A good utility knife?

[Stephen Tashiro]

What's a good utility knife that's currently for sale?

With the brand's I've tried, there are the following problems

1. The button or lever for unlocking the blade is right where you want to rest a finger when using the knife.

2. The blade retraction feature gets hard to work or jams completely.

[Bernie Kopfer]

I have one marketed by Milwaukie that works better than others Ive used. and a bit of lubricant and higt pressure air help the sticking problem.

[Dave Seng]

Best one I've ever had - perhaps the same one that Bernie referred to:

453022

$8 at Home Depot.

[Doug Dawson]

What's a good utility knife that's currently for sale?

With the brand's I've tried, there are the following problems

1. The button or lever for unlocking the blade is right where you want to rest a finger when using the knife.

2. The blade retraction feature gets hard to work or jams completely.
Are you referring to a switchblade or “flip knife”? In some jurisdictions those are illegal to carry on the street. (I’m talking to you, NYPD. Y’all can call it what you want and bust people accordingly. Even if you’re just walking home from work.)

I’m unacquainted with box cutters, OTOH, that are afflicted as you describe. There the main determinant of quality is the blade.

[Frederick Skelly]

Milwaukee Fastback Folding Utility Knife, 48-22-1501 LINK (https://www.amazon.com/Milwaukee-48-22-1501-Fastback-Folding-Stripper/dp/B083G6J5T3/ref=sr_1_20?dchild=1&keywords=Milwaukee+Fastback+Folding+Utility+Knife% 2C+48-22-1501&qid=1614219591&sr=8-20)

Best utility knife I have ever used. Easy flip open. Never sticks. Easy to close. Comfortable in hand and in pocket. I smile every time I use it.

[lowell holmes]

Go to Lowes and Home Depot, fondle their knives and you will find one.

[Doug Garson]

I prefer the Olfa knives with the snap off blades. https://www.amazon.ca/Olfa-5003-Ratchet-Heavy-Duty-Utility/dp/B0006SJAR0
https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/51Yt3BkpNWL._AC_SL1264_.jpg

[Jim Koepke]

This is my current user:

453037

It has worked well for me so far.

jtk

[Jason Roehl]

What I’ve been carrying at work for years:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B006H0U4FI/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_PP85P87CEH8F7RW7YA65

The blade can only be released by the button when the knife is at a 135° angle. Also, I have found that the Irwin bi-metal blades last noticeably longer than the standard 100-pk of Stanley blades or other el-cheapo packs.

[Jerome Stanek]

I have a folding one from Home depot that I got 25 years ago still works great and I use it every day

[Tom M King]

I'm sure I own every one posted here, and others, but only one each of those, bought on trial. This is my favorite, and I keep them in a number of different places.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j95TFJFeKNM

[Zachary Hoyt]

I have three Stanley 10-099s in different rooms that I use regularly. I have gotten a lot of used utility knives in box lots at auctions, and these are the best of all of those, but I haven't ever bought a new one so I don't know what I may be missing.

[BOB OLINGER]

My experience - buy the best (heavy duty) blades you can find. To me, blades are more important than the structure of knife.

[Jim Becker]

I use these and have been very pleased with them. No way they are going to close while the business end is in use...

453049 453050

[michael langman]

The only one I use is a stanley that has a fixed replaceable blade. It is so much better to use then the retractable ones.

[Paul F Franklin]

This is my current user:

453037

It has worked well for me so far.

jtk

I have 4 or 5 of these (couple in the shop, couple in garage, out in the barn...) because I find them to work well and hold up. The only trouble I've had with them is after breaking down a bunch of cardboard boxes and getting little pieces of packing tape jammed in next to the blade making it difficult to close until they are removed. I think that happens to all of them, except the fixed blade type.
I also have several of the dewalt small (9mm) breakaway blade knives. The are all metal (except for the button), sturdy, and operate smoothly. I keep one in my apron pocket because it is small and light and can be extended quite a bit to use as a marking knife in a pinch.

https://www.authorizedtooloutlet.com/products/dewalt-dwht10037-9mm-single-blade-snap-off-knife?variant=18958482311&currency=USD&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=google+shopping&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI8vnN4K6F7wIVFjizAB2TUQgLEAQYASAB EgKdVfD_BwE

[eta:] Dewalt also makes a 18mm snap off knife; no experience with that one, I like the smaller version.

[Bernie Kopfer]

Best one I've ever had - perhaps the same one that Bernie referred to:

453022

$8 at Home Depot.
Yes, that’s the one.

[Michael Weber]

The only one I use is a stanley that has a fixed replaceable blade. It is so much better to use then the retractable ones.
Me too. Supplied by an employer in the late 70’s. For decades I kept it in a holster made from wide masking tape as was the style at the time. Lol

[Lee DeRaud]

I use these and have been very pleased with them. No way they are going to close while the business end is in use...

453049 453050Second that recommendation.

I just wish they made them in orange instead of black so the would be (slightly) harder to lose. :)

[John K Jordan]

I'm sure I own every one posted here, and others, but only one each of those, bought on trial. This is my favorite, and I keep them in a number of different places.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j95TFJFeKNM

Do standard blades fit in the Lenox knife?

[Jim Becker]

Second that recommendation.

