L.T. Wright thoughts

[RugerNurse]

I’ve heard lots of praise online about his knives but are they still good value today? I’ve never had one but been interested in them.

[vivi]

they're well made and have solid heat treats, but prices have gone up A LOT over the past ~5 years on certain models.

I ordered a Bushcrafter for $79 + shipping in 2020. Here's an old TKC link showing a similar price - https://theknifeconnection.com/lt-wrigh ... te-finish/

They're $199 on the homepage now.

Frontier Valley, I paid $55 or $65 for mine and the homepage has them at $109 now.

The bushcrafter was well made but the handle wasn't as good of a fit as my Landi Bushcrafter, so I sold it and kept my Landi. The Frontier Valley is one of my favorite EDC sized fixed blade, but the handle was a touch dainty for me. If they made one with another 1/2" of handle like ESEE did with the Izula 1 & 2 I'd order one yesterday.

I've been tempted by their overland machete but haven't handled one yet. Everyone has been sold out of them every time I've checked.....guessing they stopped making them.

So, yes they are very nice knives, but paying over twice what I did 5 years ago is a tough pill to swallow.

[RugerNurse]

I saw video with the GNS model and liked it but I looked it up and it’s near $250. Yikes. Guess I’m feeling a bit of burnout with knives lately. I didn’t get anything over Black Friday sales. I’ll save my cash for whatever comes down the line next year.

[kennethsime]

While I agree the prices have gone up significantly in recent years, they are still fantastic knives for the money. I have three: a Small Workhorse, a Frontier Valley, and a Frontier First.

For the money, I'd rather pay a little more for the LT Wright vs. an ESEE or similar. The GNS is $218 on the LT Wright website, and the Laser Strike is $198 from ESEE, so you're roughly 10% more with the LT Wright and you've got a handmade knife. Of course, the LTs are harder to get a hold of and less likely to be on sale.

Here the Frontier Valley, alongside a PM2 and a G.E.C. Urban Jack:


I echo Vivi's comments about the handle on the Frontier Valley, but I find the lanyard helpful.

@vivi , have you looked at the Large Workhorse?

They also recently came out with an XL Workhorse.

Oh, and we had a thread going for a while here.

[RugerNurse]

For the money, I'd rather pay a little more for the LT Wright vs. an ESEE or similar. The GNS is $218 on the LT Wright website, and the Laser Strike is $198 from ESEE, so you're roughly 10% more with the LT Wright and you've got a handmade knife. Of course, the LTs are harder to get a hold of and less likely to be on sale.

Knivesshipfree has the GNS in AEB-L for $224. I’m tempted. It’s looks like a fixed blade Manix. Same blade shape which I really like that. My other competitor is the Ursus 45 in magnacut from White River but that is $290

[Snacktime]

I have a flat grind Genesis that I bought because it was 3V. Got it 4-5 years ago when I was going steel crazy. No real regrets other than it wasn't the perfect handle color, but back then you just got lucky to find one.

Good steel, really nice micarta and no thrills.

[Halfneck]

I've known L.T. since he started up with Blind Horse Knives & consider him a friend. They make a good knife for the money, and they make them to be used. Of the ones I have, my personal favorite is my Small Northern Hunter in AEB-L.

[RugerNurse]

I've known L.T. since he started up with Blind Horse Knives & consider him a friend. They make a good knife for the money, and they make them to be used. Of the ones I have, my personal favorite is my Small Northern Hunter in AEB-L.

How has the heat treat been for AEB-L?

[Halfneck]

I've known L.T. since he started up with Blind Horse Knives & consider him a friend. They make a good knife for the money, and they make them to be used. Of the ones I have, my personal favorite is my Small Northern Hunter in AEB-L.

How has the heat treat been for AEB-L?

I am more of a user than a tester, but it held a good edge during our trip to Vogel State Park (pic was from that trip). During 3 days as my only knife around camp & hiking up Blood Mt. it was just fine. Want to say that L.T. Wright has the heat treat for their knives done by Peters' Heat Treating Inc.

[HolySteel]

I LOVE my L.T. Wright knives. My Frontier is my fishing knife, and I can't imagine not having it - it's always hanging around my neck any time I'm in the river. I also have a Bandit and a Large Northern Hunter (both with AEB-L). I haven't used the latter two, but the Frontier First gets more use than any knife I have other than possibly my Native 5 Magnacut. It's one of those knives where, once you have it, you'll find a use for it.

