With all the details and features of this knife, the quality etc. I don’t believe there is room for many complaints on the steel. It seems to be a damn good knife for the price even with the steel. It’s not a $200 knife and not suppose to be. For $35 it’s a hard knife to beat.
Hello Nick. I Am here is South Africa, Have all 3 sizes and love them. I got the Medium D2 model, it does not have the silly finger gap and all the blade is available for use. The steel is awesome as I had mine for EDC the last 8 months and sharpen it once. My honey badgers clip is left and right and honey badger is actually printed on the clip as well.. Love your channel. Greetings South Africa.
“Silly finger gap” is called a finger choil, it its not really silly... allows one to choke up on the blade to enable more power cuts with the blade, which will be difficult doing with a standard grip... try it sometime with a blade that has that feature....
@@stephanbotha2974 thank you. I was triggered by his comment. Someone let me borrow one of these todays and the jimping on the choil was by far my favorite feature
Yo Nick new sub as of 2 days ago and i gotta say im lovin the channel so far. I watched about 40 of your videos yesterday with no regrets. Keep up the good work buddy!
These have been around here in South Africa for years, long before knives like the Cutjack, if I'm not mistaken. Distributed by Lite Optec, made by Ultratec. I think they're manufactured in China. They're great budget knives. It's just too bad that America only discovered them too late. I think it's because they only recently became available on Amazon. They would have been a much bigger deal if the rest of the world knew about them years ago.
Oh, and they're also available with an Emerson-style wave opener and in a hawkbill bladeshape. Really nice packaging too. Comes with a little torx tool.
Honey Badger is now just Honey Badger😎 Ultratec branding removed. Now available in D2 and left/right clips and coll Whatncleaver. Still cheap as chips. Great value
Wel, maybe a bit late, but just bought one! In the color tan, so I can dye the scales. Acid and stonewash on the blade and clip, and another project is done.
I just bought the Cold Steel Medium Luzon, a large Cut Jack with the mini just arriving, already had the Large Honey Badger First thinking I can do better, and honestly I keep carrying the HB daily! The Quality of the Honey Badger is just...outstanding to me regardless of the blade steel, I just returned the Cut Jack mini today due to the liner lock failure. I guess it’s personal preference, but I’m getting another Honey Badger or 3.
I have the large honey badger and it was after a restock. It does all the things you said were good and great regarding the one you reviewed. So consistency seems good. Mine is large due to I like bigger knives. Have a great day.
Think I may need to pick one of these up as well. Old video, but nice review. I don't think I noticed it being referenced in the video, but I also appreciate the "honey" comb pattern on the scales. I see what they did there.
Nick you da man! Thanks for the info. Personally I really enjoy this knife. It's a great working knife. Don't have to really worry about it because if it gets messed up, well I'll just buy another one.
Speaking of the CRKT Ruger LCK - it has been recently discontinued. I picked up the black sheepsfoot version just before then and the paint immediately began flaking off the liners. What a shame, as I really liked it. I still may grab the drop point from a reseller. I bought 2 medium Honeybadgers to try out, the drop point in OD green and the new "Wharncleaver" profile in tan - swapped the outer scales and left the backspacers in for a subtle two-tone look and let my buddy pick his favorite. We both love em' to death - and no worries if we lose them at their excellent prices. They are now (as mentioned elsewhere in the comments) available in multiple blade profiles, in a D2 steel option, and have a reversible deep-carry clip. Also - the website has different color scales, backspacers, clips, and hardware available to totally customize your Honeybadger. The scales are available in white, which allows you to dye them to even more unique designs. (Oops! Seems I'm a big fan, and rambled on a bit there... Apologies!)
Seen nothing but good reviews on the honey badger. Just purchased the medium from bladehq for $34. They runnin in the 50s and 60s on ebay. Thanks for review.
after all this time, I am still considering this one. It doesn't impress me with materials, especially at the price...but that does not make or break a folding knife imo. Good action and light weight is however a pair of factors that I prioritize when shopping. I don't really want to spend the extra money for D2, but I also dont know if its worth buying in 8cr, which is a fine steel, but again, not impressive at this price. I am considering the white handle scale option, as I like white, and it also makes for a good customization platform. any thoughts? Do I need this knife?
One of the few reviews of his that haven't aged well. They're a proven brand, an awesome work knife, and a great company. (Honeybadger, and also our US. distributor Western Active). Their "wharncleaver" is very different from many other companies and a great shape for a work knife. And now the D2 blades have arrived and even the new leaf shaped blade.
I absolutely love my honey badger.. I have the leaf blade in medium getting ready to buy a large in the leaf and a medium cleaver blade.. great work blade thats fidget friendly drops shut after awhile too ..the only thing I'd like to see is 14c 28n steel.. then it would be pretty close to perfect in my opinion..
I have the rat 2 and many , many more budget knives along with some $300 plus knives and I love the action on this Honey badger and I’m not afraid to lose it or even use it on anything at this price.
Just bought the Large Honey Badger on sale and am really looking forward to carrying and using it. To add to your review, the clip is nice and deep, and even though the knife is the Large variant it fits well in my pocket and one forgets it is there .... even sitting at my desk or riding my bike it is not in the way at all.
@@lr2119 I carry the large all day and even when sitting at my desk I don't even know it is there.... Had to check now to see if it was actually in my pocket. The clip is nice and deep and the knife does not poke or impede in anyway. I even carry it in my pocket when mountain biking.
