I picked up a Gerber EZ-Out Utility (that's the serrated sheepsfoot) today. I was at Lowes and they had about a half dozen of them on the discount table in the Tool Crib, with with big orange
BARGAIN
"AS-IS"
stickers. $10 bucks, down from $30. (I think MSRP is more like $40? Dunno. Some websites say $40, some say $50.)
Yellow ploycarbonate (it says) handles with rubbery inserts, 3.5" blade, something around 3/32" thick. Hollow sabre grind, but applied so the tip gets a nice taper out to its squared-off end. Tip down (oh well), clip held on by the pivot bolt and a tab, not sure if the pivot is adjustable. (Hex bolt heads on both sides.) The package says 2.6 ounces. Soft matte finish, probably bead blasted. Long flattened oval thumb hole.
It also says "durable surgical stainless steel blade", whatever that means. Some kind of AUS-6, 440A, 425M, 420HC thing I guess. (Hopefully not 420J2.) Does anybody know?
And, for $10, the blade says Gerber USA, Portland OR., and the insert in the blister pack says Made in USA. I don't think the design is even a rip off.
It doesn't feel quite as solid as my Zytel/FRN Endura or BM 735 or Panther, but only just - miles ahead of china cheapie territory. Better fit than my Meyerco folder, about the same finish.
I don't have a lot of lockbacks to actually hold and truly compare it to. Aside from ones I mentioned, it's nowhere near as solid as my Schrade with the integral bolsters (but it is faster), but neither are the plastic Spidie or plastic BM. It's much more solid than my nickel-sliver bolster over brass liner Frost Cutlery One Arm Razor. It locks up with a little less side to side wiggle than most of my plastic scaled liner locks, but that may be because I tend to keep the pivot on those a hair loose. (CRKT, Schrade, Timberline, Outdoor Edge, Cold Steel and Kershaw are linerlocks I gave it a quick fondle alongside of. I didn't bother comparing the action to a full-built Benchmade linerlock any more than I bothered comparing it directly to an Axis lock or a REKAT or my Spyderco Yojimbo.)
It has a very nice little flat-and-notch at the ninety degree back of the tang, so it does an old-style walk-and-talk pause and click, which tickled me, but then maybe I'm old fashioned.
It came hair-above-the-skin popping sharp, both the serrated edge and the 3/8" straight bit at the end. One of my sharpest out-of-the-box knives, ever - sharp like my Yojimbo came sharp. (Maybe I was just lucky, though.) The edge is dead straight, no belly at all. It's a mid-lock, set a little further back than my Endura or 735 (Eclipse/Acent). Apparently (poking around online) the difference between the Rescue and the Utility is the Rescue has an unsharpened round tip and is serrated all the way out, the Utility is squared off and has the little bit of fine edge at the tip with a sharp-ish right angled point.
The handle seems OK, not having done any work with it yet. The forward finger stall is about a finger and a half wide - you can choke up on it, or keep three fingers back for more reach. It's about the same length as the front stall on my old Endura, but a little shorter and a little deeper radiused. I think I prefer either a full even split like a Benchmade Ares/730 or a true one finger stall like my BM Pinnacle/750, but that's taste, not a universal. It fits my hand better than a number of much more expensive pieces, like my BM 705 or 720. Not as well as my Endura.
It has JUST enough choil to choke up on, but not enough to be comfortable doing so.
The thumb oval works fine if you pay attention, but is easy to miss if you're in a hurry - I don't think it even compares to the ease of my Endura. Then again my thumb's had a long time to get used to that round hole, maybe the difference feels bigger than it is.
Anyway, it was TEN BUCKS. Made in the USA. Unless the steel is utter crap - and I don't know, but on a Gerber USA I'm guessing it's at least AUS-6 or 440A, and maybe a little better - it's hell of a lot of pocket knife for the money, as long as you like the style available. So I'd advise anyone with a use for a straight-edged serrated folder, or who knows someone who it would make an appreciated gift for, to wander over to their Lowes and see if they still have any left.
