Comparison to shirogorov

mycough

mycough

Joined
May 20, 2007
Messages
3,368
So, are they truly head and shoulders above the competition?
In the 6-800$ range what flippers are in the ballpark with the entry level shirogorovs? They are going up in price and hard to find. I have a reate horizon cf and a ZT 804 cf and have been told I woukd throw them in the trash after I tried one of the Russian gems.
Please share your thoughts, I feel a new knife coming on and want to make it count. Say for instance a zieba or a macginnis midtech?
Thanks for your time.

Russ
 
I cant see a Reate horizon d being so inferior to a shirogorov that it should be thrown away.I had a shirogorov 95 a few years ago,it was a well made knife, flipped great,but how much better did it really flip compared to other well made flippers? can you really tell the difference? The only flipper I have that really flips in a way that is hard to compare is an Andre Thorburn that I have. Actually for the price of a Shirogorov, you should look into one of those models;i think they are a lot fancier,and theres more work involved in making them, especially the polishing of the liners like a mirror before they are anodized,which is not a very easy thing to do with titanium.And many have engraved bolsters which is real nice,too.I just cant justify 800.00 for a shirogorov,but others do.
 
I have a Shirogorov Neon and I absolutely love it however I do think they are currently overpriced because they are so hard to get right now. I have handled many flippers including ZTs, Spydercos, a few customs and I will say the Shirogorov flipping action is better than anything I have handled but it's hard to justify 3 or 4 times the cost for slightly better flipping action than a ZT. However, if the inflated price is not an issue for you than I say go for it. The hype is real as far as the smoothness and fit and finish. Even with the smoothest ZTs I can still feel a little friction while flipping or free dropping the blade, but not with the shiro. Shiros are up there with the best production knives being produced right now albeit at custom prices.
 
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I have only been a collector for a couple of years. I have, or have had, the following knives:

Shiro NeOn
Hinderer XM18 3"
CRK small and large Sebenza
Mnandi
ZT 0450
Hoback Mk Ultra
WH B30
BM 940-1
PM2
custom Gavko flipper

The Shiro is better than the rest. I have handled some Thorburns, and can say that they are pretty much equal. My NeOn is effortless. It takes minimal effort to get past the detent, and once it does it flies open every single time. It was almost surreal how easy it opened the first time. The ZT and Gavko flip great too, but require a little more force.
 
mycough said:
They are going up in price and hard to find. I have a reate horizon cf and a ZT 804 cf and have been told I woukd throw them in the trash after I tried one of the Russian gems.
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Yes. they are so incredibly beyond all knives created before that you will need to throw away those two knives. Send them to me, I will pay shipping, and you will never have to even think about those two abominations again.

:rolleyes:

For Scagles sakes, they are nice enough knives, but they aren't the greatest thing to ever happen. Who told you you would throw away your other knives? The guy who sold you the Shirigorovs?
 
Never had a Shiro, don't care to. For around $600-800 you could find something from André Thorburn that flips open beautifully and isn't a production knife (yes, some Shiros are production).

There was a lot of hype surrounding Shirogorov when they were more rare, and the hype is still there. I'm sure they really are nice, but I'm not able to justify their price.

One of Andrés blades will give you all the hand ground, ball bearing, flipper goodness you're craving:thumbup:
 
I know I am gonna get some flack for this, but everyone needs to relax and remember that it's just my opinion.

A friend of mine, and forum member here, Shipped me his Shiro to try out for a couple of weeks because I was interested in buying one (thanks Marcus!)

I am going to keep this simple:

I think it's an exceptional knife with a wonderful grind and great ergo's.

I hate the flipping action... If I closed my eyes it felt EXACTLY like the Kershaw Blur I just re-profiled for a friend.
Honestly, I would swear it was assisted if I didn't know better.
Personally, I hate "hard" flippers.

The lock-up was the worst I have ever held.
The tension is non existent, and you can unlock the knife by breathing on it.
There is also a ton of "play" in where the lock can sit against the tang.

Zero play, but not the type of lockup I like.

I was told this was normal and it was a part of the design? (Monolock)

Just to sum it up, and not to sound like a CRK fanboy, but it really made me appreciate my 21 that much more.

I may still end up buying a Shiro, but it would have to be under $300.
 
JR88FAN said:
I know I am gonna get some flack for this, but everyone needs to relax and remember that it's just my opinion.

A friend of mine, and forum member here, Shipped me his Shiro to try out for a couple of weeks because I was interested in buying one (thanks Marcus!)

I am going to keep this simple:

I think it's an exceptional knife with a wonderful grind and great ergo's.

I hate the flipping action... If I closed my eyes it felt EXACTLY like the Kershaw Blur I just re-profiled for a friend.
Honestly, I would swear it was assisted if I didn't know better.
Personally, I hate "hard" flippers.

The lock-up was the worst I have ever held.
The tension is non existent, and you can unlock the knife by breathing on it.
There is also a ton of "play" in where the lock can sit against the tang.

Zero play, but not the type of lockup I like.

I was told this was normal and it was a part of the design? (Monolock)

Just to sum it up, and not to sound like a CRK fanboy, but it really made me appreciate my 21 that much more.

