A.G. Rssell Acies

BP Green

BP Green

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Oct 23, 2010
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The Acies just recently appeared on my radar screen when I saw a picture of one in a magazine. I am really loving what I see and am very seriously contemplating a purchase but I would like to know more before pulling the trigger.

Would someone please share your opinions/experiences with the knife - good, bad or indifferent ? I know very little about it or the maker.


Thank you all in advance.

I know, I misspelled Russell. :foot: :o
 
Hi BP -

I have had mine since Feb 2010.

The ZDP is very sweet - it takes a fine edge, and keeps the edge - it compares favorably to my M4 Military in slicing ability (that is very good).

The knife is smoother than any other knife I have - including the CRK Sebenza 21.

The only issue I have with the knife is the lockbar is adjusted so that it is VERY easy to dis-engage, which also means that it does not snap into engagement with authority, and thus I often need to nudge the lock-bar into place. Once I do that, the lockup is very solid.

I have not tried to bend my lockbar to adjust it as yet, but I am sure that is all it would take to correct the minor issue.

The Acies (ah-chee-us) is still one of my favorite folders - it feels great in hand and rides nice and deep in pocket.

Here are pictures of mine -

DSC_8855.JPG


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DSC_8889.JPG


DSC_8895.JPG


and a link to all of my Acies pics -

http://www.iammoon.com/albums/knives/A.G. Russell/Acies/index.html

best regards -

mqqn
 
I don't have first hand experience with it, but I also have been eyeing for some time.
Seems like it "could" be a less expensive altenative to the supurb Sebenza.

It has several things going for it.
1. AG seems to get things made very well. I've bought seveal AG Russell knives, and even the modestly priced ones were done extremely well.
2. Has the Hinderer type stabilizser.
3. Very deep pocket clip.

I was somewhat confused by one very long review I read. The reviewer gave the knife extremely high praise, but then spent the rest of the lenghly review describing all the things he had to do to get the knife to his likeing. :confused:

RandomAyes, don't feel alone, I thought it was Ace-eez too. :D
 
I've also had mine since February of 2010 and I love it. Flipped the clip and hit it with a blowtorch real quick to put it into the position I like and dull the shine. It rides nicely in the pocket with its deep carry clip. The blade opens and closes very very smoothly. The ZDP-189 blade takes a sick edge and holds it for a really long time. I haven't had any chipping issues with the steel. I absolutely love the blade shape. I happen to be a really big fan of the angled thumbstuds. They are actually my favorite type of thumbstuds. The ergos are good. I've never felt any hot spots or had any hand cramps while using the knife. The stabalizer does what it is supposed to do. The lock up is solid and while it may be easy to disengage the lock, I have not had an issue due to this nor do I see any disadavantage to this. I like not having to struggle with a lockbar to disengage it. I have not had to adjust my lockbar in any way and I have had no bladeplay issues. I find myself carrying my Acies more often then I carry any of my Sebenzas.
 
Thanks for the pics and thoughts guys. Man, that is one hell of a good looking knife. I like everything about it.

I hope some more folks post.
 
I've been thinking about the Acies recently, too, so thanks to the OP for starting this thread and to the folks who have shared their experiences so far.
 
I actually have mine in my pocket as I am typing this. I highly recommend the knife.

The ergos are really good, the zdp-189 holds an edge well, the blade shape is well done, and the ramped thumb studs work very well. I have cut a lot of boxes, paper and food packages open with mine, and I took it in my workshop to cut some poplar, plastic trim, and an old leather strap. All it needed was a touch up and light strop.

The scales will get a little slick if your hands get wet as they are polished titanium, but it hasn't really caused me any grief.

The knife has a very "classy" look to it. I like the deep pocket clip - I sometimes carry it at the office on casual Friday - it looks like I have a pen in my pocket.

I have mine configured for tip up carry, and by doing so the clip exerts a little more pressure on the lockbar.

If you get one let us now what you think. I'm glad I didn't miss out on this one - I'm happy to have it in my collection.
 
I had one briefly. It was a superior knife. It moved on only because it didn't work well for me as a primarily left handed user. The design, materials and workmanship were top notch.
 
I have owned one now for 4 months. I agree with all positive comments. No worries on the lock up as when you grip the knife it also pushes in the frame lock.

