Emerson CQC7 vs Benchmade CQC7 plus miscellaneous.

Joined
Oct 23, 1998
Messages
160
Just got a new Emerson production CQC7 so I thought I'll do a comparison with the Benchmade piece. Both knives are new and the Benchmade is of the 1997 vintage.

The fit and finish on the Emerson is miles ahead of the Benchmade. All the edges on the Emerson are nicely rounded (excluding the cutting edge of course), including the thumb disc. The Benchmade is full of grinding marks on the liner edges and on the cutting edge bevel. The Emerson is polished every where. All of the screws fit flush on the Emerson and vary a bit on the Benchmade.

The liner lock on the Benchmade fits flush with the blade with the thumb opening motion, and a little more to the right when flicked. The Emerson liner fits almost flush with the thumb motion and flush with a flick. When flicked, the Emerson is one hell of a mother to unlock. The Emerson clip is larger and switchable between tip up and tip down carry. Although, on tip down carry, the Emerson clip binds against the larger pivot pin and prevent the clip from sitting flat against the scale.

Both knives are hair shaving sharp from the box, but the Emerson seems to have an edge in edge holding. I tested both on cardboard cutting using the straight edge part of the blades. After 100 opening/closing cycles on each knife the Emerson is still butter smooth whereas the Benchmade seems to slow down a bit.

Off topic, I was given a Nighthawk Laserlight and a Microlight II by my friend. The Microlight II is an LED light and the thing did not even work on day one. The Laserlight is actually a rectangle shape red laser beam that suppose to have a range of 500 yards. Unless you are wearing Gen III gogle or you are an owl there is no way you are going to see any reflected light past 20 feet. The lense on the Laserlight is also contaminated and it looks really sad at 3 feet. The switch on the Laserlight is so flimsy that it will move if I sneeze really hard. I returned both lights to my friend to preserve our friendship.
 
Nam,

I've got the BM version, but I don't carry it too much.

Off topic, but really curious...How did your Mad Dog Custom work out?...I never saw a follow-up post.

Later,

John
 
Nam, I would be interested to know if you ever did the pull-up on the Operator for the folding Mirage-X you had in mind. I wonder about the strength of it myself, if they could be made thinner they would cut much better. Would a 1/8" Operator be possible, or would it just be too fragile?

-Cliff
 
John, the MadDog/Johnny Stout custom is back at Mr. Stout for a little modification. I found a glitch while doing some chopping with it. Due to the 1/4 inch stock and the overall length of the folder, it is an excellent chopper. I will write up the full report when I am done. Can't promise except that it will be this year.

Cliff, I am still searching for a maker willing to work with ceramic and non-metallic materials. Until I do, I will not attempt the MirageX pullup. I did reprofiled a MirageX Micro using DMT bench stones (325, 600, and 1200 grits), and it now cuts like a laser.
 
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