Benchmade 741 Onslaught

03/16/2010 by Mark G

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Self Defense
-Owned for 3 months

Comments:

Well excecuted copy of Bob Lum's "Forester" model. Large knife, with exceptional full flat grid that is both thin and tall. G-10 looks great, not too overly grippy, but handle ergos are good enough to over come the slicker G-10. Does have a nice pattern to the G-10. Clip is a copy of Bob Lum's original clip, which you may like or not. Clip is not movable to another spot on the knife, so if you are left handed might be an issue. Axis lock is typical, strong, reliable, and possibly the best knife lock out there. If you are able to navigate around Benchmade's MAP pricing it is a good value for the money.

---

Kershaw OD-1

03/15/2010 by SteelSnob

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Less than 1 Month

Comments:

I try to be very honest in my reviews and I'm not one to rate a knife 10 just because I like it a lot. At $50 this knife beats any knife I can think of in it's price range.

Pros Great f&f,solid lockup,flipper works every single time,tough build with a pretty thick blade,it can handle the bigger tasks and still a great slicer that can handle smaller tasks with ease and precision,blade is dead centered,fits the hand nicely,extremely fun to open and use, I really like the steel 14c28n, best customer service out there and I've dealt with them all,USA made,g10 texture is just right ,stonewashed blade that wont show scratches and overall a great design.

Cons It's heavier than I would like for a knife of its size about 90 grams, the pocket clip leaves a lot exposed so it's conspicious(more of a preference than a con), they didn't put enough locktite in the pivot and I had to add my own because it started to loosen very quickly, the first one I exchanged for the one I have now had the flipper fall off.

My final opinion is that this is a great EDC and because of it's advantages and the pure fun it is to operate it will compete with my more expensive knives (like Sebenza,Midtechs and customs as well as high end production knives) for EDC time in mt pocket. I love using this knife and I doubt it will dissapoint.

Chris Reeve Large Sebenza

03/13/2010 by Norton

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for 3 months

Comments:

The Sebenza has earned a reputation for being one of the greatest folders out there. Lets start with build quality. The CRK Sebenza is flawless. I have looked at mine under a microscope and still cant find an errant tool mark or bad angle. The lockup is as solid as a folder gets and feels welded in place. Absolutely no movement in any direction. The bushing and phosphor bronze washers enable a glassy smooth opening. The S30V blade is another work of cutlery art. It features a rounded spine and a perfectly cut row of jimping. The shape is excellent for all around use. Handle scales and clip are made from titanium. The attention to detail is evident here in that everything is chamfered. No sharp edges at all. Some may say the one area where a Sebenza is less than ideal is ergonomics. It has a straight back and metallic handles. A knife with a G10 handle and a more curved back will feel more "locked in." Some may hesitate at the price ($385) but I feel it is a steal. This knife offers you better fit and finish than any factory made knife. Many custom knives cannot compete with the Sebenza and they will cost quite a bit more. I have been using my Sebenza for EDC since I got it and now cant picture carrying anything else. It is an amazing piece of craftsmanship and engineering. If you have the funds try one. If for some reason you dont like it they are very easy to trade or sell.

Spyderco Pacific Salt

03/12/2010 by Bowie Man

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

I've been carrying Spyderco Knives for over 21 years, and the Endura has been sitting in my pocket for the past ten. Recently however, the Endura was replaced by the Pacific Salt.

The Pacific has the same dimensions as the older Endura models, and is considerably lighter then the Endura 4 as it lacks the internal stainless steel skeletonized liners. The light weight of the knife is a HUGE draw for me, as I don't like my pockets being dragged down by heavy blades. The Spyder hole is also one size larger at 14mm which aids considerably with ease of opening, especially while wearing gloves or when your hands are cold.

The blade is a modified Sheep's foot (lacks a dedicated point) using H1 Steel (does not rust...EVER). The fact the this steel is impervious to rust makes it a fantasitc "Never Worry Knife", as there is no longer a need to prepetually wipe it down if it gets wet or worry about rust.

A minor criticism would be the texturing on the handle. The newer Endura/Delica series uses a bi-directional texturing which gives it great traction while being used or played with. The Salt series uses the old style "volcano pattern" which doesn't really provide any additional grip then a standard no name handle. It would also be nice to see the Salts with a screw style construction as opposed to the pin style that's currently being used.

The Pacific that I carry is a plain edge with a yellow handle. I prefer the bright colour as it makes it easier to find when dropped in the woods...or anywhere for that matter. The yellow also gives it a "Rescue Knife" appearance, which is more outwardly friendly and would be easier to explain if investigated by the Police.

Overall a fantasic knife that's easy to maintain and tough as hell. Highly recommended.

Emerson Knives CQC15

03/12/2010 by WindyCityKali

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

My Emerson CQC-15 has spent most days in my pocket in the 2+ years that I've owned it.

