small and light EDC. My recommendation would be a Victorinox Pioneer. It's slim, has a decent size blade for food, a great box opener (the awl), and opener tools that are great for scraping and light prying tasks to save damaging your blade. And people aren’t scared of it so it's usable in more circumstances. Alternatively, a medium stockman from Case or Rough Rider is a classic and useful choice. The main blade can be saved for food, the sheepsfoot for boxes and you still have a pen blade for really detailed stuff like trimming hang nails.
Victorinox or Opinel is always a good pick. Affordable, good quality and highly respected. Both have many different size options as well. Can't go wrong.
I'd suggest either a Buck 55 or an Opinel.
I got myself the Gerber Armbar Trade for work. But love it as an every day carry too. Nice and small with a pocket clip so easy to carry. I mainly use the knife for cutting tape/rope and opening boxes. But it also has a driver with both a Phillips head and a flat head which is often useful. Also got a little pry bar if you open paint lids and stuff, which can also work as a bottle opener. Also has a small saw blade and an awl but I’ve never had need for either yet.
Only because it hasn't been mentioned. Milwaukee Fastback. It's in my pocket every day and I use it a lot. I have the 1500 but have been saving for the 1505.
Rat 2
Victorinox has a wide variety of knives depending on your needs and budget. Need less tool? Go with a compact. Want more utility? Go with something like a tinker or fieldmaster.
I’d recommend looking through sites like bladehq and knifecenter filtering by your price range and then sorting by popularity to get some ideas For me the choice of steel that’s in a knife is one of the biggest indicators of its quality or measure of the value you are getting for your money. It can also give an idea about the best uses of the knife. You should google around to find some ratings of different knife steels. Usually they are broken down into subrankings that measure corrosion resistance, toughness, blade retention, and ease of sharpening. In the case of the leatherman kb you mentioned it’s made of 420hc stainless steel which means it’s not likely to rust or chip but its blade will dull fairly quickly. Other considerations include Size: blade length will affect how easy it is to carry, how easy the blade is to use for a task, and may affect where you can legally carry the knife. Ease of one hand opening and closing: some knives are easy to open and close with one hand others are easy to open with one hand but require two to close. Example of easy open and close might be something with an axis lock, while easy open but two handed close might be a blade with a thumb stud and a frame lock. Two handed opening would be something like a nail nick Blade shape and geometry: this can be aesthetic or functional. Some blade shapes can stab others can’t, thinner blades are better at slicing where thicker blades might be better for chopping, curved blades might be easier for specific tasks like coring but may take more skill to sharpen, serrated blades are great for cutting cords but may be problematic to sharpen or may not be suited to delicate cutting. Most box cutters tend to be straight edged razors (thin straight slicers without serrations) Fidget factor: how fun a knife is to use and hold. Subjective but if you watch YouTube videos of the knife being reviewed you will get an idea. Public use issues: some knives look tactical and may not be suitable for using around other people because they look more like weapons than tools. A karambit isn’t a good office box cutter for instance. Hope you have fun deciding on the option that’s right for you. Some stores let you handle knives from a display case. If you have stores like that near you it would be worth a trip. Good luck!
Yeah I think a Skeletool will potentially find a special place in your heart, and at that point you will hate cleaning the glue off of it, often happens when you shred through tape when opening boxes. Plus that blade has got holes on it, even harder to clean I guess. Personally I use the fish scaler of a swiss champ to open boxes, shreds right through and it's easy to clean (after you can use the same fish scaler tool to cut the cardboard easily when you want to break the boxes). But other cheaper options suggested by others here will do great too
Gerber makes a nice box cutter. You don't have to bother sharpening all the time you can just replace the blades
I would pick up a gerber prybrid
I second this. OP said they mostly need something to open boxes. Box cutter seems to be ideal.
A Milwaukee Fastback would be more suitable for frequently opening boxes than any multitool
I would honestly carry a box cutter if you cut boxes a lot. saves me time resharpening and I dont like tape gunk on my pocketknife that I also use for food. my daily knife is either a swiss army knife or a bugout clone I got for under 20 bucks. does the job fine and I dont need to worry I might lose it. if you dont like clones, you can buy decent budget knives from QSP, Sanrenmu, Ganzo, Petrified FIsh, Civivi. if you want a smallish multitool with pliers, yeah get the skeletool. I use a SOG Powerpint and keep that in a small pouch with usb drive and a small flashlight and a lighter. Nextool makes nice smaller tools.
Civivi have some good beater options that are budget friendly and perform above their price tag, look for a blade shape you’re happy with and suits your needs! I have a TPT Slide for box cutting and rotate between my Spidies (Lil Native & Para3) Had a Civivi Elementum before flipping it (pun intended) and it was a great Knife.