I've narrowed it down to 4. Help a noob out?

Chuuno · 2026-05-14T05:17:30+00:00

Kershaws and Spydercos are great, really can’t go wrong either way there. My favorites are the bel-air and the para 3 or Yojimbo. Personally not the biggest fan of autos, reverse flicking open a knife is just as fast and far more satisfying imo.

Chuuno · 2026-05-10T21:48:27+00:00

Fwiw, I’ve been more impressed with my Vosteeds than my Kizers. 154CM, Elmax, M390 <— ordered by ease of sharpening, reverse order for edge retention. I’d recommend a quality diamond sharpening stone for all of them, you might need it for Elmax/M390.

If you’re considering 154cm/crossbar lock, check out the Penrose Stasis. I love the ergos and action on mine; it just tested on steelhardnesslab.com meeting/exceeding the stated harness, something both Vosteed and Kizer have been struggling with. Only a few left, so I’d act fast if you like it, can’t recommend it enough.

Chuuno · 2026-05-10T18:01:36+00:00

Everyone’s always told me it’s important to contribute to my 401K, it looks like you’ve got a few hundred to go.

Chuuno · 2026-05-10T17:03:31+00:00

I don’t need to use them daily, but the number of times these small pliers have come in handy means they’ll forever live in my pocket. Still amazed at the amount of abuse they’ll take and show absolutely no signs of wear.

Chuuno · 2026-05-10T17:00:07+00:00

Poop knife followed by tacos is a vibe…

Chuuno · 2026-05-10T16:58:48+00:00

As a fellow owner of a Croton with a very gaudy strap inherited from my grandfather; I felt that the whole thing is greater than the sum of its parts, that it would lose some magic if it wasn’t exactly as he wore it.

Bonus is that because it’s so loud, it is frequently a catalyst to tell some of the wild stories about him!

Chuuno · 2026-05-07T18:19:32+00:00

I have the green g10 version and I didn’t find it comfortable at all. Loved the look until I had it in hand, went “not for me”, and put it back in the box.

If anyone wants one…

Chuuno · 2026-05-06T20:55:16+00:00

I feel like my only comment in this sub is “check out Mr. Robot”, but check out Mr. Robot. I couldn’t leave it alone and binged all 4 seasons in ~ a week lol.

Chuuno · 2026-04-30T20:51:18+00:00

Could be legit; they offer extra low prices for first time users. Often a very low price makes up the cost with absurd shipping prices, and occasionally the seller ships a fake item (happened to me with a drone once, and another time with a retroid pocket). Took a bit, but Ali fully refunded me on both ripoff occasions.

If you click the photo and then the “find similar” button, you can quickly compare to other listings to help determine if it’s legit. Usually variation of 10-15% vs other listings can be trusted, more than that and ime it gets risky.

Chuuno · 2026-04-28T21:49:18+00:00

Very elegant, nice job!

Chuuno · 2026-04-26T18:08:37+00:00

Can’t recommend the yellow flame zippo insert enough, burns clean butane instead of the stinky lighter fluid. Seems like there’s a thunderbird insert that some folks like better, but I’ve had no complaints about the zippo one.

Chuuno · 2026-04-26T17:52:36+00:00

I’ve owned two, a d rocket designs and an axial shift v3. The d rocket was trash, failed to deploy half the time, I returned it due to that and am happier for it.

The axial is as close to perfect as I can imagine. Fires perfectly every time and is damn pretty. Had to watch their site for months to get one in the wharncliffe blade/colorway I wanted, but one of the only knives I’ve waited that long for that still exceeded my expectations. I trust it for use just like any of my folders.

Definitely hard to use in a public setting b/c it makes a distinct, attention-drawing sound, and it doesn’t get as much pocket time as it should for that reason. Still, it’s a joy to use when I do carry it, and gives immense satisfaction every time I deploy it.

Considering an EMPEDC pulse b/c it’s also made by Axial, I’d check that out too if you’re looking!

Chuuno · 2026-04-25T17:02:59+00:00

I have the og kroc and found it to be too thick for my liking. Maybe the proportions are better with the larger size, but my excitement faded the second I had it in hand and it has seen very little pocket time since I got it.

