dozier thorn knife good? bad?

It's a nice little gents folder though I wish the it carried a little lower in the pocket.
 
The Japanese made D2 KaBar Thorn, now discontinued, utilizes the TabLock mechanism designed by Bob Dozier. The entire length of the blade ramp is locked against the "T" shaped liner. This mechanism, first seen on the handmade Ti folders from the Dozier shop, helps to minimze any potential movement of the blade while in its locked open position. This aluminum handled KaBar production folder is based on the handmade small Ti Folding Dagger. It is dual ground, single edged and made in Seki, Japan. Although it has plenty of eye appeal and is well made, for utilitarian needs, I' d try to find the aluminum Folding Hunter liner lock model- also with D2 and made in Japan. You may still be able to find these from www.agrussell.com

N.

www.dozierknives.com/forum
 
Posted these comments in another thread just a few hours ago (slightly abridged here for relevancy):

I'd like to describe something that happened yesterday evening.
A co-worker of mine wanted to get a folding knife to carry for both utility and self-defense. Near our workplace is a brick and mortar cutlery shop.
We went in and my co-worker checked out Griptilians, BM960s, Spydercos, and several other folders. Then, the older lady who co-owns the shop mentioned that they acquired a collection from a knife guy who needed to sell his entire collection to get some extra money. She said they already sold off ~2/3 of the collection, but they had a countertop rotating clear lexan case with the rest of the folders.
Lots of knives in there including a Sebenza, a Boguzewski (sp?), William Henry folders and much more. My co-worker is a nice guy, but didn't want to spend too much money, so all of those were way out of his price range.
Then, we spotted a Kabar Dozier Black Thorn in the case as well as a Camillus EDC folder.
Get this: While most of the other knives were priced way too high, that Dozier Thorn was priced at $40 (!) and the EDC was at $32.
My co-worker opened and closed the knives and asked my opinion of the two. I gave him my opinion and did tell him the handle and blade on the Thorn would show scratches, but if he wanted a really good folder with a D2 blade, he couldn't go wrong with the Thorn.
Heck, I followed up with, "If you don't buy that Thorn, I will!"

After hemming and hawing for a little longer, he decided to buy the Thorn.
Got an e-mail today from him saying he is VERY happy with that folder and is glad I helped him out with that choice.

Regards,
Mike
 
He got a great deal for sure! The anodized black finish may not scratch as easily as it may be a hard anodized type. At approximately the same time period the companys D2 Folding Hunter model came out. And had the same finish. My own FH has been carried frequently and used (no abuse) for some time. And its finish only shows light scuffs and surface hairlines. It does not appear if the anodizing has been scratched thru to show any raw aluminum surface.

N.

www.dozierknives.com/forum
 
Depends on the owner I guess. If it is a folder you really like- appearance, materials, design, hand fit, etc., then it may be worth it. Just for your information, it originally retailed for about $110- $120. If you intend to purchase as a collector, I don' t think it will soar in value too much.

N.

www.dozierknives.com/forum
 
I have one and I have been trying to find a couple more I absolutely love this knife. I think they are great EDC knives they sharpen up good, hold a great edge and its is a great size. I wish I could get ahold of a couple more.
 
jlfletcher83 said:
I have one and I have been trying to find a couple more I absolutely love this knife. I think they are great EDC knives they sharpen up good, hold a great edge and its is a great size. I wish I could get ahold of a couple more.
Click to expand...

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=596780&highlight=thorn
I played show and tell with the Thorn already here


I wish I could get ahold of a couple more:thumbup::thumbup:

Me too.
I'm in school and it's hard to justify knife spending, but it's discontinued and I hate the thought of losing it.
 
The Thorn is one of the very VERY few tacticools I carry anymore. The other two are Boker SUBCOM and Junkyard Dog 1 by Kershaw. I had to mod the T-lock alittle to firm it up a little but now it is rock solid and the spearpoint blade in D-2 is an amazing cutter and holds a good edge like nothing else I own. Paid about 65 for mine about 3-4 years ago if I recall.
 
I picked up this Ka bar Dozier Thorn after reading one of Steven's posts in testing and reviews.
attachment.php

I wanted to check out the Ka bar D2 and It is some good stuff. It is easy to sharpen and takes a wicked edge. This knife is very well made and has a super smooth action. One of my new favorites.:thumbup:
 
Over the past several years I have had 2 Dozier thorns. I returned the first one to Ka-Bar because the liner lock seemed to have lost its spring and the blade wobbled when in the open position. Ka-Bar sent me a new knife and it suffered the same problem after a while. One of the screws worked loose from the pocket clip and fell out. Ka-Bar was unable to get me another one. They told me the knives were made overseas and they do not stock parts. I liked the "minimum" style of the design and the quality of the blade BUT to many other issues. It now sits on the bookcase gathering dust. I now carry a Benchmade Pardue 530 axis lock - minimal style knife.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top