I want a folding knife that can get away with most most of the things I know better than to do with a folding knife. That leads to specific criteria:
- Price: under $100, lower is better. I might break it.
- Lock: crossbar, backlock, compression, or something similarly strong. Not liner/frame/button. I might want to trust the lock more than is prudent.
- Steel: tough stainless like AEB-L, 14C28N, or Nitro-V. I might baton through salt-driftwood with it and put it away wet. See toughness chart.
- Blade: Ideally 3.25-2.5" (85-90mm) and a tip that isn’t dainty. I might pry with it.
- Pivot: washers, not bearings. I might get mud in it.
- I dislike thumbstuds, but will accept them if they’re not in the cutting path.
Cold Steel Tuff Lite- Beast mode in a compact package for like 30 bucks. Maybe not the toughest steel but you can three of them under your budget.
Spyderco Delica/Endela/Endura, pick your size. Available in a huge variety of steels
Buck 110, pretty wide range of price/steel/handles
The Salt versions of these and a couple other Salt series knives are definitely appealing. LC200N is very tough and very stainless. They fail the price criterion though.
I bought a Manly Peak One and will be reviewing it. My first impression is that it’s a close competitor to the Spyderco Endura.