It has a heft to it that is very comforting. The ergos are great. It's sharp enough. I love the comfort of knowing there's a ti liner there. It has cut and cut well anything that I've thrown at it.

It waves out of my pocket great. All-in-all, it was worth the price paid.

The downsides? Mostly the chisel grind on the blade - I never could get it sharp myself. I finally broke down, paid the $19.00 and sent it to Emerson for sharpening.

I would recommend this knife to anyone that is looking for a good folder. It seems to be worth the price of the ticket.

SOG Spec Elite 1

03/11/2010 by ny

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Light Duty/General
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

The Sog SpecElite 1 is an exceptional tactical folder. The smoothest opening knife I ever owned. The action is so light you can literally flick it open without use of the thumbstud. Ergonomic handle feels secure in hand and it has a great 4" re-curve blade shape. I have the older version with AUS8 steel which is adequete, holds an edge well and is super easy to sharpen. Newer versions comes with VG-10 which is a much better steel. The Arc lock is secure, many who've used an arc lock complain of sight vertical blade play but this is more of a design element and not really blade play. I believe this minute blade movement is designed to allow for the arc lock to adjust lockup. Once engaged the lockup feel solid and the arc lock can be easily disengaged with the thumb. Some flaws of this knife are the pocket clip and the jimping on the blade. First the pocket clip is mounted a little low for my tastes, its strong but a inch of the handle sticks out from your pocket. It only allows for tip up carry but can be switched for left or right handed carry. Jimping on the blade is great ideally and provides good grip but with the blade open part of the handle flare covers some of the jimping making it useless to those with larger hands. Jimping on the handle flares are ok, they provide some grip but could've been much better. What I liked about this knife is that when closed the blade almost disappears completely into the hande and the handle is symetrical in shape, making it very comfortable. Overall this is a great choice for a larger edc or tactical blade.

SOG Aegis

03/09/2010 by Polynikes07

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for 3 months

Comments:

I love this knife. SOG deep clip is great for pocket carry. I would love to see SOG start using better steels, there are just so many more out there than Aus 8, but it does the job on this knife. Great for EDC, but I would look elsewhere for a hard use folder. This one has no SS liners and the tip seems weak, although it is perfect for detail oriented tasks. Blade shape makes it an excellent slicer, good for kitchen use. For 45 bucks, it would be hard to do much better.

Spyderco Para Military

03/07/2010 by delco

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Other
-Owned for 6 months

Comments:

All I can say is that this is a work horse, will last many years... A real mans' knife. Like that it's made in the U.S.A.

Gerber LMF II

03/06/2010 by Kevin

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Outdoor/Survival
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

Great knife, stays sharp, sheath has sharpener on it to aid in sharpening. Very well balanced, only flaw is it does not work with fire starters. Other than that it is a great knife for survival. Serrated blade is great and so is the full tang, can break glass with the butt and use as a hammer.

---

Chris Reeve Mnandi

03/06/2010 by SteelSnob

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

The Mnandi is a great EDC. Where do I begin? Perfect F&F, insnanely close tolerances,beautiful looking,very tough for a knife it's size, top notch materials,very pocket friendly,very light and pocket friendly weighing in around 1.5oz, the nicest looking pocket clip I've ever seen, very easy to maintain and comes with a tool to take it apart, pivot bushing eliminates the need for locktite or pivot adjustment after reassembly, smooth action,backed by CRK CS which is one of the best and if bought on the exhanges on the different knife forum they can be found pretty cheap.

Now the cons... I would prefer a harder HT that 58-59 of S30V for a gentleman's folder or any folder for that matter and while they can somewhat refurb it like a Sebenza they can't reblast the back of the handles like they can the Sebenza's Ti slabs so if the sandblast texture scratches of it stays off. The Damascus blades do have much better performance IMO at $300 some may not have or want that option.

To sum it up even with it's slight drawbacks IMO it's the ultimate gentleman's folder combining toughness with elegance and percision. Another knife that exudes CRK quality.

Benchmade 585 Mini Barrage

03/05/2010 by Joe

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Less than 1 Month

Comments:

The 585 has become my favorite EDC knife. I just picked up one of the LE 585-1 models from KnifeWorks a week ago...the difference is the handle scales are G-10 instead of the standard Valox used in the regular production model.

Being this is the first Axis assisted model, Benchmade's come up with a winner!

Benchmade 520 Presidio

03/05/2010 by Joe

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for Greater than 1 year

Comments:

The 520 and smaller 525 Presidio's are excellent knives. Built like tanks they feature drop point blades in both plain and combo edges. The bi-directional aluminum handle scales can be "pocket eaters" due to the heavy duty ribbing, but with gloves or without you will not lose your grip.

I carry my 520 in a large Benchmade velcro pouch clipless, just personal choice, but this knife and it's smaller brother are worth the money, recommended!