Just trying to get things started
What's leading you to get a tanto? I find them to be frustrating to work with, not knocking you just generally curious.
I'm not a knife nerd, but my friend makes knives and his latest "nice knife" purchase was a benchmade; that thing is fucking solid. Not sure exactly which one but it's one of the CPM blades.
It looks cool and I hear you get a nice strong tip with tanto, I want to be able to use it to pry and stuff which would be nice. The benchmade tanto looks a bit over my budget.
For prying you a screwdriver, if you want a versatile blade type then I strongly recommend a sheepsfoot tanto.
Looks kinda like a reverse tanto. I don't see how this is versatile. My rat 1 looks to be more versatile than that.
Fixed or folder?
I assume a folder, since you're rocking a rat currently. For that, I think the first place to look is still cold steel. While there warranty has gone to crap, and they may start slipping at any time, so far the build quality is still there.
The voyager models are great; I've had one for decades now. Multiples, of various sizes. They're really hard to beat on a bang for buck level.
They've got other tanto models too, but I err on the voyager still.
And, tbh, they're kinda great in fixed blades too. Probably the best bet is the tanto version of the srk. Tough as hell, affordable, and has the best hand feel outside of custom knives that I've ever had on a tanto.
However, there's other brands aplenty. I recently had a chance to play with a cjrb bellona. Maybe not the toughest out there, but the blade grind made it really nice. It's similar to the cold steel kind of grind, with the secondary tip having a curve more like traditional tanto.
If you hunt for sales, the benchmade bailout is decent. Good steel overall, good hand feel, but a wee bit over priced imo. But you can usually find used at more reasonable prices.
The civivi brazen is okay, if you like button locks. Otherwise, I'm not a fan personally. Mind you, it's more of a preference thing, the quality is fine, I just favor other locks, and the balance is off for my tastes.
Crkt has the m16 tanto that's very popular, and for good reason. However, you gotta be aware that their folding knives have spotty QC, so you might have to deal with exchanges to get a great one. The big plus is that if you're looking for serrated, the big scallops they have as an option are unique, nobody else does them.
Kabar makes a respectable fixed blade tanto. Not the best when it comes to toughness, but pretty damn good.
Kershaw has the emerson branded cqc tanto that's not my preference, but is a reliable option overall.
I'm kinda struggling to pull more out of my head. Tanto was the first kind of knife I ever trained with, so they have a special place in my heart. Which means I've handled or used so many over the years that they bleed together.
Anyway, serrations. You can find plenty of tantos with them. If you like serrations, you won't find that the tanto pattern suffers from having them the way very curved blades can. I don't personally like full serrations, and only like half serrated blades on a very limited number of knives (my secondary is a half serrated, but I only own maybe four that have them at this point), but that's preference. Serrated knives have benefits and drawbacks like plain edges do.
Now, with that in mind, if you're interested in opinions about tanto and knives in general, keep reading. Otherwise just skip the rest.
Tanto have some nice benefits, and a few drawbacks. When it comes to your primary carry knife, you want to consider that a tanto is not going to usually have a belly worth mentioning. It's a trade-off. You lose the easy slicing of a belly, and gain the extra penetration a tanto point can give. You also swap out easier sharpening on a knife like the rat for a more acute edge that may or may not give you much in exchange. I don't have any issues sharpening tanto, but some folks do. But the grinds on most production tantos are super acute, so you can get extra slicy slice, it just isn't always going to be ideal since different companies and different steels can make that a good or bad thing.
As much as I love tantos, neither of my daily carry knives are tanto. I used to carry my xl voyager everywhere, but once I got my benchmade 710 back when they first came out, it slowly took over my pocket. I've come to prefer the versatility of a curved tip more. That belly just does a wider range of tasks at a similar level of capability, whereas tanto points are all over the place in what tasks they do reliably well.
My real advice is to pick up a super cheap tanto and carry it along with your current knife for a week or two. Any time you're using a knife, switch between them, see what really works well for you. Then start looking for your new knife with what you learned in mind. You can usually grab a cheap s&w tanto and expect it to hold an edge for a week or two of light duty, long enough to get an idea of how the tip type is going to fit your needs.
Folder. As for serrations, I would like it like the rat, which is like a quarter or so serrated. That's a good advice, getting a cheap tanto rather than a curved knife like drop point. What's your pick for a sub $150 knife overall and your pick if it had to be tanto?
Overall? That's harder. I'm a benchmade fanboy, so I tend to favor the bailout and bugout in that price range, even though you have to find sales to get either under the 150 by pennies. You get solid blades, acceptable warranty, and the freedom to modify down the roads.
The caveat is that the bugout feels crappy. The scales on the stock model are designed to be lightweight, so they flex a good bit. It's actually a benefit, but it's a common complaint.
If you aren't willing to hunt down sales, the Hogue deka is usually under that mark, depending on the exact version. Hogue has been making some killer knives that punch well above their price, and the deka in its various iterations is amaze. Tough, easy to use even with cold and wet fingers, and they look nice. It's maybe a better knife overall than the bugout that it was meant to compete with, but I prefer the steel in the base model bugout over the base choice in the deka. A little "tougher" steel imo.
If it had to be tanto, it's back to cold steel. The voyager comes in multiple sizes, and you'll have money left over, for a knife that you can actually baton wood with in an emergency and still have a working knife. Won't be in great shape after something like that, but it'll still work.
But, the ad-10 has a tanto version, and the damn thing is a tank. Bigger and heavier than the voyager models, which can be good or bad in a daily carry knife, depending on your needs. If you need to abuse it a little more, it's good. If you don't really use a knife heavily very often, it's a bit much for edc.
