View Full Version : Looking for EDC fixed blade
I'm in the market for a mid sized fixed blade for EDC purposes, carried on a belt. I tend to like 4 inch blades, and I'm lucky in that I work in a place where it's not a big deal to have a knife on my belt, so I'm looking to try out carrying a fixed blade instead of a large folder. Most of my cutting tasks are pretty mundane, but I like having utility in a blade, and there's a good chance it will have to fill in as a filet or gutting/skinning knife from time to time. I have left my fishing knife at home more than once and had to use a pocket knife to cut up bait. I don't need it have dive knife corrosion resistance, but I live in Florida so I'd like something that isn't going to rust just from getting sweat on, or pick up rust if it gets exposed to salt water and it takes me a day to give it a thorough cleaning.
I am not set on any particular blade shape, but I do want a useable point. I like Bowie's, but that's not a deal breaker. I've been looking hard at the Spartan Phrike, but I'm not a fixed blade expert so I'm open to suggestions. Any thoughts?
Thanks!
Look at the Bradford guardian series. A bit hefty in the grip, but sure easy to hang on to. Available in CPM-3v, M390, and Elmax. I EDC the guardian 3 in a horizontal sheath.
Adrenaline_6
08-24-20, 20:13
Spartan makes nice knives.
As far as corrosion resistance, how about a Syperco Waterway?
https://www.knifecenter.com/item/SPFB43GP/spyderco-waterway-salt-series-fixed-lc200n-satin-plain-blade-black-g10-handles-boltaron-sheath
Three options at a higher, middle, and lower price points. All outstanding.
Amtac Blades - Northman - https://amtacblades.com/product/the-upgraded-northman/
Dauntless Manufacturing - Harris Knife - https://www.dauntlessmfg.com/product-page/the-harris
ESEE - Izula 2 - https://www.eseeknives.com/product/izula-ii
ColtSeavers
08-24-20, 21:14
Benchmade Adamas 375?
Buck 537?
White River Knives Justin Gingrich GTI 4.5"?
Spartan Formido?
Lots of cool suggestions, the Amtac and the White River knives look especially interesting.
ColtSeavers
08-25-20, 11:01
SOG Pillar? (5" blade though)
Spartan Harsey 'tactical trout' (designed by Bill Harsey, he's one of the legendary knife designers). A little spendy but has almost perfect specs as kind of a mid-size general-purpose spear point blade. It's really thick at 3/16", heavy, and built like a tank, which is good if you're going to use it like a sharpened prybar, less good if you want it to be a general purpose slicer and a convenient lightweight carry.
https://spartanbladesusa.com/shop-all/spartan-harsey-tactical-trout/
Bradford Guardian 4 (3d = wider handle) in M390. This guy is still a beefy blade, but a little thinner (0.165 vs 0.1875 for the Harsey), and 1 to 2oz lighter. You can also request to upgrade sheath to a kydex one vs the provided leather one, they make good sheaths; I'd strongly recommend doing that. I own this blade myself, it's outstanding steel and contour for a 4" blade that you can still EDC.
https://bradfordknives.com/guardian-4/21-1885-3d-guardian-4-m390.html#/2-fastener_type-tumbled/3-handle_color-od_green/22-blade_grind-sabre/24-blade_finish-nimbus_10
ETA also if you're checking the Phrike, check the Spartan Formido, a newer one in their lineup, it's an nearly 4" blade with a good-sized handle but a lot slimmer profile, designed for carry:
https://spartanbladesusa.com/shop-all/formido-self-defense-every-day-carry/
I'd look at the EDC (3") or Field Knife (4.5") from Carothers Performance Knives. They are hard use knives and will serve you well.
Another option would be Fiddleback forge midtech Kephart or Bushfinger.
I'm a big fan of ESEE knives as my go to work knife. Beat the crap out of them and they just keep on going. A majority of their lineup is 1095- geared more towards survival knives that need to take abuse and be easy to put an edge back on, however it does rust fairly easily.
For your use case, I'd think the ESEE 3 in S35vn would be a great option. I picked one up as an EDC alternative to my 1095 model. Holds a phenomenal edge and is a perfect size for a slightly larger EDC fixed blade.
If you decide to go more compact than that, the previously mentioned ESEE Izula is another fantastic choice. They make models in 1095 and 440c stainless.
Also a huge aftermarket for custom kydex sheaths for them. Armatus carry is my go to.
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I'm a big fan of ESEE knives as my go to work knife. Beat the crap out of them and they just keep on going. A majority of their lineup is 1095- geared more towards survival knives that need to take abuse and be easy to put an edge back on, however it does rust fairly easily.
