Knife Reviews: Favorite Knives $50.00 and Under
Not only are knives a common topic of discussing in relation to prepping, but most of my favorite hobbies also involve using a knife of some sort.
It’s no secret that you can easily spend hundreds of dollars on a quality knife. But this post is more about very good knives that don’t cost an arm and a leg. And all my years of buying, losing, and breaking knives has caused me to be less interesting in shelling out a bundle of cash on a single knife (or really any piece of equipment I can easily lose). I make it a point to try and find the best quality knives I can get for a reasonable price. So I’m going to talk about some of my favorite knives that cost $50.00 or less, and provide some of my own personal opinions, experiences, and knife reviews.
1. Kershaw Blur Folding Knife
Cost: $50.00 and up
Regardless of price, the Kershaw Blur is my absolute favorite folding knife of all time. I first started buying Kershaw knives many years ago. I saw one that I thought a friend would like, so I bought it for her as a gift. I was impressed with the quality and ended up getting one for myself. Since then, I’ve had many different Kershaw models, and my favorite for the past 9 or 10 years has been the Blur. In total, I’ve probably purchased 20 of these over the years. I’m on my third one personally (as I said, sometimes I lose things) and I’ve given away the rest as gifts.
The blur is the perfect size for my hand. It’s got a good belt clip (that can be moved to the other side if preferred). There are several versions of the Blur. You can get smooth blades or serrated. You can get the standard drop-point or tactical tanto blades. There are many finishes/colors to choose from. I tend to prefer with the solid black or olive green, with a non-serrated, drop-point blade.
But the coolest feature of this knife is its opening mechanism. It’s a spring-assisted open, but not like you’ve seen before. Rather than awkwardly pivoting the blade open with your thumb, you simply push
slightly forward on the small thumb stud. With barely a nudge, it fires open in a split second. It’s not a switch-blade by definition, but it opens just as fast.
The handle is inset with Kershaw’s proprietary grip material. It’s a very rigid and grippy rubber-type material that makes it nearly impossible for your fingers to slip on. The blade comes razor-sharp and keeps an edge very well.
This folder exemplifies style and function at a very affordable price. The Kershaw Blur configuration that I prefer comes in at just about $50 (though I’ve seen the prices fluctuate up and down a bit over the years). Some of the other finishes and blade-styles cost more (as much as $100).
TUO Cutlery Santoku Chef’s Knife
Cost: $30.00
I mentioned knives being useful in most of my hobbies, and cooking is a big one. Whether it’s out in the woods, at the hunting cabin, or in my kitchen at home the one thing I can never do without is good chef’s knife. I love the idea of having one of those thousand-dollar Japanese master chef knives, but it’s just not going to happen. I’m a little too rough with my tools and I have a propensity for losing things. So I set out to find a great knife at a pretty low price.
I’m partial to the Santoku style of chef knife, and I used the KitchenAid brand for a number of years with pretty good results. But the time came to replace it after I became frustrated with a stubborn joint in a deer leg and ended up damaging the blade a bit. Rather than just get another KitchenAid knife, I thought I’d look around and see what else was out there. That’s when I came across this product from TUO Cutlery.
This 7″ Santoku knife features a 1.416 German stainless steel blade. It holds an edge quite well and I usually run my sharpening rod over it a couple times before each use. The handle is made from Pakkawood, which is an engineered composite made from wood and resin. It’s as pretty as it is comfortable, if not slightly on the heavy side. Overall the knife has great balance and does a terrific job chopping delicate vegetables and slicing thick cuts of meat.
Cold Steel SRK Rescue/Survival Knife
Cost: $50.00
It’s my opinion that anyone who spends a lot of time in the great outdoors needs a solid fixed-blade sheath knife. While I never leave home without my Kershaw pocking knife, I consider it prudent to have a big, meaty blade at my disposal while in the wilderness.
