Gerber EZ-Out

Chang

Chang

Joined
Oct 9, 1998
Messages
1,767
Just for fun, I got a Gerber ez-out. It is fun to click open and close every so often. It seems to use 425 steel and so it isnt a super edge holder, but the serrations are pretty nice. A major problem though. The locking is horrible. After I took the knife home, I checked it out by whacking the back of the blade (when open) against a cardboard box, and the thing close up! I tried it again just to see if it would do it again, and it didnt the first whack, but after the second, the thing just folded up. It seems I may have a defective lock, either that or Gerber locks just arent strong. Does anybodyknow which it is?
 
Hey there,

My EZ out is probably my most-used, and even most reliable(yet inexpensive) knife (granted, edge-retention isn't the BEST, but it's good enough for daily use)... I have tried in the past to defeat the lock, and just tried again after reading your post - and it simply CAN'T be done! Yours must be defective, because the lock on mine is so stable that that handle would splinter before the lock mechanism failed...

[This message has been edited by monkey (edited 10-18-98).]
 
I must concur, the locking mechanism on the EZ-out blows!! I have cut myself twice on this little folder when, under practically no pressure at all, the lock gave out & the blade closed on me. I would have returned the sucker in disgust, but I had already "modified" the handles & so now it just sits in a drawer, useless and despised. total waste of ALMOST $30!!!
 
i dont know wether i had a bad knife or just unlocked it my self by accident.
i got the ezout ats34 and i tried to shatter a bottle lying on the ground withthe back of then blade. i may have hit the lock by accident or it may have just collapsed on my hand but that was the last time i ever used that knife. i bought a BM 830s as a replacement the next day.
as for my advice, avoid the ez out series. they are not worth the money. i would buy a CS or a BM before i bought another ez out.

 
The EZ Out knifes must realy variy because mine I use at work daily and other than having to resharpen it from time to time it has worked fine. I'am not sure about the heat treating though.
Have a good one,
Jim
 
The EZ Out knifes must realy variy because mine I use at work daily and other than having to resharpen it from time to time it has worked fine. I'am not sure about the heat treating though.
Have a good one,
Jim
 
The EZ Out knifes must realy variy because mine I use at work daily and other than having to resharpen it from time to time it has worked fine. I'am not sure about the heat treating though.
Have a good one,
Jim
 
I own three EZ-Outs, and none of them has ever given me any trouble. The locking mechanisms work fine and any one of them feels more solid than my Benchmade Eclipse. They open fast and smoothly, too. Guess the folks at Gerber need to work on production quality control, but I'm not going to complain -- I'm 3 for 3.

Razor
 
Oh, MAN. I thought to myself, no way could the lock on my EZ-Out be that weak, but I just tried your little experiment and sure enough, it closed! How disheartening. Thank you, Comrade, for opening my eyes by closing my knife. Good thing I only paid $10 for it...

[This message has been edited by V (edited 10-22-98).]
 
No problem, "V"
smile.gif
. Thats what people are there for. People helping people feel miserable about their knives. If I can tell you more to dishearten you, I sure will
smile.gif


Well it seems that so far, many people find their Gerber EZ-Outs to be weakly locked. It's either solid or weak, and Gerber has a lot more quality control to pay attention to.

I hear that they are making an ATS-34 EZ-OUT! And that would be really neat, but if the lock is as bad as it is in the original, I'm going to get a BM or an Emerson CQC7A. Does anybody know about how their quality control will change with their ATS-34 versions of the knives? The Gator came out with an ATS-34, and I hear its nice, but I dont know if they really changed quality control or not...

Oh well
comrade c
 
I just tried that on my old 425 e-z out. The lock is rock solid.

The biggest complaint on mine is that the back spring is very very loose -- so loose, the thing is practically a gravity knife. I've heard of my E-Z Outs having this problem.

I really like the E-Z Out in theory. I like the handle shape and even find the kraton inserts effective. The problems of blade steel and overall fit&finish are both fixed in the ATS-34 version. I really like the blade shape. Even though it's sabre ground, it's thin enough that you can still get a good edge.

It sounds like what they need to get right all revolves around the lock. The backsprings should be stiffer, and considering you guys are making the lock fail, it also sounds like the lock notches could fit better. It is very rare to find lockbacks that fail in this manner, in my experience.

Joe
jat@cup.hp.com
 
I'd have to agree with Joe and Razor today. The Gerber EZ-Out is simply a low-end mid-range daily carry knife. That you don't return/exchange your defective pieces says more about your basic laziness and complacency as a customer than about the company. I've had BM's that bite, but they got sent back to the company within 2 days for exchange, then I was happy again.