For your use case, I'd think the ESEE 3 in S35vn would be a great option. I picked one up as an EDC alternative to my 1095 model. Holds a phenomenal edge and is a perfect size for a slightly larger EDC fixed blade.
If you decide to go more compact than that, the previously mentioned ESEE Izula is another fantastic choice. They make models in 1095 and 440c stainless.
Also a huge aftermarket for custom kydex sheaths for them. Armatus carry is my go to.
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I have an ESEE 5 that’s my go to “end of the world” knife. It’s more of big chunk of steel for digging, prying, and hammering that happens to have a sharp edge. I hadn’t checked their products in awhile and didn’t realize they had powder steels know—I like 1095 but between sweat and the amount of time I spend around salt water I hadn’t looked at them.
I have an ESEE 5 that’s my go to “end of the world” knife. It’s more of big chunk of steel for digging, prying, and hammering that happens to have a sharp edge. I hadn’t checked their products in awhile and didn’t realize they had powder steels know—I like 1095 but between sweat and the amount of time I spend around salt water I hadn’t looked at them.Definitely makes them a more viable EDC option
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I'd look at the EDC (3") or Field Knife (4.5") from Carothers Performance Knives. They are hard use knives and will serve you well.
Another option would be Fiddleback forge midtech Kephart or Bushfinger.
+1 on CPK knives, esp anything in CPM-3V steel, kinda' their forte. Trick with those guy is always finding a knife available at the time you want one.
ESEE 4
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20200826/c3af17c93c22bbc1b4c47f1478762ba8.jpg
Folks recommending ESEE--I like them too, I have two of the Junglas, but OP said: "I don't need it have dive knife corrosion resistance, but I live in Florida so I'd like something that isn't going to rust just from getting sweat on, or pick up rust if it gets exposed to salt water and it takes me a day to give it a thorough cleaning."
ESEE, with a couple of exceptions, are all 1095 steel which pretty much rusts if you look at it wrong.
There is 1 model in the ESEE 4 line that is stainless, this guy. Nice thing about ESEE is they give you everything you need, this package includes a good sheath:
https://www.knifecenter.com/item/RC4PSS002/esee-knives-esee-4p-ss-002-440c-stainless-plain-edge-3d-machined-gray-black-g10-handles-black-sheath-clip-plate
Dave Williams
08-26-20, 20:44
I have the Northman and Magnus from Amtac. The Northman is pretty awesome, in that you're carrying this fix blade knife in your pocket quite easily, and it's fast to come out. I feel like the steel(M390) kinda sucks, but the steel has a good reputation. The guy who sharpens my knives hates it and likes AUS8 better! The Magnus is very nice also and disappears due to the Sayoc style sheath. They're coming out with a 4" knife to split the difference between the Northman and Magnus. Basically the Sayoc style sheath is awesome and any knife will benefit from it. Makes it super easy to conceal and deploy. There are companies who'll make a Sayoc style sheath for your knife so you could buy whatever you want and just have a sheath made.
Folks recommending ESEE--I like them too, I have two of the Junglas, but OP said: "I don't need it have dive knife corrosion resistance, but I live in Florida so I'd like something that isn't going to rust just from getting sweat on, or pick up rust if it gets exposed to salt water and it takes me a day to give it a thorough cleaning."
ESEE, with a couple of exceptions, are all 1095 steel which pretty much rusts if you look at it wrong.
There is 1 model in the ESEE 4 line that is stainless, this guy. Nice thing about ESEE is they give you everything you need, this package includes a good sheath:
https://www.knifecenter.com/item/RC4PSS002/esee-knives-esee-4p-ss-002-440c-stainless-plain-edge-3d-machined-gray-black-g10-handles-black-sheath-clip-plateCorrect, that's why the S35vn ESEE 3 and 440c versions of the izula and ESEE 4 would all be great options for him.
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Adrenaline_6
08-27-20, 07:28
I have the Northman and Magnus from Amtac. The Northman is pretty awesome, in that you're carrying this fix blade knife in your pocket quite easily, and it's fast to come out. I feel like the steel(M390) kinda sucks, but the steel has a good reputation. The guy who sharpens my knives hates it and likes AUS8 better! The Magnus is very nice also and disappears due to the Sayoc style sheath. They're coming out with a 4" knife to split the difference between the Northman and Magnus. Basically the Sayoc style sheath is awesome and any knife will benefit from it. Makes it super easy to conceal and deploy. There are companies who'll make a Sayoc style sheath for your knife so you could buy whatever you want and just have a sheath made.
