Today I got a knife in the mail. It is an Ontario RAT 1. About a week back one of my guys was showing one of these to another guy and I asked to look at it. It was a nice enough knife but I didn’t pay much attention until he mentioned the price of around $30. (I paid $35 on Amazon) I was carrying a medium sized Cold Steel Voyager that, while a solidly decent product I just wasn’t thrilled with. After some internet research I concluded that the RAT 1 was a heck of a deal and ordered the plain edged model in the satin finish. It is far too early for a review but so far I am not dissapointed.

I got to thinking. You don’t need to spend a ton of money to get decent and totally functional gear. Often amply functional pieces of kit and weapons are available at reasonable prices provided you aren’t married to the coolest names or the newest CDI (chicks dig it) set up’s. Saving $40 here and $200 there adds up in a hurry.

It is important to be realistic. You can’t break the cost curve. I do not expect the $35 RAT 1 to be on par with a hundred dollar Benchmade. There is going to be a shortfall someplace beside the name on the item. Maybe it will be design or materials or fit and finish or durability or warranty/ customer service. The question is if the shortfall is something you can live with.

While you can’t break the cost curve you can definitely bend it a little bit in your favor. Some products and companies provide a lot of value for your dollar. Knives like the Ontario RAT 1 or just about anything by Cold Steel are a great value. Pistols like Glock or the Springfield XD are equally as capable as HK or SIG models when the goal is for a rugged duty/ service pistol. Savage Arms has really stepped up their game over the past few years and offers a lot of value in rifles. The good folks at Condor tactical seem to offer some very well thought out gear at great prices.

If you are willing to be flexible on some brands it is quite realistic to become properly equipped in a reasonable amount of time while staying on a budget. This is probably the way to go if you are on a tight budget or trying to get equipped in a hurry (like yesterday). Folks who have to have the right CDI brand names are going to pay for them. This approach is fine too but it costs a lot of money. Most people do not have a lot of money. Personally my sympathy for a brand whore that constantly complains about prices and won’t have a decently functional setup of guns/ fighting/ camping gear for a decade is nonexistent.