EKI CQC7A tanto PE

Joined
Jan 9, 1999
Messages
4,350
Picked this up from Josh at PVKT. Fast and excellant service as always.
This is a hard chrome model nib that he has in stock. Made in 2000. Fit and finish is probably the best I have seen on any EKI I have yet own. Highly polished liners and the lock up of the liner is superb. Just fully engages to the blade tang. Doesn't move when spine testing either. This has the green scales on it. No wave opening on it either and that I like alot. Just a plain thumb disc for opening.

Out of the box sharpness left alot to be desired which is basically what I have come to expect from EKI at least in there liner lock folders. The edge seemed to be rolled but back sharpening on a small med. grit stone gave me a nice toothy edge that would pull hair from the arm. So I am a happy camper right? Well that is until I did a bit of slashing on my stuffed old bike jacket. Didn't work all that well and the force I needed to make a cut was just a bit to much in my estimation. Not only that I ended up taking a surface chip out of the blade about halfway down almost dead center. Didn't feel like I hit anything but who knows.

Bummed to say the least. Started sharpening it out on my diamond lansky and the reprofiling xtra coarse hone broke. Man this is getting more difficult by the minute I tells myself. So off I go to get another Lansky stone but all they had were kits, so I ended up buying a basic stone kit. Worked far above my expectations. Sharpened the blade very very well indeed. Can't tell it was even chipped out. Nice even line to the tanto edge and to the main edge. A bit wider but that is a good thing. It now cuts like a knife is supposed to cut and that is with ease. Cleanly shaves hair off the arm and although not a highly polished edge, I went down to a med. grit here, it bites like no tomorrow. Which is the way I like an edge for all around use anyways.

What is cool is that the tanto points edge and the main cutting edge meet perfectly now and are of the same width. The tanto cuts as well as the main edge. Which leads me to another observation here which I have said before. Why doesn't EKI make there edges a bit wider and more consistent. You know 25 deg for everything instead of the 30 deg. Anywho the knife now to me is just where a CQC should be that is sharp, pointy, rock solid lockup and the best ergo's outside of an MOD Tempest I have handled on a knife. Keepem sharp
 
The B is the tanto.
BTW: you didn't sharpen both sides did you? The knife is chisel ground and steep on one side and zero on the other
 
Nope only sharpened the left side and when I was getting a burr on the back edge flipped it over and hit it at the 17deg side. Funny thing is that you would think it would leave a wider cantled edge but it just left a hair line mark. Extremely sharp to say the least. keepem sharp
 
Expect dull out of box? I shaved with my mini cqc7b when i forst got it, and could have done it with my commander...sorry to hear your disappointment.
 
Plumber not disappointed I guess but what I have come to expect from EKI. It seems you can get good lock up and not sharp or sharp and not well finished. I have owned 2 commanders, 1 mini comm, 5 or 6 CQC7's, 2 Ravens( very good knives), and the Mach 1 along with his one piece kerambit styled knife. The only one of the above mentioned that would cleanly shave hair out of the box was the tanto raven. It seems I am glutton for punishment here. The current CQC's I own 2 of them were professionally sharpened and now cut as they should. The tanto I just rec. now cuts better than either of the other two. Best for sharpness EKI I have owned to date but I did it myself. Well I guess I can't say the best for sharpness as a pse drop point I have will shave facial hair off your face but as I said I had it professionally sharpened. Lock up sucks though. Liner is way over to the right. Just my observations with the many I have owned through the years. keepem sharp
 
Here is something that speaks to the quality of this knife. I have ordered another from PVKT. Hey at 90 bucks old school CQC you can't go wrong. Between the Tempest and this CQC I am all set for edc carry in the far forsee able future and I ain't whistling dixie either. keepem sharp
 
Try hitting it at less than 17 degrees. You could do it the full out chisel ground way. (Look under my thread about chisel ground knives where Crayola answers)
 
I ended up putting a shallower bevel on the tanto. So now the edges don't line up exactly they aren't bad either. What this shallower bevel did is make the tip scary sharp for lack of a better term. Still alot of meat behind the point but the cutting ability is excellant. I have another exactly the same coming tomorrow and will do the same with it if the out of box sharpness leaves something to be desired. I have heard all sorts of things over the years on EKI's and have posted a bunch of disappointments myself. Doing the edges this way just makes it an outstanding cutter and piercer. The lock up hasn't moved one iota either. I have opened and closed this thing hundreds of times since I rec. it a week ago. Out friggin standing. keepem sharp
 
Just a quick note here. Rec. my second CQC7B, from PVKT. Josh is the man. Same quality as the first one and a bit sharper out of the box. I will take the edge to the way I have done the first one. Lock up on the one just rec. is superb to say the least. These knives are both marked 2000 on them so I assume it is the yr. made. Very excellant quality. Better than my previous EKI's that is for sure. keepem sharp
 
Back
Top