Bring It: TNT vs. Sebenza

Ahem.........jumping in...........

Sebenza's are great knives and for a "semi-custom", small-shop", production, whatever, it is a hell of a knife. I carry one every day at work and use it all of the time. Never fails and every one that I have seen/used/held, etc. is exactly the same. Outstanding quality, workmanship and quality control. Time after time. The same cannot be said for all "production" knives. Plus CRK has a great warranty and stands behind their product. If it gets marred, beat up, etc. send it back and it come home looking good as new. Retail: @$305 (small) and @$345 (large). Great knives! I currently own one large "regular", one large "old classic" P w/ATS-34 and one small "old classic" P w/ATS-34. Love 'em all and use 'em.

That being said........

The TNT is, and I have told Mayo this time and time again, simply one of the finest "custom" or "handmade" knives I have ever had the pleasure of holding (and I have fondled lots over at his house over the years) and finally owning. I am not some expert but I have had and still own some really nice knives by really excellent makers (Carson, Stout, Crawford, Ralph, etc. I know I'm leaving some out but I hope you get the picture;) )and IMHO the TNT is the most solid, well-thought out knife of the bunch. Sure some can say its rather "plain" or "cold" looking like the Sebenza (how about wood handle slabs on that interframe?) but Mayo dresses them up in all sorts of ways with curves, holes, etc. It may only be Stellite and Titanium but they just flow:D . Taking it apart? Never crossed my mind but Mayo is, IMHO, one of those types that will go out of his way to make you happy. If you had a problem (and I don't think you would, but as has mentioned above getting those washers straight on a sebenza is, or can be, challenging), anyway, Mayo would make it right. Talk you through reassembly over the phone, via e-mail or, heck, send it back and have him put his "edge" on the knife. Gotta love the guy! I've quoted him before as saying "I SWEAT BULLETS OVER EVERY ONE OF THESE TNT'S". Mayo tries to make them as close to perfect as possible for a handmade knife. Cost is higher. You can get any old kind of vanilla ice cream but have to pay twice as much for Haagen-Daez. Same holds here plus you're getting a Stellite blade. Check Mayo's site but a small TNT is @$450, medium @$500, large @ $550 and an XL @ $600. Worth it? Yep! Every penny. Carry my TNT every weekend and it just does not quit.

Conclusion: Sebenza is a GREAT knife. TNT is a BETTER than GREAT knife. And Mayo makes sure it is. You may start with the Sebenza but will drift towards the TNT. And thats o.k. :D There are many here who have the TNT "addiction". :rolleyes: No cure, just lots of happy knife handling experiences:)

Oh yeah, btw, Eric: Spam is meat and here in Hawaii it is served at parties, weddings, etc. Its great! Don't knock it until you've had Spam Musubi (sushi). island favorite and.....don't forget where those TNT's come from;) . Mayo has cans of the stuff all over his place, what do you think he uses as lube for the TNT?? Spam jelly!:rolleyes: :p Ha ha!
 
Dang Hoss!!! spit it out, what're you tryin' to say??:p :D :p

I've been layin' back on my fondness for these dern knives, I figured most around here are about sick of my "TNT this"or "TNT that" threads.

I'm pleased to see a few here in this thread I don't normally see singing the praises of the TNT:D

See ya'll at our monthly "Brotherhood of the Mayonites" meeting.

:D
 
569 views and only 21 posts????

Maybe "Sebenza Fever" has gone the way of "Saturday Night Fever"....:confused: :confused: :eek: :eek: :eek:

Two years ago this post would have drawn more flack from the CRK camp than a "retreating rag head from a cave"... Maybe TNT's are owned by many of the former Defenders of the Sebenza clan...????

Interesting...

Michael

Edit:No insult meant to Muslims who wear headdress and believe in freedom of religion...
 
Originally posted by Paul Work
...Or maybe the Sebenza crowd is just tired of beating a dead horse...
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Paul

I didn't want to say what you said... , but you are right!!!

Comparing a Sebenza to a true custom knife is like beating a dead horse (to use your words...)...:rolleyes:

You are a brave man to speak such truth ...

Michael
 
Paul,

I may have been short sighted in my last post...

