Convince me I did the right thing, gave strider another shot.

[lemmuhj]

Well I just purchased a new Strider, and I'd say the fit and finish is on par with my william henry and chris reeve knives.

-Freq

Awesome. That's what i want to hear. I def want one, and i don't mind paying the money, but it has to be like the one you got. I'm just amazed at how expensive they are, and it seems hit or miss

 

[LX_Emergency]

It all comes down to how you define "screw up"...

I remember seeing an appropriate analogy someone posted here, basically is says you can't possibly compare an Abram tank's finish to a Mercedes, and an Abram easily costs 10 times as much.

To apply a lesson learned from the recent GB collaboration disaster: "if you have problem with it don't buy it, why the hate."

Then again if you bought an Abrams tank and the entry hatch wouldn't open you'd be pretty pissed too.

 

[freq18hz]

Yes the quality by all accounts is hit and miss.

Best way is to have a dealer hand pick one. Any good dealer should be sending them back if they don't come up to snuff anyway.

I think this is why some people think they don't seem "worth the money." While that may be true, if a Strider isn't worth the money, I also think then that any Chris Reeve, William Henry, or any other similar knife (perhaps hinderer knives too? I've never held one myself) are also not worth the money.

I think the important thing to note is how different the "vibe" is of a strider, compared to other high end knives. When you hold a Chris Reeve for instance...IMO your first instinct is to baby it, and put it away in a drawer somewhere, even though most people will tell you to use it.

This Strider I have though, it seems to be yelling "go throw me in the mud, use me to scrape some bark, or throw me." I also believe it to be incredibly well thought out as far as a weapon goes, but I don't want to discuss that here. All I will say is that when I started analyzing the design, and seeing for what it was truly designed for, I found it a bit creepy.

Knives are a huge rip-off if you ask me. But then again, they aren't exactly easy to make well, and if you look at custom dealers, a lot of those guys aren't making a good living doing it, they just enjoy it.

So with that, this Strider PT I got is probably of equal fit and finish of my Sebenza, and William Henry. If it is lacking at all, I think the cool factor more than makes up for it. It's a beautiful knife, pics don't even do it justice. I think I probably have a pretty balanced perspective about this, considering how absolutely finicky I am. I've bought and sold many high end folders since I joined BF. The elusive one being the XM-18.

That being said, while I find it to be incredibly boring and just tool-like, so far I haven't found anything that will replace my small sebenza 21 as my EDC blade. A close runner up is the mini-griptilian. This Strider may have a chance, now that I can open it. But it is probably just too darn small, reminds me of a combat knife that was made as a shrunken replica letter opener.

Anyway, back to the topic at hand. If my PT that I just received is any indication...it looks and feels very expensive IMO.

-Freq

 

[demtek9]

I have 20 Striders (SnG, SMF, RCC) and have only had one with a bad off centered blade. The knife functioned just fine, but the dealer took it back and traded me a perfect one without issue. Buy from a Strider dealer and you should have no worries.

BTW: The ones I carry I resharpen because they often have an obtuse edge for those guys that want to chop, scrape and such with their knives. I do more cutting, so I just reprofile the blade. A good sharpening system is an investment worth having if you are going to keep a quality knife sharp.

 

[H2H907]

just did not feel like a 500 dollar folding knife.

Because it isn't.

I haven't held anything made by strider that I'd pay more than $200 for.

 

[flipe8]

I have that exact knife right down to the color and I love it. One of my favorite out of my 20 or so knives. It did not come sharp. Don't expect the blade to be perfectly centered (though it might be). It is not that comfortable to carry. You will have to break it in, they are very tight at first. But like I said. It is one of, if not my very favorite. Yes I have a Sebenza too.

I gotta be honest and say this is one of the things that bothers me most about Striders(and I do like the concept of Striders if that makes sense). As long as customers think it's acceptable to get knives in this condition, there's no real reason to expect improvements. I don't expect anything in life to be perfect, but it's gotta be worth my cash and at least be on the same page as other products in its price range. And that means it should be very rare to get a lemon, not a real possibility.
Having a great warranty is awesome, but not having to use it at all is even better, IMO.

 

[flipe8]

I think the important thing to note is how different the "vibe" is of a strider, compared to other high end knives. When you hold a Chris Reeve for instance...IMO your first instinct is to baby it, and put it away in a drawer somewhere, even though most people will tell you to use it.

With all due respect, I'm happy to see you're speaking for yourself.Perhaps you're buying into the hype and assuming because a knife has tiger stripes, it must be tougher. My CRKs have been going to work with me for over five years now(Fire Service) without issue. I don't try to see if they'll cut hinges off car doors at MVAs, because I know they won't. But my Striders couldn't do that, either. Neither could my Hinderers. And I'm cool with that. I like them all, but I'm not buying into the hype anymore.