knife
 

Who makes a knife that holds its edge the longest.

I always like and used a Buck 110, Great knife for the money.

For a general purpose knife, I like the Gerber Gator. I have skinned an elk or 3 with one, and it did just fine. Works as good as my high $$$$$ ones,

this is my knife. Uncle Henry. Bought new from Cabelas. It is a great knife, my dad bought this exact knife 30 years ago and still uses it today, he hardly ever has to sharpen it. they are the best knives you can buy.

there are a lot of knives that hold an edge for a while coldsteal gerber and buck are awsome companys i use a cheap bowie knife i bought new at a flea market.i like the gerber profile 2 i think it is an amazing knife and at 20 bucks wont break the bank

A good knife is subjective and most of the top brands make knives for many different needs and or opinions.

For me its the right combination of edge retention and ease of sharpening.

Generally the longer a knife holds an edge the harder it is to sharpen and really to be honest IMO the super steels don't hold the edge enough longer to justify how hard they are to sharpen. Personally I like Aus-8 , 1095 , Sandvik and then some exceptions like 420hc which is good if done right (like by buck)

The harder steels are harder to sharpen and can be brittle.

I see a lot of people say some knives go a long time without needing sharpened but they must have different ideas than myself. They all require a fair amount of work in my experience to work they way I want them to.

A real sharp knife has a real fine edge and a real fine edge requires maintenance.

Good answer. I have an Old Timer that I sharpened over 30 yrs ago that is still as sharp as the day I put it away. Cuz she aint been used.:woot:

Yep, there are two ways to keep a knives sharp....either don't use them or sharpen them.

knives
 

X2, I sharpen sometime as I'm using it.

I steel my knives during use. I usually get by with a just steel for quite awhile.

HA, I specialize in cheap knives...
 

and started a cheap hobby. decades ago, of sharpening cheap knives.
I have an inexpensive Old Hickory knife that's so sharp, with the blade and handle treated in vegetable and olive oil, that I wouldn't sell it for less than $300.

I married a girl from the city and we have a a camp set up on a lake with a bunch of her relatives and they always want their knives to be "sharp like mine" and I just can't make them understand that the only way to have knives like that is to learn how to sharpen/maintain them.

They just don't understand the concept that knives just don't stay that way very long.

Im a big fan of AUS-8 and Sandvik also. I have a Boker with AUS-8 and a Kershaw Blur with Sandvik s30v. Both have held an edge amazingly well and the Blur can be found at bargain pricing occasionally at Walmart.

For my money the swing blaze is the absolute best deer hunting knife. No matter how much money I spend I can't find anything I'd rather have in the field deer hunting. Now once I get the deer home I use butcher knives.

I carry a havalon in my pack for backup. I don't really like it that much but as far as weight and size its hard to beat for an extra knife in the pack.

I tried out a Mora knife not long ago and I was an instant fan. They're not too expensive and they hold an edge really well, but I've only been through a couple deer with it so far. Other than that, my favorites are my Buck 110 and the Schrade Old Timers with the green handles on them (the last knives they made before selling out and getting made in china).

Agree! Most used is my 37 yr old Buck 110. I sharpen it once maybe twice a yr.

Bark River Knives.. probably the best american hunting knives made, in my opinion... For a very nice affordable hunting knife, Puma Knives. The Puma Coyote is a great gutting/skinning/quartering.

^^^ If you like a drop point knife, which I do.

Bark River is on my want list and I will eventually get one or two, but there are enough knife makers around that them being the best American made knife is suggestive.

I really like Wolf Creek Forge. They are a Mom and Pop blacksmith shop in Kentucky that produces good usable blades for a reasonable price. I have one that I ocassionally batton with just simply because I can and it wont hurt the blade. MP knives is on my short list and will probably get a blade from him before Bark River. I'm also on the contact list for Turly Knives out of Missouri. Turly has a 2+ year wait list and his blades are not too expensive, even though he could charge more and still have a backed up list. I have a small drop point hunter with a stacked leather and antler handle from RW Fred that I traded him for some elk antler that was given to me. The RW Fred is a good blade as well. Keaweh River Forge has some blades that interest me as well.

All of these listed makers have a great product

I really like my mora

You have to choose between wanting a knife to "HOLD" and edge or "TAKE" and edge. The 'super' steels can get sharp and stay sharp longer than carbon, but, they take a lot more effort to get the edge back. My personal opinion has become that I like carbon steel. IMHO, it will lose it's edge a little quicker than the super steels, but it will be sharper and easier to sharpen when needed.