- Joined
- Jun 23, 1999
- Messages
- 1,209
Ordered a BM/Pardue collaboration BM330 from the knifecenter. There isn't a picture available as the knifecenter appears to have discontinued the product. Maybe I bought the last one!
I was looking for a small, light knife for carry in pocket of dress pants too thin for most clips, even IWB let alone on a pocket. I already own several small knives that might have fit the application like my Spyderco [all steel] Dragonfly, or a recently acquired SOG Blink.
The Dragon fly was a little heavy, even with the pocket clip removed. The BLINK can also be carried without the clip, and the weight is OK, but I was looking for something with just a little more blade reach. Neither the Dragonfly or the Blink will reach the center of a bagel or all the way to the core of most apples.
The BM330 fills the nich nicely. It is indeed very light, even lighter than the Blink, which is, itself, much lighter than the Dragonfly. It is so light that it seemed a little tinny and insubstantial when I first held it in my hand, but then I carry a Sebenza most of the time. As I worked with it, I gained a more respect for it. Lock up is very tight. It takes some substantial pressure to disengage the [frame] lock, and the ball detent is one of the tightest I've ever felt. Blade geometry is perfect for my application. Thin (3/64ths inch I measure), narrow (11/16ths), and a reach that exceeds both of the other two knives, easily reaching the center of most bagels and apples! The rear half of the handle slabs are covered with thin carbon fiber scales adding just a little more substance for gripping, a good indexing mechanism (in the leading carbon fiber edge), and just a dash of panache! A lanyard hole is a nice touch too letting me add a fob that will aid in retrieval from the pocket where it rides unnoticably. It came razor sharp with a very smooth edge, and should be pretty easy to sharpen (AUS8 steel).
I'm very impressed with the knife over all. It's weight (lack of it really) and narrowness have grown on me. It is, for example, much easier to hold and manipulate with the tips and first joint of my fingers when pulling the blade (say peeling an apple) than either of the other two knives. My only complaint has to do with the thumb stud and the tightness of the ball detent (which is a good thing most of the time). The stud is a simple cylindar shape with a sharp (right angle) top edge. Combined with the over-all narrowness of the handle and the strength of the ball detent, it can be a little difficult getting the knife started. Once the detent is cleared, the opening is smooth, but that first 1/8" got a little painful on my thumb after the first couple of dozen times I opened the knife. I don't know why BM didn't go with a rounded top on the stud. That would have helped a lot. At the same time, I've discovered that if I don't open the knife 25 times in 2 minutes it doesn't hurt my thumb!
Over-all rating A- cause it is a little hard to open (clear the detent) sometimes as compared to either the spyderco (smooth as silk and never painful) or the SOG (that assist is a lot of fun), but otherwise a very nice and well-thought-out piece of engineering.
I am wondering what happened to this knife on the Knifecenter site... Is this a discontinued product? If so, perhaps its value has already leaped! What an investment!
I was looking for a small, light knife for carry in pocket of dress pants too thin for most clips, even IWB let alone on a pocket. I already own several small knives that might have fit the application like my Spyderco [all steel] Dragonfly, or a recently acquired SOG Blink.
The Dragon fly was a little heavy, even with the pocket clip removed. The BLINK can also be carried without the clip, and the weight is OK, but I was looking for something with just a little more blade reach. Neither the Dragonfly or the Blink will reach the center of a bagel or all the way to the core of most apples.
The BM330 fills the nich nicely. It is indeed very light, even lighter than the Blink, which is, itself, much lighter than the Dragonfly. It is so light that it seemed a little tinny and insubstantial when I first held it in my hand, but then I carry a Sebenza most of the time. As I worked with it, I gained a more respect for it. Lock up is very tight. It takes some substantial pressure to disengage the [frame] lock, and the ball detent is one of the tightest I've ever felt. Blade geometry is perfect for my application. Thin (3/64ths inch I measure), narrow (11/16ths), and a reach that exceeds both of the other two knives, easily reaching the center of most bagels and apples! The rear half of the handle slabs are covered with thin carbon fiber scales adding just a little more substance for gripping, a good indexing mechanism (in the leading carbon fiber edge), and just a dash of panache! A lanyard hole is a nice touch too letting me add a fob that will aid in retrieval from the pocket where it rides unnoticably. It came razor sharp with a very smooth edge, and should be pretty easy to sharpen (AUS8 steel).
I'm very impressed with the knife over all. It's weight (lack of it really) and narrowness have grown on me. It is, for example, much easier to hold and manipulate with the tips and first joint of my fingers when pulling the blade (say peeling an apple) than either of the other two knives. My only complaint has to do with the thumb stud and the tightness of the ball detent (which is a good thing most of the time). The stud is a simple cylindar shape with a sharp (right angle) top edge. Combined with the over-all narrowness of the handle and the strength of the ball detent, it can be a little difficult getting the knife started. Once the detent is cleared, the opening is smooth, but that first 1/8" got a little painful on my thumb after the first couple of dozen times I opened the knife. I don't know why BM didn't go with a rounded top on the stud. That would have helped a lot. At the same time, I've discovered that if I don't open the knife 25 times in 2 minutes it doesn't hurt my thumb!
Over-all rating A- cause it is a little hard to open (clear the detent) sometimes as compared to either the spyderco (smooth as silk and never painful) or the SOG (that assist is a lot of fun), but otherwise a very nice and well-thought-out piece of engineering.
I am wondering what happened to this knife on the Knifecenter site... Is this a discontinued product? If so, perhaps its value has already leaped! What an investment!