Review : SanRenMu7078MUX-GHP

EDC Gear for Flashlight Carriers
1

Picked up my 7078MUX-GHP from the post office.

There’s different packaging and a leaflet inside, an interesting bit of info on the leaflet and repeated on the box.-

So I would guess that they’ve decided to enforce this law more stringently.
If the result is that we get knives like the 7078 then that’s all good! Very nice non locking flipper that doesn’t flip at first but loosening the easily turned T6 pivot and Loctite applied cured that. It did move the blade over a bit but still not touching the liners and I know how to cure it, the detente arm on one of the liners must be pressing more than the other. A strip and rebuild at some time but it’s not urgent.

I have noticed that the Torx screws through the back spacer are screwing into blind fasteners so just three, including the pivot, T6 Torx screws to take the knife apart. It’s going to be difficult to unscrew them if they start turning in the back-spacer/scale.

It feels good in the hand, the shape of the scales fits my hand with a three fingered grip, the little finger grabs a simple lanyard threaded through the last hole on the scales. I cant help thinking that they missed a trick by not drilling the pocket clip in a similar pattern.
The flipper will work but mine took a bit of pivot adjustment and lubricating to work properly and even then requires a wrist flick to open. This will all smooth out as the knife wears in. The thumb studs are O.K. but an easier and less aggressive way of opening is to press your first finger on the flipper while pushing out slowly with your thumb on the thumb stud, sounds silly but it works and overcomes the strong detente. The knife is tip down carry, the pocket clip isn’t moveable but if you remove it and use a lanyard then it’s truly ambidextrous with a thumb stud on each side of the blade and scales scalloped the same on both sides plus the flipper of course.

The blade steel is not marked but it is Sandvik 12C27 as used in the more expensive Real Steel range. The blade is as sharp as all knives should be from the factory - very sharp.
The characters on the blade read Three Blade Wood or San Ren Mu.

If this is the style and quality of knife that SanRenMu are going to be producing in future I’ll willingly buy them, I’m already thinking of buying the “Toasted Almond” colour and there’s a red or orange one out there somewhere as well.

For the price FastTech for, $11.60, or about £7 they are a bargain.

I know a lot of knife owners don’t like slip joint type of knives but this SanRenMu system is very good, in the U.K. we are limited in what we can carry and with this - non-locking but strong detente - and the 68mm blade this is EDC legal.

Here’s a picture from the ’net of the inner workings of a SanRenMu 9054, same system.

Simple and quite secure. A step up from the slip joint with a back spring but still non-locking.

I would urge those who won’t buy non locking knives to at least try one with this system, the SanRenMu 9054 shown above, this one’s bigger brother with an 83mm blade would be a good choice at only a couple of $ more.

2

Thank you Steve for the review. I think I will save some bucks, because the holes in the blade and the handle aren't my favor. Hope Fasttech will get the 9054 back in stock (for the old price).

3

The pictures don’t work.

4

Nice new knife, and a great review, please forgive the Niave question but the sandivik steel how does it compare to the 9Cr18MoV and 8cr18Mov ?

5

Sandvik steels tend to be characterized by high corrosion resistance, high potential hardness, and a fine grain that means they take a razor edge easily. They’re higher rated than 8Cr13MoV.

6

How is this “locking” is it like a Swiss Army knife lock or how can I imagine the resistance I need to fold it again?
I am not absolutely sure but these should be legal to carry here so it might be a interesting knife.

7

thank you for the review 8steve88!
I didn’t know the steel was sandvik… good to know… :slight_smile:
I still don’t like the polished finish on the blade where the vertical lines are evident, although it still has vertical lines the 9054 has a much more unpolished look:


something else I noticed is that one of the liners (the one where the clip is attached) is cut slightly higher where the thumbstud is:

I would say that the “locking” system is definitely tighter than the one on a SAK.
As mentioned by 8steve88 you can modify the tension with which the two balls squeeze the blade, here’s the pic of the liners of another srm without the blade:

8

Good review Steve!. I think the srm 7078 has one of the best looking for me of the newer models from the srm company. If it was bigger and with lock system it would like me a lot. Really i want to try a sandvik srm too and there are some others models from srm with that steel. Well, we will see.

