Gerber Air Ranger

[allenC]

I just purchased a Gerber Air Ranger, so here are my initial impressions (I've only had it for almost two days):

Visually, I think it's very appealing. It has a nice clean-cut appearance with nothing tacky or cheap-looking about the knife. The diamond-cut texture on the aluminum handle is graduated from very tiny diamonds at the top to larger diamonds at the bottom (a very pleasing detail IMHO). The blade and pocket-clip are bead-blasted and, though some folks hate it, I think it works very well with this knife. The greenish-grey anodized handle and bead-blasted blade gives the knife a distinctly military tone.

If you think all aluminum handles are slippery, then this one will change your mind. The diamond-cut aluminum is very grippy, almost like a metal file. In fact, it it were a stronger metal than aluminum, you would be able to use it as a field expediate metal-file.

Combine the texture with the handle design and you have a very secure and solid grip. The handle itself is nice and slim, with the aluminum being thick and strong enough so that there is virtually no flex when pushing inward on the sides.
The blade is nice modified drop-point, not too wide and not too narrow.

The liner-lock seems plenty secure both open and closed. I'll find out how secure it is in due time.
IMO, The only real method to determine if a lock is good is to use the knife alot.

A few things I did'nt like right away:

The pocket-clip is tighter than a Scotsman's wallet!
I had to bend it out alittle, so that's not really a big deal.

The thumb-stud was alittle sharp and opening was'nt the smoothest I've ever experienced.
However, in defense of the knife, I have to confess that the "thumb-stud problem" might be in MY thumb and not the knife's studs. You see, I'm used to Spyderco holes!

More to come,
Allen.

 

[Cosmic Superchunk]

The Air Ranger is a very well made folder and a good looker too, but it will eat up your pocket in a heartbeat. Gerber should really consider smoothing out the surface where end of the clip makes contact with the scale, like Kershaw did with the Avalanche.

 

[allenC]

El Cid, bending the clip out slightly will make the knife alot more pocket friendly. I suppose you could remove the clip and do some light filing yourself if need be.

On with the review:
Although I prefer tip-up, I'm getting more used to the tip-down carry. It would be great if the knife offered the option.

The blade was very sharp from the factory (AUS-8) but the serrations were not as sharp as Spyderco's (but nobody's are as sharp as Spyderco's). They are perfectly servicable but just not quite as sharp.

The first thing I attacked was a plastic water bottle. No problem!
The serrations sliced through the plastic like it was newspaper.
Next I assaulted an unarmed cardboard box.
The unserrated half of the blade is nice and thin (IMO Alot of one-handers are way too thick) and carved the cardboard with ease.

Overall, I'm very impressed with the Air Ranger.
It's very lightweight, an almost perfect size for an EDC, and very sturdy and well constructed.
The fit and finish is very good and you would expect the knife to cost much more than it does.
I suspect that if it were made in America instead of Taiwan the cost would easily be doubled.

So far, I would have no problem recommending this knife to anyone who wants a nice high-quality one-hander EDC that costs less than $50.00.

Good luck,
Allen.

 

[Jason Burns]

IMHO this is a great bang-for-the-buck folder. However, the ones I have get taken down and sanded lightly on a flat surface to take the "points" of the knurling!