Hey everyone, David C. Andersen here coming at you from the KnifeCenter and today we're
taking a look at two of our favorite cheap pocket knives and pitting them against each
other.
It's the new Spyderco Tenacious Lightweight, versus the Ontario RAT 1.
Let's do this.
[KnifeCenter logo]
So these knives are two of the most frequent recommendations that we like to give for inexpensive
pocket knives that you can depend on.
In fact, even though the budget competition has really stepped up their game in recent
years, these are both often used as a point of comparison because their design and quality
has been consistently good since their introduction.
With the newly released version of the tenacious lightweight from Spyderco.
they've kept the design fresh and affordable coming in at about 45 bucks at this point
in time, which is a really good bargain for what you get, and the RAT 1 isn't even greater
value at about $37.
Right now, each of these knives features a drop point blade that should be able to tackle
a wide variety of chores throughout your daily grind.
They can even transition pretty well to things like
food prep skinning, and even some self defense in a pinch.
So when I hold the two knives up next to each other, you can see pretty readily that the
rat one is longer than the tenacious but both of them have nearly an identical amount of
sharpened edge to get your work done.
We're about three and a quarter inch on the Ontario and the Spyderco actually comes in
and eighth inch longer still.
However, when you measure things from the tip of the knife all the way to the leading
edge of the scale tells a little bit different story where it's three and three eighths on
the Spyderco and nearly three and five eighths for the Ontario so keep that in mind if you
need to stay under three and a half inches where you live.
In either case, though both knives offer a full flat grind on the blade so that they
can slice well and still maintain a good balance of strength for more strenuous activities.
And the edge retention ought to be about the same on both of these knives to the RAT 1
is made in Taiwan, but the blade itself is made from off eight stainless steel which
is a Japanese alloy.
It takes a good edge holds it respectably and it's not a bear to resharpen when needed.
Meanwhile, the
8Cr13MoV steel on the tenacious originates in China.
In fact, the whole knife is built in China, but compositionally this steel is virtually
identical to Aussie, so you should expect it to be on equal footing.
If you do want more edge retention, though the rat one is available with D2 tool steel
as well, you'll trade off some of the stainless properties and ease of sharpening of the off
site, but you will get a longer lasting edge in the process.
Both blades feature a thumb ramp at the back with a little bit of jimping for extra traction.
Although I'd say that tenacious holds my thumb in place a little bit better if you are really
pressing into it.
Both of the blades are easy to open with either hand, using the dual thumb studs on the Ontario,
or the signature thumb hole on the Spyderco.
Each of the blades runs on bronze washers in the pivot for smoothness and consistency.
Just a step up from cheaper nylon washers.
The obviously won't be as snappy as a ball bearing in the pivot, but you're not going
to have to worry as much about grit or dirt gumming up the action of a bearing either.
If you do want faster action, though, you can get the RAT with a spring assist.
And that's the RAT
1A assisted opening variant.
In keeping with the theme of these knives being very evenly matched, both are held open
with a liner lock.
And in fact, each of the handles features dual liners full size, which creates a solid
backbone for both of the skins.
The liners on the tenacious have been mildly drilled out to remove a little bit of weight
without making them weak, but the RAT 1 doesn't mess around and it goes for full coverage
with no relief holes.
This does make the knife heavier than the Spyderco.
We're at 4.9 ounces versus 3.6 in this case, but it also helps keep the cost down since
they don't have to take the extra time to make those holes.
Now the material on both of these handles his nylon right now just in black for the
tenacious but the rat does have a bunch of different colors to pick from.
As far as upgrade options.
The original tenacious Of course does come with a G 10 handle.
And you can also find G10 on the RATs but only on that assisted opening version.
But both knives can be had with carbon fiber handles.
If you want to go a little bit fancier.
If you've got larger hands, the RAT1 is a great choice.
With a very accommodating three and three quarters of an inch between the finger guard
and the subtle beak here at the pommel with a nice smooth transition at the end if you
need even more extra space behind it, I've got slightly larger hands and you can see
that I've got plenty of room there.
And we've also got a broad flat spot around the pivot and the ricasso of the blade.
Essentially, it works like a finger oil, it gives you a whole extra finger width for more
space or for choking up.
That type of feature is one way to deal with the dead space that naturally tends to occur
around the pivot when it comes to folding knives.
And it's also what makes the biggest difference in the overall length between these two competitors.
Because the Tenacious manages to eliminate this dead spot entirely, which is something
that very few folders out there can manage to do.
The Edge comes all the way back to the handle, while the gentle curve of the finger guard
lets your front finger sit nice and close to the edge.
There's no need for a finger to choke up because you're already in prime position for both
power and precision.
The rest of the handle is a little bit shorter.
As you can see right here when I hold it up next to the Ontario, but it ought to hold
your hand a little bit more secure.
The RAT 1's handle is dimpled, but it still feels fairly smooth.
While the Tenacious feature Spyderco's often touted bi-directional texturing.
It's these raised peaks that all point towards the center of the handle so that you get traction
both forwards and backwards.
It's effective without feeling like it's going to be raising a blister too badly.
But if you do want more smoothness, there's always the G 10 version to consider.
Finally, both of these knives come with a feature that's a bit of a rarity these days,
a four position pocket clip with clip positions on both sides of the knife at the back end
and at the pivot.
This allows these knives to fit all carry preferences out there and if you don't like
the standard clips they come with, there's a big aftermarket support for both of these
knives out there so that you have plenty of options to choose from.
So with these two knives being so evenly matched, it's going to be a little bit tricky to kind
of pick a winner.
If you've got really large hands.
It's an easy pick with the Ontario RAT 1 because you do have a little more length
Also, if you want better edge retention, you are also going to want to go with the RAT
because he have that D2 option.
You've also got that assisted opening option if you want a faster opening blade.
Meanwhile, the Spyderco it's going to fit a little bit better in your pocket because
it doesn't take up quite as much space when the knife is folded.
The design I think is a little more elegantly executed.
And it's actually put together a little bit better on the fit and finish front as well.
It just feels a little bit nicer than the Ontario.
So the question is, which one would you put in your pocket?
Do you go for the more affordable workhorse Ontario RAT 1 or the refined design of the
Spyderco Tenacious Lightweight?
Or if not one of these?
What is your favorite budget Knife of choice?
Be sure to let us know in the comments and to get your hands on either of these cool
designs.
You can use the links in the description below to take you over to our product pages.
I'm David C. Andersen from the KnifeCenter signing off, see you next time .
Right off the table.
Oh, it's gonna be the longest single blooper ever.
I can't even see down there
and that's it.
[laughter]