Do you actually own (and carry) one (or more) of each makers knife in question?:confused:

Michael
 
I only own one "handmade/custom" folder, a Melvin Dunn model 3. Nice knife, but no where near a Sebenza.
I'm not saying the TnT is an inferior knife. I've never even seen one. I like the looks of it. The materials are top notch. I'm sure Tom is a first class craftsman.
If Chris Reeve were still making the Sebenza by hand, he would be getting the respect he deserves. Were the old hand made Sebbies better? I seriously doubt it.
No comparison between the Sebenza and the TnT? I'm willing to bet that most "hand mades" can't compare to the Sebenza. Just my 2 cents...

Paul
 
C4,
I own, carry, and love my small Sebenza. I have an Umfaan on the way.:)
I also hope to one day own a TnT.

Paul
 
Russ, Michael (C4), et al. Here's something kinda fun....

Michael, the small sebenza I sold you way back when was one of (maybe THE) Sebenza that Mayo took apart, measured and used as a basis for the first TNT proto for copfish. Mayo asked me to send him one of the two sebenza that I had so he could "pick it apart". I gladly sent it to him. He sent it back with that Mayo beadblast finish on it. I eventually sold it to you. Part of history, weird, huh?

Russ, the small Carson model 4 that I bought from you I wound up trading to Mayo (he kept it for like two weeks then traded it for a gun or something). What did I trade it for? A TNT! Mayo has made lots of TNT's and every time I was over on Oahu I would stop by his house and look at the ones he had, none seemed to be the "one" that I wanted. Just a few weeks ago, my family and I were over on Oahu for Thanksgiving and I stopped by Mayo's to see what he had. My eye immediately caught on a double ground "armor piercing" extra large TNT with Stellite blade. Its not listed on his site anymore but I'll e-mail you a shot of it if you like, I cannot figure how to post pictures on the forum:mad: . I was holding out for a large drop point and wound up with the one I have and am VERY happy. Kinda funny how all of this ties in with the same group of guys.

Oh yeah, got on his list for the 20th anniversary knife he is making as well. Better hurry to get a piece of TNT history. And dang-it Russ, you got the number I wanted:p !

Mayo is a really special guy and I feel very fortunate to have the pleasure of knowing him. Kinda sappy but true. Don't know about getting his logo tattooed on me though:rolleyes:

Take care all and have a safe New Year celebration. Don't normally preach but don't drink and drive and watch out for those "other" drivers.

Aloha!

Thomas Haas:cool: Maui Chic and loving it!
 
Originally posted by Paul Work
If Chris Reeve were still making the Sebenza by hand, he would be getting the respect he deserves.
Click to expand...

And the knives would cost more than an Emerson or Onion custom.

I'm willing to bet that most "hand mades" can't compare to the Sebenza.
Click to expand...

There are a handful of makers whose work compare very well with the knives made by CRK. Tom Mayo is one of those few. That, along with the variety of styles and materials he uses in his folders, has allowed him to carve a nice niche for himself in the custom market. His success is well deserved, and the knife he made for me is one of my favorite carry pieces.
 
James,

You're right. If Sebenzas were being made by hand, the price would be out of reach for most of us. That's the beauty of it, we're getting "custom" quality from a "production" knife.

No disrespect to Tom Mayo or any other makers. There are many that I would like to have. I just don't believe that anyone builds a better knife than CRK. As good, yes. Better, no.

Paul
 
Ahhh, Spam Musubis and TnTs, two of life's better pleasures. Love my TnTs and love my Spam. I have a Sebenza or two, but it seems like my medium TnT ends up in my pocket more than any other folder I own. Thanks Tom (and Hormel) for bringing happiness to my pocket (and belly!) :)
 
BM 750.

Mwahahahahaha

And like there's anything better than fried Spam with a lil' hot sauce. :p
 
Bandaidman...
I think dissasembly is an overstated feature though. Very few pocket knives are designed to be able to be dissasembled and they work just fine. I took my sebenza apart just to try it but I never "needed" too. As far as field stripping goes I don't carry a allen wrench or grease with me, so it would be a moot point for me.
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I agree that few pocket knives are so designed, but this is more a pitty for them rather than a trivial feature of the Seb. The fact that most pocket knives can not be easily disassembled is historically a concession that people who really used knives hard usually carried some kind of fixed blade. If you've ever dropped a pocket knife in the mud, you've probably wished you could disassemble it. If you did this one day in on a 5 day pack trip, you'd be glad if it could be done in camp that night, and not wait until you get back to civilization.

