Boker "top lock" auto ; opines

A

Allen E. Treat

Banned
Joined
Oct 4, 2001
Messages
498
To : ALL

Went to a local pawnshop to peruse
the wares and after seeing some of
the merchant's wares ( some low
priced common-as-they-get "common pocketknifes") the discussion with the merchant turned to knives. I
related the different makes, then
we got to German made knives. The
proprietor then went into his backroom & produced a Boker "top lock" ( an auto ) "know how to open it?"( a STUPID question as there's
a button on the handle ) I hit the button & "SNAP" out came a 3" combo
edge blade. NICE, thought I, I then
inquired of the pricetag : $125!
Now I know One Stop Knife Shop has'em for under $100, but I figure
if I can offer this yokel $100 he'd
take it ( and probably bitch all the
way to the bank!;)) This baby's new
in box with sheath. "WE sold three of'em this morning..' assured the
proprietor. I then showed him my EnduraHawk, "That thing "legal"?"
PARDON ME! I felt like giving "John Law" a lesson on the case of "State
vs. Darnyani" where the current ruling makes ALL "self propelled knives" "illegal" to manufacture, sell OR own, but what the hay? I kinda likee this Boker, and autos
are rather commonplace amongst the
populace. I must admit, though, the
Boker paled by comparison to the EnduraHawk.

Well gang, should I get it for the
usuarious $100? ;)

AET ;)
 
It's better than a $30 italian auto, but not much. The steel is pretty good, but the blade constantly hits the inside of the handle creating a "flat spot". Although it lists for a little over a hundred dollars, it's worth much less. If I were you, I'd look into something else even if it costs a few dollars more.
 
I may be wrong, but...
... isn't it a little bit like that:

- SpeedLocks are automatic (missing that nailnick)
- TopLocks are manual, but modification to automatic is quite easily done

And talking about "Locks" (Speed- or Top-):

I've got SpeedLock. I carry it in my wintercoat's pocket (easy to open with frozen fingers).
Quality isn't the best on earth, far and away from it. When I got it I sent it back to factory because of the blade play and some other faults. :(
It does have some play even now, but not so much.
Construction is quite harsh, but working.

Funny thing is that I purchased ATS-34 blade for it and the blade play is even more horrible :eek: :rolleyes:
So I don't use it...
The reason is obvious: the blades are not identical by shape.

So: if you are not worried about (small) blade play and are after a knife to be used, Boker Top/SpeedLock is not the worst choise (IHMO). But it isn't worth of $100, though.
 
At least here in Phoenix you can go to knife/gun shows and pick up auto TopLocks for about $30-$40 and for that price they're an adequate auto, definitely better than the Chinese knock-offs, but they're still an inferior product that won't last. The non auto version isn't a bad knife, but it really is sort of an unusual and non-practical locking system. There is drastically better out there for not a whole lot more. If you really need a Boker, go with their slipjoints or fixed blades.
 
well, i know i have seen lotsa(well not dozens but certainly some) MT SOCOM's and SOCOM elite D/A's for sale in the for sale forum for around $150 or so, and imho a MT auto is 10X the knife a boker is, i would save $50 or so and get a MT myself, bokers never rang my bell, really.

greg
 
Just wanted some realistic feedback,
and thus far, I've found it. You guys REALLY know your stuff. Actually, come to think of it, Boker's quality was never on the par with oter German knifemakers. Oh, I've seen the Gemini model,but then again, liner locks are rather commonplace these days & pretty hard for "higher end" companies to "F" up, not to say they haven't, but...
Got an antecedote : I bought a Boker
lockback ( forget which model/name )
and it wasn't exactly "shavin' sharp". I've seen much better from
Microtech ( for about $60 more I could get the m/a Kestral from PVK,
as One Stop sold the last of it's lot.) As I said my EnduraHawk made the Boker "pale in comparison"; if I wanted something along the "hawkbill" lines, I'd probably go for the Microtech Hawk ( a fiendish
lookin' vertitable work of art ; but I don't have the $300+ dollars at the moment.) I am getting an Italy-balifrom www.KNIFEZILLA.com , which would probably make the Boker pale by comparison as well. Anybody out there, for better or worse, POST ON!
Oh, and thanx again, you've ALL just
saved me from a $100 "disaster" ;)



AET ;)
 
I'd say, get them on Bladeauction.com for half that, and you might have a deal. They do look pretty cool, and aren't bad at the $50 price. I say get a MT UDT, or Mini UDT, or like said above, just save a few more weeks to get a Kestral, or LUDT. Much better quality. Or go for the ProTech line. They have several knives in the $100-$150 range, and they are awesome!!!

DD
 
I think Boker does the best job with their traditional pattern knives, and switchblades, in fact they make many knives for other companies. That said, I carried a TopLock for 6 years as my work knife ( next to my super leatherman ) and the blade is worn down from sharpening. I think they are great workers, the top lock ( speed lock was the orginal design and for the most part put together a little better ) wasnt designed as a collector piece, it was designed to work. Funny side note, when they first hit US shores, you couldnt find a manual version as they were all converted. The first ones in still had the spring pocket, all you had to do was drill a kick hole in the blade ( I did one or two of these ;) ). Anyway, I think theyre good knives, from a good company, but anymore not worth more than prob $85 new, due to the fact the market was flooded with them years ago. -- Charles
 
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