Emerson vs Al Mar?

JFO

JFO

Joined
Sep 13, 2005
Messages
470
I'm used to my Emerson knives for everyday use and was curious if Al Mar linerlocks in VG-10 compare in quality and toughness overall
 
Almar make some nice knives, the SERE knives are defo pretty good and there are a few others worth looking at.
Their fit and finish is great on those knives and they use VG-10 for the SERE knives which is no bad thing.
I have a couple of Almars and have had no problems with them but I found things like the thumb disk on the EKIs
to be better, EKIs 154cm is great stuff and holds up better than the Almars VG-10, the liners are steel and thats fine
but I do prefer Ti if given the choice. The super low rider clip on the Almars is something some folks like but I found it to be a bit too low for me.

All in all they are pretty similar I suppose but I do prefer EKI my self......obviously :rolleyes::p
 
yeah,
-the clips to me are the best pocket clip out there but,
-the knife is REALLY heavy
-the liner lock has what seems to be an EXTREME cutout in it
-the thumbstuds always seem to get caught on your pocket because they are soo prominent.

the al mars are nice, but so are the emersons
 
I have one Al Mar, a SERE 2000 with black blade. For the most part, the craftsmanship on it is exceptional, except that after a few months of just occasional opening/closing, it developed an odd problem in the action. The ball detent doesn't hold the blade closed w/out play anymore, and the lockup became weird. Kinda hard to explain. I tried contacting Al Mar knives and never got a reply. Obviously I haven't tried hard enough and it's just laziness on my part on not getting it fixed yet. Quality-wise, I'd rate Al Mar on a similar level to, but slightly below, Spyderco, though I've never had such a problem with a Spydie. In other words, Al Mar knives are pretty darn good quality, I'd say. Any company can have a lemon slip through now and then.

Even so, I never did EDC it. The thumb studs are too long and sharp, and it felt too blocky to EDC. There are some Emerson knives that haven't appealed to me (Commander), but overall, I prefer how Emersons feel in-hand over the Al Mars I've handled. And I like several of Emerson's designs more.
Jim
 
imho the F&F is probably better but i dont think the designs are as good at all, but the SERE's are good knives imho, just getting a bit long in tooth now, but i like EKI's a lot better.

i still have one of the original SERE's with no clip i got back in the '80's IIRC, or whenever they 1st came out, its a bit larger/thicker/heavier than the current ones.
 
Emerson all the way. As far as I know, Al Mar knives are not produced in the states anymore, if thats of any concern for you.
 
I hear Benchmade is producing some or all of Al Mars automatics nowadays.

I really like the Eagle Talon Ultralight -4" blade and only weighs 2 oz. Though it is Aus-8 steel. So, that would come down to personal preference I guess.

The Eagle Autos are nice too - Aluminum handles, I believe. Not sure of the blade steel, though.

Gibby

p.s. - On my list are an Emerson Persian and an Al Mar Eagle - Just not sure of manual or auto yet.
 
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I have a couple of the older Al Mars, particularly the older SERE Attack Models..those were awesome..the newer Al Mars just don't do it for me..if I were to go with the new Al Mars and the Emersons, i'd pick an Emerson..

Cheers and Regards,
Nick
 
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