Finally, upon reading reviews among the forum, I'm always amazed at how people test and use their knives. Usually they test their knives in EVERY way except for the purpose they were created for: cutting! I mean you got people whacking glass and trying to use their knife as a screwdriver, wirecutter, or hammer. And then they cry like babies when they FINALLY manage to break the knife through abuse for which it was never intended.

Sorry to rag, but I'm TIRED of reading IRREVELENT reviews of knives where people whack, beat, ram, and hammer them, and then have the nerve to come here and complain that their $30 knife didn't hold up to their abuse! I don't use my screwdrivers as hammers, and I don't use my drill as a lathe. So come on, guys, give me a break.

If you think you have a defective piece, you owe it to the company to make them provide quality and consistency among their products. Otherwise, buy a hammer or an axe for what you're currently using your knives for.
 
Ok,Zaine, the grumpy, mean-spirited nature of your post aside, you clearly suffer from a lack of information. Everyone does. It is the nature of the Internet to not know everything about the person on the other end. It seems that you have assumed that everyone here purchases their knives retail, so that returns can be made. In my case, this is not so. I happened to purchase my Gerber from a friend by giving him $6 and paying for nachos and a video rental. The tip is bent and the blade bears several burn marks.

That I have purchased this knife inexpensively and consider it acceptable losses when it is not spectacular does not indicate that I am "lazy and complacent". By using such incendiary phrases, you risk changing the atmosphere of this thread from one of good humor (you know, fun) to one of regretful sniping. I realize that some people enjoy stirring things up, but I think it is far more graceful to do so using logic rather than imperious bullying.

Finally, if you are TIRED of IRRELEVANCE, then by all means cast irrelevance away. No one is Atlas, and the knife review section will continue with or without your approval. The points you bring up are of course well-reasoned and truthful, but they are said with venom. Who likes venom? Not me.

Forgive my vehemence,
V
 
Sorry, V, didn't mean to come off so hot-headed. Let me lower the emotion-level some, then.

To restate what I meant, I just want people who test their own knives to test them doing something that the instrument was created for. Like I said, I don't use my screwdriver to hammer nails, and I won't dare use my knife as a screwdriver. I bought a 99-cent piece-of-junk screwdriver from Wal-Mart for that purpose.

So you bought a used knife (and apparently abused by the first owner). Lockbacks are not fail-safe by any means. I almost lost a finger with my BM a couple of years back, but that was because I had my grip in a position where I was squeezing the handle and it unlocked on me, slashing my forefinger. But I didn't blame that on BenchMade; just on my own stupidity and carelessness. The knife itself was sound.

Vitriol was not my intention, and I apologize for 'shouting' my response there.

But I just wanted to ask why [too many, by these forums] people test their knives in ways they will never use them?
 
We use test them like that because we like knowing that our knives will never fail when we use them even in ways they weren't intended for. Sometimes in an emergency, your knife will have to double as something else, and I would prefer having a more versatile knife. I'm very sure that many others feel the same way, and others feel that knives should just cut and thats it. It really depends on how you see things and how much you want to rely on your knife.

Comrade Chang
 
I know this is a little late but I just registered. I have an E-Z Out Jr. and the lock failed on me the other day. THERE WAS ABSOLUTELY NO PRESSURE ON THE TOP OF THE BLADE!?! I thought I maybe inadvertantly unlocked but unless my grip moved that's almost impossible. I pushed on the top of the blade with only a few pounds of pressure
and it did it again. I need to know how to get a hold of the company because I am not going to put up with this POS. I want a new knife or my money back cuz the one I got ain't safe. I nearly took my fingertip off had I not noticed and moved it. So an address or e-mail address or customer service number would be appreciated. I'll post again to let y'all know what happens.
Thanx

 
Wow, I was just about to say that the only problem I found with my ATS version was that the clip digs into the zytel. I decided to go out and test my lock a little before I shot my mouth off and that thing folded up like. Well, like something that folds up easy. I had carried that knife for a couple months until the clip started ticking me off. Man am I glad I never needed to rely on the lock.
 
Hey, while sitting here and reading your posts, I pulled out my ATS-34, EZ-OUT and held the base of the handle and wacked the back of the blade against the carpet on the floor. The blade unlocked. I thought that maybe I accidentally pressed the unlock, so I tried it a few more times and it did it again. The funny thing is that the lock feels rock solid when I try to press it barehanded. Oh well, I guess I'll continue using it for cutting boxes only. I wonder if this is a flaw or if they all give way due to the lock design.
 
i just bought the ez-out ats-34 model and
put the knife to the test by tappng it
on the tip of my boot and the damn thing
closed.this knife is going back to the
store.THE LOCK ON THIS SUCKS.
THANKS FOR THE INFO.




[This message has been edited by jacko (edited 31 December 1998).]
 
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