CRKT M16 or Emerson CQC 7

S

sam_meredith

Joined
Jul 4, 2007
Messages
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Hey, I started this in the knife reviews section, but I thought more people might see it here. I am looking for a decent folding knife, but I can't decide between the M16 or the emerson. Any suggestions or other recomendations?
Is Emerson generally better quality than CRKT or vice versa?
 
Emerson is better than CRKT hands down. Go with Emerson. Welcome to the forums:).
 
Emersom Knives have better components and a better warranty...Also 100% made in U.S.A.

I have a CQC7 that I've had for 7 years and it has been outstanding. CRKT makes a good product, but Emerson is on another level.
 
CRKT are pretty good knives for the money, but the Emerson is definitely going to be higher quality.

I'd probably go with a CQC-10 though as I'm not a huge fan of Tanto style blades like on the CQC-7.
 
Yeh, I got the impression that the Emerson were better. Made in the USA is good I suppose but I'm on the other side of the pond in merry old England...

Any advice about the Wave feature - does it work well, and does it still work if you dont have the knife in your hip pocket?
Also the carson flipper seems to be more versatile and useable from other positions, but the LAWKS thing looks kind of awkward...

Feel free to impart your wisdom on a newbie...
 
omg thats easy.. emerson. the wave works awsome, deploys your blade faster than an automatic. only thing is you need to be wearing jeans and it will fray your pocket up after a while.
 
The LAWKS seemed weak and I've read of failures on it. It also brings with it more effort to close over a normal liner lock. I'd rather have "just" a liner lock that well made over the LAWKS system anyday.
 
emerson is better than crkt, but for that money + lawks feature u can go for m16. a liner lock ( not a frame lock) without a safety device is dangerous, even a emerson. btw, on the forum is a post concerning this issue, a leo who tried to "stab" a tyre... eventually he cut bad his finger .
 
Allex said:
emerson is better than crkt, but for that money + lawks feature u can go for m16. a liner lock ( not a frame lock) without a safety device is dangerous, even a emerson. btw, on the forum is a post concerning this issue, a leo who tried to "stab" a tyre... eventually he cut bad his finger .
Click to expand...

He even said that he did it so quickly that he wasn't sure if the lock fully engaged before he stabbed the tire, anything could have happened.

I've been using liner lock knives (Benchmade, Spyderco, Emerson) for the last 8 years without incident. My Emersons lock up like a vault door with plenty of room for the liner to wear down.

The Emerson is much better than the CRKT.
 
Allex said:
a liner lock ( not a frame lock) without a safety device is dangerous, even a emerson.
Click to expand...

This statement is just plain wrong. The quality of the lock will be the main determinant of lock security. Spyderco, Strider, Benchmade or Emerson Liner Locks would outperform a CRKT LAWKS system.
 
I don't own an Emerson, but I'm a bit leery that an Emerson liner lock is more secure than a good lockback or the LAWKS. If a knife begins undergoing severe stress and torquing, I want the locking system to be top notch. And liner locks are not known for being the best. Actually, they're arguably the worst. Axis locks are arguably one of the best. Having said that, I can't say why an Emerson linerlock would be more secure than a CRKT LAWKS, though it very well may be. But when I set out looking for a knife over a hundred clams, a good lock is going to be in the one I choose.

To those who own Emerson, I must defer. But I've wondered more than once why Emerson chooses to make so many linerlocks and why it's so wed to chisel grind blade designs. If I were going to get an Emerson, I'd certainly check out the locking systems. But it's no doubt that Emerson is far and away better in their components and in their workmanship than CRKT. Is an Emerson worth the extra $$$? That's up to you. When you can buy three CRKTs for the price of one Emerson, I'd be inclined towards the CRKT. On the other hand, Emersons are not prohibitively expensive, though they're on the outer fringes for me. (A knife should never cost as much as a good gun.) But I like having something I can pick up and that reeks quality; something I can hand to a friend and my friend will say, "Hey, that's quite a knife!"
 
Kaizen1 said:
This statement is just plain wrong. The quality of the lock will be the main determinant of lock security. Spyderco, Strider, Benchmade or Emerson Liner Locks would outperform a CRKT LAWKS system.
Click to expand...

i'm not sure about this... i have a dark star bechmade, elishewitz design, ti liners and G10 handle. well, i can't trust the lock because after opening the knife and put some pressure on the blade, the liner lock moves down ( like for unlocking ) almost 1/2 mm. u can see and feel that play. to be sure, after opening, i push the liner lock with my finger.
spyderco military yes, it locks without problem
spyderco karambit yes, is a frame lock, i trust it.
emerson folder, i have a combat karambit and i trust it, but the karambit is not use in the same way like a straight folder.
anyway, it is possible to accidentally unlock the blade. it happened to me when i tried to make a small hole in a piece of wood with military.yes, it was my fault, but it was easy to make that mistake :)
 
Allex said:
i'm not sure about this... i have a dark star bechmade, elishewitz design, ti liners and G10 handle. well, i can't trust the lock because after opening the knife and put some pressure on the blade, the liner lock moves down ( like for unlocking ) almost 1/2 mm. u can see and feel that play. to be sure, after opening, i push the liner lock with my finger.
spyderco military yes, it locks without problem
spyderco karambit yes, is a frame lock, i trust it.
emerson folder, i have a combat karambit and i trust it, but the karambit is not use in the same way like a straight folder.
anyway, it is possible to accidentally unlock the blade. it happened to me when i tried to make a small hole in a piece of wood with military.yes, it was my fault, but it was easy to make that mistake :)
Click to expand...

I have to admit, I don't have first hand experience with the LAWKS failure, so I probably shouldn't have state it in a matter-of-fact manner like I did. However, here's why I do still think that it's more about lock quality rather than lock type for security (Please keep in mind that I do think that the Liner Lock is one of the weakest types of locks, but not necessarily unsecure. There's a BIG difference IMHO). Here are a couple of threads with people admitting failure of their CRKTs with the LAWKS system failing:

http://bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=456852&highlight=crkt+lawks+fail

http://bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=376578&highlight=crkt+lawks+fail
 
I have a M16-13, usually I don't carry this knife. but sometimes I take a Gerbert Convert which has a very similar feature like LAWKS, roto-lock. what can I say? I'll be careful :)
 
Allex said:
emerson is better than crkt, but for that money + lawks feature u can go for m16. a liner lock ( not a frame lock) without a safety device is dangerous, even a emerson. btw, on the forum is a post concerning this issue, a leo who tried to "stab" a tyre... eventually he cut bad his finger .
Click to expand...

i will take a EKI over a CRKT with or with out lawks any day of the week and 2X on sunday, no one has a crummier liner lock than CRKT, well, maybe a few do, but they are not known as having a strong lock, thats for sure.
 
Well, I've never owned an Emerson, but a friend has one. Very nice knife. I have 3 CRKTs, and I think they are as good as the Emerson. I have a small and a large Crawford/Kasper and a Hammond Cruiser. They all have the manual LAWKS. Fit, finish, craftsmanship on all 3 are terrific. Liner locks work as advertised. Ditto the LAWKS. Nice knives. I gave 4 of the Cruisers to friends and family last year and they all love them.
 
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