Intro.
I have been carrying a pocket knife for as long as I can remember.
In 70s-80s locking and fixed blades were not legal to carry in Russia, so I EDCd various folders.
Of course there were rumors, that somewhere in the distant lands where the pastures are greener, they made superior cutlery (Did you see that gorgeous knife in that Rambo movie? Did you know it carries a 25-year warranty on edge retention?!!)
In 1989 I went to Switzerland on business and bought my first SAK. Great was my joy of becoming a privileged owner of an advanced Swiss product! The fit and finish were excellent and pleasing to behold..
Then once I tried to undo a plastic (!) screw with the main blade and it snapped. Upon shedding a tear or two I decided to make a hook cutter for plastic laminates out of it; I did it so many times with my old knives. But my brand new Swiss hook cutter became dull after just a couple of passes on a sheet of fiberglass! I could not believe my eyes. The hook cutters made from old knives performed WAY better! That was how I learned that not all that glittered was gold. Nevertheless I EDCd several SAKs over the years.
Finally I began to look for something sturdier and made of better steel too. I asked a sales associate at Le Baron to recommend something better than a SAK. He replied: Nothing is better than a SAK! I did not believe him and bought a Leatherman Wave, which looked much sturdier. It became my one and only EDC for a year or so.
And then I got The Bug of Knife Collecting.
I somehow wandered to the knife counter at Walmart and my eye kind of fell upon a Schrade folder. There was no pressing need to buy it, but the price was ridiculously low, so why not? Next time it was a Buck 110, and on and on it went
You guys surely would understand how relieved I felt when I discovered this forum!
Because now I do not have to logically convince myself anymore that the next knife purchase is absolutely necessary because blah-blah-blah Now I know that there is nothing perverted about owning several dozens of knives. This is above and beyond logic. Its The Bug.
The comparison test (all IMHO, of course).
A little while ago I was working on some paddles for a canoe trip. The cross-sections of the stems were to be modified from round to oval to better suit my daughters hands. So I pulled out my trusty Wave and enthusiastically went about the job. Quite soon the multi-tool began to feel heavy and uncomfortable in my hand because of its boxy shape and excessive weight, also the handle- heavy balance made controlling the blade difficult. That was how I realized that a multi-tool was not a universal solution for a lengthy cutting project.
And then curiosity got the best of me, and I started pulling out my other knives, and letting the paddles have a go at them. Afterwards I cut some cardboard to see what was left of the edges.
Here are the results of my highly subjective cutting comparison test.
Leatherman Wave: very likeable, good for a variety of tasks, but not for a serious work of any kind, easily outperformed by dedicated tools; invaluable for emergency use, or if carrying sheer bulk of tools is impractical e.g. for camping.
Leatherman Charge: ditto, but good blade steel (154CM) retains its edge effortlessly; impotent weak clip
.
Buck X-Tract: better grip, blade shape suitable for cutting, but inferior steel went from sharp to dull very fast and that on a canoe paddle which is not even made of ironwood.
Buck 110: excellent handle and blade shape; remained sharp longer than X-Tract, although supposedly made from the same 420HC; a bit on the heavy side, but with constant resharpening perfectly suitable for a serious cutting job; as one of my friends put it: This is a good knife. Mans knife!.
Buck 105: yeah, I know it is a good and well balanced hunting knife; kind of awkward for precisely shaping a canoe paddle though; I did not even wait for it to get dull it is destined for something less mundane like skinning probably.
Gerber Evo: good for stabbing (maybe), not worth a damn for cutting; the blade just wont bite into the wood, developed a noticeable lateral play instead; I could not be bothered to rebevel it; this knife looked appealing on display at Le Baron, but with such a loose lock I would not rely on it for anything except not sliding out of my pocket the clip is quite strong.
Benchmade smth.: (do not remember the model, about 4 partially serrated, 420 or 440 steel); it did not want to cut wood, went dull in a hurry and protested with all the sharp edges of its flat unfriendly handle; looked good in that display case, though
; solidly built, too
.
Browning smth.: (3.25, made in Italy, gone now together with the Benchmade), same 420 or 440 steel that likes to get dull; a gentlemans knife for showing off ones gentlemanness,
certainly not for working hands.
CRKT Convergence: unexpectedly good cutting performance, it stayed sharp up to the cardboard stage and beyond (the type of steel is unclear, some sources say AUS6 some say AUS4); the handle feels full, comfortable and grippy; solid blade and lock, thick liners, no wobble, no play; the knife can be confidently used for a cutting job.