[vivi]

I've known L.T. since he started up with Blind Horse Knives & consider him a friend. They make a good knife for the money, and they make them to be used. Of the ones I have, my personal favorite is my Small Northern Hunter in AEB-L.

How has the heat treat been for AEB-L?

I am more of a user than a tester, but it held a good edge during our trip to Vogel State Park (pic was from that trip). During 3 days as my only knife around camp & hiking up Blood Mt. it was just fine. Want to say that L.T. Wright has the heat treat for their knives done by Peters' Heat Treating Inc.

I think you're right. There's a handful of custom makers in the NE USA that use Peters, and every blade I've used heat treated by him has performed a bit above expectations.

The O1 frontier valley I had held an edge better than other O1 knives I used, and same with my bushcrafter that was in 1075 if I remember correctly.

I also own 3 peters heat treated Landis in A2 that were hardened to 61rc I believe. They definitely perform better than the on paper formula suggests for A2.

I've taken my Landi Bushcrafter and my EDC out as my only knives for week long wilderness trips to local mountains and they had no issues remaining sharp the entire time. Corrosion concerns aren't so bad either compared to O1 and 1095.

That's one of the reasons I've mentioned being curious to see what Spyderco could do with it in say, a Mule (Or even better, Mule XL). It doesn't have the hype of 3V but it's a great work horse steel with a low price tag.


I wish I picked up more LT Wrights in the past when most models were $80-120. I'd still like to get a genesis of some sort some day. New Graham Knives had a gorgeous one when I stopped in last summer:



I'd consider their stuff heirloom quality. I've never found any aspect of their knives to be lacking in terms of fit and finish, execution, factory edge etc.

[RugerNurse]

GNS with green micarta and AEB-L saber ground blade inbound. Probably the most I’ve spent on a knife in some time. There are still some left on knivesshipfree right now.

[Zipper]

Good work!
I have a few LT Wright knives. In the Outback, GNS, Genesis, Next Gen, Frontier Valley, and others if I went looking. In 1075, A2 and mostly 3V steal.
I haven’t bought one in a while. Not because of price increase. More because nothing ‘new’ has came out in a compelling style or material for me. White River Knives and Reiff Knives caught my attention. Especially in MagnaCut. Specifically, White River for their heat treat and market comparable value and Reiff for their handles and blade shapes. Reiff are expensive but they get most things right for my taste.
Regarding value, comparing apples to apples (waste of time to compare O1 or A2 steal to 3V or even MagnaCut, let alone different handle material or even size), they all seem to be pretty close to each other for what you are getting.
The biggest change I have seen is their (LT) move from loveless bolts to corby bolts on the scales of most, if not all models. I am not sure if that was because of cost or availability. There has always been brass pins on a lot of the smaller models. Corby are a cleaner finish but loveless suited (in my mind) the rustic style of LT Wright knives. I think both are strong enough.
But to answer your question, I think they are no longer ‘good value’ compared to the past when they were less known. Same as a lot of manufacturers. They are still great knives and comparable in value to what is offered in similar style/material knives from other makers.
You will be happy. I have never regretted buying one.

[RugerNurse]

I haven’t bought one in a while. Not because of price increase. More because nothing ‘new’ has came out in a compelling style or material for me. White River Knives and Reiff Knives caught my attention. Especially in MagnaCut. Specifically, White River for their heat treat and market comparable value and Reiff for their handles and blade shapes. Reiff are expensive but they get most things right for my taste.

White River does good work. I like their magnacut. I tried there Ursus 45 awhile back but eventually sold it. I like the look of the GNS better anyway. I’m hoping they will release their Sendero Pack model in magnacut at some point.
I’ve seen some Reiff knives do some crazy stuff in review videos but they are too pricey for me.

[bearfacedkiller]

I only have one, the Large Pouter. The fit and finish is good but the edge is a bit thick for a knife marketed as a camp kitchen knife. One of these days I’ll convex it and thin it out a bit.





I like the pattern, it’s kinda like an old trade knife, and it’s super light weight. We have a pop up camper and I thought it might be a fun knife for that type of camping. In the end my Bark River Mountain Man works better in that role. It super thin!

[RugerNurse]

In the end my Bark River Mountain Man works better in that role. It super thin!

That is a super nice and thin knife! Love slicey knives

[RugerNurse]

Just came today. First impressions are very nice. Large, comfortable handle with no hotspots and the micarta is flush all the way around. Grind lines are nice and even. Can’t wait to try it out.