Do you hate your knife?

sabre cat

sabre cat

Joined
Jul 4, 2014
Messages
6,191
All of us have been through this at least once. You find a blade that you want to love, but you just can't do it! You try, but it is no use. Maybe the knife is too big for your needs. Maybe, the steel is poor quality or the knife does not fit your hand. The reason could be anything. It just does not work for you. For example, take the SOG Flash 2. It is a fun knife. My first one, I aquired on my honeymoon and you would think it would be my main EDC, right? Nope. The more I use it, the more I dislike the feel of the thing. It does not feel solid in my hand. The blade makes a great steak knife but it just does not work as a daily carry for me.

So, what knife do you have a love/hate relationship with, and why?



LD
 
I once had a bad experience with an assisted kershaw opening in my pocket, so anything that's assisted I have a love/hate relationship with. I see so many designs that look nice except I absolutely, positively hate assisted knives. Like the zt 0770, I love it, but hate it and will never buy it since its assisted.
 
I had the feeling with the PM2 after I carried the first version for years, just edc the heck out of it.
A knife has to grow on me I guess, only exeption for me was de Delica, love it :cool:
 
I'm pretty forgiving of my knives. I've had a few that I bought, that after a while decided that they weren't exactly right for me and I helped them move on to other homes, but I don't have any of them that I actually hate.

I've got others that I didn't love as much as I thought I would, but still like enough to keep and use on occasion.

And then there are a few that I didn't really like up front but decided to give a try because of all of the forum hype. Key example is the Spyderco Delica. I didn't like the looks, or the size, or the handle material, or anything about it. Until I bought one, held it, got the hang of opening and closing it, and then actually used it for a fair amount of work. Now, THAT is a knife I love.
 
My first 'nice' knife was a Kershaw Clash combo edge. I bought it to replace a lost SAK. Not surprisingly, I didn't do any research before buying it. I saw it on a peg hook at a store, thought it looked cool, and the $25 price tag was right.

After about a year and a half of carrying and using the heck out of it *without maintenance*, I figured some things out:

- blades lose their edge.

- serrations can help a little, but I really don't like them.

- 8cr13mov doesn't hold an edge well and isn't great in terms of corrosion resistance.

- 8cr13mov is a fine steel IF you don't mind a lot of touching up of the edge.

- the Clash ergos suck. It is the worst folder I have felt in hand. Saber grip is ok. Hammer sucks. Reverse sucks. Draw is OK.

- not really a fan of the bead blast look anymore.

If it weren't for lock and action wins, it would be complete trash.

Still, the experience of owning it has been fantastic. I learned a lot after getting it, and I practiced sharpening on it. Thanks to that thing, I have moved on to some far better tools and learned to keep them shaving sharp.
 
i bought the kershaw Cryo for work and i started out liking it but that was 8 monthes ago and now i don't like it. ive really pulled away from liking any of the hinderer designed knives since then.
 
My Cold Steel knives in general

They're great designs, but I just really, really hate their marketing and I'm no fan of Lynn Thompson

If I had to pick one that I dislike for more practical reasons it would be the Cold Steel Rajah III. Just because it's a bit too small for my hands...great blade shape though
 
Applegate-Fairbairn folder in 154cm
I want to like it but my nitpicking leaves me wanting something else. My benchmade lum and my latest a lionsteel sr2 do everything I want all while passing my nitpick test, otherwise it's fixed blades for me.
 
ZT0350, handle is too small and rectangular, feels uncomfortable in my hand. Also there's no balance to the blade when closed, because it's relatively heavy for it's small size it just wobbles around in your pocket. I tried to like it but it's no use. In my opinion the comparable organically shaped Blur is a far more comfortable product.
 
Anything assisted. I don't know why, but they scare the shit out of me. Especially those Chinese ones that when you hit the button it kicks like a mofo. Always afraid its going to fly out and hit me and or someone else..
 