CRKT M16-10KZ: its wobbly blade would not perform well at cutting, even if the flimsy and skinny handle allowed that; when I gripped the knife by the blade and the handle and applied a little bending force (I am not a strong guy) I could see the widening gap between the blade and the liners and the handle was bending too; very impressive.
Kershaw 1993-2 Gents Folder: refined and solid build quality, projects overall air of elegance and respectability; high hollow-ground blade cuts easily (after rebevelling that is, factory bevel is not acute enough for cutting); Micarta handle is of simple looking shape, comfortable for a reasonable time for moderate cutting; no clip; for some reason I rarely EDC it.
Spyderco Delica 4: good steel (VG-10); good handle for not very powerful cuts; since it is so flat, it does not allow to apply much force for deeper cutting; the saber-ground blade is not ideal for this either; still I could have completed the paddle job with it; there is something about this knife that makes it likeable, makes me want to touch it, handle it I do not know why it is almost a sensual thing; somehow it gets EDCd more often than the others.
Leatherman e307x: pleasant and usable handle shape, fits snugly into my hand; very good blade (154CM) that just would not go dull; cutting performance is outstanding: it glides on and on through the wood almost without any perceptible effort on my part producing even and uniform shavings; by far the best cutter; only one complaint: the handle halves, if pushed in opposite direction with shear (not sheer) force, have some play, maybe .1 to .2 mm which is not much and does not affect the performance, but still it should not be there (interestingly, when I took it back to Le Baron, the sales guy pulled out three more e307xs for me, and they all had the same slight play dunno if its a bug or a feature).
Leatherman k503x: everything said earlier about Leatherman e307x applies to this knife as well; it cuts better than any other knife I have tried so far; the handle is very grippy and comfortable, easily and naturally finds its working position in my palm (almost like that other thing we used to hold in our fist now and then during early pubescence); actually the handle shape is similar to that of Buck 110; the lock feels solid; the overall impression is that of something reliable and substantial, absolutely suitable for the job; I would gladly have this knife with me in the outback; the future will show if I have over praised it.
Both Leatherman knives have acute factory bevels, I did not have to sharpen them at all;
and both have pitifully weak clips, thats ridiculous, really.
The only two knives I have not used on those paddles were my Leatherman Micra and AK-47 bayonet , maybe I will do a comparison test on them sometime
So many good knives out there awaiting our ministrations!
I have been carrying a pocket knife for as long as I can remember.
In 70s-80s locking and fixed blades were not legal to carry in Russia, so I EDCd various folders.
Of course there were rumors, that somewhere in the distant lands where the pastures are greener, they made superior cutlery (Did you see that gorgeous knife in that Rambo movie? Did you know it carries a 25-year warranty on edge retention?!!)
In 1989 I went to Switzerland on business and bought my first SAK. Great was my joy of becoming a privileged owner of an advanced Swiss product! The fit and finish were excellent and pleasing to behold..
Then once I tried to undo a plastic (!) screw with the main blade and it snapped. Upon shedding a tear or two I decided to make a hook cutter for plastic laminates out of it; I did it so many times with my old knives. But my brand new Swiss hook cutter became dull after just a couple of passes on a sheet of fiberglass! I could not believe my eyes. The hook cutters made from old knives performed WAY better! That was how I learned that not all that glittered was gold. Nevertheless I EDCd several SAKs over the years.
Finally I began to look for something sturdier and made of better steel too. I asked a sales associate at Le Baron to recommend something better than a SAK. He replied: Nothing is better than a SAK! I did not believe him and bought a Leatherman Wave, which looked much sturdier. It became my one and only EDC for a year or so.
And then I got The Bug of Knife Collecting.
I somehow wandered to the knife counter at Walmart and my eye kind of fell upon a Schrade folder. There was no pressing need to buy it, but the price was ridiculously low, so why not? Next time it was a Buck 110, and on and on it went
You guys surely would understand how relieved I felt when I discovered this forum!
Because now I do not have to logically convince myself anymore that the next knife purchase is absolutely necessary because blah-blah-blah Now I know that there is nothing perverted about owning several dozens of knives. This is above and beyond logic. Its The Bug.
The comparison test (all IMHO, of course).
A little while ago I was working on some paddles for a canoe trip. The cross-sections of the stems were to be modified from round to oval to better suit my daughters hands. So I pulled out my trusty Wave and enthusiastically went about the job. Quite soon the multi-tool began to feel heavy and uncomfortable in my hand because of its boxy shape and excessive weight, also the handle- heavy balance made controlling the blade difficult. That was how I realized that a multi-tool was not a universal solution for a lengthy cutting project.
