Birthday Gift to Myself?

[cobrajoe]

Well, my b-day has come and gone with no s, so I figured I'd give a little gift to myself. The problem is that I don't have much money to spend and there is no place around here that sells spydies, so I must rely on other's opinions.

So here's my quandry. I wanted to spend $50 more or less (preferably less ) on a folder with a 3.5 inch blade or less, and since I'm moving back to campus in a week, the more sheeple friendly the better (so maybe a "gentlemanly" knife would be better). I'm a fan of the uncommon blade shapes: reverse S, hawkbill, sheepsfoot, wharnie, etc. And I was thinking maybe kiwi or salt or maybe a meerkat or navigator or possibly a cento 4, but I am open to suggestions.

What do you reccomend?

[bh49]

SS Cricket PE or SE. It is reverse S, frame lock, sheeple friendly, looks and cut great. Can buy for around $40

[KamSingh]

I would go with the Kiwi

[greencobra]

Cento 4 for sure, real nice thin blade for the Wharnie fan. Looks cool too! Meerkat, another good choice and a big bang for that buck. Get that in reverse S if you can. Too bad you can't handle them first, I have the same story. Got to travel a ways to see and handle any decent knives.

Such a problem you have (sigh), deciding on a new knife.

[cobrajoe]

SS Cricket PE or SE. It is reverse S, frame lock, sheeple friendly, looks and cut great. Can buy for around $40

I have a PE cricket FRN, and I do want to get a SS one to back it up, but it's not on the top of my list right now. I also have a Dodo, and I love both of the reverse S's.

It is a problem deciding on a new knife. There is a huge selection of beautiful knives out there, and I don't have much money!! (but I'm sure almost everyone on this forum has the same problem )

[Tempest UK]

Just bought myself a Native for my birthday due to a lack of coming from elsewhere

I'll put in another vote for the kiwi - pretty unoffensive appearance, should fit the bill nicely.

[Capt. Carl]

I'm with tempest and kam, go with the kiwi.

[dedguy]

i'd say Kiwi if the small size isn't an issue, other wise the Cento4 is a nice snazzy looking warnie. cuts fruit like no other.

[Nilaman]

Kiwi is an amazing knife. It radiates with class and it shouldn't be a problem for any sheeple. However, it may lack a bit of grip for bigger cutting duties that you might come across at college. For that reason I'd go with a S30V CE Native I. I used mine in college without ever getting as much as an evil eye.

Although, Crickets are good knives but like they lack a serious handle for bigger grip jobs. Tasman Salt is a wicked nice knife, but the hawkbill would definately set off a sheeple alarm.

Then again.. it's your money. They don't need to use the knife, so why bother with sheeple at all? Get what feels right to you. The knife will be with you a lot longer then the sheeple.

[MacTech]

I agree, Kiwi or Tasman are great choices, strangely enough, i've found that a yellow-handled Tasman, even a SE model, doesn't seem to trigger the "sheeple" alarm around here, it's gotta' be the yellow scales, it makes the knife appear more like an "industrial tool" (DeWalt power tools and the like), in fact the general feel i get when i look at my Tasmans is "pruning blade"

I performed an experiment once, deployed the SE blade on the Tasman, then held my black Salt 1 with the blade closed on top of it, simulating what a black scaled Tasman would look like, it looked more "tactical" with the black scales.....

one thing that surprised me about the Kiwi is that the spine of the blade is quite substantial for such a diminutive blade, it's a rather thick stock, the Cricket is much, much thinner....

[cobrajoe]

I'm not sure if you guys are making this easier or harder

Nilaman
I'm not worried about bigger cutting duties, I have enough of a selection for large blades. Also, I'm not much of a fan for the Native. I have a BRK native, and I admit that it does feel good in the hand, but I don't really like the spear shaped blade. (I'm trying hard not to judge it based on quality, it's really crappy.)
As for the sheeple, they include RA's, RD's, campus police, and others that can take away my s and get me in trouble at the U, so I was wanting to stay inconspicuous.

MacT
I'd love to get a Tasman, but for this one I'm thinking I need to be a bit more gentlemanly and inconspicuous. The yellow that screams "Tool" still screams loud enough for "the man" to hear.

[KamSingh]

Sounds like you need a Kiwi then

[Puyallupknifegu]

Kiwi or Cricket...

[Nerak]

From my experience in the dorms, its not the type of knife, but being carefull where and how you use the knife. I had my endura on me all the time and as long as I didn't go waving it in front of the RA's or police, I was left alone. Maybe I was just lucky though.

[cobrajoe]

From my experience in the dorms, its not the type of knife, but being carefull where and how you use the knife. I had my endura on me all the time and as long as I didn't go waving it in front of the RA's or police, I was left alone. Maybe I was just lucky though.

I guess that is true, I do know people that had swords on display, and even one kid that kept his Walther PPK in his room for a few days.

But I was wanting to be able to use it in front of them without worrying or having them think that I'm too scary (I get that all the time with my knives).

[Nerak]

But I was wanting to be able to use it in front of them without worrying or having them think that I'm too scary (I get that all the time with my knives).

I get that too everytime I use my knife in front of someone. It seems that no matter what knife it is, their reply is "Now thats a knife." Its just starting to get annoying. That's why I've had my eye on a SS PE Cricket, but I think the Kiwi is growing on me.

Good luck with making your choice.

[Edro]

Hmmm, you're favoring uncommon blade shapes, want more gentlemanly, sheeple friendly but not the Cricket. I'd agree with others for the Kiwi. Another suggestion would be the Spin... but I'd prefer the Kiwi.

[uhiforgot]

I would suggest saving up a few extra bucks and getting yourself a Dodo.

http://newgraham.com/SearchResult.aspx?KeyWords=dodo

They don't scare people, have ergos that are some of the most comfortable many of us have ever used, a S30V reverse-s blade that's an UNBELIEVABLE workhorse, and the ball bearing lock that's got just about zero friction and zero noise when opening and locking.

Not that the other knives suggested aren't GREAT knives, but don't sell yourself short here. I would say the Dodo is the perfect campus knife as I carry one on campus as well. Like you say, it's going to be a BIRTHDAY KNIFE! You have every right to TREAT yourself to a great knife!

-Jeff

[bigcat]

COBRAJOE...Don't forget to take a look at the SPUR. Great little big knife.

BigCat

[cobrajoe]

I would suggest saving up a few extra bucks and getting yourself a Dodo.

http://newgraham.com/SearchResult.aspx?KeyWords=dodo

They don't scare people, have ergos that are some of the most comfortable many of us have ever used, a S30V reverse-s blade that's an UNBELIEVABLE workhorse, and the ball bearing lock that's got just about zero friction and zero noise when opening and locking.

Not that the other knives suggested aren't GREAT knives, but don't sell yourself short here. I would say the Dodo is the perfect campus knife as I carry one on campus as well. Like you say, it's going to be a BIRTHDAY KNIFE! You have every right to TREAT yourself to a great knife!

-Jeff

Yes. I agree with you completely, but I also have one of those. Got him a little while ago when Seirra Trading Company was selling them cheap. I wasn't quick enough to get the blue handle though.

I think I'm getting persuaded to get a kiwi, but the only complaint I have is that the SS handled one looks very plain, and the ones with the inlays are very expensive (for my budget). I guess the SS handles can be engraved, but maybe I'll save that for later.
Then again, the Cento 4 looks great too...

Thanks for the suggestions, I'll let you guys know how much I love whatever I order after I order it on payday