Looking for a knife for my nephew for his 13th birthday. Aiming for a $20-25 limit. I’m thinking something simple and classic like a Swiss Army or an Opinel. I may stretch the budget up to $30 for a Buck 110, but that is pretty large. I may look at Case as I have a trapper and the edge is near surgical for a pocket knife, but the tips are rounded enough to prevent stabbing.
I like the Kershaw Vapor. I think it is out of production at the moment, but I see them on ebay.
Really can't go wrong with Kershaw. Looks like the Clash is right in your price range.
Opinels are cool. Buck and Kershaw are both American made and therefore great!
Think about it from a kid's view. When I was 13 I wanted a Swiss Army knife, with all those different blades and attachments to play with.
Big fan of the American made Kershaws also. I carry a couple of the Ken Onion designed ones.
Take a look and see if they might fit your criteria. Good knife for the money.
stuart in mn said:Think about it from a kid's view. When I was 13 I wanted a Swiss Army knife, with all those different blades and attachments to play with.
I still have my Swiss Army knife. Guess how old I was when I got it? Yup.
In reply to Keith Tanner :
Ditto. Swiss army the thicker the better.
This looks awfully close to mine: http://a.co/hvcq5Uy. A bit past the stated budget, but if he still has it (ahem) 34 years later like I do it'll seem like a killer deal.
If you go with the Swiss army knife make sure you get one with the Phillips screwdriver instead of the corkscrew. This is GRM, and you have to maintain at least that much credibility.
I've had a Swiss army knife in my pocket for over 30 years and not once ever wished for something so useless as a corkscrew.
Victorinox Super Tinker. Two blades, all the drivers, scissors and not too bulky..
oldopelguy said:If you go with the Swiss army knife make sure you get one with the Phillips screwdriver instead of the corkscrew. This is GRM, and you have to maintain at least that much credibility.
I've had a Swiss army knife in my pocket for over 30 years and not once ever wished for something so useless as a corkscrew.
Thing is, if you need a corkscrew, you NEED a corkscrew. Not a lot of alternatives.
I don't drink a lot of wine, so I never had a corkscrew in the house other than the one on my knife. And there were a few times when it got used because of an "oh crap, we don't have a corkscrew" moment. ALthough when I think about it, I was older than 13 at the time 
But I do use Philips screwdrivers a whole lot more, this is true. I tend to grab a Leatherman Skeletool these days, and it's what I carry in my bag. Outside the budget most of the time though.
I've been using the Swisschamp that I got in Lucerne (when I was 13, natch) for the better part of 23 years now. It's gotten me out of a few tight spots.
stuart in mn said:Think about it from a kid's view. When I was 13 I wanted a Swiss Army knife, with all those different blades and attachments to play with.
That’s me. Got one when I was 9 from Grandpa. Kept playing with his whenever I was in his work shop. He surprised me with my own Swiss Army knife. My mother was NOT happy. Still have mine but Grandpa has left this world on Christmas Day of 2016. I tried to find his old one and asked my Mom to keep a look out for it when she cleaned out his house with her siblings. No dice and Mom was shocked that I still have mine after 30+ years.
Mine has the corkscrew and I have used it several times. I’ll likely do the same for my son when he turns nine in 2 years.
Another vote for the Swiss Army knife. Maybe not the most practical to carry everyday as an adult but as a kid the more gadgets we had the better.
I got a Schrade Old Timer like the 104OT model for my 10th b'day.
But it I agree that a Swiss Army knife is probably the way to go if it fits in the price range.
If you want to go Swiss this is a knife that has most of the relevant blade and screwdrivers. I bought it last fall as a birthday present when my nephew turned....13-years old. :)
It's a Victorinox One-Hand Trekker Non-Serrated.
I've carried a Ken Onion Leek & a Swiss Army Knife for years. I really like the leek but use the Swiss Army much more. Like stuart in mn, I believe a 13 year old would like the Swiss Army much more. Opinels are indeed cool. I gave one to my 12 year old twin grandchildren. They are constantly wanting to borrow my Swiss Army.
In reply to EastCoastMojo :
I had one very similar with a tanto blade. It was good. It's been stolen.
I too love having a Swiss army knife as a child . I got mine when I was 7 or 8. I carried it every day. When I was 10 or 11 I was using it in the hayloft and dropped it. It went into a crevice and out of sight. A couple of years go by and whenthe Loft is emptied my uncle found it. I still have it. I suggest one as well but consider a boy scout knife with a fork and/or spoon. Young me always thought that if I had one of those I would have everything necessary to live an ideal existence . In fact I keep a tiny opinel with a 2" blade and a tiny 3 prong fork in my hunting vest along with 2 tins of sardines and a magnesium fire starter.
I vote the huntsman (any bigger and it's just a novelty), or a Leatherman--Rebar or Skeletool. Not within budget unless you go ebay.
Also, this is likely a lifetime purchase. Don't be afraid to up the budget a little.
Either the Swiss mentioned or one of these. 15 bucks at Tractor Supply. Comes in various flavors of tacticool and normal. There's even a uber classy gold plated one.
But I've had one for years now with serrations and a tanto point, I've beaten the holy hell out of it and it's taken every single bit of it in stride. Insanely good knife for the price.
Another vote for a Ken onion Kershaw. That's my 100% carry. I have various Leatherman and Gerber multitools, but they're too big to keep in your pockets all the time. They stay in the car or in gear bags.
In reply to pilotbraden :
The fire starters are cool. I’ve used it a couple times at work and people look on like you’re performing some kind of witchcraft.
If we’re gonna load the kid down with survival gear the tactical sport is handy too:
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