Are there any high quality CRKTs?

They have knives in 154CM, if a high carbide steel is the defination of quality. Lots of their designs are clean and simple, some of them are fairly overly "tactical" but there is a lot of that going around. I would not get too hung up on some of the steels they use, yes they could be increased in hardness 2-4 points, but that could be said of almost every knife made.

-Cliff
 
moonwilson said:
I'd have to say "no". CRKT makes inexpensive knives for folks who either don't know or don't care about quality. I have several and none of them stack up favorably to folders from other production comapanies. I'd say they're a little below Kershaw on the quality side of things. They do have some interesting designs, though. But some of their ideas are kind of cheezy and lame, there's a high gimmick factor to what they do.
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I have several CRKT Knives which one am I mate?
I do know and do care.
I actually use my knives, you get what you pay for in most cases, for what they cost they are value.
Now I see most punters here use their knives to cut cardboard and packing tape are you suggesting the CRKT knives are not up to this? Maybe I need a Strider, Busse or Sebenza to handle that really tough packing tape.
You do not rate Kershaw either?
You have just wrote off half of my knives as crap in one post.
There are different posters here, some I rate very highly some not so much.
I guess you know where you fit in Pakistan. :grumpy:
 
I too own several CRKT knives , not all of us can afford to spend a lot of money on knives and yet we still like to collect and use them , ya know ?? :D

Anyways CRKT has made some nice knives but I do have to agree some of thier knives are absolute crap , for instance what were they thinking when they released the Rollock ? It is knives like that , that only serve to bolster the hearsay and rumors (and sometimes truth) that abound about a knife companies performance. Then there's the thing about the bulk ( if not all) of CRKT's knives being made in Taiwan or the Republic , that upsets some people and I can sympathize but then again nearly every big knife company is following suit- Spyderco , Benchmade , to name a few.

I would be choosy about buying a CRKT , check the reviews first.
Like AllenC said thier M series is a nice knife , I consider my M16z a steal at $19.99 , I consider my big and small S-2's top notch knives and with 6AL4V Titanium scales and ATS34 blade steel , they certainly are. The Viele Wasp is a decent little linerlock with good steel and titanium handles , I have found them at dirt cheap prices on eBay and Big5.

Anyways I do hope CRKT does not stray further into the night and start making genuine crap for the sake of making it.
 
kgriggs8 said:
I have only had the M-16s and similar knives. They are not what I would call top of the line. Are there any CRKTs that compare to Spyderco and Benchmade in terms of blade steel, fit and finish and overall quality? Or are they all designed to be mid range knives?

I ask because there seems to be a loyal CRKT following yet from what I have seen, I haven't seen any really good knives from them yet. In fact, I am considering giving up on them since I have had a few problems with them.
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I have Apache which is pretty good knife. Unfortunetely they are not making them for many yeaars. But if exclude serration - they were pretty high quality knives.

Thanks, Vassili.
 
I have a large CRKT S-2... absolutely wonderful knife. Very positive, tight lock and the ATS-34 is scary sharp... titanuim handles.. whats there not to like???
 
The only CRKT I've kept thus far is the Viele Wasp. Ergonomics could have used some improvement (more rounded/bevelled edges), but quality is great. The AUS-118 steel is amazing...I wish I could find more knives made with this (there was a limited run of M16s made with AUS-118).

The My Tighe and Mini My Tighe are also very nicely made. Solid lock-up, no blade play, and super fast AO. Nice attention to detail and F&F. My only gripe with it is the 1.4116 blade steel. If it were AUS-8, I'd have one, or two, already.

I'm looking forward to the M4. Uses AUS-8 steel, which is one of my favorite steels. But it's a liner lock, which brings me up to the main reason I don't like most CRKTs, including the M-series. CRKT's liners tend to be fairly soft and will travel fully across the tang in a matter of a dozen or so aggressive flips of the blade (not good considering the M-series are made to be flipped open). I've seen brand new M-series (M16 and M21) out of the box with the liner already at mid-point in the tang with a soft flip. A hard flip allows it to travel fully across. Any further wear on the liner and vertical blade play can start, or in the case of a thin liner lock like the zytel series, the liner could get stuck in the gap where the spacer is. I love the M21 design and would have one (like the AUS-8 steel) if the liner lock were harder and more wear resistant. Once the M4s come out, I'm going to play with a few to see how the liners are. I really like the M4 design, but won't get one if the liner wears quickly like the M-series. Considering the price of the good M-series and the M4 (street price around $40-$60), there's a lot of Kershaw and Benchmade liner locks in the same price range that take a lot longer for the liner to wear.
 
Cliff Stamp said:
They have knives in 154CM, if a high carbide steel is the defination of quality. Lots of their designs are clean and simple, some of them are fairly overly "tactical" but there is a lot of that going around. I would not get too hung up on some of the steels they use, yes they could be increased in hardness 2-4 points, but that could be said of almost every knife made.

-Cliff
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good point cliff, especially on the part of every knife can be increased a couple of points in their hardness
 
I agree the Apache was their best knife.I have the large plain edge Apache.Still has solid lock-up after many years and is razor sharp.One of my favorite folders.
 
My M16-12 worked well, and deserved a high place im my coollections beside several Spydercos, Gerbers, Bokers, etc.