I just wish they made them in orange instead of black so the would be (slightly) harder to lose. :)

My other one is red, Lee. I got them at HD and they had both black and red. The belt hook sometimes comes loose and since I don't use it, I remove it, but a small Allen wrench will tighten things back up quickly.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-Folding-Lock-Back-Utility-Knife-Red-with-10-Blades-99979/311920676


oooh...looks like they have a wood handle version, too :D

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-Wood-Handle-Folding-Lock-Back-Utility-Knife-99736/303741410

And then there's rare but deadly combo utility knife/"sporting" (pocket) knife...

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-2-in-1-Folding-Utility-Knife-and-Sporting-Knife-99978/312050315

[Tom M King]

Do standard blades fit in the Lenox knife?

Yes, standard blades fit, and there is plenty of room in the easily opened, but stays closed while using, handle, to store several more in a protected edge fashion.

To remove a blade, and insert a new one, you push the extension activator forward, and to the right side. That moves the plunger that holds the blade in to the side, allowing removal, or insertion. You can see how it operates by opening the door, and activating the mechanism.

The handle is thick, rounded, and very comfortable. The angle of the blade is very comfortable to use too.

The last I looked, they go for about 16 bucks, and rarely ever go on sale. Home Depot stopped carrying them a couple of years ago, but Lowes still does.

They also make a smaller, fixed blade version, but I've never felt I needed one, since this one works so well.

[Lee DeRaud]

My other one is red, Lee. I got them at HD and they had both black and red. The belt hook sometimes comes loose and since I don't use it, I remove it, but a small Allen wrench will tighten things back up quickly.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-Folding-Lock-Back-Utility-Knife-Red-with-10-Blades-99979/311920676Cool! Haven't seen those at mine yet but I'll take a closer look, or just order them online.

[EDIT] I think I see the problem: I've been buying the 3-packs in black...probably just overlooked the red singles.

[Jim Becker]

Yes, there have been various combos, Lee. I actually think my black one and red one came in the same package as a "two-fur".

I actually like having at least two because invariably, one of them is involved in some home improvement project and that means there's still one in the shop...they get frequent use.

[Lee DeRaud]

I actually like having at least two because invariably, one of them is involved in some home improvement project and that means there's still one in the shop...they get frequent use.Let's see...three in the garage, one on the kitchen desk, one on the upstairs desk, one in the car console.

And I've bought three (that I remember) of the triple sets, so I've got at least a 1-in-3 loss ratio. I'm hoping the red handles will help with that.

[Rick Potter]

Having the same gripes, this thread got me interested so I stopped at Lowes and looked around. Came home with a Lennox with a blade that is always out, eliminating the offending buttons, knobs etc., and it is on the fat side, making it easy to hold.

The new thing I found which I was unaware of was CARBIIDE blades. Never knew they existed, so I brought some home also.

Anyone use them.

PS: My main use for the box cutter is boxes. With the Covid thing, the Amazon growth, and living with four gals, we seem to have a never ending stream of cardboard coming to our door. Guess who gets to knock down all those boxes to fit in the recycle barrel?

[Lee DeRaud]

The new thing I found which I was unaware of was CARBIIDE blades. Never knew they existed, so I brought some home also.Not cheap, I'd expect. (checks Borg website) Yup, about 4X the regular ones.

And the tip usually gets broken off long before the edge loses sharpness, especially when opening or knocking down boxes. Not sure how the carbide helps with that.

[Jim Becker]

Rick, I hear you on the box recycling...both our very large bins are currently filled due to storm related delays in pickup and we have a whole bunch more waiting to go out when we finally get a pickup this coming Monday. Our recycling output always eclipses our trash output. We keep a dedicated knife in the kitchen knife drawer for this stuff!

[Paul F Franklin]

I like the carbide blades when working with sheetrock. I'm not sure they are really cost effective for that, but they reduce the hassle of (as) frequent blade changes. Sheetrock dulls regular blades really fast.

[Lee DeRaud]

Still not sure about the carbide blades, given that I have about 75 regular ones left in my current pack of 100.

But one line in an Amazon review did catch my eye: "This is like the John Wick of box cutters." :)

[Rick Potter]

Hi Lee,

They were double, not 4X. A pack of 50 Lennox blades was $10, and 50 Lennox Carbide blades were $20. They also carried TiN blades, but I did not see a 50 pack of them.

Lennox rates the TiN blades (three came with the cutter) as lasting 3X longer than regulars, and the carbide blades lasting 10X longer than regular.

I am sure I have a lifetime supply now.

I broke down two boxes this morning before going out to work on a rental we just bought, two replacements were waiting for me when I got home, plus an extra big one my wife got at an estate sale. At least she didn't go to Costco today, that would have been several more.

The final, final straw causing me to look for a more comfortable one to use was the 30-40 large boxes left in the new house I am working on. Took three weeks of trash pickups to get them all gone.

PS: Mine looks like the one in Tom King's video, but without the retracting blade, so no protrusions to blister my delicate little hands.

[Tom M King]

One advantage of the retracting blade is that there are several positions that you can extend the blade. So, if you're opening a box with something in it, it only goes through the cardboard.

[Lee DeRaud]

They were double, not 4X. A pack of 50 Lennox blades was $10, and 50 Lennox Carbide blades were $20.Maybe at Lowes, but that price for regular blades sounds high. HD doesn't have Lennox, but for Stanley it was $10/100 (10 cents each) for regular and $20/50 (40 cents each) for carbide. Pricing varied a bit by brand, but almost all of the regular blades were 100-packs, while the carbides were 50-packs.