So I’ve had a variety of fixed-blade “survival” knives over the years, and one of my favorites was actually given to me as a Christmas gift by my good friend. This is the Cold Steel SRK. It’s marketed as a “survival and rescue knife”. It’s got a dark, sleek, almost mean look to it. Also available as a tanto, mine has the standard blade. This model’s features a 6″ blade with SK-5 blackened “Tuff-Ex” finish, according to Cold Steel’s specs. There is also a non-blackened model available, called the 3-V SRK (though it comes at a higher price point). This blade is rather thick and extremely durable.
The handle is coated with Cold Steel’s proprietary textured rubberized material for an absolutely ridiculous grip. I think I could slather this handle in bacon grease and still hang on to it with no problem. It also comes with durable hard-shell sheath that keeps the SRK locked securely in place.
I am very confident in this extremely sturdy knife for any task that needs a serious tool. From batoning a tree branch to splitting a deer pelvis, this thing won’t skip a beat. I’m sure I could do like John Rambo and spear a wild boar if I had to!
This knife has a permanent home in my survival bag, and it’s sure to accompany me anytime I leave the beaten path.
Outdoor Edge Game Processing Set
Cost: $50.00
A long time ago I purchased a custom-made Loveless-style drop point hunting knife. It’s a work of art, and I’ve never been able to bring myself to bury it in a deer carcass or really anything else. I just know I’m going to damage or lose it! I’m not really a person who collects things for the sake of collecting things, but this is one item that is just going to stay safely at home. And since this post is all about knives around $50 or less, it doesn’t really have any place here anyway!
My current favorite for field dressing and processing game is actually not a single knife, but rather a complete set. I was looking for an inexpensive (big surprise) field dressing kit to keep in my hunting bag, and I came upon this product. It has very good reviews online, and the price was right. I didn’t really know what to expect from a $50 kit that comes with 3 knives, a saw, and more, but I definitely acknowledge that there’s bargains to be found out there!
I owned this kit for over 2 years before I ever tried it out. My group had a great day of deer hunting and we had a few to gut, skin, and butcher. After completely processing 3 deer with only this kit, I can’t say enough good things about it. I was, and still am, thoroughly impressed with this inexpensive set of knives.
This set comes with the following pieces:
- Skinning blade with gut hook
- Caping Knife
- Boning/Fillet Knife
- Bone saw
- Tungsten carbide sharpener
- Rib spreader
- Nylon carrying case
In working on those deer, I found that I mostly used the skinner and boning knife. The saw, of course, came in handy for the ribs and pelvis. The boning blade had just a bit of flexibility, which is a must. I didn’t really use the rib spreader, since we had plenty of hands available to help. The rubberized handles on each knife made it easy to grasp even when it (and I) became covered in slippery deer blood and fat.
The blades stayed perfectly sharp the entire time. Once enough fat and goo accumulated, I would take a time-out to clean them up a bit. When clean of gunk, they cut like surgical instruments. The rugged carrying case holds everything tightly together so you can easily tuck it away in your backpack or duffel. I can’t say much about the knife sharpener, because I never had to use it.
If you’re new to hunting, or simply haven’t found a hunting knife or set that you really like, I really recommend giving this one a shot.
Ka-Bar Fighting Knife
Cost: $50.00 and up
No “survival knife” discussion would be complete without at least mentioning Ka-Bar. The classic Ka-Bar fighting knife has been a staple of the United States Marine Corps since the 1940’s. While some details, manufacturing materials, and variations have changed since then, the standard Ka-Bar’s design has stayed pretty true to the original.
I’ve certainly never been in a situation where I had to engage in a knife fight. Nevertheless, no knife enthusiast can resist owning at least one Ka-Bar, if not just for tradition!
I’ve owned a few different Ka-Bar models, but the one I want to talk about here is not the original style. It’s actually the Ka-Bar “short”. Virtually identical to the original fighting knife but slightly smaller, the Ka-Bar short is the little brother to the original.
With a rigid, heavy black blade and the trademark segmented handle grip, the “short” offers all the features of its big brother in a smaller package. The blade length is 5.25″ (original is 7″) and the overall length is 9.25″ (original is 11.875″). It still fits comfortably in the hand with no fingers being left out, and sports the same steel hand guard.