My understanding is there were 600 limited run made and are selling through slowly and still available at AG Russell as the price is up there.

In my opinion one of the classiest best performing smoothest knives made. No bashing my Seb's but this is a step above them in many ways.

Get one!
 
Yes -- classy, top-notch and a genuine competitor to the best folders out there.

I see two negatives:

I'm surprised at the comments -- from the same people, posting again and again -- at how smooth the Acies is. Not so those I've played with. They take a bit of work to open.

Also, the price: Like Sebenzas and other top blades, it's price-controlled by the manufacturer.

That said, the Acies is a wonderful blade with a shape and ergos I enjoy more than just about anything else I've used.
 
I still have one but it hasn't been in my possession since last August............It's being fitted with an S90v blade from a custom maker who said it would have taken about 30 days...but anyways.

I think it's a really thought out folder, everything works great, my only downfall was with my sample of the zdp blade, I experienced lots of chipping, but I came to the conclusion that it was my line of work, electrician, that the types of cutting that I do aren't suitable for such a high rockwell rated blade. Which was my reasoning to get an s90v blade and a pivot bushing because then it'd be one pretty damn sweet knife.

The Ergos are great.

Blade shape is nice, love the FFG

I actually love the angled thumbstud, it works excellent!

Lockstop is a nice touch.

Deep pocket clip was kind of funky right away, but it grew on me after I blasted it to tone it down.

My lock had plenty of tension, locked up nice.

Opened and closed VERY smoothly.

No blade play to speak of.

Overall I think that anyone with a passion for Ti Framelocks would love to own/use one.
 
I really dig the overall size, blade shape and thumb studs on this one and I am a fan of ZDP-189. The only downside, apart from the dumb name, appears to be the pocket clip which looks cheap and nasty. Although by all accounts it works well enough...
 
Again thank you all for your thoughts. This site is a great resource. Here is where I am with this knife:

A small disapointment for me is that I had thought that A.G. Russell was a designer/manufacturer like CRK or R. Hinderer. I didn't know these are actually manufactured by Kershaw. Having said that, there is obviously nothing wrong with Kershaw as they are a fantastic company. Still, it is a slight disapointment as it takes away some of the "cool points" if you know what I mean.

Aside from that it looks to be a very nice knife. Another thing that just hit me about it is that it reminds me very much of another knife I like the looks of. One that hasn't even been made yet. Has anyone else seen pics of the proposed Esee folder? To my eye it looks very much like this one.

Anyway, I gotta run. Post more later. . . .
 
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BP Green said:
A small disapointment for me is that I had thought that A.G. Russell was a designer/manufacturer like CRK or R. Hinderer. I didn't know these are actually manufactured by Kershaw. Having said that, there is obviously nothing wrong with Kershaw as they are a fantastic company. Still, it is a slight disapointment as it takes away some of the "cool points" if you know what I mean.
Click to expand...

AG would be the first to tell you that he's a better designer than maker. A very few knives get made in his shop in Arkansas, but the vast majority of his branded knives are contracted out for manufacture. Don't let that sway you in any way, though. He demands very strict quality control and backs all his sales with 100% MBG, including original customer satisfaction. That's saying something. I've been on the edge of buying this one for a while now but just haven't taken the plunge. Looks like a great knife.
 
A.G. has said he designed Acies and incorporated the best designs he found in competitors' top folders.

I seem to remember the Kershaw marketing veep discussing the knife in these forums. I don't want to misquote him, but I believe he mentioned how stringent A.G.'s requirements were.

There's no doubt about the Acies' quality.
 
flash900 said:
A.G. has said he designed Acies and incorporated the best designs he found in competitors' top folders...

...how stringent A.G.'s requirements were.

There's no doubt about the Acies' quality.
Click to expand...

A. G. holds his knives to a higher standard than any other company I know. I've purchased his "Seconds" and could find no flaws in them at all.

This knife is at the top of my list, but being that it's closer to $400 than I'm comfortable with on my budget, it may have to wait for a little while.
 
Kershaw is doing some very high quality work - there is no need to be worried about the quality of this knife. As I said, I owned one briefly, and it is an excellent knife in every respect.
 
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