Well, the SAKs are nice knives and generally available in the $15 range. Normally I'm leery of cheap knives- that's something I feel strongly that you shouldn't skimp on. That said, I know that not everyone can drop $100 on a Spyderco or Knives of Alaska folder. For many it will be a cheap knife or no knife. Personally I'd much rather have a $15 Mora than any $15 folder, but of course not everyone can legally carry a fixed blade, either.

For EDC at the $15 mark I guess a SAK would be my suggestion. If you can stretch the budget even incrementally you can start to get something a bit better. If you're gonna use it a lot I think you'd be better off with an appropriately sized Spyderco or Kershaw. My EDC knife is a Spyderco Ladybug 3 in Zdp189. It's literally scalpel sharp OOtB. And while it's just over 2" folded it's actually very usable and feels good in the hand. A Dragonfly 2 will offer more capability yet while still being very easy to carry. I'd consider the Spyderco Delica to be the largest knife I could tolerate in my pocket for EDC.

For just under $30 it would be hard to beat the Spyderco Persistence. It's between the Delica & Dragonfly sizes and is a very nice design.

In the Kershaw line I'm very fond of the Leek, Chive, & Scallion. As compared to the Spydercos they're somewhat heavier as since they have metal scales. The Kershaws open faster than the Sypercos (IMO) but are somewhat slower to close. Spyderco has the edge if you're into exotic steels; they offer many advanced steels like CPM-M4, CPM-S90V, ZDP-189, etc. In their smaller knives you can get S30V, VG-10 and ZDP-198. With the Kershaws you're limited to generic SS on the low end to Sandvick and D2 on the upper end. Still, at the $30-ish price point the knife steels are pretty comparable.

Please note that I didn't comparison shop for the best price- the links are just to the first hit I got at Amazon.com. Most of them have cheaper options than the ones listed.

At any rate, that's just a knife geeks $.02 worth!

Wow, I totally missed that one! Opinels are really amazing knives for the money, within the range of the applications they're suitable for. Since the handles are wood they do swell when it's humid, making them occasionally hard to operate. And they're light enough I wouldn't baton with them. But the steel is superb and they take a great edge. They "lock" fairly securely.

I have half a dozen of them and couldn't recommend them more highly. A Mora is a bit more broadly capable for the price but of course not foldable.

Last night, I opened a knife DW picked up on our recent trip to Smoky Mountain Knife Works in Tennessee (disclaimer, no affiliations with any company discussed here or anywhere else). It was intended to be used as a gift but since the price point was about $10 I couldn't resist opening it and posting about it here.

The knife? A Gerber/Bear Grills basic Swiss army type. My preliminary inspection revealed nice tight springs - VERY tight, so tight in fact I could not operate the apparently one-hand opening main blade one handed (hoping some oil and a little breaking in will solve that).

Speaking of the main blade, it appears to be a bit more robust than the main blade on my SAK. A nice wharncliffe/sheepsfoot style blade to maximize the length of the cutting edge. It also feels good and sharp. Maybe not "shave the hair off a fleas legs" kind of scary scalpel sharp, but I felt like I'd be able to slice paper with it (there was no paper within my reach or I'd have tested that theory). Note that neither the main blade nor any of the other blades locked in the open position (which might account for the exceptionally tight springs).

The other blades are typical SAK type tools, with a large flathead driver on the end of the bottle opener, a small flathead driver, and a phillips driver.

The overall package is a bit smaller than my Victorinox SAK (the 3 1/2" model) but the blade seemed to be a bit larger than on my SAK (I did not get a chance to do a real side by side comparison, these are mainly just my first impressions of the knife after pulling it out of it's clamshell packaging). If it is not a bit longer, it is definitely wider and thicker. The handles are some type of rubber and have a good grippy feel to them (which certainly helps since it is a bit shorter than my SAK).

These are just first impressions. Unfortunately, only time will tell if it will hold up as well as the SAK I've been carrying around for the last 15 years or more. As always, YMMV.

I can rule out two knives definitively.

Among the Gerbers that my employer has disconitued are the Vise mini MUT and the Mini Remix. I acquired each for $1.50 & $2.50 respectively.

http://www.gerberknivesdirect.com/mini-remix_30-000163.html

I am convinced that this is an unsafe knife. The opening action is stiff and requires two hands. The skeletal design is minimalist and forces the user to an unsafe action for closing the knife. The ring may aid in blade control, but that did not work for me; it shaped my hand to an unnatural position for cutting. The blade was not sharp at all fresh out of the packaging. I don't know how I'll integrate this into my gear.

The Vise is simply too small and the attachments awkward for regular use. It has been relegated to beer opener (I'll test that in a few minutes).

The BG Compact Scout is $7. Good luck.

It's not small, but my fave folder for under $15 would be the S&W HRT plain edge. $13 on sale at Big 5.

I'll try to add some pics this evening, but for now, I can give an update on this one as well. My first impressions of the main blade on the BG knife were a bit off.

It is not thicker than my SAK main blade, though it definitely is a bit wider (not sure how this BG main blade would stack up to the farmer type series main blade though). The main blade on the BG is also a bit shorter, BUT the actual cutting edge on the BG is a bit LONGER due to the grind coming closer to the handle area and the sheepsfoot style blade shape.

There are other things about the BG knife that are missing that I really like about my SAK, such as the saw blade, tweezers, and the attachment point for a split ring. While the BG knife seems pretty well made, all in all, at this point, I think I'd still go with the SAK.

I recently came across this knife from eka. Does anyone have any experience with it? I'm especially interested in the blade grind.

Been carrying the Bear Grylls compact scout for a month..Very nice for daily use.
Lacks an easy open or pocket clip; but otherwise nice. Runs $8-16

I haven't handled one, but it looks interesting.

I wish there were more Mora folders. The last one I ever saw, many years ago, was a Normark Super Swede, which I'd love to add to my collection.



EDIT: Apparently there's a similar Swedish folder still available called the EKA Swede 92. Was branded as the Normark American Hunter years back. Don't you just love the Web? (This is OT, sorry.)