5 knives you regret purchasing

hudak said:
I've bought some customs that were too nice to use and so they just sat there...I tend to buy on a whim sometimes without thinking it through.
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this is the reasoning i have for a couple of purchases; the most glaring one (and still have) is a Buck 110 Bloody Jasper. i cannot use that knife; it is "too pretty" and i will never buy a knife that is too pretty to use ever again.

clearly i am not a collector LOL...it has no utility for me and just sits...and i hate that...
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
Well, I agree with you on the guard sloping in the wrong direction at least. Never quite understood that one. :p But Kabar makes good stuff. As far as the "get into present America" comment, you might want to try that yourself given that you've criticizing the present production of a company based on your experience with product they made 35 years ago. Regardless of your experience with them back then, that's a pretty big stretch of time. Many companies aren't even that old. ;)
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I can help out a bit about that question. According to Mr Toooj over at KaBar, the USMC used to have a straight guard. However, soldiers moving through the underbrush found that the straight guard could snag on things moving through the underbrush, and this slowed them down, they got lost (the knives), etc. KaBar made a design change to curve the guard slightly to help underbrush slide up and off of the knife, which is still there to this day.

Also, the guard isn't nearly as hard as the blade, so if it offends, you can just bend it back to straight with a vice or something like that :).

And so far, I hardly own 5 knives, and none of them do I regret purchasing. Mostly thats because of this site. I pester people with questions until I find out if I REALLY want that new knife or not :).
 
crkt m16 - its a nice knife, the aus 8 is not half bad. but the liner lock really is a missing finger ready to happen. i already have had it fail simply by using medium force onto the blade checking for play

sog Trident - assisted open stinks, blade is loose, tanto is a terrible design at least on this tanto

cold steel ak-47 - i don't mind the design, blade belly is nice. comes halfway sharp. but the blade is almost impossible to open one handed

gerber dmf folder - idk what kind of steel the blade is made out of but i will tell you if i sharpened a spork it would make for a better blade ha. it really is the worst, the edge folded over from cutting a cardboard box
 
hiwa said:
CH made Schrade= crap steel

Puma zytel lockback=ok, but too expensive

Schrade USA guide hunter DP= Rubber handle the size of a door handle

CRKT M-16 tanto= kept it, but ground tanto into a spear point;realized I hate Tantos

Cold steel hawk= head always loosens;no mods help
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I know that they are cheap hawks, but have you tried this ? Clean up the inside of the head then slather on gobs of clear rubber silicone on the upper shaft. Slam the head home, tighten the set screw. Wipe off any excess silicone and push excess up into any head air gaps. Leave it alone somewhere to dry for a week. I did two like that and they have stayed rock solid for a few years. The better the prep, the better the result.
 
In terms of the hawk, you can always hold it upside down, put a piece of spacer wood over the bit and poll, and hammer the head down until it's on nice and solid. If the handle ever breaks all you have to do is bang on the busted end to knock it out of the eye. If you mean the head keeps loosening as in when you're done using it it tends to loosen from the handle getting knocked, you can just put a few brass upholstery tacks under the head to keep it from sliding down.
 
A TOPS Screaming Eagle camo finish and a paracord handle. It's the only knife I have ever sold.

If I had bought it uncoated with micarta scales I probably would have kept it.
 
1. Gerber Remix: Looked cool, but nowadays I'm wary of the lock, and that finger hole was never as functional as I thought it would be.
2. Gerber LMF: Very tacticool, and some folks seem to like it, but as someone else mentioned, I'm not going to be breaking out of a helicopter anytime soon. It's too bulky, and the serrations make it hard to whittle away sitting around camp.
3. Pine Ridge folder: cheap Chinese folder, it's ok though, I know better now, and it's getting use as a garden tool and to practice sharpening

Having been lurking here for a few months, I feel I have a much better idea what to look for in a knife. Reading the above comments I'm glad I got a couple Kershaws last spring, rather than the CRKTs I was looking at. Dodged a bullet there.
 
Spyderco Military - Didn't know it was tip down only when I bought it.
CRK Umnumzaan - Awesome knife but worth nowhere near $425 IMO, it would be a real winner @ $300
Strider SMF - Not worth the price. Sold it, developed Lock rock really bad
Al Mar S2K - love the knife but it developed lock rock really early on. Lock has never failed.
Benchmade Infidel - $400 for a knife that I can't legally carry. It is really cool though.
Benchmade Bone Collector - hated everything about it. Gave it to a buddy.
 
syltetoy said:
All KA-BAR Becker knives I own all five came blemished. Two were sent back and were replaced with two other blemished knives. I do not believe I'll ever buy another KA-BAR. I also bought a KA-BAR Dozier and it came to me blemished with bad grinds, sent it back and they sent me another with grinded off bevels on the spine : ( No quality control at KA-BAR

I do not like fanboys either and KA-BAR Becker has them a plenty. Nothing personal just that I prefer truth and facts over loyalty and chanting.
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I had 5 ? Becker's at one time. I liked and still do like Becker knives and I did get a BK-14 with sloppy grinds but considered it an aberration. As for fanboyism, I was one of the biggest. Then one day it all hits you and you see it for what it really is. Endless promotion that just keeps looping like a dog chasing it's own tail. The ''shave the company name in your chest hair and show pics'' contest was the projectile vomiting end for me. And if you say that the king has no clothes you are attacked or shunned. I am waiting anxiously for the new mid sized knives to come out though. :thumbup:
I currently have no knives that I don't like. I've let a few really good knives go for seemingly minor reasons, but they just didn't feel right. The J.A.B. Potbelly is really sweet but the plasticy grips felt kind of greasy to me. To each their own and one mans wine is another mans poison. :)
 
