Gerber Icon: Pics and first impressions

[chrisfa]

Today at walmart i picked up a gerber icon for 32 bucks. Most guys don't like gerber and wont buy them but me still not have found a blade i want to carry every day i figured hey its worth a try at worst it'll be a good work knife or a beater.
To start i think this knife went in the right direction because unlike most gerbers it does have the steel clearly listed on the package as 7cr17mov stainless steel. Hey it might not be a great steel but at least there honestly listing it on this knife.

I was a tad surprised when i got the blade though, id say this knife is priced perfectly. Its a large folder with a decent weight that is budget friendly and seems to be made with a decent quality.

To start the pocket clip is great on the knife, real strong but not hard to get into the pocket, the knife has those trac-tek like inserts that kershaw uses on the blur, there identical actually.
The handle of this knife is very ergonomical and has a very good feel to it, very sturdy and slip resistant.

It has odd thumb studs that are fat and flat but they work very well and surprisingly the centering on the knife is near perfect. The blade also deploys very smooth and pretty easily.

Once opened the knife is 9.5 inches overall and has a 4.2 inch partially serrated tanto blade. Very close in size to the spyderco military. The knife also weighs 4.5 oz witch i think is fine for its size and it doesn't feel heavy or bad at all in the pocket, for a large knife it actually feels good in the pocket.

The lockup on the knife is excellent, no blade play up down or side to side.

Id honestly recommend this knife a try, or at least if you see it to give it a second look.

here is a few pics i took on my phone when i got it home.

And a comparison with the utilitac 2 and buck 110

 

[sqoon]

A lot of guys here will not buy Gerber. Period. Thus far, I've seen good things from them. Heck, I even like my BG Scout folder that I initially bought as somewhat of a joke. I'm not a fan of tantos, but I do like how the top of the blade dips down to a bit of a spear point. Gerber might not be a hit with knife knuts, but I would bet that their marketing and retail placement puts them in more pockets than most knives talked about here... not that it makes them better, but if they were putting out the complete and total crap that most would have you believe, they likely wouldn't still be in business.

I can't believe how small the 110 looks next to it. It must be a monster!

 

[chrisfa]

A lot of guys here will not buy Gerber. Period. Thus far, I've seen good things from them. Heck, I even like my BG Scout folder that I initially bought as somewhat of a joke. I'm not a fan of tantos, but I do like how the top of the blade dips down to a bit of a spear point. Gerber might not be a hit with knife knuts, but I would bet that their marketing and retail placement puts them in more pockets than most knives talked about here... not that it makes them better, but if they were putting out the complete and total crap that most would have you believe, they likely wouldn't still be in business.

I can't believe how small the 110 looks next to it. It must be a monster!

My previous gerber experience is hit and miss, fast draw i had was disappointing, the gerber suspension multitool i got iv had for like 6 years.

Yea it is a monster, and for that size its only 4.5oz, if you ask me that's a whole lot of blade for that weight, feels great in the hand, if at work, with the way i see it even if the knife isn't what the nuts talk highly of, if i get in an accident and get stuck in the seat belt, or other unknown events happen, i know this could cut a seat belt, or clothing or whatever, gives me a peace of mind if you will.


on a side note, i know this isn't the best thing in the world or anything, but right now along with those 3 knives i got a few multitools a sak and a sog twitch 2, so i don't really have any high end carry blades.

I was carrying a kershaw whirlwind but i lost it at work (lost stole cant prove anything so ill say lost) im in the process of finding a new blade that's a like medium cost blade but i haven't found anything that has pushed me to buying yet so until then this is going to be in my pocket, ill give you guys some updates on how it holds up after use if you'd like.

 

[chrisfa]

Here is my first try at a review.

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[unvisible805]

i got this same knife, the icon tanto, last week. and i must say it a decent knife. its my new "for every use every day" pocket knife. it wasnt expensive so im not worried about breaking it. it keeps a good edge, and feels great in the hand. not to mention that it opens super easy and super quick, dont even need to use the thumb studs.. just give it a lil flick and its open just as fast as a spring assisted knife. all in all ill give this knife a 6.5 out of 10 (1 being crap, 10 being the best).