A.G. Russell Acies - first impression and pics.

[mqqn]

Hi guys -

Brown dropped off my Acies this afternoon!

Wow - I love it!

The knife is beautiful with very smooth action, ZERO blade play, excellent lock up and the lock bar is very easy to move off of the tang for closing.

The thumb studs to seem to be the same ones used on the Blur - they are a little sharp (not as sharp as the ones on my composite blur..), but since the blade is so smooth it is not hard on your thumb like a blur is.

My blade is nicely centered and fit and finish are just perfect.

The clip does stick out further than I thought I would like, but since I have carried it around and played with it, the clip is just fine. The knife rides nice and deep and none of the actual knife is visible in your pocket. The clips is designed so that your hand grips into the depressed area - Very nice!

It would be nice if the clip were a dull finish rather than the polished finish, just to make it less noticeable.

The A.G. Russell etch on the blade is classy and not garish or detracting from the looks of the knife. The tang area has ZDP-189 on it in smallish etch. Nice.

The blade itself is nicely finished, and it does have a swedge to it. My example is well sharpened, it can rough-shave the hair from my forearm.

The ball-detent retains the blade and snicks in giving nice feedback.

The stop-pin is huge! The blade locks open with a really nice click.

I REALLY like this knife - and I think it will be with me all the time now.

Nice job Mr. Russell - you really did well on the Acies!

Here are some quick pics I took this evening -

best regards -

mqqn

 

[Thalestin]

Interesting looking blade. Only thing I dont dig is that clip and the black main screws. Other than that, it looks like a great user

 

[KLJTech]

Beautiful knife, congratulations!
I noticed this knife right away in my last A.G Russell catalog and hopefully I'll be able to add one to my collection once money isn't as tight as now. I love the look of the knife and since it's from A.G Russell you never have to worry about it not living up to your expectations and then being stuck with a knife that you don't like. I think you picked a winner.
Use it in good health.
-Kevin

 

[HardUse]

Well your pics make it look a lot better than the stock photos we have been seeing. Only thing I don't like is the looks of the pocket clip. If you don't mind could you snap a few pics of it in pocket? Thanks.

 

[bearcut]

Wow, that is NOT a Sebenza!
Very nice! It looks a lot better than the company photos.

I think the pocket clip looks fine, but I'm not real picky about those things. I care more if it works in and out of the pocket than what it looks like.

That is a beautifull blade, one of the prettiest forms I've seen in a long time, what a fantastic grind.

Lockbar stop, ZDP-189, ergo-thumbstuds, no useless hole in the handle to spoil the look...I'd say you have a winner.

Congratulations!

 

[mqqn]

Well your pics make it look a lot better than the stock photos we have been seeing. Only thing I don't like is the looks of the pocket clip. If you don't mind could you snap a few pics of it in pocket? Thanks.

Hi HardUse -

Sure - I'll do that this evening.

best regards -

mqqn

 

[Lycosa]

Thanks for the review.
I'm off to order one.

 

[DallasSTB]

I love the looks of this knife with a couple of minor issues - the shiny clip and black screw heads. Both of these are more aesthetically correct on a Sebenza IMO. In fact the dull clip finish on the Seb is one of the reasons I can carry it around the office - no one notices. I carried a MCusta for awhile (shiny clip) and it got a lot more attention. Granted these are petty issues, but they stand out to me from the pictures I've seen. The overall profile and design looks fantastic.

Please keep us updated on the performance of the knife if you can. Thanks for the great pictures and comments.

 

[goldie]

how is the opening of the knife left handed,is there decent room to get a grip on the thumb stud ? otherwise looks real nice....

 

[Adamar]

I was looking forward to this knife as an alternative to other Ti Framelocks, but that clip does not do it for me. I am sure it works very well for deep pocket carry, but if I am going to spend $400 on a knife, looks are at least as important as functionality. I wish it had a more integrated look.

 

[presz]

I like the deep carry clip. :thumbup: It would be nice if it was flat black, like the one on the Avalanche. I wish Kershaw would use that clip on their JYD2.

 

[kidwholaughs]

I am really curious about this knife.

AG definitely knows how to design a knife. I really like the fact that he puts so much mind in to his designs.

God Bless

 

[StuntDouble]

mqqn,

A.G. would do well to ask to use your photos of this knife for his catalog. I quickly changed my opinion about it once I saw the pictures you took.

