Spyderco Spin

01/16/2010 by THG

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Light Duty/General
-Owned for 3 months

Comments:

The Spin is a great "small knife." It's great for zipping things open.

The ergonomics are good, in my opinion. Keep in mind that this is designed to be a 2-finger knife with the thumb placed on the thumb ramp. I find it comfortable when used that way.

The quality is excellent. Nothing bad to say about that. The clip, however, didn't quite touch the scale. I don't know if it was designed to be that way, but it made the grip on the pocket a little loose. I tried to bend it a little bit, and the clip ended up cracking.

VG-10 is great. It takes a super edge.

For $33, the Spin is an excellent "small knife." If you're looking for a knife for small cutting tasks, you will be pleased with the Spin.

Spyderco Stretch

01/16/2010 by THG

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

Comments:

This is hands down the best folder I own, period. Mine is the FRN version, and I love it. The ergos are superb; it fills the hand well.

The flat grind makes it a great cutter. I'm sure you all know how great VG-10 is, so I don't need to say anything about that. The thumb and forefinger jimping work great. The deployment hole is bigger than that of the Delica and Endura: at first I didn't like it, but now that I use it more often, I think it's more comfortable.

Locks up solidly without any vertical or horizontal play. Screw construction in case you feel the need to (or want to) disassemble it and clean it out. The only reason I marked a 9 for build quality is because the tip is not centered when closed; it sits a bit to the left. It doesn't affect the function, though.

And value is a 9 because you would think that the FRN Stretch would be around the price of a Delica or Endura, but it's quite a bit more (maybe because of the flat grind, or so they say.)

All in all, you'll be hard pressed to find a better knife. They really don't get much better than this.

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Spyderco Military

01/13/2010 by RK

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for 6 months

Comments:

Really great knife design by spyderco that I cary every day. This knife is incredibly light weight for its size due to no liners behind the G10, you don't feel it sitting in your pocket.

The build quality is awesome. Blade was centered, the pivot is smooth as silk. The G10 is of high quality with a nice texture.

The blade is great as well. I have one in S30V, which I really like. It was a steel designed for cutlery specifically. The thumbhole is very accessible and you can flick the blade open with ease.

The knife handle is long enough to be used as an impact device, and the blade is certainly long enough for self defense as well, if you're into that kind of thing. You could also probably break glass with the handle on this knife. The knife also fits my hand really well(I have big hands).

I don't have much bad to say about the military. It might be a little expensive so I dinged it a point on value. Overall though this is probably my favorite knife in my collection.

Benchmade 760BK LFTi

01/09/2010 by JM

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Light Duty/General
-Owned for 6 months

Comments:

This Benchmade is really cool. It is Lum designed, and really just feels right.

Mine LFTi is first production in CPM-M4. The CPM-M4 is a great steel. The steel is a tooling steel, and takes a wicked edge. Pretty easy to sharpen as well. This steel will rust on you if you don't keep it clean. Many people even oil it, although I personally do not.

The blade shape on the LFTi is awesome. I really like the tanto, from both a looks standpoint and functionality standpoint. It keeps the blade nice and broad but give a nice tip to pierce with. The LFTi has a thumb stud(wish it had a thumb hole) but I can live with that. The blade is coated black, andthe coating does scratch but itn't weak by any means.

The handle on this knife is really great. Unlike my other Ti Benchmade, the handles on this don't get nearly as slick when they are wet, mainly because the holes provide some grip for your hand.

More importantly about the handle on the LFti is the fact that it has a frame lock, which is my favorite locking mechanism on a knife. The lock is very strong, locks up tight, and is positioned such that your palm helps heep the knife locked during use by forcing the lock further into the blade.

The action on this knife is nothing short of epic. It is so smooth and easy to open. This knife is a bit big and burly for EDC, but if you like carrying a big knife it might not be so bad. Really, the LFTi could effectively serve as a camp knife, EDC knife, or just a knife to put in your collection.

The knife is a touch expensive, but that's what you pay for a quality knife these days. I think my LFTi ran me 175 bucks or so. In the end, I don't think you will be dissappointed with this knife.

Benchmade 10402-1 Pika II TI

01/09/2010 by JM

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Light Duty/General
-Owned for 3 months

Comments:

I just recently got my Benchmade Ti Pika. All around it's a pretty solid budget knife. The make a version in FRN, but the Ti feels much more stout to me,

The knife is reasonably light, and resembles the Benchmade AFCK. I really like the blade shape, the Ti feels nice in hand, and the knife is visually appealing.