Lubricant is a nice-to-have, not necessary. The hex wrench is something else again, but a Seb only requires <b>one</b> size, and a small one. I do carry one in a first aid kit which lives in my standard carry day pack.
 
Interesting info Hoss, Thanks. It is strange how things get around. And what NUT would get Mayo's logo tattooed on their arm????:D ;) :D

Tom made me, ya know. He said your not a serious Mayonite if you won't get any ink.:p

As to the original subject of this thread...

A TNT ONLY comes with tip-down carry available.

A Sebenza ONLY comes with tip-up carry available.

To some this matters, to others it does not.

FWIW:
When I owned sebenzas I carried tip up, was not comfortable with it, but I never had any problems. After a good friend had $17,000.00 in surgery to repair a severed tendon in his thumb due to this carry mode with an LCC, I was quite glad I carry tip down. I'm not trying to flame MT or anything, just referring to a real life experience.
 
Originally posted by Paul Work
I'm willing to bet that most "hand mades" can't compare to the Sebenza.
Click to expand...

:rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes: :rolleyes:

Arrrgggg, I can't hold it in any longer....I am so fed up of seeing this!

Paul, I am sure you are right...I am sure that most customs are not accurate to one billionth of a micron in tolerances...but SO WHAT!!!!!! The primary appeal of a custom TO ME is that they have "a soul"...they were made by an "artist's" hands with his blood, sweat, and tears...so what if you can slide a hair from a fly's testicles between the pivot screws!! This is just like the "quartz versus mechanical watch" debate...so what if a quartz watch is ten times more accurate than a mechanical watch...one is a work of art while the other is...well, NOT! I'd rather have a TNT with holes that don't exactly line up :D than a CNCed, lasered, assembly lined, knife-automaton!

[/rant mode off]

RL
 
Well, my turn!!!!!!
I have owned a bunch of sebys....a bunch.
Problem is, they have no lasting appeal to me. THey are GREAT knives.
But there is NOTHING about them that makes me want to keep one. Had a custom one..........same thing.
They are well built out of the best stuff.
Square handles, same blade over and over.......kinda sounds like a few of those "custom" guys out there doesnt it.
The whole point is......I wanted something better....and I made it, at the request of COPFISH and BLADEMAN in Austria and a few others. It was well received and I went from there. I will continue to trade for sebys......to me they are great knives at the $250 price I take them in trade for. I dont carry one, but that is because I am a knifemaker. If I wasnt........well, things would be very different, wouldnt they!!!!??? :):p:):p:):p:)
 
I agree with RL in that knives do not need to be perfect, even though the TnTs that I've handled have been closer to perfection than all of the Sebenzas that I've handled. Meaning they had smoother opening, greater ergonomics, talonite/stellite 6k, tip down carry, etc. All of the features that I listed are things that I like in a knife, so they may not apply to you.

A lot of those features are obviously matter of personal preference, though. Which is why it is not possible for either of these two knives to be "better" than the other. Why, you say? Because everyone has their own definition of a perfect knife. Your own idea of a perfect knife depends on what features you look for in a knife. For example, if you like tip up carry, the sebenza may be a better choice for you.

Just my 0.02$

Jeff
 
Sorry to ask a dumb question, but i am new to the knife game. I could not find anywhere what size in inches the various sizes of Mayo knives are. I am in love with the TNT with the recurve blade and want to know how many bones I need to save up! Thanks.
 
Sebenza vs TNT sounds like what i go through everyday witch one should i put in my pocket ?? after playing with carring and using i have come to the basic fact that i need both a lg Sebenza in my left rear pocket and a XLg TNT in my left front i don,t want to get into breaking them down and finding out what one cuts better or weights an oz less balance is not a factor looks just doesn't do it handle and blade materials can not change my mind the fact is there both the best knifes i have right now and they stay with me !!! i put my sebenza in first so i can have a second more with my TNT but keep it a secret HAPPY NEW YEAR
 
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