 

[t1mpani]

I think that clip could be cleaned up a bit and look better. Just radiusing the transition points (where it widens) would go a long way for me. Do that and bead blast it and I think it'd look pretty nice on there. That's easy enough to do, I may look into one of these...

 

[Dinkum]

Great looking knife, does it have a bushing?

 

[barrabas74]

Wow didnt even know about this knife. I love framelocks and this one in ZDP too. I like everything but the clip....but I wouldnt NOT buy it because of that. Thanks for the review I will definatley be wanting one of these guys.

 

[ROBB]

Nice review and great pic's. I like the black screws and the the slant thumb studs. I do'nt like the shinny clip but I like it being deep -pocket and reversable.
One thing I can't figure out is in the last picture. If you look at the inside of the pivot I see a round hollowed out small area. I would have thought that it may be for placement of the detent ball, when I looked again the hollowed out area seemed way too big for a tiny detene' Is there another feature that its for. Or am I just seeing things that are'nt there.

 

[mqqn]

Beautiful knife, congratulations!
..<snip>.. I think you picked a winner.
Use it in good health.
-Kevin

Thank you, Kevin.

Wow, that is NOT a Sebenza!
Very nice! It looks a lot better than the company photos.

I think the pocket clip looks fine, but I'm not real picky about those things. I care more if it works in and out of the pocket than what it looks like.

That is a beautifull blade, one of the prettiest forms I've seen in a long time, what a fantastic grind.

Lockbar stop, ZDP-189, ergo-thumbstuds, no useless hole in the handle to spoil the look...I'd say you have a winner.

Congratulations!

Thanks bearcut - I do love the shape and grind of the blade.

Thanks for the review.
I'm off to order one.

You are welcome, Lycosa - sorry I cost you money lol....

I love the looks of this knife with a couple of minor issues - the shiny clip ..<snip>..
Please keep us updated on the performance of the knife if you can. Thanks for the great pictures and comments.

Hi Dallas - I'll keep you folks updated - I opened a box with it today (slow day) but it is a good slicer! I had it at the office today and nobody noticed the clip...but it is shiny...

how is the opening of the knife left handed,is there decent room to get a grip on the thumb stud ? otherwise looks real nice....

Hi goldie - I can open it left handed - the action is so smooth it is easy either way.

mqqn,
A.G. would do well to ask to use your photos of this knife for his catalog. I quickly changed my opinion about it once I saw the pictures you took.

Well thank you! I appreciate that!

Great looking knife, does it have a bushing?

I don't think it has a bushing but I have not had it apart - it does have bronze washers though.

Wow didnt even know about this knife. I love framelocks and this one in ZDP too. I like everything but the clip....but I wouldnt NOT buy it because of that. Thanks for the review I will definatley be wanting one of these guys.

You are welcome.

Nice review and great pic's. I like the black screws and the the slant thumb studs. I do'nt like the shinny clip but I like it being deep -pocket and reversable.
One thing I can't figure out is in the last picture. If you look at the inside of the pivot I see a round hollowed out small area. I would have thought that it may be for placement of the detent ball, when I looked again the hollowed out area seemed way too big for a tiny detene' Is there another feature that its for. Or am I just seeing things that are'nt there.

Hi ROBB -

I am thinking that area is for access to the hardware for the detent ball, just due to it's proximity to the ball. That is kinda why I took that shot. I'll put the high-res pics on my web site later this evening - in those you can really zoom in to see the details.

Thanks everyone for the nice replies. After having the Acies for a day I like it even more - it carries in pocket like it's not there, and it slides in and out very nicely - you don't have trouble getting it to clip onto your pocket and it comes right out when needed.

I'll get that in-pocket shot in a bit and post it here. :thumbup:

best regards -

mqqn

 

[mqqn]

Well your pics make it look a lot better than the stock photos we have been seeing. Only thing I don't like is the looks of the pocket clip. If you don't mind could you snap a few pics of it in pocket? Thanks.

Hi HardUse -

Here is a pic of the Acies in my pocket -

I have all of the high-res pictures posted here if anyone wants to zoom in on detail -

http://iammoon.com/images/knives/A.G. Russell/Acies/

best regards -

mqqn

 

[goldie]

Looks real nice. do you feel it was worth the price ?