Emerson Commander vs. Spyderco Military CPM D2

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jsp

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Hey guys,

I currently have a Spyderco Military CPMD2. I've never handled one but i've been thinking about picking up an Emerson Commander soon. I really love the linear lock on the military and the aggresiveness of the G-10 scales. How would you compare the linear lock and G-10 scales of the Commander to the Military? I've been flicking open my millie to death since i got it 2 months ago. The linear lock doesnt seem to wear out when i close it compared to other linear lock folders i've had - great knife. Would appreciate some input. Thanks!
 
I don't have any experience with the Emerson, but I wanted to comment on the flicking. I'm not sure what exactly you meant by "flicking", but if it's opening the blade with inertia, that may lead to vertical blade play prematurely. This generally tends to happen quicker on Liner, Frame and Compression locks.
 
Kaizen1 said:
I don't have any experience with the Emerson, but I wanted to comment on the flicking. I'm not sure what exactly you meant by "flicking", but if it's opening the blade with inertia, that may lead to vertical blade play prematurely. This generally tends to happen quicker on Liner, Frame and Compression locks.
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What i meant by flicking is using the back of my thumb nail to open the blade by pushing out and away. I dont hold it by the handle and snap it downwards though, i know that would maybe have some bad effects on it. Can't help it.
 
I have a commander and I love it to death. It is the most comfortable knife I have ever held. Would recommend it to anyone!
 
I have a couple of Militaries and a Commander. Different knives, hard to compare. The Commander was designed with self-defense in mind. The blade is not nearly as utilitarian as the Military's. Still, it is a great knife -- excellent ergonomics, strong construction, good materials.
 
+1 to what Esav said, plus don't forget that the Emerson is a chisel ground knife, i.e. only sharpened on one side. It can be a little trickier to sharpen than a regular blade that is sharpened on both sides.
 
sixfoot7 said:
... don't forget that the Emerson is a chisel ground knife, i.e. only sharpened on one side.
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It is actually somewhat deceptive. It's not a full chisel grind. The primary bevels are a v grind. But the edge bevel is chisel ground, which is difficult for a Sharpmaker, for example.
 
I've owned both and strictly from a utilitarian point of view the Mili wins hands down for all around cutability and to me in th s.d. roll. The Commander is a more robust knife I think. But it doesn't anyone thing extremely well. At least not as well as the Mili. The Commander is made as a cutter but with the thick stout edges unles you get a very sharp edge on it I have found that through thicker materials it has difficult time getting through them. The Mili can take a sharper edge cause it is thinner and it is extremely pointy so piercing is not an issue either. Handle ergo's for me go to the Commander though and for me that is a big thing. Maybe this helped and maybe not. Keepem sharp
 
Kaizen1 said:
I don't have any experience with the Emerson, but I wanted to comment on the flicking. I'm not sure what exactly you meant by "flicking", but if it's opening the blade with inertia, that may lead to vertical blade play prematurely. This generally tends to happen quicker on Liner, Frame and Compression locks.
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i inertia open my folders all the time and have never had probs.

imho inertia opening an emerson is no harder on it than waving it.

of course i am not obssesive/compulsive about it lol.

also i have never had probs with verticle blade play, but it does increase the wear on the liner lock probably, but again, on an EKI its no harder on them than waving them.

on say a BM axis lock, or a spyderco compression lock, or most any frame lock i dont think it harms them a bit.
 
SIFU1A said:
i inertia open my folders all the time and have never had probs.

imho inertia opening an emerson is no harder on it than waving it.

of course i am not obssesive/compulsive about it lol.

also i have never had probs with verticle blade play, but it does increase the wear on the liner lock probably, but again, on an EKI its no harder on them than waving them.

on say a BM axis lock, or a spyderco compression lock, or most any frame lock i dont think it harms them a bit.
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On the Aixs locks, I've flicked the hell out of quite a few models and haven't seen any play problems. I have read a thread about a compression lock on a Yojimbo having play because the user opened it via inertia for about 2-3 years or so. I think this also depends on how hard the inertial openings are. Honestly, my post is based on hearsy from other members mentioning the same and not from personal experience:o. I have noticed that when I open liner lock knives like the Military via inertia, the liner goes deeper than it would normally and based on that I imagine it can cause the liner to goes all the way to the other side faster than it probably should.
 
I think I would go with the millie , a superior utility cutter , and a compact EDC with a good amount of blade .

Chris
 
Back to my question, how aggressive is the G-10 scales of the Commander compared to the Mili? After EDCing for awhile with lots of opening and closing of the blade, does the linear locks on the Commander lose its stiffness when closing it? The Mili does retain some stiffness closing it which i like. Would appreciate some answers. Thanks again.
 
My Commander and Military G-10 scales are almost exactly alike, except of course in thickness -- the Commander has thin slabs over full liners and the Military has thick slabs over a partial steel liner. But the aggressiveness of the surface of each is basically the same. My Commander might be slightly grippier, but then, I haven't carried it much, and I carry the Military frequently.

My last Commander had an extremely stiff liner lock. Not a disadvantage for me, but it did loosen up somewhat, so I was finally able to thumb it off, instead of needing 2 hands. :p My current Commander also locks up tightly but is easy to release, similar to my S30V and BG-42 Militaries.
 
Emerson all the way! Can't beat that knives ;)

but like said before, choice depend's on what you want them for!
 
Pretty much what everyone has said. The Mili's liner is thinner, their G-10 is really pretty close.

Also, the Mili is tip-down, I believe, while the Commander is tip-up (Which I prefer). My only problem with Emerson's is that I wish they'd do a regular grind on their knives.
 
My Commander opens really, really well now that it's been broken in. I can actually just flick my wrist and the blade pops out, without any noticeable play once it's locked.

The grind IS trickier to sharpen than anything Spyderco makes, that's for sure. The extreme recurve and pseudo-chisel grind take some practice to get used to sharpening properly.
 
jjacques said:
My Commander opens really, really well now that it's been broken in. I can actually just flick my wrist and the blade pops out, without any noticeable play once it's locked.

The grind IS trickier to sharpen than anything Spyderco makes, that's for sure. The extreme recurve and pseudo-chisel grind take some practice to get used to sharpening properly.
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You said you can flick your wrist and the blade pops out. Does that mean the ball indent that keeps the blade closed is not as strong as the Mili? Not to brag, but i've gotten pretty good at free hand sharpening so i think i might be ok with it. I was thinking about getting the half serrated model so i wouldnt have to worry about the recurve and just use the corners of the sharpmaker for the serrations.
 
The blade on the Commander is relatively heavy, and that weight continues towards an obtuse point. This would make it easier to wristflick open. Also, the pivot screw takes a flathead driver, so it's easy to loosen or tighten to your needs.

I just tried it with mine, and it won't open from fully closed, but if I pull the blade out 1/8" and flick, it slams open from there. I'm sure if I didn't keep the pivot tight, it would do the same as jjacques.

Ha! So here I am flicking it again and again, and I just tried it from fully closed, and *bam*. I guess this knife isn't going into MYC any time soon. :D
 
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