I’ve bought a lot of knives lately. I’ve learned a few things about the SRM/Enlan/Bee knives. Maybe this helps someone new trying to figure out which models to try first.
Much of it comes down to personal preference I suppose as well. I’d be interested to hear about the models that others have tried and particularly like and why and which models you didn’t like as well and why.
For a small knife that I can carry everyday loose in my pocket I love the SRM 604 and 605 models. The 605 has the drop point blade that I prefer but the green G10 handle of the 604 is much better looking IMO.
I have both models so I just switched blades between the 604 and 605 so now I have a drop point blade with green G10 handles.
This is a very comfortable small knife due to the choil that allows for all 4 fingers to grip such a small knife.
The SRM F1-723 is just a beautiful knife with the patterns handles, frame lock, and black blade. It has the little cut out at the end of the blade where it comes into the handle that I prefer so that when the blade closes the part of the blade that could hit your finger isn’t sharpened. I wish all blades were like that (most but not all are).
The SRM 710 SS is a nice frame lock knife as well with most of the attributes of the F1-723 as well.
The most comfortable in the hand knife that I have is the larger Enlan/Bee E05-1 which has rosewood handles. It opens easily, has a liner lock that is easy on the fingers and due to the size and weight just feels good in the hand.
It looks good as well and it’s nice to have some variety in the handles so they aren’t all black G10.
One knife that is popular and somewhat nice but doesn’t rise to the level of those mentioned above IMO are the SRM 707 varieties. The liner lock is a bit thin and rough and does operate quite as well as the others mentioned and is a little tougher on the fingers. For some reason the blade feels a little cheap (light weight?) and the blade is sharp all the way into the handle.
This means you really have to watch your fingers when you close the knife. It’s still a knife worth getting however.
The SRM 6261 is in this same category IMO. It’s worth getting but has a few issues. It’s an axis lock and when I first got it the pivot needed to be adjusted before you could “wave” it open or closed using the axis lock. The lock button is a bit rough and the spring is a bit too stiff IMO.
When closed you are looking at the end of the exposed blade rather than having the handle cover this so aesthetically in the closed position it doesn’t look as good as some of the other knives mentioned.
The wood (fake wood?) handle looks nice and the knife itself looks nice in the open position. It would fit the hand a little better if it has some jimping on top of the blade and a choil underneath for a more secure grip. As with the 707 it is still worth getting.
For just a beautiful looking all around knife I would recommend the SRM F1-723.
I should mention that none of the knives I’ve mentioned have those funky 5 point screws. All are either hex or torx so adjusting the pivot screw isn’t difficult. Most do benefit from slightly loosening them but no so much that any blade play is introduced. A drop of oil on the blades and locks is generally a good idea as well.
What are some of the “gems” that you have found and what are some of the slight negative characteristics that you have found among the more commonly recommended knives?
In other words some tips that may cause someone to either buy or not buy one of the popular knives commonly discussed here?