The original handle was made of wrapped brown leather, with an updated model offering a black rubberized grip. Each Ka-Bar fighting knife also comes with basic leather sheath, though a rigid Kydex sheath is available to purchase separately.
I have seen the price for this knife fluctuate a bit over time, but it tends to hover around the $50 mark.
Morakniv
Cost: $15.00
Well no prepper discussion about knives would be complete without at least an honorable mention of the humble Mora.
After reading a lot of buzz and high praises about Mora knives online, over the course of several years, I saw one for sale on Amazon thought, “Why not?” They’re ordinarily not very expensive anyhow, and
this one was on sale for about $15.00. The one I purchased is the the Mora “Craftline Robust Trade Knife” model.
Mora owners seem to love these knives because they’re high quality for the price. Considering the very low price, this shouldn’t be a very high bar to beat. After having mine for awhile, I tend to agree. Considering the price, it’s a good knife. It’s not my best knife by far, and I think spending about double (a whopping $30!) can get you something far nicer. That being said, the Mora blade on my Craftline Robust Trade Knife is very thick and stout, and quite sharp. Surprisingly sharp, actually. I haven’t put it through any significant “torture tests” so I can’t speak too much on how the edge holds up over time.
My biggest complaint about my Mora is the handle. It’s comfortable enough to grip, but it is very lightweight. A very light handle could seem like a perk to some, but to me it throws off the balance of the whole knife a bit. Additionally, I can’t help but think that it feels cheap and easily broken. It seems to be made from pretty ordinary, cheap plastic, and due to the weight and feel it’s obvious that my Mora is not a full-tang knife. When paired with the thick, heavy blade, the lightweight handle just feels a little unimpressive.
That being said, it’s a solid knife for $15. You could buy several of these and put one in every bag, kit, and vehicle. After all, any knife you have is better than the knife you don’t.
Rapala Fillet Knife
Cost: $13.00
If you’re a fisherman then I don’t need to tell you how necessary it is to have a decent fillet knife. There are so many options for a fish fillet knife, as well as range in prices you could pay. But at the end of the day, it has to be razor-sharp and flexible. I’ve used both expensive and cheap fillet knives, and I have not observed an extreme advantage with the expensive ones. I’m not a seriously-hardcore fisherman, so maybe this is just my novice opinion. But if you’re a pro angler, you don’t need me to tell you which fillet knife to buy!
And as I’ve mentioned, I lose things sometimes. My first fillet knife fell off the side of a pier and I never saw it again. Since then, I go with the inexpensive but proven Rapala.
Like many companies, Rapala updates their product lines every once in awhile. So my current fishing fillet knife isn’t actually available anymore. But the Rapala4 Soft Grip fillet knife is very close. As far as I can tell, the blade is the same but they’ve made improvements to the handle. Mine has a hard plastic handle, and the Rapala4 has a rubberized soft-grip handle.
Available in several lengths, I’m partial to the 6″ blade. It works best for me when slicing the scales and skin off a bass fillet.
The Rapala4, as with older models, comes with a rigid sheath with built-in sharpener.
CRKT Sting Boot Knife
Cost: $40.00
I’ll be honest: This knife doesn’t really serve any real practical purpose for me. I just thought it looked cool. I thought I wanted a small fixed-blade knife to try and wear horizontally on my belt, but I never found it particularly comfortable or even useful.
Nevertheless, I think the CRKT Sting boot knife is a very pretty knife! The perfectly symmetrical, double-edged design features a seriously sharp black powder-coated 1050 carbon steel blade.
The handle isn’t particularly comfortable to me, and there is no grip material or texture. It’s smooth metal with no hand-guard. On the other hand, my good friend has one also and registers no such complaints.
All in all, I like this little knife even though I don’t have much use for it. It’s 6.85″ overall with 3.2″ blade. It is small enough to tuck into a pocket of a small go-bag (or put in your boot, if that’s your thing). While I don’t love the handle, this knife is heavy and sturdy, and I’m sure it could take a beating if it had to.
