Good all around knife for working around the house & yard

[legOFwhat?]

Whatever you decide get yourself a Byrd Rescue2 as well. Treat it like you hate it, throw it in the glovebox, tacklebox, toolbox, 3lockbox or tape it to your lawnmower. Under $40 and cuts like a demon!

[twinboysdad]

All SS is waaaaay too heavy IMO. Also the slick scales lend to falling out of pocket easier too. Get the FRN in Saber if you must have that grind

[vivi]

I get what Vivi is saying about fixed blades, but I usually don't wear a belt, and I want to clip my knife to whatever I'm wearing, and I want it to be compact. In the kitchen, always fixed unless I'm just playing around with a new folder.

Have you tried a spyderco fixed blade? the g clip is designed so you don't need a belt. you can clip a g clip to a pocket, inside a waistband of PJ's, whatever.

[vivi]

guess I'm the only one that uses fixed blades here? stronger and much easier to clean. I don't see folders having a single advantage in this context.

I agree that fixed blades have an advantage In yard work but I do see advantages for some folders. I sometimes used a fixed blade when doing yard work but the pacific salt is far more convenient for most of the tasks in my garden. It’s true that a fixed blade is far easier to clean than a folder and they are typically stronger but ease of carry can matter when you are multitasking in the garden.

One other perk I find with the salts is their visibility . Lugging bags of mulch , fertilizer or soil and opening those bags, often means putting my knife down for a minute while i work. Sometimes I am out working in the garden and my toddler is out there with me trying to help. I appreciate the visibility of the salt line. The neon colors make the salt knives easy to find in the garden. The closest thing I have on that level in a fixed blade is my mule with blue g10 handle. Unfortunately most of my fixed blades have black handles and none are as stainless as my salt folders.

Spyderco makes a variety of salt fixed blades. YMMV but I'd take a SE Enuff Salt over pretty much anything mentioned in this thread.

[Cl1ff]

The deficiencies of stainless steel handles are often exaggerated. They'll work fine if you take care of them.
I actually think this kind of handle can have some advantages in doing work around a property, being overall stronger and heftier is only one potential pro among many. For example, they may be somewhat slicker, but that also goes for the materials that come into contact with them. What i mean is that dirt or whatever won't stick to it the same way they get into all the FRN's textures.
I do still usually prefer FRN for less specialized uses, though.

The Endura itself is a great and strong knife that cuts great. I have been using a saber ground serrated blade and I'd highly recommend it, but any variation of the knife will likely work well.

Edit: I do agree with Vivi regarding the absolute performance of Spyderco's Fixed Blades.

[electro-static]

The Full flat ground Endura is my go-to “do everything” knife around the house. Though I wouldn’t get the stainless steel handle as the FRN is grippier and more comfortable to me. If you want an upgrade from VG10 that is stainless, Knifejoy has the endura in S30V and 20CV.

I love the endura because it’s a really well balanced design, it’s compact, ergonomic, the blade slices well and had a distal taper which makes it good enough in the kitchen, the stainless steel liners and FRN handle make it beefy enough to handle most any task you would do with a folder. I don’t think any other knife in my collection is so well rounded in the kitchen and in the yard.

I know lots of people like a knife to have heft, but I have found that heft in the hand often just translates to weight in the pocket which means I just carry it less than lighter knives.

[Coastal]

I get what Vivi is saying about fixed blades, but I usually don't wear a belt, and I want to clip my knife to whatever I'm wearing, and I want it to be compact. In the kitchen, always fixed unless I'm just playing around with a new folder.

Have you tried a spyderco fixed blade? the g clip is designed so you don't need a belt. you can clip a g clip to a pocket, inside a waistband of PJ's, whatever.

I love fixed-blade knives, prefer them, to be honest. I use a g clip for my Waterway or Mule when fishing, hiking, etc, and it works well.

But I can't think of a fixed-blade Spyderco (or really any knife) that has a blade as well-suited for yardwork as the Matriarch 2. The compactness of a folder, and the fact that it's inside my pocket and thus snag-free is a nice bonus. That said, if there were such thing as a fixed-blade Matriarch, well, whole new ball game! I'd give up the compactness and snag-free-ness of the Matriarch and g-clip that baby to my work pants in a heartbeat!

If a fixed-blade Matriarch is ever considered, I suggest it use the Enuff handle and a Salt steel.

I'm so enamored of this idea, I might even consider a custom build...

[vivi]

I swear I saw a fixed hawkbill from g sakai at one point. Looking around I can't seem to find it. Did find some h1 fixies from them that look cool though.

[RustyIron]

guess I'm the only one that uses fixed blades here? stronger and much easier to clean. I don't see folders having a single advantage in this context.

Hold your horses, Vivi. My experience is the diametrical opposite.

Allow me to explain: Suppose I'm standing there doing what I do, and something needs to be cut. I reach down toward my pocket with one hand, pull out the folding knife, open it with the same hand, and do the slicey-dicey. When I'm done, I close the knife with one hand and jam it back in the pocket without giving it a second thought.