Kershaw Storm, plain edge. Bought it when I was in grade 10, and cost a lot of money for me back then

Flippen sharp out the box I'll admit, solid feel, but got rust spots on it everyday, and every night I had to clean them off, put oil on, hope it wouldn't rust, but it did, and it really frustrated me. Ergos didn't work too well for me. I had trouble cutting nice pieces of biltong in a draw cut because the blade was a bit too thick for that task, and because it was a recurve, I constantly cut my thumb a bit every time I sliced some biltong. I now have a dedicated opinel no. 5 for that job and love it! But yeah, I grew to hate the Kershaw Storm so much I actually tossed it into the bush to be forgotten a few months after buying it. It's probably still there, but probably also a rust heap after sitting there for 7 years. Maybe I should look for it some time. I learnt about the ideal biltong knife for me thanks to the Storm, and what I like and not like in a knife

Back then it was stainless steel or nothing for me, and it frustrated me that an apparent stainless steel rusted. These days I have plenty of carbon steel knives and really enjoy their fine edge, and don't mind the care it takes for a carbon steel knife. But that Kershaw Storm would probably frustrate me even today
 
I have some that I like more than others, but I hate none of them. That's why they're so hard to part with!
 
I lusted after a Benchmade Mini Ruckus. Bought one but found it too bulky for my style of carry. Great knife, I don't really hate it, but no love for it either.
 
Hate? No. Regret buying? Yes, a few.

I've got too many to hate any of them. Those that I don't bond with simply get put away and forgotten. Some day I need to sell those off.
 
Blues Bender said:
...anything that's assisted I have a love/hate relationship with. I see so many designs that look nice except I absolutely, positively hate assisted knives. Like the zt 0770, I love it, but hate it and will never buy it since its assisted.
Click to expand...

This.

And slip joint knives that are hard to open.
 
For me it was the Domino. I so wanted to like that knife, but I just couldn't get over the bulky big handle/little blade thing. Why would I want a knife that takes up as much pocket as a big knife, but then when it's open only gives me as much blade as a tiny knife? Besides, that awful blade shape made me want to spread joint compound on drywall with it. World's first flipper spatula, good for flipping hamburgers I guess.

Blues Bender said:
I once had a bad experience with an assisted kershaw opening in my pocket, so anything that's assisted I have a love/hate relationship with. I see so many designs that look nice except I absolutely, positively hate assisted knives. Like the zt 0770, I love it, but hate it and will never buy it since its assisted.
Click to expand...

I'm with you on the assisted knives, but I would mention that my 0770cf flips like a champ de-assisted, with absolutely no wrist required. My aluminum 0770 didn't flip as well de-assisted, though. I'm not sure if it's the jimping on the flipper (a difference between the two) or just luck that made the difference, though.
 
RBid said:
My first 'nice' knife was a Kershaw Clash combo edge.

- blades lose their edge.

- serrations can help a little, but I really don't like them.

- 8cr13mov doesn't hold an edge well and isn't great in terms of corrosion resistance.

- 8cr13mov is a fine steel IF you don't mind a lot of touching up of the edge.

- the Clash ergos suck. It is the worst folder I have felt in hand. Saber grip is ok. Hammer sucks. Reverse sucks. Draw is OK.

- not really a fan of the bead blast look anymore.

If it weren't for lock and action wins, it would be complete trash.

Still, the experience of owning it has been fantastic. I learned a lot after getting it, and I practiced sharpening on it. Thanks to that thing, I have moved on to some far better tools and learned to keep them shaving sharp.
Click to expand...

emjay said:
Kershaw Storm, plain edge. Bought it when I was in grade 10, and cost a lot of money for me back then

Flippen sharp out the box I'll admit, solid feel, but got rust spots on it everyday, and every night I had to clean them off, put oil on, hope it wouldn't rust, but it did, and it really frustrated me.

Back then it was stainless steel or nothing for me, and it frustrated me that an apparent stainless steel rusted. These days I have plenty of carbon steel knives and really enjoy their fine edge, and don't mind the care it takes for a carbon steel knife. But that Kershaw Storm would probably frustrate me even today
Click to expand...


Those knives rust so easily because of the stupid bead blasting that Kershaw does. I have satin finished 8cr from other companies and they don't rust at all even in the humid summers here. Avoid bead blasted knives. They are a cheap way to finish blades and it makes them very rust prone.
 
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