ALL THINGS BUDGET KNIVES

I’d looked at the TS21, but that flipper tab sort of annoys me. Looks a bit “hot” like it would be a poker in the pocket. Are the edges of it chamfered? Btw, nice work on those clips! :+1: :beer:

Its slightly rounded, I dont notice it all in my pocket.

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Here’s the Woodpecker if someone is interested.
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For less than $50 bucks with titanium handles and a D2 blade on ball bearings the TS21 is hard to beat.
Very well made from what I have observed with the machining.

For anyone interested there are two version’s of the QSP Woodpecker. I think the second version has a few things that might have been tweaked from customer feedback.
I’m not sure as to why the second version, but from some of what I read and youtube that is my guess.
Version 1 is on sale at Whitemountainknives, they also have a 10% off coupon that’s not hard to find with free shipping.
https://whitemountainknives.com/search/search-results/?search_query=woodpecker

Thanks! That’s an excellent photo—you can really see the detail and it looks like there’s a sufficient chamfer on the edging to keep it from being a hot spot.

The QSP Woodpecker looks sweet! Hopefully I can treat myself to one, someday.

I had caught my eye on the Yon Xanadu brand. They make some interesting knife designs. There’s an YX-650 model very comparable to the TwoSun TS21… However, the one major contrast I noticed was the TS21 weighing 3.9oz while the YX-650 weighs 2oz more! Not good.

If WMK doesn’t sell out of stock of version 1, I’m guessing they will probably discount them even further.
That seems to be the pattern at WMK anyways. If they do and I catch it in time I’ll give everyone a heads up.

TwoSun TS 21:

Overall Length: 202 mm
Blade Thickness: 4 mm
Blade Length: 87 mm

Yon Xanadu YX-650:

Total length: 222mm
Blade thickness: 4.1mm
Blade length: 95mm

To me it’s quite obvious that a longer knife with a wider blade and handle weighs more. It’s just more material…

Received the green CJRB Kicker today. Took me about a dozen attempts before I got a hang of the recoil closing system. I’ll say that I like it more than an Axis style lock that I have tried on a Benchmade, and a Ganzo knife.

Newly dyed TwoSun tropical teal (was jade), jade Bestech Texel, and the CJRB Kicker.

I didn’t state those other factors because the difference isn’t all that much. 7mm longer and 0.1mm thicker shouldn’t incur a 2oz difference in weight. I’m guessing it’s the frame itself may be thicker, as well as longer in the handle. Weight is an often overlooked factor in knife discussions, from what I’ve seen. It can make a huge difference, though. More expensive knives seem to cut down weight within the same dimensions, telegraphing a superior set of materials (e.g. lighter & stronger alloys).

Beautiful color! I like that “tropical” teal… reminds me of the shade of blue used in swimming pools. Out of these 3, which one do you feel has the best action, “feeling” of quality opening/closure?

Thank you for the compliment on the tropical teal job.

The Bestech Texel has the best feeling action of the three.

Some ask:

Why don’t you take a look at my channel? :beer:

You can skip at 3.17’’ to the “salami test” and than upset yourself with my cheesy english translation/subtitles :smiley:
(in the video I speak of how cheap knives,especially Chinese, can have their glory)

By the way, I really need some feedback by visitors to understand how I can improve the videos.
Thank you very much and sorry for the spam.

Thanks. Have you lubricated any of them? I’ve found a touch of lubricant can really “open up” the action on a knife that feels a little lacking. And of course, over time with repeated open/close, action will likely smooth out.

Has anyone here bought knives from those eBay sellers in China who are offering what look to be name brand production knives for a good bit less? While some are knock-offs, some appear to be additional production runs by the same manufacturing houses that produce for the name brands. I imagine there’s some risk in lesser quality control, though. There’s some sellers who have “challenged” feedback, but then others which are actually above 99%.

I’ve also seen on AliExpress some Sebenza 21 knock-offs that look tempting. Of course, you’re not going to get CR level quality, but… I did see a couple knock-off reviews from several years ago where it was admitted that quality was decent, above the going prices. Not bad if you’re not able to afford a CR knife but would like one that resembles something iconic like a Sebenza.

I take most of my knives apart and wipe them down completely. Then I lube them with mineral oil.

As far as knives that look similar to the Sebenza; the Sanrenmu LAND 912 I own is a great knife. Very impressed with it.

The CJRB Kicker is quite figgety, like an OTF.

Ide pay a few dollars more for some chamfering, but it’s not that bad.

Arm shaving hair sharp, love their gray/ blue color.

I recommend the Land 812 if you want something more fancy with titanium & VG10.
Here`s mine:

^ That Sanrenmu Land 812 looks like a terrific Sebenza 21 inspired knife. It’s too bad the price shot up so significantly. There’s only one seller on AliExpress, offering it for $110. That’s a far cry from $50~60 that it commanded just a year ago.

It`s $54.31 at the moment. Have a look at it here. I also bought mine around $50 last year.