The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is ready to order! See this thread for details:
https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/bladeforums-2024-traditional-knife.2003187/
Price is $300 $250 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/ - Order as many as you like, we have plenty.
Cutting open a cardboard box and cutting someone out of a downed helo are two quite different degrees of use. My knives have done that and will undoubtedly do it again.
OK, so there are many with better edge retention than 154CM but you know there is always a trade off right? If there is a steel that is easier to sharpen but has better edge retention than 154CM, then I rest my case. EE is trying to say there isn't a steel that is fully above 152CM in ALL REGARDS.
What gets old and boring is this same thread that pops up every couple months. Mr. Emerson comes in "not apologizing" for the sloppy fit and finish of his product, talks about all the high speed operators he has in his corner, drops a few names and then proceedes to dismiss/belittle/insult anyone who doesn't pat him on the back for his crappy attitude.
No thank you.
EE is trying to say there isn't a steel that is fully above 152CM in ALL REGARDS.
CPM-154, N690, N360OK, so there are many with better edge retention than 154CM but you know there is always a trade off right? If there is a steel that is easier to sharpen but has better edge retention than 154CM, then I rest my case. EE is trying to say there isn't a steel that is fully above 152CM in ALL REGARDS.
Dear Buffalo Hump,
We've supplied a lot of knives to South Africa over the years, both to hunters, guides and soldiers. I've never once had, not one single comment back that the 154cm steel underperformed in any regard.
As to your comments about certain steels staying sharp in the field. All I can say is, what field are you describing? I have dulled every knife made from every super steel that exists just as quickly as each other in hard use environments. Do you think I live in a vacuum? I live , breathe, eat, and sleep knives. I build knives. I have a Knife Company. I know just a little of what I speak. I get the chance to test any and every knife I want and every new steel that comes out. I don't even have to pay for it. I live on a Ranch and I'm constantly in the field somewhere. My choice in steel has nothing to do with the price of steels. They are all about the same in the quantities that we purchase. You should also note that I do not heat-treat the 154cm to the Rockwell hardness that other companies do. They go to RC 61-62 and I only go to RC 57-59. That also has nothing to do with price as the heat treating costs are the same. If for example, I used a steel that could be heated to a RC 75 (theoretically) I would still only take it to 57 to 59 Rockwell, so what would that super steel do for you?
Here's a quote I've used for years when talking about all the "super steels" that come and go year after year. "A broken knife is no knife. A dull knife is still a knife." The hard users and all the military always get the point.
Hell, one of the most battle proven and tested knives of all time is the K-Bar and it's in the low 50's on the Rockwell scale and definitely not a "super steel".
Like I've said before and how I've lived my entire life, it's about performance, and performance only. Cutting open a cardboard box and cutting someone out of a downed helo are two quite different degrees of use. My knives have done that and will undoubtedly do it again. I'm Ok with the 154cm steel that does that task well. Some get that. Some never will.
As to your recent post about our knives and the military and about the soldiers carrying "cheap" knives I could only think, "What planet is this guy from?" Then I realized the obvious - you've just never been in the military. Got it.
My Best Regards,
Ernest R. Emerson
However, it has come to my attention that the prices of Emersons continue to creep up and yet the materials remain the same. All of the other major knife companies, and I include Spyderco, Benchmade and Zero Tolerance among these, have chosen to embrace newer, modern steels for their key models and offer them at prices on a par or even cheaper than Emerson knives. This is source concern for me as a knife consumer (one who spends considerable sums on knives each year).
When I consider what's out there, I am looking at value for my hard-earned money. When I compare two knives costing the same amount of money, I feel Emerson is somewhat lacking in the comparison. You may claim that 154CM will compete with any steel on the market but rigorous testing done here and elsewhere says different. And in my own experience I find it is not the equal of other steels. Even 154CM itself has evolved into the superior version made by Crucible called CPM-154. This is the nature of the industry. Onward and upward!
So if I have $200 to spend and can find a knife that offers a top end steel then you bet they will get my money. There are other factors that come into play, but this is the major one - FOR ME.
Dear Buffalo Hump,
As to your recent post about our knives and the military and about the soldiers carrying "cheap" knives I could only think, "What planet is this guy from?" Then I realized the obvious - you've just never been in the military. Got it.
My Best Regards,
Ernest R. Emerson
What does "cutting someone out of a downed helo" entail? Does it include prying open the doors? Because I can think of another tool more suited to the job(like say, a prybar). If it's referring to cutting someone out of a harness, I would think that any PoS steel sharpened on both sides to meet at a point would be capable of it.Like I've said before and how I've lived my entire life, it's about performance, and performance only. Cutting open a cardboard box and cutting someone out of a downed helo are two quite different degrees of use. My knives have done that and will undoubtedly do it again. I'm Ok with the 154cm steel that does that task well. Some get that. Some never will.
Didn't you yourself say that Ka-Bar knives were the most "battle proven"?As to your recent post about our knives and the military and about the soldiers carrying "cheap" knives I could only think, "What planet is this guy from?" Then I realized the obvious - you've just never been in the military. Got it.
I assume that, in order to be battle proven, it would have to have been in battle, and thus heavily used. It's not a complicated idea to want to have a cheap, sturdy, and easily replaceable tool if you expect to have to use it "hard" and possibly break it.Hell, one of the most battle proven and tested knives of all time is the K-Bar and it's in the low 50's on the Rockwell scale and definitely not a "super steel".
In my opinion, Emerson has the best designed folders in the 3-4 inch size range. -By a long shot actually. And to say these knives are boring is pretty damn rediculous.
In my opinion, Emerson knives are fine with regards to fit and finish. Quit whining and buy something else if you're worried about it.
In my opinion, 154cm is a decent steel, and perfectly adequate. If you want a steel you precieve as better, quit whining and buy something else.
The reason I don't own an Emerson is because liner-locks are garbage for these types of knives. I don't think there's anything anyone can say to change my mind on that. I can't understand why the entire line of EKI knives hasn't been switched over to frame-locks, perhaps with the exception of one or two entry level models.
The CQC-12 is the single finest folding knife I've ever had the pleasure of owning. It's unfortunate that there aren't more of them around and that the price isn't lower.
Until I can find an Emerson knife without a liner-lock and at a price my broke ass can afford to own, I'm gonna quit whining and carry something else.
A frame lock isn't much safer either, the principle is the same and the lock can fail too.
But maybe sometimes its also good to listen to what some of the other Emerson knife buyers have to say and lookout for them as well.
Who really knows who the hardcore Emerson users or buyers are in general is it the Military or the Mall Ninja's, does it matter? In my opinion not really as long as the knives live up to their expectations for the hard earned cash you pay for them. Value for money that counts, and from what I read here the competition seems to be getting ahead of EKI.
Lets make a S35VN or Elmax, framelock Emerson at 260-280 USD like the upcoming Zero Tolerance 560 and see what happens, maybe even the Military is going to want them! Ernest show us what you got we all know you can do it ! Who cares maybe even a nice Emerson collaboration knife....dreams...dreams...