When carrying a fixed blade, the procedure is completely different. The knife CAN be pulled from the sheath with one hand, but there is always the risk of the razor sharp blade contacting the garment. An inconveniently timed gust of wind can render your fancy Armani shirt suitable for the rag bin.

After using the fixed blade knife, returning it to the sheath is even more complicated. You must use your other hand to lift your shirt aside. Then you must divert your attention to LOOK at the sheath. You can't just jam the blade down in the general direction of the sheath like you can with a folder and your pocket. The fixed blade comes so close to your side-meat that a few millimeters error can have the red juice leaking out your body, rendering your fancy Armani shirt suitable for the rag bin.

While most of my knifes are really cool, the harsh reality is that they are merely a means to perform another task. If the knife complicates the completion of that task, or makes it inconvenient, then it gets relegated to the Box of Unloved Knives. For my purposes, a folder is the most direct avenue of completing everyday cutting chores.

[araneae]

Pac salt SE.

[JSumm]

I've used K390 on an Endela and Endura. I've used a Pac Salt LC200N. I've used a Polestar in BD1N. By the way, the latter is softer and scratches easily if that matters. I've used S110V on a Military for a vine. I've used M390 and S30V. All plain edge. What I have not used, is a Pac Salt in serrated edge, and I can't help but believe it would excel in this. No more wedge cutting off shoots or stubborn roots. Let the teeth do what they do. Grip and rip!

[skeeg11]

I swear I saw a fixed hawkbill from g sakai at one point. Looking around I can't seem to find it. Did find some h1 fixies from them that look cool though.

I think it's called the Shark.

[vivi]

I swear I saw a fixed hawkbill from g sakai at one point. Looking around I can't seem to find it. Did find some h1 fixies from them that look cool though.

I think it's called the Shark.

that's the one!



personally I don't find fixed blades difficult to use one handed. pull it out of the sheath, cut stuff, maybe wipe it on my pants leg then re-sheath. I don't wear super baggy clothes so my shirt doesn't get in the way unless I'm carrying IWB, but I wouldn't carry a yard tool or camp tool that way anyways. I clip my aqua salt to my front right pocket when I'm setting up fires and cooking at camp spots and its extremely simple to re-sheath one handed carried that way.

[Hopsbreath]

guess I'm the only one that uses fixed blades here? stronger and much easier to clean. I don't see folders having a single advantage in this context.

In the yard, it’s a stainless Mora Companion all day for me. Admittedly, I only use Spyderco folders and have never tried a fixie.

[sethwm]

I swear I saw a fixed hawkbill from g sakai at one point. Looking around I can't seem to find it. Did find some h1 fixies from them that look cool though.

I think it's called the Shark.

that's the one!



personally I don't find fixed blades difficult to use one handed. pull it out of the sheath, cut stuff, maybe wipe it on my pants leg then re-sheath. I don't wear super baggy clothes so my shirt doesn't get in the way unless I'm carrying IWB, but I wouldn't carry a yard tool or camp tool that way anyways. I clip my aqua salt to my front right pocket when I'm setting up fires and cooking at camp spots and its extremely simple to re-sheath one handed carried that way.

Your aqua salt serrated?

[vivi]

nope.

[FeistyKat]

The Endura is a great knife, but that SS is going to be about the worst possible version for house/yard work. Slick scales & pinned construction do not lend themselves well to a down & dirty working knife, imo.

2 very good points. You've convinced me.

I get what Vivi is saying about fixed blades, but I usually don't wear a belt, and I want to clip my knife to whatever I'm wearing, and I want it to be compact.

I don't wear a belt, either, so it has to be a folder.

If I were to go with a fixed blade, it would probably be a Kabar, just because of their history, and I like how they look.

The Dog's Head Utility Knife would be my choice.

That CS Chief is a great deal and beast of a knife. Keep in mind that it’s a knife and not a pry tool and you’ll be alright. The lock on the Chief feels more secure than the Seki back locks. Seki locks have a notorious amount of rock while the Golden Native series is minuscule. Had mine in my pocket yesterday, love that knife.

The CS Chief is what I ended up getting. The price is unbeatable, the Chief can be disassembled for cleaning, the scales are hi-viz & being a "beater" knife I'm going to use it for my first foray in contouring G10 scales.

Oh, and as John at Cutlery Shoppe pointed out, the Chief is Made in the U.S.A. while the Seki's are not!

[Hopsbreath]

Solid choice, I’ve been carrying orange CS knives exclusively in October — love that XHP!

[kobold]

These serrated ones (minus the SpydieChef):

[James Y]

My yard knives are mostly my SE Tasman and my SE Pac Salt 1.

Someday, a SE Matriarch Salt (if it ever comes to be) would be nice, and I feel it would have some of the features of both the Tasman and Pacific Salt that I like in one knife.

Jim