The blade is made out of a chinese steel. It is ok, but I've had to sharpen it since I got it. It does take an ok edge and is easy to sharpen.

I do have some complaints with the knife though. I gave the knife a 6 in ergonomics because when wet, it does get slippery. There is absolutely no texture on the handle. I also do not like how the lock on this knife allows for up and down blade play when fully locked out. The knife was designed to have this, and it is not a fault of poor tolerancing. A knife with blade play is never confidence inspiring to me.

Overall, the knife is pretty well build. This is especially true when compared to knives built in China. This knife does cost 50 or 60 bucks, and for what you get, I think the Spyderco Tenacious is a better knife at half the price.

I really wish Benchmade would make an Axis lock or liner lock version of this knife with G10 and decent steel. Oh wait, they already did. It's called the AFCK, and it is a very difficult knife to find.

Anyways, this knife is cool for EDC and general use, but it will get slippery in wet conditions.

Kershaw Leek

01/07/2010 by MRP

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Light Duty/General
-Owned for 6 months

Comments:

The Leek is a really cool little knife. It is pretty compact, pretty light, and has a surprising amount of cutting power. The blade has a very slim profile, and I like the overall feel.
The knife is relatively easy to sharpen and holds an alright edge for quite a while. The knife has also stayed smooth without adjustment to the pivot over the course of time that I owned it.
Kershaw really did a nice job with the Ken Onion series knives(well Ken Onion did a nice job too). The assisted opening mechanism is great, as is the frame lock.
Overall, there really aren't many flaws with the Kershaw Leek, especially for a 50 dollar knife. As others have mentioned, it does get a little slippery when wet, but I don't find it to be a problem very often.

Spyderco Tenacious

01/06/2010 by Bradley

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

Comments:

This is the best bang for my buck that I have found. The Tenacious is what I would consider a budget hard use folding knife. This knife is not light by any means. It's not the heaviest knife I've carried either, but definately not light. I'll start from the tip and work backwards. The tip of the blade is nicely shaped, not too fragile, but still compact enough to make a good pierce. The blade itself has a full flat grind, which makes this knife a surprisingly good slicer. For a full flat grind blade, it is a touch thick though. The steel is 8Cr13MoV, which is a chinese steel. I'm not overly impressed with the steel, a far cry from what I'd call premium steel, but it suffices. It doesn't hold an edge particularly well, but it is very easy to sharpen. The blade has a hole, affectionately known as the spyderhole by Spyderco fans. I personally love it. I don't have to search for it like I would a thumb stud...my thumb finds the hole immediately. My thumb also does not slip out mid flick, unlike a thumb stud. The blade has a nice little thumb ramp, with excellent jimping. The jimping is not too sharp, but is nice and big and provides ample grip. The pivot itself is decent. I've heard but haven't confirmed that the Tenacious has phosphor bronze bushings in it. I do not know this for sure, but they are certainly smooth. The knife scales are made from G10 plastic, very common. It's nicely textured, still easily grippable when wet. Behind the G10 scales, there are steel liners, and of course the knife is a liner lock knife. The liner lock is very stout, and locks up tight. There is a very minor amount of blade play side to side, but this really exists with most, if not all, knives. If you don't want any blade play at all on your knife, spend 300 bucks...and still probably have a little. The liner lock has equally excellent jimping as the thumb ramp. Sitting atop the scales is a very thick pocket clip, which can be positioned in any one of 4 spots for tip up or tip down carry, lefty or righty. Lastly, there is a lanyard hole if you're into that. Overall, this knife is very usable and can do anything from cutting rope to spreading cheese(yep, that's right). I'm very impressed, because a knife of this caliber is rarely found if ever at this price. It fits my hand very well, has no problems with cutting tasks, has superb build quality(blade was dead center and I've heard others who also had perfectly centered blades), and most importantly it is controllable and cuts well. Unlike some other cheapies, I don't expect this knife to break or fail. I don't recall what I paid, but it was something like 30 bucks. This is a great first time folding knife and it's a great EDC for a knife guy who wants something they don't have to worry or care about. I don't think you can really go wrong. Spyderco has really done a great job and I look forward to their future offerings in this class.

