The Swing Guard knife from Canal Street Cutlery arrived today, so I thought it might be helpful to other BladeForums readers if I did a quick comparison review between the Canal Street product and a similar German-made knife sold by AG Russell.
Quick Stats
AG Russell:
440C, 56-58rc
Amboynia burl wood w/ nickel silver bolsters and brass liners
$90 retail (from AG Russell)
Canal Street Cutlery
"420 Stainless", 52-54rc
Amber bone w/ nickel silver bolsters and brass liners
$65 retail (from Knifeworks)
No preference between the handle materials and aesthetics. Both knives are incredibly beautiful. The CS gets a nod for the tasteful round "CS" escutcheon and A.G. gets a nod for the clean lines and flush pins. Oddly, the blade tang stamp on the Canal Street knife is completely covered by the swing guard. The CS nickel silver is bright silver and highly polished, while the AG Russell model's nickel silver has a slightly matt finish and a slight gold tint.
The "fit and finish" is where the two knives are easily distinguished. Neither knife has any blade play whatsoever. The AG Russell knife is incredbily smooth, like velvety air, when opening and locking. The CS on the other hand, has a gritty and coarse action; most of the "grittiness" is caused by the swing guard sliding across the blade's bolster. Wiping down the moving parts with a kleenex and Q-tip has improved the CS somewhat. When opening the CS the lock is sometimes hesitant to engage, particularly when using a delicate touch; the AG Russell lock snaps into place every single time.
One obvious inferiority in the Canal Street knife is a large uneven gap where the rear bolster meets the backspring. The gap is present between the spring and rear bolster, and one one side between the backspring and liner. This is worth an image, so I'll try to scan the two knives side-by-side later for comparison.
When closed, the swing guard of the AG Russell knife rests mostly-snug against the handle top with only a bit (<1mm) of play. The Canal Street guard is rattly-loose with nearly 3mm of movement.
The AG Russell knife came packaged in a one-piece box with a bit of wax paper. The Canal Street packaging consists of a two-piece box, a warrantee brocure, and a velvet pouch.
The AG Russell knife is one of the best-fitting and smoothest knives I have ever operated. The Canal Street knife is OK, but is not at the quality level that I expected: "Nine master cutlers with 300 years of combined experience" (from the Canal Street website).
I wouldn't hesitate to buy another AG Russell Swing Lock. I was anxious to buy the new Canal Street Ring Opening knife, but now I think I'll wait to read some buyers comments first. Maybe A.G. can get his German manufacturing contractor to make a Ring Opener?
I would have liked to compare these two swing guards to a Case Cheetah...
Best Wishes,
-Bob
Quick Stats
AG Russell:
440C, 56-58rc
Amboynia burl wood w/ nickel silver bolsters and brass liners
$90 retail (from AG Russell)
Canal Street Cutlery
"420 Stainless", 52-54rc
Amber bone w/ nickel silver bolsters and brass liners
$65 retail (from Knifeworks)
No preference between the handle materials and aesthetics. Both knives are incredibly beautiful. The CS gets a nod for the tasteful round "CS" escutcheon and A.G. gets a nod for the clean lines and flush pins. Oddly, the blade tang stamp on the Canal Street knife is completely covered by the swing guard. The CS nickel silver is bright silver and highly polished, while the AG Russell model's nickel silver has a slightly matt finish and a slight gold tint.
The "fit and finish" is where the two knives are easily distinguished. Neither knife has any blade play whatsoever. The AG Russell knife is incredbily smooth, like velvety air, when opening and locking. The CS on the other hand, has a gritty and coarse action; most of the "grittiness" is caused by the swing guard sliding across the blade's bolster. Wiping down the moving parts with a kleenex and Q-tip has improved the CS somewhat. When opening the CS the lock is sometimes hesitant to engage, particularly when using a delicate touch; the AG Russell lock snaps into place every single time.
One obvious inferiority in the Canal Street knife is a large uneven gap where the rear bolster meets the backspring. The gap is present between the spring and rear bolster, and one one side between the backspring and liner. This is worth an image, so I'll try to scan the two knives side-by-side later for comparison.
When closed, the swing guard of the AG Russell knife rests mostly-snug against the handle top with only a bit (<1mm) of play. The Canal Street guard is rattly-loose with nearly 3mm of movement.
The AG Russell knife came packaged in a one-piece box with a bit of wax paper. The Canal Street packaging consists of a two-piece box, a warrantee brocure, and a velvet pouch.
The AG Russell knife is one of the best-fitting and smoothest knives I have ever operated. The Canal Street knife is OK, but is not at the quality level that I expected: "Nine master cutlers with 300 years of combined experience" (from the Canal Street website).
I wouldn't hesitate to buy another AG Russell Swing Lock. I was anxious to buy the new Canal Street Ring Opening knife, but now I think I'll wait to read some buyers comments first. Maybe A.G. can get his German manufacturing contractor to make a Ring Opener?
I would have liked to compare these two swing guards to a Case Cheetah...
Best Wishes,
-Bob
