Artisan Centauri

Ray has definitely sold his soul to the Chinese. First Kizer, then WE/Massdrop, now Artisan.

None of his designs really speak to me so I haven't owned one, though I heard the Keen is/was a great knife.
 
K.O.D. said:
Ray has definitely sold his soul to the Chinese. First Kizer, then WE/Massdrop, now Artisan.

None of his designs really speak to me so I haven't owned one, though I heard the Keen is/was a great knife.
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That sounds a bit harsh. I love his designs, and would not be able to own a single one had he not "sold his soul" to the Chinese.
 
JDieseljoe69 said:
The anodizing doesn't look to bad on the knives!!
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It looks good. The anodized clip and backspacer look fine on the timascus handle. It's only the scale on the micarta one that looks a bit mottled, but it's micarta and will be a user, so that's fine with me. I think more than anything else, it's the microtexturing on the surface of the ti and how it holds oils from your fingers that's causing most of the issue.
 
K.O.D. said:
First Kizer, then WE/Massdrop, now Artisan.
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Monterey Bay Knives are also made in China. I don't think it's selling your soul, as long as they're not being made in labor camps in Xinjiang.
 
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jeffsenpai said:
That sounds a bit harsh. I love his designs, and would not be able to own a single one had he not "sold his soul" to the Chinese.
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Brummie said:
Monterey Bay Knives are also made in China. I don't think it's selling your soul, as long as they're not being made in labor camps in Xinjiang.
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It was a joke. I own quite a few Chinese knives. China pretty much has the market cornered on front flippers. I've got:

Hmm, how many do I have

WE Deacon
WE/Massdrop/Ferrum Forge Gent Select
Civivi Exarch CF
Civivi McKenna Damascus
APurvis Progeny
Kizer Ki4424 (I think thats the model, its an old one)

Its hard not to give money to the evil empire when they make so much stuff and very good knives.
 
Brummie said:
Monterey Bay Knives are also made in China. I don't think it's selling your soul, as long as they're not being made in labor camps in Xinjiang.
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As I've said before, the higher end knife manufacturers in China are run and staffed mostly by people who like knives. They just happen to live in China.
 
unwisefool said:
As I've said before, the higher end knife manufacturers in China are run and staffed mostly by people who like knives. They just happen to live in China.
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interesting point, I have never been to the country myself, but I have a friend whos wife is from there, and they visit every few years... I asked him if he's ever noticed anyone with a knife pocket clip or talked with anyone that ever carried an edc... he said no on all fronts

no idea if it's a legal thing or perhaps just a smaller % of enthusiasts or whatever
it would be interesting to know if that is just a bad sample of the population or broadly represents the usual case

if anyone knows, please shed light on it :)
 
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dirc said:
interesting point, I have never been to the country myself, but I have a friend whos wife is from there, and they visit every few years... I asked him if he's ever noticed anyone with a knife pocket clip or talked with anyone that ever carried an edc... he said no on all fronts

no idea if it's a legal thing or perhaps just a smaller % of enthusiasts or whatever
it would be interesting to know if that is just a bad sample of the population or broadly represents the usual case

if anyone knows, please shed light on it :)
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I'm guessing with the communist regime there are probably laws about this. I would think based on past issues over there that things that could be construed as weapons would be illegal. However, that is just my thoughts, I really don't have a clue.
 
I've had three variants (scale design) of the Massdrop Laconico Keen Spear-Point Flipper; an excellent knife
...a great slicer yet capable of heavier duty if necessary.
 
This wasn't supposed to be a thread about Chinese knives in general, but as it's going that way, here's my 2 cents:
Obviously, Chinese manufacturers have been able to produce high quality knives (i.e. precision-milled, titanium-handled, extensively machined / inlaid) at much cheaper prices than ever before, but with the lower prices and higher volumes, there's also been an explosion in the variety and degree of experimentation, in terms of their own designs, collaborations with international designers, and small-batch production commissions - from minimalist designs like Laconicos to crazy stuff like the Rike Alien 4. No doubt partly as a consequence of that, the high-end Chinese companies also seem to be responsive to customer demand as never before, and specifically to knife enthusiast demands (initially for the higher end stuff, but quickly trickling down the the mid-range stuff):
- people don't like proprietary hardware, so they stop using it
- T6 screws are annoying, so they move to all T8
- people want blades that are thin behind the edge, so that's what they produce
- front flippers or micarta handles are the new cool thing, and suddenly there are lots of options coming out of China
- etc, etc
 
I got this in a trade and I carry it most days.
Does this fob and bead look familiar to anybody?

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The small Centauri and small sebenza insingo. How similar are they?

(Edit) Not my knives in this pic.
 
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Brummie said:
There seem to be too many Chinese-made Ray Laconico knives to keep track, these days. I went a bit overboard on the Centauri, but after some swapping and anodizing of hardware (thanks to JDieseljoe69 JDieseljoe69 ), I’m happy with the set.
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So what are your thoughts on the knife? Other than obviously liking them, lol. I'm waiting for the small Micarta Centauri to come in stock and then I'm snagging one. They look great and I REALLY like my Laconico designed Keen, as well as the few Artisan knives I have.
 
Fixall said:
So what are your thoughts on the knife?
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Blade shape is great for EDC type tasks. Handle is comfortable and neutral. No hotspots from the clip, and it works well, although can take a little effort to get over thicker material. Front flipper works well, although a bit more fiddly on the small version.

Manufacturing quality is a slight step down from the really high end Chinese knives, but still very good. There’s a little bit of variation between the ones I have, and the blade on the micarta one is a little off-center (only one), but they come apart and go back together easily, and the action is good.

I’d prefer a few less markings on the blade, but they’re well-made, attractive and functional knives.
 
in my experience some of those mid-priced Chinese knives are pretty cool. I just picked up a couple Artisan Cutlery Bombardiers for myself and my dad and it’s a crazy knife. Very mean Tanto design 3.5” blade, D2 steel, really good grip, and it’s on bearings. It’s definitely not the smoothest knife by any means but it might be one of the pointiest knives I own for only ~$60.
 
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