RAT Cutlery Izula

01/03/2010 by Lock1454

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Every Day Carry
-Owned for 6 months

Comments:

This is my favorite small fixed blade. The knife and sheath are both excellent. The 1095 steel sharpens very easily and holds its edge for quite some time and I haven't had any rust issues with minimal care. The drop point shape of the blade is great for a general utility blade, it has a nice tip that isn't too thin and a good amount of belly and sweep for general cutting tasks. The coating is quite durable, you can't expect it to look perfect forever, but I've found mine to wear quite well. The skeletonized handle is not the most comfortable to hold onto (what one is?) but is just fine when wrapped with 550 cord. The handle design provides a template for quite a few interesting wraps, I admit it's pretty fun to play with new wrap ideas. There is jumping on the back of the spine isn't the greatest (it's not very deep or sharp and add on the fact that it is a coated blade), but it does provide a bit of traction. The knife is easily deployed with one hand by using your thumb to push the top part of the sheath which is nicely rounded so it isn't a pain. The lanyard hole on the back of the knife and on the sheath are generously large which would allow for attachments of any size to fit easily. The sheath itself is quite sturdy, not flimsy like some other sheaths you may encounter. The blade locks in with a nice snap and is held securely. The sheath provides for a multitude of carry options with it's arrangement of slots and holes. I highly recommend this knife, it is nearly perfect, no major complaints about any particular aspect of it. And to top it off it isn't very expensive to obtain one if you know the right places to look. They sell these knives in various colors and with an optional kit (which contains a few other tidbits for a bit higher cost).

Leatherman Juice Xe6

01/03/2010 by Brian

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

Comments:

This is a great knife. I received it as a gift several years ago, and have frequently used it since. I mostly use the screwdrivers, the can opener, knives, scissors and pliers. It's great when I need something simple and I don't want to have to get the toolbox out. It's very convenient to have available. It's easy to use and the blades stay sharp for a very long time. It doesn't have locking blades, but for all around utility I don't feel that this is that important. Overall I have been extremely happy.

KaBar Becker Necker

01/03/2010 by Lock1454

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

Comments:

The BK11 is tremendous bang for your buck. You get a nicely coated blade and a decent sheath for a relatively low cost. The knife takes an edge easily and holds it for a fair amount of time, on par with any other 1095 steel I've had experience with, the edge does seem to be a bit more prone to rust however. Never had occasion to use the bottle opener, but from looking at it I see no reason why it wouldn't work just fine. And there's also a wire breaker if that would be of interest. The handle is not the most comfortable of grips, even when wrapped with paracord. It is only long enough for a three finger grip, which in and of itself is not the bad part, but the finger grooves don't fit the hand very well. It's not terribly painful when held tight during hard work, but it is by no means comfortable. The sheath is definitely usable but it was designed to be used with both the BK11 and another KaBar offering. This dual purpose leads the BK11 to not fit snugly into the sheath, there is some rattle when it is sheathed. There are no worries about the knife slipping out from typical carry, it's just an annoyance. The sheath is also a bit long/wide, it the grommets could have been placed a bit better to make the profile a bit more friendly. Overall, the knife is a pretty good value for someone looking for a small fixed blade on a budget. I personally wouldn't think it'd be a comfortable concealed neck knife, but for open neck, belt or pocket it would be fine. For a little bit more money, there are some better offerings to choose from.

Spyderco Rookie

01/03/2010 by Switchback

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

Comments:

I've had my Sprint Run Rookie for about three and a half weeks. I carry it everyday along with a byrd Robin. The foliage green G10 handles on the Rookie are textured and provide a good grip. There is no jimping anywhere on the knife. I was concerned that I might not like that but I really haven't missed the jimping so far. The Rookie is a very slim knife. I have a few pairs of Wrangler Riggs Contractor jeans which have an oversized watch pocket and the Rookie rides horizontally in that pocket and I don't even know it is there. I removed the pocket clip for this purpose. The VG10 blade was very sharp out of the box and I still have not had to sharpen it yet despite the fact that the knife has seen a fair amount of light to medium duty usage. I had to put some locktite on the pivot screw to keep it from coming loose but since I did that the action is smooth and hasn't lost its adjustment. In my opinion, the Rookie is an excellent knife and I really like the blade shape. Lockup is strong with no blade play. I think the Sprint Run Rookie was released in early 2008 and I couldn't believe there were still some of them available. If you want one, better get it soon. A fine knife indeed.

Emerson Knives CQC15 Mini

01/03/2010 by osam

-Price Paid: N/A
-Used for Light Duty/General
-Owned for 3 months

Comments:

Pros: Easy to operate. Good touch feel of handle. Razor blade. Cons: Blade play exists when pivot screw is adjusted to move smoothly. A ball in liner was dropped when I took apart for lubricating.