Interesting knife for the price, definitely a beater you just toss in a toolbox, etc. and don't worry much about. On a side note: they should nickname this thing 'Captain Stubing' as a nod to that great film The Salton Sea (highly recommended). That scene with the badger is one you don't soon forget...hilarious yet terrifying.
If the clip was ambi... I'd be down. Also, 8cr13mov is not a bad steel, have so many of these in budget spydercos, usable steel, not great but not bad.
The steel type comparison should be done cautiously. I don’t know what’s in the ‘D2’ of some Chinese knives. Some of the 8cr can get shaving sharp, even if edge retention isn’t great.
Give it time...based on the comments from South African viewers it has been around for a while there, but just became a "thing" here in the US about 2 years ago. In that time the company has made the clip ambidextrous, added D2 steel, new blade shapes and new colors...as well as customization parts (backspacers, clips, scales, screws, etc). I'd look for them to start offering some higher end stuff in the future, but maybe they're happy with their product and will just stick with what they have...time will tell.
Nick, thank you for the comment about some companies "Mini" knives still being 3.5". I prefer smaller folders and I like 2-2.5". When it's called a "Mini" yet it's still a decent amount bigger than my ZT0450 & 0452, which are the biggest of my usual EDC's, it leaves me very disappointed.
8cr13mov at $33 is a tough sell for me now-a-days. The design seems solid, but with what civivi, tangram, and some other knife makers that shall not be named on this channel are coming out with as of late it doesn't stack up material wise. If it was even 440c or 12c27 at a slightly higher price I would consider it much more.
It just doesn’t beat the steel will cutjack in my opinion. Given I’m left handed so I like that part about the cutjack but also the D2 over 8cr13mov. I admit I haven’t handled either.
The spine texturing is a deal breaker for me. My fingernail gets caught up on that. I have an Enlan EL-01 with the same issue and I've almost ripped off my fingernail on my index finger when using the flipper.
if they make it in d2 or better and get rid of some of the jimping I'll buy it at just about any price. it's nothing new, but everything about it is perfectly cohesive.
I like all your reviews but I have to say in the fidget friendly class it beats the Rat and in slicing look at the wide thin blade on the badger I have the honey badger leaf blade and I absolutely love it, I couldn't find anything for 31 bucks by the way I got it on sale cause they 41 now for the medium but I couldn't find anything that came close in fidget friendly and a thin wide blade ..btw I have a bunch of knives well over a 100 bucks but I'll be honest for some reason the badger See's more pocket time and I don't have a problem at all in the pocket it's so light I don't know it's there.. it only one thing it needs to be nearly perfect in my book 14c 28n...
I tried to figure out the three companies. Lite Optec, founded 1987, is a South African importer and also distributes in Africa. They also, allegedly, designed the Honey Badger. The knives are made by Ultratec. Ultratec is a fairly common corporate name, used in many countries for different companies around the world. I have not been able to locate where the knife manufacturer is located. Reviewers of the Honey Badger usually don't state where the knives are made, which is a bit unusual. Two internet posts claim they are made in China. Western Active is a Southern California company. Their website does not give their startup date. They sell the knives in the US on their own website and Amazon. I don't know who the importer is.
To me, many pluses with this budget knife: attractive blade, front finger choil, nicely chamfered spidey-hole, bearings/great action, and that $33 price makes it seem like a winner.
I keep waiting for this brand to put out another model, but all I keep seeing is different blade shapes. Also there is a limited one which is pretty attractive, but no blade steel upgrade...so for 80 bucks...D2 and FRN...not a no brainer for me. Anyone have one of those special editions and love it?
So many complaints about the steel. Get over yourselves. It's a cheaply priced knife. You're not cutting down a tree with it and it's certainly not a survival knife.
I need to get an R2D2...I've recommended it to multiple people, but don't own one and I should just for the principle of it all. Too much time spent drooling over the expensive stuff recently I think.
A 3 inch blade is a good length for my typical EDC needs, but if I wanted it as a beater knife that may get used outdoors or with gloves then I may go with the Rat 1 for a little extra size.
I'll post the same thing here that I posted on Frankie and Bird's video. I got one of these in OD today, and it came without a hex wrench (not a big deal) and an extremely soft detent (a much better bigger deal). It's still plenty nice for the price range, but it seems that quality control might be something to look out for and be aware of. Caveat emptor...
I don’t own one but they look nice for the price. My problem...same as spyderco.....why put a giant hole in the blade. To me you loose strength by doing that. I’ll never understand this.
Check out the Maxace Balance g10. The Honey Badger is a lowkey rip off. They took the Balance design and made 3 noticeable upgrades. First is the addition of the forward finger choil. Second is the blade hole shape. Third is the pocket clip. Everything looks identical(pivot, handle, backspacer, blade shape). I don't like the idea of design theft, but the Honey Badger is definitely an ergonomic upgrade(with low end materials/steel). The large Honey Badger is the identical size. Hold the Honey Badger up to pictures of the Balance. Though, I could have this backwards if the Honey Badger came out first.
D E there are two versions of the Maxace Balance, the lower - medium knife which is quite similar to this and then you have the Balance 2017 M390 Carbon Fibre which is a totally different beast, without a hole in the blade and a price to match the materials. I have only the M390 CF version and will never leave my collection.
I do want to say one thing about a knife that is nothing "new and exciting," the chase for that is how you end up with the god awful double sided kerambit z hunter trash. Lets be honest knives are a solved problem the fancy ones are literally just worse knives by and large and the whole idea of "Hey let's make one from our company" is just as much of a problem from every other company including the high end ones but by and large doesn't get mentioned at the high end. *cough* Spyderco's/insert literally every other knife company's cleaver design *cough*