And then curiosity got the best of me, and I started pulling out my other knives, and letting the paddles have a go at them. Afterwards I cut some cardboard to see what was left of the edges.
Here are the results of my highly subjective cutting comparison test.
Leatherman Wave: very likeable, good for a variety of tasks, but not for a serious work of any kind, easily outperformed by dedicated tools; invaluable for emergency use, or if carrying sheer bulk of tools is impractical e.g. for camping.
Leatherman Charge: ditto, but good blade steel (154CM) retains its edge effortlessly; impotent weak clip
.
Buck X-Tract: better grip, blade shape suitable for cutting, but inferior steel went from sharp to dull very fast and that on a canoe paddle which is not even made of ironwood.
Buck 110: excellent handle and blade shape; remained sharp longer than X-Tract, although supposedly made from the same 420HC; a bit on the heavy side, but with constant resharpening perfectly suitable for a serious cutting job; as one of my friends put it: This is a good knife. Mans knife!.
Buck 105: yeah, I know it is a good and well balanced hunting knife; kind of awkward for precisely shaping a canoe paddle though; I did not even wait for it to get dull it is destined for something less mundane like skinning probably.
Gerber Evo: good for stabbing (maybe), not worth a damn for cutting; the blade just wont bite into the wood, developed a noticeable lateral play instead; I could not be bothered to rebevel it; this knife looked appealing on display at Le Baron, but with such a loose lock I would not rely on it for anything except not sliding out of my pocket the clip is quite strong.
Benchmade smth.: (do not remember the model, about 4 partially serrated, 420 or 440 steel); it did not want to cut wood, went dull in a hurry and protested with all the sharp edges of its flat unfriendly handle; looked good in that display case, though
; solidly built, too.
Browning smth.: (3.25, made in Italy, gone now together with the Benchmade), same 420 or 440 steel that likes to get dull; a gentlemans knife for showing off ones gentlemanness,
certainly not for working hands.
CRKT Convergence: unexpectedly good cutting performance, it stayed sharp up to the cardboard stage and beyond (the type of steel is unclear, some sources say AUS6 some say AUS4); the handle feels full, comfortable and grippy; solid blade and lock, thick liners, no wobble, no play; the knife can be confidently used for a cutting job.
CRKT M16-10KZ: its wobbly blade would not perform well at cutting, even if the flimsy and skinny handle allowed that; when I gripped the knife by the blade and the handle and applied a little bending force (I am not a strong guy) I could see the widening gap between the blade and the liners and the handle was bending too; very impressive.
Kershaw 1993-2 Gents Folder: refined and solid build quality, projects overall air of elegance and respectability; high hollow-ground blade cuts easily (after rebevelling that is, factory bevel is not acute enough for cutting); Micarta handle is of simple looking shape, comfortable for a reasonable time for moderate cutting; no clip; for some reason I rarely EDC it.
Spyderco Delica 4: good steel (VG-10); good handle for not very powerful cuts; since it is so flat, it does not allow to apply much force for deeper cutting; the saber-ground blade is not ideal for this either; still I could have completed the paddle job with it; there is something about this knife that makes it likeable, makes me want to touch it, handle it I do not know why it is almost a sensual thing
; somehow it gets EDCd more often than the others.Leatherman e307x: pleasant and usable handle shape, fits snugly into my hand; very good blade (154CM) that just would not go dull; cutting performance is outstanding: it glides on and on through the wood almost without any perceptible effort on my part producing even and uniform shavings; by far the best cutter; only one complaint: the handle halves, if pushed in opposite direction with shear (not sheer) force, have some play, maybe .1 to .2 mm which is not much and does not affect the performance, but still it should not be there (interestingly, when I took it back to Le Baron, the sales guy pulled out three more e307xs for me, and they all had the same slight play dunno if its a bug or a feature).
Leatherman k503x: everything said earlier about Leatherman e307x applies to this knife as well; it cuts better than any other knife I have tried so far; the handle is very grippy and comfortable, easily and naturally finds its working position in my palm (almost like that other thing we used to hold in our fist now and then during early pubescence
); actually the handle shape is similar to that of Buck 110; the lock feels solid; the overall impression is that of something reliable and substantial, absolutely suitable for the job; I would gladly have this knife with me in the outback; the future will show if I have over praised it.Both Leatherman knives have acute factory bevels, I did not have to sharpen them at all;
and both have pitifully weak clips, thats ridiculous, really.
The only two knives I have not used on those paddles were my Leatherman Micra and AK-47 bayonet , maybe I will do a comparison test on them sometime
So many good knives out there awaiting our ministrations!