A couple re-seller's websites say "400 Series stainless steel", so it's probably not AUS-6.
I'll post an update after I beat it up for a while.
BARGAIN
"AS-IS"
stickers. $10 bucks, down from $30. (I think MSRP is more like $40? Dunno. Some websites say $40, some say $50.)
Yellow ploycarbonate (it says) handles with rubbery inserts, 3.5" blade, something around 3/32" thick. Hollow sabre grind, but applied so the tip gets a nice taper out to its squared-off end. Tip down (oh well), clip held on by the pivot bolt and a tab, not sure if the pivot is adjustable. (Hex bolt heads on both sides.) The package says 2.6 ounces. Soft matte finish, probably bead blasted. Long flattened oval thumb hole.
It also says "durable surgical stainless steel blade", whatever that means. Some kind of AUS-6, 440A, 425M, 420HC thing I guess. (Hopefully not 420J2.) Does anybody know?
And, for $10, the blade says Gerber USA, Portland OR., and the insert in the blister pack says Made in USA. I don't think the design is even a rip off.
It doesn't feel quite as solid as my Zytel/FRN Endura or BM 735 or Panther, but only just - miles ahead of china cheapie territory. Better fit than my Meyerco folder, about the same finish.
I don't have a lot of lockbacks to actually hold and truly compare it to. Aside from ones I mentioned, it's nowhere near as solid as my Schrade with the integral bolsters (but it is faster), but neither are the plastic Spidie or plastic BM. It's much more solid than my nickel-sliver bolster over brass liner Frost Cutlery One Arm Razor. It locks up with a little less side to side wiggle than most of my plastic scaled liner locks, but that may be because I tend to keep the pivot on those a hair loose. (CRKT, Schrade, Timberline, Outdoor Edge, Cold Steel and Kershaw are linerlocks I gave it a quick fondle alongside of. I didn't bother comparing the action to a full-built Benchmade linerlock any more than I bothered comparing it directly to an Axis lock or a REKAT or my Spyderco Yojimbo.)
It has a very nice little flat-and-notch at the ninety degree back of the tang, so it does an old-style walk-and-talk pause and click, which tickled me, but then maybe I'm old fashioned.
It came hair-above-the-skin popping sharp, both the serrated edge and the 3/8" straight bit at the end. One of my sharpest out-of-the-box knives, ever - sharp like my Yojimbo came sharp. (Maybe I was just lucky, though.) The edge is dead straight, no belly at all. It's a mid-lock, set a little further back than my Endura or 735 (Eclipse/Acent). Apparently (poking around online) the difference between the Rescue and the Utility is the Rescue has an unsharpened round tip and is serrated all the way out, the Utility is squared off and has the little bit of fine edge at the tip with a sharp-ish right angled point.
The handle seems OK, not having done any work with it yet. The forward finger stall is about a finger and a half wide - you can choke up on it, or keep three fingers back for more reach. It's about the same length as the front stall on my old Endura, but a little shorter and a little deeper radiused. I think I prefer either a full even split like a Benchmade Ares/730 or a true one finger stall like my BM Pinnacle/750, but that's taste, not a universal. It fits my hand better than a number of much more expensive pieces, like my BM 705 or 720. Not as well as my Endura.
It has JUST enough choil to choke up on, but not enough to be comfortable doing so.
The thumb oval works fine if you pay attention, but is easy to miss if you're in a hurry - I don't think it even compares to the ease of my Endura. Then again my thumb's had a long time to get used to that round hole, maybe the difference feels bigger than it is.
Anyway, it was TEN BUCKS. Made in the USA. Unless the steel is utter crap - and I don't know, but on a Gerber USA I'm guessing it's at least AUS-6 or 440A, and maybe a little better - it's hell of a lot of pocket knife for the money, as long as you like the style available. So I'd advise anyone with a use for a straight-edged serrated folder, or who knows someone who it would make an appreciated gift for, to wander over to their Lowes and see if they still have any left.
A couple re-seller's websites say "400 Series stainless steel", so it's probably not AUS-6.
I'll post an update after I beat it up for a while.