I just received this Leen 1203-1 from seller "Hello Gift Shop" (BLF user ashuang0731, "David") on Ebay for $14.90. Keep in mind I'm a newbie when it comes to knives and I don't have a lot of knives to compare to. I've swapped it out with my Enlan EM-01 as my EDC for a few days. I like it, although it took some lubing. As it came it was too stiff to open easily and I was disappointed with its feel. Once I lubed it the feel improved greatly. I lubed with olive oil and now it flicks right open (I'm getting better with thumbstuds).
It came really sharp; sharp enough to easily shave my arm hair (BTW - is lack of arm hair a sign of a knife-a-holic?). I feel that the knife sort of lacks style. It's rather plain (not a lot of curves). The G10 scales are very grippy; more so than my EM-01. As far as size goes, it's nearly the same size as the EM-01. The EM-01 is a hair shorter, but the blade edge is actually longer.
What I really like about this Leen knife is the clip. The clip doesn't feel like it's going to tear through my jeans when I clip and unclip it from my pocket. It has plenty enough tension to stay put though. I do wish the clip was shiny stainless steel instead of just black. The clip can't be moved to another position, although it's in the position I prefer - placing the blade tip-up rear-facing so it can't open in my pocket. It comes with a leather sheath which I have no use for other than when storing it.
The screws used on this knife are some oddball head (at least odd to me) requiring a special tool for adjustment/teardown. The blade is listed as "440C", and I can't confirm or deny (though I doubt it is 440C). I have not used it long enough to judge edge retention either. The blade is well-centered when closed.
Overall the knife has a nice quality feel to it. It locks up solid without much play (only a very very slight side to side wiggle) and the liner lock engages perfectly each time. The EM-01 still beats it for value for the money at nearly half the price (when purchased from FastTech).
Here are some photos including some comparisons to my Enlan EM-01:
Enlan EM-01 on the bottom:
You can sort of see in the above photo that the Leen has a slightly longer blade, however the EM-01 has more cutting edge. I also like the blade profile of the EM-01 a little better. One thing the EM-01 lacks that the Leen does have is jimping (which is quite aggressive).
There you have it. Hope you enjoyed my first knife review.
Nice review, I like the Leens but I will not buy another while they insist on using those horrid fixings. I have slotted mine but really they should just use Torx fixings.
I would say it should be able to if you can tighten the pivot screw, but then I guess you'd be making it harder to flick open easily. The play really is not bad at all; it's barely noticeable and I really have to pull the blade side to side to notice it. I just checked my EM-01 and it has worked itself to the point where the side to side play is far worse than the Leen (although I've had it longer, used it much more, and have never tightened it). It's still not enough to bother me.
I don't know about it being "more solidly built". The EM-01 really is a nice solid knife too. Very impressive for +/- $7.50!
Might I make a suggestion… One of the big things us knife guys look for is blade centering (while closed). Might want to touch on that, or better yet include a pic of it. [/constructive criticism]
I actually like the design on the scales more than the Enlan, its a shame about the tamper proof fittings, I also wonder what the diameter of the pivot screw is.
I need to start buying some of these cheap knives to start making my own designs in the scales. I have (and I’ve filed/dremeled a design into) the G10 of my SRM 707 (CRKT drifter OEM) and it looks good, now I need to do some more.
Ah, that's what's missing! I actually took a picture showing the centering of the blade closed and I must have lost it. (I'll post one up shortly.) I did touch on the fact that the blade "is well centered when closed" in the O.P.
I'm still EDC'ing this knife and really liking it. Still has a sharp edge (slices through paper/envelopes with little effort) with no signs yet of needing sharpening. My only wish would be for a deeper pocket carry clip. The side-to-side wiggle of the blade hasn't gotten any worse either.