M390 is actually a great steel. Of course, it matters who is doing the heat treat as with any steel. It is harder to sharpen though so I see why your sharpening guy likes AUS8 which has nowhere near the edge holding ability.
A good steel wear retention list is here: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/ranking-of-steels-in-categories-based-on-edge-retention-cutting-5-8-rope.793481/
The guy put a lot of work in testing different steels with different heat treats and RC hardness.
ColtSeavers
08-30-20, 15:39
SOG KIKU - 4 INCH FIXED [S35VN]
https://www.bladehq.com/item--Fallkniven-Knives-F1--7870
rdcwannabe
09-21-20, 08:32
I'm one of those obnoxious Spyderco guys. But got turned on to them when I was in the service, and haven't looked back since. Except for the SOG multitool I carried. Unfortunately, I lost that off the coast of "Who Knows Where" doing "Who knows what" ;)
The Winkler Contingency is my EDC and probably my favorite knife I have purchased since Watsons mini bowie.
Id vote for this: https://www.monkeyedge.com/Winkler-Knives-II-Fixed-Blade-SD-2-p/wkk0003.htm - corrosion shouldnt be too much of an issue. My Contingency only has signs of rust on the sheath screws / clip.
Esse, Fallkniven, and Bark River are other solid options- Ive been eyeing this but cant justify it yet given my ammo purchasing focus: https://www.knifecenter.com/series/bark-river-knives/bark-river-santos-series
take care-
Ventenberry
09-29-20, 14:55
Folks recommending ESEE--I like them too, I have two of the Junglas, but OP said: "I don't need it have dive knife corrosion resistance, but I live in Florida so I'd like something that isn't going to rust just from getting sweat on, or pick up rust if it gets exposed to salt water and it takes me a day to give it a thorough cleaning."
ESEE, with a couple of exceptions, are all 1095 steel which pretty much rusts if you look at it wrong.
There is 1 model in the ESEE 4 line that is stainless, this guy. Nice thing about ESEE is they give you everything you need, this package includes a good sheath:
https://www.knifecenter.com/item/RC4PSS002/esee-knives-esee-4p-ss-002-440c-stainless-plain-edge-3d-machined-gray-black-g10-handles-black-sheath-clip-plate
I will second this recommendation. You can also order a molle back with it to attach to the sheath. Plus it's really nice looking and 440C will be good against rust. Here are some better pictures of it. https://knifeworks.com/esee-4-4pss-002-4-5-440c-ss-stonewash-plain-blade-gray-black-g10-3d-handle-black-sheath/
LowSpeed_HighDrag
09-30-20, 23:36
I have an ESEE Izula in 1095 that, even in dry Colorado air, rusts on a regular basis if I don't keep it oiled at all times. Handy knife, but frustrating.
I have an ESEE Izula in 1095 that, even in dry Colorado air, rusts on a regular basis if I don't keep it oiled at all times. Handy knife, but frustrating.They make the izula in 440c stainless steel too. Great knife but the 1095 will certainly rust easy
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I am an ESEE fan and have a couple of their knives. I went with a Spyderco salt but my knife collection is continuously growing so I might add some of the other selections too. Thanks for all the inputs!
daddyusmaximus
10-01-20, 09:10
Look at the Bradford guardian series. A bit hefty in the grip, but sure easy to hang on to. Available in CPM-3v, M390, and Elmax. I EDC the guardian 3 in a horizontal sheath.
Whatever you go with, don't over look a good sheath when it comes to daily carry of a fixed blade. It's like getting a good holster for your sidearm. I'm a fan of the aforementioned horizontal sheath. Your work may not be bothered by you having a fixed blade, but sometimes a place you stop along the way to or from might not be so accommodating... I have a fixed blade on me every day. Sometimes just a small old long discontinued Kershaw Echo. Wonderful little blade I wish they still made.
https://i.imgur.com/VT0N41i.jpg
Sometimes my ZT 0100. Belt loops on that one are from a Bravo Concealment holster.
https://i.imgur.com/kx8dYrJ.jpg
I found a guy who makes sheathes, and he has done several for me... and one holster. With the horizontal carry they hide well under a T shirt, and you can get to them easily even sitting in your vehicle. I wear them just to the right of my belt buckle. Pull back, stab forward. I can still reach across and access them left handed in a reverse grip.
Spyderco Street Bowie, stainless bowie blade
MontanaMarine
10-02-20, 13:33
Never mind....'fixed blade' went over my head.
Enzo Trapper - available in a range of steels and scale materials. Also available as bare blades to finish yourself. I added Osage Orange scales to a flat ground N690Co blade and my brother in law loves it.
Flat ground Elmax:
63917
http://www.thompsonsknives.com/enzoknives.html
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