Ontario Rat 1 Linerlock Folding Pocket Knife - Black

yi hua chen: I at first had doubts that this knife would keep its edge, but after months of use, it's still pretty sharp. Of course, if you want the paper-cutting edge you would need to learn how to maintain it, but for its price its an awesome knife.

United States on Apr 17, 2023

Robert Scott Lindberg: I have about 120 knives of various brands, quality and expense. About half of those are folders. IMO, the Rat 1 has got to be the very best value on the market. It's low price does not represent the high quality of design, materials, and build this knife provides. Even though the text description for this posting does not identify it, the image displays this Rat 1 selection comes with D2 steel. I can confirm the Rat 1 I received did arrive with D2 steel, a great upgrade over the basic Rat 1 with AUS 8 steel. That is an even better bang for the buck. You can't go wrong with a Rat1, and especially this Rat 1 model choice.

United States on Mar 23, 2023

Joon KimJoon Kim: Big but carries nicely in pocket, especially the cargo pocket. Very sharp out of the box. I carry it as my main knife and a Spyderco Native LW as my back up knife. Ontario Rat 1 is excellent knife for the Money.

United States on Mar 14, 2023

PhilYPhilY: I was looking for an economical EDC and compared the Ontario RAT1 with the ESEE BRK. Wanted to keep only one. Both are made in Taiwan, supposedly with D2 steel. Here are some random thoughts and observations. Pics show BRK on left, RAT1 on right.

-Fit and finish: both are pretty good given their respective prices (BRK $38, RAT1 $42)
-Both blades were centered despite pics (due to lens distortion) and are very sharp
-RAT1 held together with 10 screws; BRK had eight screws and a nail
-BRK frame lock was VERY stiff and difficult to operate; engages just over half of the tang which is more than satisfactory.
-RAT1 liner lock Is centered on the tang, despite pics
-BRK has scale on only one side—feels cheap and thin with liner being smaller than the scale; RAT1 is one scale thicker and the liner is flush on all sides
-Weight: BRK 4.5 oz; RAT1 5.0 oz
-Closed lengths are identical despite pics
-Closed width of BRK is about 3/16 inch wider with more of the blade exposed
-Blade lengths are the same with the RAT! having slightly longer exposed tang
-Spine of RAT1 feels less finished i.e., feels stamped with sharper edges
-RAT1 feels more finished in...

United States on Aug 20, 2019

Mr. Crumbly: The Ontario RAT 1 is the perfect moderate-use beater knife that I can trust in outdoor settings (think beach hangout or camping) or to pass to a friend if they ask to a borrow a knife.

Steel:
The upgrade in steel from the original AUS-8 RAT 1 to this new D2 steel is considerable. The edge on the D2 steel blade will hold for an unquestionably longer time than budget steels like AUS-8 or 8Cr13Mov but perhaps not quite as long as steels like CPM S30V/S35VN. I've additionally observed D2 to be a bit prone to chipping so I advise new purchasers to be careful with hard chopping and stabbing tasks.

Ergos/Carry:
The ergonomics are great but the handle scales are not as grippy as they should be. I won't go as far as to say they are slippery, but they certainly feel so compared against some of my other knives.
The clip works well and the closed blade fits snugly in the side of your pocket (albeit rather largely)

Last little note on my personal knife: When I open the knife, the locking liner/tab will randomly engage deeper along the blade tang, making disengaging the lock feel difficult and "stickier" than usual. This happens about 1/20 times I open the knife,...

United States on Oct 03, 2017