Kinda in the middle is the recon 1 tanto. Under 100, in a really good steel choice, great ergonomics. The steel they use is a tad less tough than the voyager's aus10, but holds an edge way better.
The reason for cold steel being the pick for tanto in specific is their grind on tantos. It gives an amazingly durable front, with a hollow grind that favors slicing better than any other company I've personally used.
But, there's another benefit. The triad lock isn't as convenient as the axis on a benchmade or deka, but it's tough. You can literally hammer on a knife with a triad lock and it won't break the lock, the blade will go first.
For my money, if I was buying for a friend or family member with the criteria you've given, those would be what I'd show them.
Think ima settle on a recon 1 half serrated. Although I wish there was a knife under 4 inches that also has the tanto profile with partial serrations. I've looked everywhere and couldn't find any. I also need it to be legal in CA so not automatic.
I can't find any fault with that :)
You know of any partially serrated tantos under 4 inches?
Under 4? Not that I could find. I couldn't think of any, so I went looking. The only options I saw were utter crap.
Yeah then the recon 1 is probably the best option. Unless I compromise and get non serrated tanto.
Cold Steel AD-10 for an overbuilt knife. Cold Steel Verdict for a more traditional tanto shape
Civivi Brazen would be great for a more budget option.
Lots of choices out there for sure.
I can only offer you my impressions of those I own personally.
Folders
Benchmade Bailout: Flimsy, overpriced. Nicht fur der beaterduty. The blade is great, but if you are going to subject it to rigorous use like prying and impacts you will break the handle. Will Benchmade warranty it if you do? Probably. Do you care to find out? I wouldn't. The M4 version with its aluminum handles is better, but even more massively overpriced. If you want one of those, do yourself a favor and buy a knockoff instead. It'll show up made of D2 or 440C, but at least it'll only cost you $15 when you inevitably break it.
SOG Trident: Beefy. Built quite well for the price. The new "AT" variants with the Axis/crossbar/"XR"/whateveritis lock are even better, provided you are not a steel snob and are satisfied with D2. This is available in both drop pointed and tanto versions, so be sure to order the one you want. These list for $100 but no one actually pays that much for one. They're like $79 on Amazon right now.
Kershaw CQC-7K: The Kershaw CQC series as a whole is in my opinion one of the best options in the world for a daily carry knife. These are inexpensive, very well built, and incredibly easy to use. The Wave system is genuinely useful and is not just a gimmick, making these the fastest and easiest to deploy folding option especially if for legal reasons you cannot carry an automatic (which most people can't). Tl;dr: Get you one.
Zero Tolerance ZT0630: For the discerning gentleman who wants a 7K but has too much money burning a hole in his pocket. So naturally, I own two of them. (Well, one is an 0620 which is the other point profile.) If you need a knife built like a nuclear bunker but it absolutely must fold, this may be the one for you. It is discontinued, so you will have to buy used. As your attorney, I advise you that knockoffs are still readily available if you want to try it out and don't feel like taking out a second mortgage, especially if you will beat on it. The clones have a steel rear liner rather that titanium, to which I say: Big whoop. So do the Kershaw CQC's, and that never hurt anybody. Nobody on the holding end, anyway.
Fixed Blades
Hanwei Forge Tactical Tanto KH2092: Buy this if you want do that meme where second panel is, "No, I meant a real tanto." There are two variants of this and the older KH2092 is the one you want. The newer incarnation is a downscaled version of the tactical katana and wakizashi, which is fine in its own right. But it lacks the clip on sheath and the latching retention system with the silent-draw insert. So it's not nearly as suitable for Solid Snaking it in the bush.
Cold Steel Kobun: Slim in thickness, especially the handle, and thus quite possibly one of the easiest to carry fixed blade tantos in the world. New manufacture examples have an included clip which is considerably better than the originals. So guess which one I have... Purists will complain about the overmolded handle which can't be dismounted, and the AUS8 steel which is perhaps questionable for longer fixed blades. Maybe don't try to use this to cut down a tree.
Cold Steel Spike: Yes, it's available in a tanto point. It is deeply silly, and not well suited for general purpose use.
I'll have to rummage around in my stuff and see if have any more tanto pointed examples I can have a look at. I grew out of tanto points largely when I also grew out of the ninja phase that everyone has between the ages of 12 and 16. For all practical purposes I don't see that they confer much advantage, they're kind of annoying to sharpen, and modern drop point and spear point profiles are just as strong for stabbing so the alleged "penetration" advantage everyone claims they confer is actually kind of moot. Plus, how many people wearing body armor are you actually planning to have to stab in a day? None? Yeah, me too.
The kershaw one looks good but that steel looks a bit low quality. Feels like it won't hold its edge. The zero tolerance, can't find that anywhere. As for fixed blades, I'm looking for folders.
I find that 8Cr is perfectly acceptable for a working knife. High end supersteels like S35VN or M4 may be "better," sure, but they're also mostly going to be outside of your stated budget.
I have one of almost every Kershaw CQC variant, including both the 8Cr and D2 versions of the ones that come in both. I have had no problems whatsoever.
Is there one similar to that but with a partially serrated blade?
Well, the Emerson CQC-7BW leaps to mind but that one is also outside of your budget. I can't think of any other Wave openers off the top of my head with both a tanto point and half serrations.
The CRKT M16 is available in a tanto+serrated option, as is the Kershaw Blur for some more budget friendly, but known brand options. I'm really not a fan of half serrated blades so I have limited input, there.
Well I don't really need wave openers just for it to be tanto and preferably serrated.
Just found this wave adapter mod, seems pretty cool, thought you might like it if you didn't know of it already. Currently the recon 1 tanto half serrated knife is at the top of my list.