I got yesterday a Pharaoh. It's a badass knife: it has a scary blade, comfortable handle and even sits well in my pocket! (I think it deserves a full-scale testing, such a "historical" bladeform needs further investigations, too... :))
 
JSR said:
The only CRKT I've kept thus far is the Viele Wasp. Ergonomics could have used some improvement (more rounded/bevelled edges), but quality is great. The AUS-118 steel is amazing...I wish I could find more knives made with this (there was a limited run of M16s made with AUS-118).
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My dad got a Viele Wasp for $17 at Big 5, and it seems like a high quality knife, especially for the price. The fit and finish is nice, it has titanium and G-10, but the edge is way too thick at .030". I am sending it off to Tom Krein in the next couple weeks to get the edge thinned out to .010" for better cutting ability to make my Dad happier with the knife. In the meanwhile I will have to sharpen it up and thin it some and give the AUS 118 a try, as I've never dealt with it. From what CRKT says they run it near 60 RC, so hopefully it is more crisp than their AUS 8 that I have used, which likes to burr on me.

My other experiences with CRKT's are M-18's and a Denali. My main complaints with them are the steel being so prone to burring. If they had a better heat treat (like Cliff says) I think I would like the knives a lot better, as the steel would perform a lot better. They have held up well though, even though I used them pretty hard when I used to carry them, and I paid less than $28 each for all of them (including $13 a piece for a couple of the M-18's). At this point I think there is more value in the Byrd line of knives, but the CRKT's are still a decent knife in my experience.

Mike
 
The Lightfoot M1 performed very well during a summer of plumbing. It's a hefty knife, so off went the clip for carrying in a Schrade multitool pouch.
 
jthomas said:
I've found the Wasp and the S-2 to both be quality knives, especially considering the price paid.
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Agreed. I got an S-2 a while back for only 25 bucks on sale. Great knife that is quite the beater in times of need. Unforetunately about 3 months ago I lost it :( . I replaced it with a G-10 Cara Cara that has gone strong since then.
 
I had the Apache III (smallest version of the Apache) and it was my EDC for several years until I lost it. Aircraft aluminun scales and ATS-34, I loved that little knife. I've looked and looked for another one, but there's none to be found. Shame they don't still make it.

BTW, ditto to Danno4017's comment.

-Dan
 
Treat yourself to a Spyderco or a Benchmade or a Buck 110 in S30V from Cabella's... you deserve the best and you won't be sorry. (Plus, it will ruin you for anything lesser:D .)
 
I have 3 CRKT Knives and like every one for different reasons of course. The Ryan Folder is a nice folding knife for me , The Triumph NECK Knife is a solid little fixed blade for cutting stuff and my newest one the C/K Dragon is a really neat defensive tool to me. Although the Dragon could use a better sheath but Normark is allready on that :)
 
I have not owned or held one of their more expensive models, but I think people love them because of the variety of knives in a common price range, makign mid priced knives is a good market, alot of knife guys out there that lack a big bank account...Although not the best knives I have used I love my CRKT 14K summit series...both knives built like a tank and cheap enough lose and not cry over them...I have a Pikes Peak, and its big twin brother a Mt Whitney...
 
I have an M-1, it's a good sturdy knife but the detent is to strong
and you can't flip it open with your wrist. Other than that, it's a
neat knife with decent(AUS-8) steel. For $42 I;d say it's worth
it. :)
 
Preach it Danno...lol. As a single father, with total custody of 4 children...I appreciate what CRKT can offer me. A good knife at a fair price...and I do care about quality...but I simply cannot spend a paychecks worth of grocery money on my hobby. Much of what Danno said is true...I use my knives everyday...and mostly for cutting boxes, tape, slicing a tomato, etc...and my CRKT's, Kershaws, Benchmades, Schrades all do this job to the Nth degree without any problem.

I love this forum...I love learning about knives from those much more knowledgeable than myself. What I don't love is how some folks think that if you own knives that cost under a couple hundred bucks..that you are not serious, or care about quality. As someone who has knife collecting as a hobby, second to making music...it irks me when people run down my collection...I don't do that to others, and I don't expect it to be done to me. When my situation was different, financially, I was into buying guitars more than knives...I own 4 Martin guitars...don't tell me I don't care about quality.

CRKT makes some fine knives for the money...bottom line, and I am willing to bet that they will do the job that 90 percent of the folks on these forums need them to do in their daily lives.

Please do not take this posting as an attack on this site or anything of that nature...i just grow weary of folks running down people because they don't own a bunch of custom knives. I enjoy bladeforums...I paid to be a member, because I believe it is a great place...but on the same hand...it is a "better than you" attitude that some folks on here possess...that made me go for months without logging on. Enough rambling by me...yes...I am a fan of CRKT...and I love quality..enough said.
 
I also own 4 CRKT knives, two Alaska Bwana's & two Serengeti Hunter's they are not the most expensive knives I own, but I do use them Often and they do what they were designed to do, "cut".Good quality working man's knives.YMMV
 
Hey Guys...

I own several CRKT knives,, and I have nothing bad to say about them at all...

I have 2 M21's that I carry All the time,,and they are Very well made...
Good decent working folders..Honest knives in my opinion...

Lets not forget you can't compare them with $100-150 folders,, but what you are paying for you are getting decent quality blades No doubt...

The only other blades in that price range that match the quality are the Byrds..

I'm not a real big fan of the M16 line..Not that they are bad blades at all,, I just don't care for them personally..
Now the M21 line..
Now thats a decent folder for $40-50...

Haven't tried their new stuff yet,, but those Tighes are looking pretty good...

ttyle

Eric
O/ST
 
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