9

Thanks everybody. I don’t usually do these reviews but this knife is the first of a new direction SanRenMu is taking and they are going to be U.K. EDC legal.

xatu, These new knives from SRM are looking good. I’m sure they will produce more with the Sandvik 12C27 steel, Real Steel have some already but aren’t exactly budget (not mine anyway) knives.

Teutate, I’d not noticed that the liners were cut differently, well spotted! I’ve still not got around to modifying my 9054’s blade to make it under 3”.

Werner, these are not easily opened with one hand without some wrist flicking, I would think that if you removed the flipper then it’s so difficult to overcome the detente with just the thumbstuds that they become two hand opening, I sometimes use my thumbnail behind the thumbstud - holding the knife in the left hand and hooking the thumbstud with my right hand then swapping the knife across to my right hand. I use this method in the presence of non knifey type people and it attracts less attention than flipping the blade out quickly.
I’m presuming that the one handed opening is a problem, they definitely don’t need to be unlocked before folding - just a strong push, no 90° stop although if you had a cobalt drill bit to drill the hardened blade you could make one.

cpfdaniel, are the pics working? They should, they are only Photobucket links, no hot linking to other sites or anything.

10

I think the stainless Opinels are made with 12C27 Sandvik.

11

Nice review, thanks. I would prefer to not have the holes in the blade though, just going to collect dirt, pocket lint, moisture.

12

OK, I’m sold. I’ve been looking for a new knife, and this is the first I can afford that has an interesting deployment, interesting steel, and interesting lock.

13

Nice looking knife. Thanks for the review. But I have to ask, how is the quality of the steel in these Chinese knives? We all know about chinese lumens ratings but what about alloy? I guess you would never know if it’s 440c or S90V other than how well it holds an edge.
I would be up for a budget blade but I’m still on the fence about blade quality.

14

Have a look at FastTech, they have some new arrivals, looks like the M1 is back but in a slightly different form.
Two tone

These are ball detente as well- three of them with different colour Micarta
Horrible colours on the backspacers


I decided on this colour but I might have to get a blue/black and a black/white and see what contours I can make on the scales.

15

A good rule of thumb is if it’s advertised as 8cr13mov then it probably is 8cr13mov. If it’s advertised as anything else it’s probably worse. One of the reasons Sanrenmu gets a lot of attention is they’re pretty honest about what they’re selling. Any surprise you get from SRM is likely to be a pleasant one.

16

http://www.aliexpress.com/snapshot/6175479623.html it seems to good to be true.anyone?

17

Definitely not true.

It may be a functional knife, but it’s definitely not D2.

18

I trust in 8cr13/14 or 9cr13/18. Mov. There are true 9cr13/18 from enlan, harnds and inron.

440c is like you say nothing (ganzo/navy).

19

Definitely not a Strider, but probably a knife that is worth the $20 asking price, I have three knives that are copies of other knives, not this Strider but a Medford Praetorian, Spyderco Military and a Brous Blades Reloader all around the $20 price and I’ve been very impressed at the quality, not the same as the real thing and not the same materials used but very good value at $20, I think anyway.
I bought these knowing that for the price they could not be the real thing and I ended up being pleasantly surprised at the quality.

There are much more expensive copies of the Striders and Hinderers that use the same steel and similar titanium and they are well regarded by those who buy them.
Wild Boar Strider.
Kevin John knives.

While the market drives the price of something beyond the reach of those who want it there will always be those who will fill that need by forging, counterfeiting and copying.
Where it gets into murky water is when the copies are so close to the real thing that unscrupulous people will try to pass the copies off as genuine.

A Strider for $20, not likely, but a Strider-like object of reasonable quality that’s do-able. Just remember that it will not stand up to the type of hard use the Striders and others were made for and you’ll be fine.

20

And I apologize to original op I didn’t mean to derail his post it’s just this came up on my Google search ; http://www.aliexpress.com/snapshot/6175479623.html as Iam am looking for something besides the 8cr13Mov or 9Cr18MoV in blades and this popped I knowing this price point to be to good to be true still ordered it to see how it holds up.any input ?