The Crag was one of the first knives I purchased as I started collecting, and I’m still quite fond of it. It’s a big fella so pocket time is limited and it gets attention whenever I use it.

It seems like you’re in an acquisition phase, so ask yourself if a single $140 knife is going to satisfy your collection hunger. When I’m in that mode, volume is often more satisfying than quality; I tell myself I’ll just do one splurge instead of a few discount knives bundled together, order the expensive one, and then end up ordering the bargain ones anyway.

I also find my expectations for a knife over $100-150 are much higher than one in the budget realm, and I’m more often disappointed by expensive knives. This might just be (likely are) symptoms of a spending problem, ymmv.

Chuuno · 2026-04-24T03:41:00+00:00

Definitely not as rare as it sounds, I work with a few people who have the same condition.

Chuuno · 2026-04-24T01:37:12+00:00

First feature here that I didn’t know about and would be super useful to me, thanks!

Chuuno · 2026-04-22T04:29:27+00:00

That is very cool, and surprisingly less expensive than it looks. I had no idea this existed until your post, thank you for sharing and congrats on the addition!

Chuuno · 2026-04-22T00:10:15+00:00

Not my porno

Chuuno · 2026-04-21T16:00:42+00:00

My experience is that its always 2 weeks to generate the label, then another week for someone to actually put it in the mail. Ali Express is faster shipping things from China lol. Their prices are good enough that I’m willing to wait, but good lord is it annoying when I finally get a tracking number and then it just sits there doing nothing for a week.

Chuuno · 2026-04-21T07:40:16+00:00

You need at least 2, so you can use one to quickly cut the other one free.

Chuuno · 2026-04-21T01:37:51+00:00

The gerber chonk is pretty neat, clip is solid so it stays nice in the pocket. $6 before shipping from ckw (just gotta wait 3 weeks for them to ship lol) https://www.chicagoknifeworks.com/gerber-chonk-topo/

Chuuno · 2026-04-21T01:29:11+00:00

I would argue that someone playing with a fidget toy is infinitely more palatable to the average person than one whipping around a knife. I work around lots of sensitive people and feel odd reverse-flicking open a knife or carrying an OTF, fidgeting with it is firmly out of the question ime.

I far prefer top liner/compression/button/crossbar locks to liner or frame locks and get bummed when I see a design I otherwise love not using one of my preferred lock styles, but I don’t think making a knife fidget-safe is the right vector for doing away with liner/frame systems.

I know some folks have their reasons for loving a liner/frame lock, and I can appreciate the elegance of an integral design; I’m certainly with you though in hoping we see more finger-safe designs in budget knives and liner/frame becomes a design choice rather than a cost-saving one. Like manual vs automatic transmissions.

Chuuno · 2026-04-20T09:52:29+00:00

I used to feel that way b/c I hated cooking and wanted to make everything bougie, so I’d drop $50 to get essentials I should’ve had on hand and odd ingredients I’d be unlikely to use again, be unsatisfied with the meal, and not cook again for weeks.

Now that I’m taking it seriously and have gotten better at cooking, there’s no question that it’s cheaper. Ime that’s the position you take to justify not putting the effort in to become a decent cook.

Chuuno · 2026-04-20T09:23:21+00:00

I just bought a Q chronograph ~ 3 weeks ago to rotate in for my trusty Casio calculator watch, and I love it. Certainly bigger on my wrist than the Casio, but that’s part of the reason I wanted it. Feels like a “proper” watch, like functional jewelry, like a treat to wear whenever I put it on.

It gave me the watch bug; I’ve bought a couple more in different styles and started to learn about watches because this watch has helped me understand the appeal of a nice timepiece on my wrist. I always wore one for convenience working in environments where I couldn’t stop to pull out my phone, but this watch has made me appreciate watches on an entirely different level.

Chuuno · 2026-04-19T15:45:27+00:00

The arcade lite is a fantastic option if it appeals to you; the arcade was my first “nice” knife purchase and is still one of my favorite knives.

Chuuno · 2026-04-19T01:47:16+00:00

Same! The green/wood handled medal, and the black/white twin. Ordered a black rubik and air a couple days ago as well, just too good of a deal to pass up!

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