Cold Steel Pendleton Lite Hunter Black Poly Handle
$14.53 shipped if order totals $25

http://www.amazon.com/Cold-Steel-Pendleton-Hunter-Handle/dp/B00322NAE6/ref=pd_cp_hi_3

Better blade shape for skinning/hunting than the Mora's and a stainless blade.

For $10, I'd go with a locking folder. Plus they pack well into kits

Yeah, the CS Pendleton Lite is a terrific knife, amazing for the price. Probably a lot better than the Pup. I got to looking a little more and I see why the Field Pup is so cheap- it's now made in China from a really dubious steel. There's still a version made in Taiwan from AUS8, a much better steel, but that version is $35. Guess that's why mine cost more.

The CS would be at the very top end of the budget but it's a superb knife (I have two of them in fact).

The Hultafores looks really good. Guess that's not a well known brand here in the States as I've never heard of it. I'll have to pick one up to check out though.

The Pendelton Lite is made out of 4116 steel. Pretty much equivalent to 420HC from what I've read. Certainly not a high end steel on that Pendelton either. Many Cold Steel knives are made in Taiwan, and I'll be willing to bet that the Pendelton Lite is one of those, given its prce point.

When you are looking at $15 knives, what do you expect? They will be perfectly serviceable knives, but not high end ones. I would expect the SOG, the Cold Steel and the Mora to all be in the same class of knives - inexpensive, compromises taken in design/materials, but serviceable. I personally do not like the hard plastic handles like on the Pendelton Lite and some of the Moras. They certainly work, but do not exude a feeling of quality craftsmanship. Nothings going to do that as these price points.

Personally I think I would be happy with any of these three knives. I like the softer handle on the SOG the best. The semi-soft Mora Clipper second, and the Pendleton hard plastic third. But that's just my personal preference.

Good enough and popular enough to scare Mora into upgunning the clipper range of knives.
The Hultafores are actually mass produced industrial knives that have been "discovered" by the survival/bushcraft community, as are the Mora knives for that matter. The mistake that most people make is in equating "cheap" with poor quality.

Well, I have two of the CS Pendleton Lite Hunters, a bucket of Moras and quite a few Chinese knives. Now, I will admit at the outset that I'm a chef and steel snob! The Cold Steel takes a very good edge and edge retention is pretty good. The Mora takes a really spectacular edge, also with pretty good retention. But I've never managed to get a really great edge on Chinese 7Cr17Mov or 8cr13Mov. The stuff can't be hardened very high and it seems edge stability is pretty poor. It probably holds a usable edge for survival stuff but isn't great. Overall I don't care much for inexpensive INOX/SS. When you get up into the Japanese stuff there are some great stainless steels. The better 440C variants are decent. When dealing with less expensive steels I feel carbon is usually a better bet.

I'm a pretty serious amateur/semi pro sharpener. I've done (conservatively) hundreds of knives, maybe in the low thousands. I've got three grinders and a couple thousand bucks worth of Japanese water stones. I hesitate to call myself an expert but I know what I like when it comes to steel and the kind of edge I like to use.

Of course, you're right- for $15 you can't expect the world. At any price range, building a knife is all about making the correct compromises. The really cheap ones give up a lot but an inexpensive knife is better than no knife. Price doesn't always equate to quality, that's also true.

BTW, one of the glowing reviews of the CS at Amazon.com is mine. It's a wonderful knife for the money.



I plan to try one of the Hultafores. It bums me out that the place with the best price only has a 74% favorable rating but I'll take my chances. Mora makes great knives for the money but I'm sure they're not the only game in town.

Sorry, meant to comment on this, just forgot. Thanks! You're right, I have noticed that the wood can swell and make the knife very hard to open. Probably not something you want in knife that will ride around in a survival kit! I will cross the Opinel off the list for this application, I think. Nice knives overall, though.

Opinel has plastic knives now, just a matter of time before the popular ones are offered in plastic as well.

Cool! I'll have to look for them.