What knife did you get today?

I only like assisted-openers that have flippers.

I've never been bitten due to a flipper.

I've had plenty of nightmares involving accidentally injuring myself with an A/O, but it's extremely rare when I've accidentally cut myself with any knife.

I have a Benchmade mini bugout (I need small knives or I do not dare using it in public) and in many ways it is perfect, extremely lightweight but still sturdy, feels good in the hand, the axis lock works very well, clip is very functional and reversible to lefthand carry ( :+1: to Benchmade for that), and S30V is a luxury steel.

Only downside: it is designed for functionality only and therefore the looks are mediocre: the blade shape is not my style, the handle is very busy with all those cutouts and holes, and I find thumbstuds ugly.

IMO it is no comparison to the handsome Civivi Bo above.

I’d go over to the FaceBook forums, like Edge Snobs or guided sharpeners groups or Gritomatic website/…or youtube

your dyed scales do look very nice :+1:

maybe some nice Jade scales would help dress up your mini bug?;
.

1 Thank

I didn’t know there was such a thing.
After looking at a few videos, I think the thing mostly only works well with blades that have very flat angles.
Blades that have less than dead flat surfaces - like most hand sharpened blades - will show less distinct reflections.
How this translates into sharpening depends on how you sharpen. If using a jig of some sort, this could help set the correct angle.
But even a small difference between jig angle measurement and the goniometer will result in changing the final angle.
I suggest using a sharpie to cover the edge and seeing what is being removed with the sharpener to confirm a correct sharpening angle.
All the Best,
Jeff

After a bit of poking around I found this video that shows what it can do with a well ground blade:

Those scales really do make the bugout look more classy! :slight_smile:

… CRKT Pilar’s …

Nice! I have the CRKT Squid, a recent acquisition. I really love this knife, because the size is so EDC friendly. And while it’s a short knife (2.25” blade), the body is pretty wide, about what you’d expect with a 3.5” bladed knife. It’s even wider than my Asher Nomad. That wideness makes it so easy to handle. I had noticed the Pilar and I’ve been thinking about picking up one of those two. Quite the finger choil on that one, which is great for a knife this size. Where’d you pick up yours?

New to the new styles of knives, so i had not heard about the pocket opening and finger cuts issue before, guess i better be careful.

i just got a “striker” made by threat response solutions dot com, and sold by some tacsticles and survival patriot website

It has a little hook piece sticking out on the back side of the blade toward the hinge, which they call a “Quik-draw pocket hook”—“the secret to blazing fast blade deployment” [in your pocket?]

No instructions on how it works.

Also has a Spring Assisted Open—“Speed-freak feature that makes a switchblade look like slow motion”… :laughing:

Hmm...

Mixed reviews on Amazon.

I mean, 4.5 stars out of 5 is very good, but if you read the customer reviews, there are plenty of complaints.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B077ZFJMTF

Yep … nice knives. I snagged these from Blade HQ.

This picture is from their actual website? It’s $40 and the thread is finished like this? On a show piece?
Wow, a good reason to avoid the brand and get one from China right away.

My advice: hard pass. I took a look at the company’s website and it is full of tacticool nonsense. Seriously. This kind of garbage might have gotten a pass marketing to mall ninjas twenty years ago but I’d hope we all know better now. For instance, the second choice under “personal combat DVD’s” is “Combat Tai Chi”. Forgetting for a moment that UFC has pretty much demolished the validity of such a thing, consider the description: “Learn the secret Death Blow move in a matter of hours and transform your hands into deadly weapons when the time comes to defend yourself in a life or death confrontation.”

The only “death” something like that is likely to cause is your own if you try to use it in a real-life defensive scenario.

They sell the knife in question but it costs $65 and runs 7Cr17Mov. That’s hard to justify at the $20-something level in 2022. In one of the top reviews on Amazon, the reviewer got it on special for like ten bucks and the spring broke in short order. It’s junk, plain and simple. You can get a great manual action that opens just as fast, with fewer moving parts that can fail, far better fit and finish, and much better materials for like $40. The pocket-opening feature is based on the Emerson Wave. It is available on various better-quality knives if that matters.

I’m not into weapons these days (words get me in enough trouble) so I can’t remember what that little hook is called anymore, but it’s very common these days and can be found on plenty of other knives.

The Emerson wave flipper, so you can more easily damage your pants and cut yourself. :face_with_monocle:

I keep an eye out on their sales periodically… but sometimes they seem to discount on a random basis. I really like the Pilar. But I’ve been enjoying the Squid a lot, to the point where I decided I’d pick up another. Found one off eBay at the lower (earlier) discounted price had at Blade HQ.

Thank you :laughing:

While 8cr13Mov and 7cr17Mov are workable steels, any knife with them shouldn’t cost more than $25. I’ve come across some nice looking knives priced around $60 that drew me in, then… spotted “8Cr13Mov” or “Aus-8” and desire was immediately dashed. I don’t know why some companies put all that effort into nice micarta scales, quality frame, machined clip… only to finish off with an 8Cr13Mov blade.

How much is a knife worth, what determines the price—is it based upon the alloy composition? or the cost to produce?

Is it just a tool or a piece of artwork.

Like many products these days, the advertised [specs/rating/material] may not match the reality. Especially in the case of high-volume low-cost items like flashlights and knives.

There are various varieties of stainless steel available, but unless a knife has been tested in a materials lab with the equipment to determine composition and heat treat, then we don’t really know what it is. And can’t tell by looking.

It seems we are left at the mercy of the advertising by the vendor/manufacturer.

With knives it is not that bad. Knives are not complicated things so the quality is easy enough to evaluate and there are many reviews out there, and several knife nerds check steel composition and quality. The result is that it is well-known which brands are good or at least honest, and which are not. There are many brands nowadays that are trustworthy about their products, among them a variety of budget brands.