50-60 Bucks to spend Byrd, CS, or SOG?

T

tholiver

Joined
Feb 22, 2003
Messages
3,513
I'm buying my self an early Christmas present.
Canadian dollar has been taking a dive but the prices up here haven't adjusted to match that yet.
So i want to buy now before the prices go up.
I will buy one of the following from Warriors and Wonders- a Byrd Wings or a Cold Steel Black Rock Hunter or a SOG Twitch II.
Just one then my knife purchases are over for this year (unless the economy makes a miraculous turnaround).
I want a Byrd Wings because i miss my old Spyderco Dyad (which i lost).
I want the Black Rock Hunter because of the bali-song-ish (but-not-one-handed) type action.
I want the Twitch II because i've been curious about those assisted knives and figure the gov't up here might someday decide they are too "dangerous" and ban them. and i like the fact that it looks utilitarian and is fairly small.

Whatever one i pick i'm pretty sure it will be used for hiking camping, not edc.

I already have a few good fixed blades (big and small), SAKs/multi's, hatchets/axes machetes etc i just want a new folder (one of the above).
This forum is my favorite place online and i trust the opinions here.
Any opinions on or experiences with any of the above are welcome!
:)
 
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I was curious about assisted opening knives, and got over that. Mostly a fad/niche market, and no practical for the woods.

I'm not a fan of the Bryd knives, but I'm in love w/ the Spyderco Tenacious which is comparable in terms of price and materials.

These are really your only options?
 
11x11x said:
I was curious about assisted opening knives, and got over that. Mostly a fad/niche market, and no practical for the woods.

I'm not a fan of the Bryd knives, but I'm in love w/ the Spyderco Tenacious which is comparable in terms of price and materials.

These are really your only options?
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Thanks for the reply.

I actually have a Tenacious and i love it.
:D
But as i said i was a fan of the old Dyad and have a hankering for the Byrd version.
I have a few good folders, SAK's/multi's, some slipjoints, Buck 110's even an old first Gen SOG Tomcat which is a little thick but is rock solid.

Part of this is acquiring a new style folding knife that i currently don't already have. A quest for something new i guess.
All of the three in my list have something unique to offer.
 
I'd go with the Byrd, personally. They look like pretty nice knives. Assisted openers aren't really all that special, in my opinion. I much prefer the hole, be it Spyderco or Byrd. Can't say anything about the CS knife.
 
11x11x said:
I was curious about assisted opening knives, and got over that. Mostly a fad/niche market, and no practical for the woods.
Click to expand...
Thats how i felt about them too but still i'm curious. I bought a cheapy 20$ Remington flip-open (what the heck is the technical name for this type mechanism?) 4 or 5 months ago. Its the same general style opening except without any spring assist/mechanism/springs. Flicking it open is quite addictive actually.lol.
The SOG Twitch II is around the size of a 91mm SAK much smaller than the Remington.
Actually i couldn't care less about the assisted spring aspects of the knife i just like the general style of of opening.
For one handed opening knives i like that style almost as much as the Spyder-type hole.

Also its been 7 or 8 years since i've bought any SOG's.
So thats part of the reasoning.
:D
 
rocketbomb said:
I'd go with the Byrd, personally. They look like pretty nice knives. Assisted openers aren't really all that special, in my opinion. I much prefer the hole, be it Spyderco or Byrd. Can't say anything about the CS knife.
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The practical side of me is saying "buy the Byrd".
And i can't seem to find any real reviews of the Cold Steel Black Rock Hunter.
 
Heres some pics of them from the internet to help judge.

Byrd Wings
byrdwings.jpg


Cold Steel Black Rock Hunter
coldsteelblackrockhunter.jpg


SOG Twitch II
SOG_TWitch2.jpg
 
Thanks!
Thats two votes for the Byrd!

Somehow I didn't expect to hear from many Cold Steel fans as they can be hard to find because of Lynn Thompsons umm unusual business practices.
lol.
But are there no Sog fans/owners here?
 
