Case Marilla in MagnaCut

[evltcat]

I am a knifeaholic.

There. I said it.

After reading numerous posts about the new MagnaCut steel our own Dr. Larrin Thomas created, I was quite interested in giving it a go. I like to find an entry level knife when I try out a new steel, just in case I don't like how it performs. I've been looking around for quite some time to find an entry level blade in MagnaCut that appealed to me, and that was not easy... There are a LOT of options north of $250 and that's more than I want to spend right now. I decided on the Case Marilla exclusive from a non-supporting dealer that had them in MagnaCut with a nice fat carbon inlay in the handle.

The price was right, and I prefer the aluminum handles of the Marilla to the other options in this price range that were in stock. Case has been around for a long, long, time and I'm comfortable that they can pull off good knife at this price point.

3.4" MagnaCut steel drop point blade.
Manual Flipper with steel ball bearing pivot.
Framelock with a steel lock bar insert.
4.75" closed, 8" OAL, WT. 3.6 oz

Got the Marilla on Saturday, and did my usual check, clean, and lube.

First Impressions:
I've gotta say for $149 I'm impressed. The fit and finish are very, very good. The only knock I have is that the fat carbon fiber inlay sits proud on the scales. I prefer inlays sit flush, and if this really bugs me during testing, I may pull it out and sand it flush with the handle. The blade is perfectly centered and the flipping action is pretty good right out of the box. As expected, it does need to break in a little to smooth out the flipping action, but its not a big issue. The handle fits my bigger wide hands very well and its comfortable to hold.

I've been cutting open plastic packaging, foam, cutting up boxes, and anything else that needs cutting. So far, I'm liking the Marilla.

A few pix:

I'm going to use the Marilla as my EDC for the next three months or so, then post an update after I've had a chance to use it and get a better feel for the knife and steel.

 

[evltcat]

Reserved for an update:

 

[Quiet]

I have one of these as well. The fit and finish are a bit poor for the price point, but it overall not bad, and currently one of the two cheapest ways I know of to get a blade in Magnacut*. Well done!


* The other being the Hogue Deka which I believe is just a tad less expensive.

 

[celticrogues]

How’s the detent on yours? I have a non-Magnacut Marilla and it has the weakest detent I’ve experienced in a knife. A flick of my wrist can shake the blade out no problem. I like the knife otherwise but I don’t really carry it because of the detent.

 

[LimpCroissant]

Those look pretty cool. I'm kind of a sucker for an aluminum framelock just because there's only a few on the market.

 

[jstn]

How’s the detent on yours? I have a non-Magnacut Marilla and it has the weakest detent I’ve experienced in a knife. A flick of my wrist can shake the blade out no problem. I like the knife otherwise but I don’t really carry it because of the detent.

I bought a Marilla in MagnaCut and had the same issue. Worst detent I e ever seen to the point it was dangerous. Not only would the blade shake out easily, but the lockbar tension was so weak it wouldn’t always lock up properly. I sent it back.

 

[Quiet]

How’s the detent on yours? I have a non-Magnacut Marilla and it has the weakest detent I’ve experienced in a knife. A flick of my wrist can shake the blade out no problem. I like the knife otherwise but I don’t really carry it because of the detent.

Mine is fine, but I'll admit, I handpicked it out of about 30 knives on the SMKW table at BLADE this year.

The biggest gripe for me about this knife is the fat screws used to hold the deep carry pocket clip in place. It makes it very difficult to get the knife fully seated in the pocket when wearing jeans or any pants with a hem of any substance on the pocket.

 

[DMG]

I have one of these as well. The fit and finish are a bit poor for the price point, but it overall not bad, and currently one of the two cheapest ways I know of to get a blade in Magnacut*. Well done!


* The other being the Hogue Deka which I believe is just a tad less expensive.

I bought a a Deka to try magnacut. The handle feels like the $2 knife I put in my tackle box a few years ago but it came as sharp as any knife I have bought and has held the edge nicely. No blade play, almost centered and almost as light as a Bugout.