I may still end up buying a Shiro, but it would have to be under $300.
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Could you tell me what kind of shiro it was and was it a production ? That's crazy you found that much stuff wrong with it. My shiro's seem to be what I hold all other knives too. Mine have all been near perfect they are all CD's but even the production models I looked at seemed amazing. I have had almost every flipper out there and the only ones I like as much is the RJ Martin Q36. The Thorburns I have had are right up there as far as flippers but don't like the look as much as I do the shiro's. Well to each his own what's perfect to me does not mean it's gonna be perfect to the next guy. Also Good luck finding a shiro for under 300.00. I will take every one for that price.


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Blues Bender said:
$300 is about what some are worth directly from Russia. Like I said, hype...
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Well for me I see what all the hype is about but that does not mean someone else will. And I more then anybody want the prices to go down for Shiro's because I plan on buying more. But I think that it will be a awhile if at all before the prices come down. With them being from Russia and all ready in high demand there. + they keep doing awesome collaboration's with other really good makers like Mayo and Southard so I only see them getting more popular.
When someone gets something that exceeds their expectations they usually get more and that is what has happened with Shiro's. But they can't keep up with all the high demand so the secondary market is really high. IMO.
It would be cool if they could set up a shop here in the States for their production stuff to bring down the prices. I personally am only now after their Custom Division's and Full customs. But a production shiro for around 300.00 I would not pass up.


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I've never handled a Shiro but I'm guessing they're way up there in the diminishing return category. You get an awesome knife that's marginally better than much lower priced knives. If you've got the cash...
 
Every Shirogorov I have handled has exhibited lockbar travel when engaged. In other words, when the knife was in the "locked" position, any firm grip would result in the lockbar moving over. I am not sure how big of an issue this is as I am not an engineer/knife maker, but it certainly doesn't encourage any confidence in hand or in use for me. YMMV.

In regards to it being better than a ZT? In terms of action (which is preference), materials used, I'd call it even. In terms of warranty and support, ZT by a long shot.
 
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I only have one Shiro, an old Tabargan, so my personal reference is limited. In my opinion production Shiros are way overpriced against some competitive options. I don't see the quality any better than the Begg Steelcrafts, CKF, Reates and WEs that I own...and all those knives are less than $500. In the case of the WEs, half of $500! I don't think production Shiros should cost $300, but based on what I've seen they're equal to $400-500 knives at best.
 
Cjwknives said:
Could you tell me what kind of shiro it was and was it a production ? That's crazy you found that much stuff wrong with it. My shiro's seem to be what I hold all other knives too. Mine have all been near perfect they are all CD's but even the production models I looked at seemed amazing. I have had almost every flipper out there and the only ones I like as much is the RJ Martin Q36. The Thorburns I have had are right up there as far as flippers but don't like the look as much as I do the shiro's. Well to each his own what's perfect to me does not mean it's gonna be perfect to the next guy. Also Good luck finding a shiro for under 300.00. I will take every one for that price.


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It was not a custom, and I'll have to get back to you on the model.
It belongs to Marcus52AR.

I didn't say it wasn't a good knife, just way less refined then I expected, and FOR MY TASTES the most assisted feeling flipping action I have ever felt.

Just one example though...
 
Nfd538 said:
I don't see a Shiro in your future at that price.
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Maybe. I believe they start at around $300 in Russia, so once the hype dies out, and supply increases, I don't see an issue with a light user under $300.00.

How much would you say I could buy an XM-18 for 3 years ago?
 
My best flippers are a Boker mini Kwaiken, ZT0450, and a Shiro Neon. The shirogorov beats the other two knives in every way except for the cost.
 
Cjwknives said:
Well for me I see what all the hype is about but that does not mean someone else will. And I more then anybody want the prices to go down for Shiro's because I plan on buying more. But I think that it will be a awhile if at all before the prices come down. With them being from Russia and all ready in high demand there. + they keep doing awesome collaboration's with other really good makers like Mayo and Southard so I only see them getting more popular.
When someone gets something that exceeds their expectations they usually get more and that is what has happened with Shiro's. But they can't keep up with all the high demand so the secondary market is really high. IMO.
It would be cool if they could set up a shop here in the States for their production stuff to bring down the prices. I personally am only now after their Custom Division's and Full customs. But a production shiro for around 300.00 I would not pass up.


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To start a shop in the states would cost Shirogorov a heavy dollar and would possibly increase production cost. The problem is that many people do not know the true worth of said knives and buy them based upon hype. I'm not saying they are bad, I bet they're pretty nice. However, I have a hard time justifying heavy inflation on a readily available product.

Try selling a used car for more than its new-cost because it has exceeded your expectations. Good luck!;)
 
The biggest thing that I cant understand is the $ 1000.00 price tag for a model 111. I love the design,but it has nothing more than 2 scales,carbon fiber,a blade ,nested liner for the most part,and ti backspacer,similar in a way to a spyderco military in materials.I must be missing something,can anyone enlighten me as to why this knife is 1000.00 ?The 111 and the field grade Bodega in my opinion are the most overpriced knives on the market today.A Thorburn or a Van Heerdan to name a few is an absolute steal compared to these two...
 
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