Out of the 3 you selected I 'd go for the byrd... If you are looking for suggestions however I might suggest a Spyderco Delica 4.. the new evolution of the classic delica...Rock solid vg-10 steel super sharp..Stainless steel skelton. Can be had for about 50 beans.
 
I'd say the Byrd, but that's just because I'm a rabid Spydie fan when it comes to folding knives. :p I actually have no experience with any of the knives you mentioned, but it would be my pick, if it was me.
 
BarberFobic1992 said:
i have seen the twitch for $30, so if you end up getting that one, i can give you a link to the site
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Thanks, I appreciate that!
Although i buy most of my knives from U.S sellers i'm a bit a leery about trying to get one of these through Canada customs.
Technically they are legal in Canada ( and i can buy them from sellers in Canada) but i have heard of guys in the Canadian forum having their assisted openers (and even Spyderco's) seized by Canada customs at the border.
Basically with my U.S orders i stick to SAK's/multi's/fixed blades/axes/machetes etc.

These three knives i'm contemplating ordering are all ones that could potentially be nabbed by overzealous customs guys.

And now that i've found Warriors and Wonders out in Vancouver i have a reliable and competitively priced Canadian source for many brands of knives.
And they have all three of these knives.
:)
 
RescueRiley said:
Out of the 3 you selected I 'd go for the byrd... If you are looking for suggestions however I might suggest a Spyderco Delica 4.. the new evolution of the classic delica...Rock solid vg-10 steel super sharp..Stainless steel skelton. Can be had for about 50 beans.
Click to expand...
Thanks Riley!
Another vote for the Byrd.
That makes 6 in favor of the Byrd.

I've always liked the Enduras and Delicas, i have an old FRN Endura (must be at least 10 years old), that was my first Spyderco knife.
Its a good knife but if i had my time back i would have bought the smaller Delica instead.
And i went with the fully serrated Endura model, lately i don't really go for fully serrated blades.

I'm pretty sure i'll be buying a Delica 4 eventually though, maybe in the spring.
But right now i'm leaning towards the Byrd Wings.
 
I think the holes on the Byrd are a grotesque abomination. To my eye the familiar Spyderco circles are tasteful whereas these mutant cut out shapes just make an otherwise fine little knife look cheap and tacky. For this potential customer it is not something I can overlook despite everything else that I find appealing about it. Tastes on that are bound to differ though so I'll hold that out and say I would take the Byrd over the other two offerings.

From the second picture I do wonder about how comfy it is to hold with one blade closed though.

wings010.jpg

wings035.jpg

wings044.jpg

wings065.jpg
 
Morales said:
I'd also go for the Byrd. I actually own the Wings and imho it is a great knife. For the Black Rock check this video out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnpskkFlYmE Hope that helps!
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Great video! Its great to hear actual user feedback and see a knife from all angles.
:thumbup:
When i get my youtube account un-SNAFU'ed i'll subscribe to that guys channel.

Off topic- but for some reason youtube keep switching languages on me and now i'm having login and comment-posting glitches.
:confused:
I think i'll start a new account and see if that fixes it.
 
baldtaco-II said:
I think the holes on the Byrd are a grotesque abomination. To my eye the familiar Spyderco circles are tasteful whereas these mutant cut out shapes just make an otherwise fine little knife look cheap and tacky. For this potential customer it is not something I can overlook despite everything else that I find appealing about it. Tastes on that are bound to differ though so I'll hold that out and say I would take the Byrd over the other two offerings.

From the second picture I do wonder about how comfy it is to hold with one blade closed though.
Click to expand...
thanks for the input and pics BTII!
I think the holes could be modded if i find them too bothersome.
I had an old Spyderco Dyad and the double bladed aspect does make it different ergonomically for sure.
I did get used to it though and i actually miss that knife a lot (it got lost when i moved back here from Ontario).
:(
Talking about tacky one of the reasons i like the SOG Twitch II is because its one of the few SOG's these days that doesn't have those cheesy SOG cutouts all over it.
The cutouts and excessive branding are a good part of the reason i haven't bought a SOG in 8 (?) years!
 
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