Bear Ops "Rancor" MC-110-B7-P Folding Knife -*Picture Heavy*-

[jeffsenpai]

In my search for a great USA made EDC knife, I came upon the Bear Ops brand knives. What instantly drew me to this knife was the attractive clip point blade. Now having used and carried the knife for some time, I want to share my opinions with the community, hopefully lead to more informed purchases by others in the future. Perhaps I will make a video review in the future to reach the YouTube audience as well.

While doing some research on the Bear and Sons/Bear Ops brand as they were a new name to me, I discovered some unfortunately negative reviews via YouTube and other sites. This initially had me worried but I decided to go for it and support a USA manufacturer. I purchased this knife for $66.99 (MSRP $130) from a well known online retailer that has guaranteed two-day delivery. Here is the low down, good points and bad.

The model number of this knife is the MC-110-B7-P “Rancor”. Quite the mouthful, but according to the model number, and the sticker on the box, this knife has zytel handles. However, everywhere I searched online using this same model number, most knife sites state that the handles are G-10. Having the knife in hand, I would say the handles are G-10 by the feel, texture and the way they are machined. You can judge as well looking at the pictures. Looking at this model on the Bear Ops website http://bearopsknives.com/products/mc110p.html , that models’ handles look more like a solid, plastic zytel – so a definite difference from what I have in hand.



This is a beefy knife, and I knew it would not be a lightweight when buying it, weighing 5.4 ounces. This is OK with me. The blade has very solid lockup with no play in any direction. It seems like the pivot is “deeper” in the knife than other folders, and does not seem to be user adjustable. The lockup is so rock solid that I haven’t felt that this knife has needed any adjustments. The liner lock is thick, yet shows both early and late lockup. Allow me to explain. When manually opening the knife in a slower, controlled manner, the liner displays early lockup. But, when using the thumbstud to flick the blade open (and it is very smooth to flick), the liner shows a very late lockup. I tried to show the difference in the following pictures. Either way, the knife shows no play, but in the back of my mind this is a cause for worry, as I don’t want the liner lock to ever fail by traveling further than the blade.

Earlier lockup with slow, controlled opening:


Later Lockup when flicked with thumbstud:



The blade is s30v, came nice and sharp with a bead blast finish.

This also was available in a black finish, but for $10 more. I chose the non-serrated version. No complaints here, I love the modified clip point blade, just gorgeous. Ambidextrous thumbstuds make it easy to deploy left or right handed. No jimping along the blade, something that is missed and could have easily been added to the thumb ramp area. Blade centering favors the non locking side, but does not rub liner.


No jimping



Blade centering:


The pocket clip also has a bead blast finish, and is available in right hand tip down carry only. The knife carries relatively deeply. My pocket clip came nice and tightly attached to the scales, the clip has not shown any wiggle.


The knife has double steel liners on the liner lock side, which I think is likely the reason why the weight of the knife is so high. You can really tell each knife is hand finished, as there are slight imperfections between the finish of the adjoining liners. I would not really call this a flaw with the knife as there is no loss of function.





In summary, for $67 I get a solid full size s30v knife that is made in the USA. While I am sure that there are many competitive options out there offering similar value, like many people who enjoy buying knives, there is something to be said about having a knife that is less well known, but still high quality. This one is a keeper.




Pros:
Superb, tight lockup
Smooth action
High quality blade steel for $price point$
USA made

Cons:
One position pocket clip
Small fit and finish issues
No lanyard hole
Late liner lockup – potential issue down the road?



Hope you enjoyed reading, ask any questions you may have.

 

[seelow123]

Interesting knife. 67 bucks for an american-made knife with g10 handles and s30v (Wonder what the heat treat is like) is a pretty solid deal. The knife isn't my cup of tea but still interesting none-the-less. Thanks for the review.

 

[Omega Leather Works]

Very interesting, and a great review.

For some odd reason I like the weird finish issues. It does make it look hand assembled, and correct for the price point, without looking bad.

I really don't like the lock up though. How's their warranty? Maybe they can address that? If so I would forgive any other perceived negative attribute. Good find. :thumbup:

 

[jeffsenpai]

Their warranty is limited lifetime, despite all the caveats they list I assume it would cover the liner lock if it were to fail. The lockup though is just so solid that I cannot really complain. I am amazed that this knife deploys so quickly yet still locks up like you would expect to see on a Zero Tolerance.