upnorth said:
I had 5 ? Becker's at one time. I liked and still do like Becker knives and I did get a BK-14 with sloppy grinds but considered it an aberration. As for fanboyism, I was one of the biggest. Then one day it all hits you and you see it for what it really is. Endless promotion that just keeps looping like a dog chasing it's own tail. The ''shave the company name in your chest hair and show pics'' contest was the projectile vomiting end for me. And if you say that the king has no clothes you are attacked or shunned. I am waiting anxiously for the new mid sized knives to come out though. :thumbup:
I currently have no knives that I don't like. I've let a few really good knives go for seemingly minor reasons, but they just didn't feel right. The J.A.B. Potbelly is really sweet but the plasticy grips felt kind of greasy to me. To each their own and one mans wine is another mans poison. :)
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Yea... I specifically didn't enter into that contest, or didn't even click the link, because I also agree that that was a bit over the line...

I do like most of the other contests there though.

I have a ZK War Sword, and its a pretty decent budget knife, but I agree totally about the handles. If the handles felt like the beckers grivory I would like the knife quite a bit better (especially if they were thicker). And I agree that the Potbelly is awesome. Its up there with the BK7 and the SYKC 711 for my next 7in knife.
 
Since I've never had a problem selling off knives that didn't work for me, I don't have any real regrets, but I was disappointed with the following blades:

RC-4- The handle was way too small, as was the choil which was unusable and was simply a waste of cutting edge space.

Ban Tang Choiless BT-4- Really nice fit and finish, super sharp blade, but it's tiny handle rendered it useless for me. I'd like to try one with a choil or maybe just a bigger blade/handle.

Kershaw Chive- I didn't like the speed safe opening system and pivots and lock-bar seemed to wear out way too fast. Overall weak quality.

Queen Country Cousins Sod Buster- The spring was way too stiff. A knife ain't gonna do ya' no good if ya' can't get it open and closed without risking yer digits.

HI WWII Kuhkri- Pretty weak fit and finish, it came with some micro chipping on the blade, the pommel/buttcap loosened up after a few uses, and as much as I like big choppers, I've found that Kuhks don't work for me.
 
Will not talk about some cheap crap - never a good idea to buy, but as you know, you never have particular regrets.
The knives I would do well not buying are:
Spyderco Police with SS handle - blade was too long and too thin for anything practical from my personal point of view.
Spyderco Military - bought two a few years back. Sold them - not my knife at all. Handle is too big, blade/handle ratio wrong, and are at strange angle to each other.
Emerson Super Commander - too big and uncomfortable. The blade is way too wide and of strange shape. Still have it somewhere...
Benchmade 741 - a bit better than Emerson, but still not good. I wish I had Mini version: 746 instead, that would be so much better.
Buck Vantage - the blade HT is crap. I have other Bucks with 420 steel on the blade - none of them gets dull that fast! That one was actually very cheap - so, mostly disappointed, not so much a regret.
 
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1. Cold Steel SRK: Not my style, not at all from what I expected.
2. Sog Flash 2: same as above
3. SRM 710: I just didn`t like the stainless steel handle, and a ss framelock feels kinda weird to me. also too small for my hands.
3. Buck 482: Not a bad knife per se, but not for me. Hate the lock.
4. Svord Peasant: I find the handle with the tang sticking out just too uncomfortable
5. All the cheap chinese crap knives I ever had.
 
Thalestin said:
1)Kershaw chive. Costed me quite at a local store. I really hate Ao as it stabbed me a couple times. Second it rusted like an iron nail. Havent got a kershaw since. They might make nice knives, but too much ao which is just an unsafe gimmick in my books

2) Stainless delica half serraed. I just don't like serrations but I wanted to try em. Gave the knife away--nothing wrong with it, just not for me.

3) Spyderco caly 3--great knife, mine just had blade play. Gave it away

4) Busse Batac. Really love the knife, my brother helped me buy it too. I just regret that it isnt very useful. I love how busse look but I find they are just collector pieces, not real users. I know I could sell it but it is somewhat special to me=P

Love the rest of my knives. Don't use them all but I find they would be useful if i wanted to use them.
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You should have given me the Caly 3 or had Spyderco fix it, I love mine.
 
bcornelis said:
5)Opinel (nonstainless). A rust magnet and very suspect locking mechanism.
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I really don't know what you do with your Opinel knives, but I've had plenty over the last 10 years and they never rusted on me (all but one nonstainless). Then again, I clean them and keep them in a drawer, I don't keep them in a fishbowl.
 
Galeocerdoshark said:
I really don't know what you do with your Opinel knives, but I've had plenty over the last 10 years and they never rusted on me (all but one nonstainless). Then again, I clean them and keep them in a drawer, I don't keep them in a fishbowl.
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I keep mine in my pocket and the only corrosion I've ever had was a patina from cutting fruit. Never any rust from moisture, and it's pretty humid here half the year.
 
I don't regret too many purchases because you learn from each one but if I could keep the knowledge I gained and get my money back....

Killa Zilla 2- I liked it at first and it was great for splitting but it was insanely heavy and slow. It also had horrible edge geometry and made your whole arm sore. I could never get a good grip on it either. the NMFBM is worlds better
Scrap yard 511- handle is too small. I gave it away
spyderco delica- Its a legendary knife but just wasn't for me. Handle wasn't very comfortable and it was very slow opening and closing
M4 spyderco manix- Carbon steel is not the way to go for EDC on a folder. A little juice from the apple you sliced doesnt get wiped off and there goes your satin finish
5.11 Tarani folder. You might as well carry a brick in your pocket. They have the same weight and roughly the same slicing ability except a brick doesn't cost $125
 
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