It depends for me. I care a lot about about performance, but also aesthetics. If I got a Opienel, I don't think it would be a regular carry knife for me. It would be more of a cool old-fashioned knife, and I don't think I would want to mess it up. Or, for the price, I could get two of them and keep one stock, and mod the other.
I only have one and that's a present from my cousin... Who cares, I messed it already, modded it's handle . Also I won't carry it for EDC purposes, instead I'll use it as a food /food prep knife and around the house.
I should have gotten one two. But amazon prices move around a bit, so it may go down to $10 or something. I think Kershaw discontinued it, so the price won't go down much.
If you don't include shipping charges, many of my frequently carried knives were under $35, or right at it. I have very few (I think maybe 4) knives that cost me more than $100, and of those the most expensive was $130. I suppose my favorite would be the Victorinox silver Alox Cadet, which I carry most every day and was right about $22 when I got it. I also carry a lot of Case slipjoint folders, and a fair number of those I paid under $35 for. Here's a shot of the Vic Cadet and a Case Small Texas Jack. I carried this combo exclusively for the first half of 2014, and the Cadet is usually in my pocket no matter what else I have along. I believe the Case knife was about $33 new when I got it.
I purchased this from Smoky Mountain Knife Works probably a decade or so ago. I don't carry it often, but it is still a fun knife. I believe it was in the $20 range when I bought it....(Paki) Frost FRK1400 Brass-handled survival knife
Figured I would revive this thread a little. I do carry and like a lot of the popular ones on this thread like the Rat 1&2and multiple Kershaw but I have really enjoyed this blade since I got it. It's only downside is that it is tip down carry and I am sure the blade steel is less than satisfactory. I am not batoning with it so it shouldn't be an issue. Hard to pass up for $17. Sorry for the poor picture quality.
Well, I can own one that's up to 12 cm total and 5 cm blade length but honestly never anybody was asking me about carrying a knife except at the embassy or the airport. It's not my edc knife but I like it for jobs where I need a pinty tip and where I don't want to mess up another knife. Too bad that I like this fella and don't want to mess it up neither
SAK Rambler. Although the ALOX version is more than $35 the regular version is around that. I gifted this one to a vintage VW fanatic friend of mine:
...and even more so because you can get it for half the price and it's still great, expept that it should be tip-up carry...
