- Joined
- Oct 7, 2009
- Messages
- 63
Hello people! Just want to write a small review/impression of my newest knife, the Gerber Yari 2. I don't have any pics, but there should be enough pictures on Google and there's at least one very decent review on YouTube.
The Gerber Yari 2 is a small to medium sized utilitarian/tactical blade made out of Crucible S30V. It is a full tang construction with Type 3 6061 Aluminum handleslabs. The knife is 24 cm long with a 11,4 cm blade. It's offered in tanto and drop point configuration. Sadly, it's not offered in a plain-edge variety. Only comboedge. This Gerber is made in the USA and kind a reminds me about the new Gerber Warrant. I have the tanto version because it's the only one I could find. The pricing on the Yari 2 is as far as I know pretty good for a knife in S30V. I bought mine here in Norway, but taken Norwegian prices to account, I got it fairly cheap.
First of, the blade. The knife is made out of a solid piece of S30V. It is a comboedge and the serrations are the typical "one large, two small" pattern which is found on most knives by Gerber. It is coated with a similar coating found on the LMF2, Prodigy. Not the best coating, but it works.
The bladegrind is a sabergrind which starts pretty high up. The blade came extremely sharp. The blade is thin, around 3mm. This is not a dealbreaker for me, because it will cut better. This is not a knife suitable for heavy battoning, although the steel is strong enough. The tang is hollowed out to make it lighter. The knife is around 6.3 ounces I think. I haven't tested this knife properly in the woods, but my impression so far is very positive. As mentioned, you can also get this in a drop point configuration, which will be suitable for the majority. My only gripe on the blade is the lack of a full, plain edge. The tang is protruding and will also serve as a glassbreaker, less than lethal impact device. The S30V does not need any introduction.
The handle is in my opinion one of the knife's best sides. It consists of two Type 3 hard anodized 6061 Aluminum slabs. They are both 6 mm thick. The handles are held together by torx screws. It is a one cylinderscrew and one pinscrew configuration, which is the strongest and most reliable one. It is loctited, so be careful when trying to remove the slabs for the first time. The ergonomics are very good. I have medium hands and the handle fits perfectly. If you have large or extra large hands, you may find the handle a little too small, but it can probably be worked around. The handleslabs have deep grooves to provide grip, even when wet. Aluminum handles get a little bit slippery when wet, but the ergonomics and good jimping will keep your hand from egressing forward. They also get very cold, especially if you're out in cold weather and don't wear gloves. Other than that, they're incredibly strong and extremely resistant to the elements. They will also scratch easily if you're not careful, but these handles are VERY high quality, they're even CNC-machined. I can verify that, because there are no faults or "dents" on them. The knife has a lanyard hole, but no purposebuilt choil, Thanks Gerber, for not having a ridiciously huge choil taking up bladespace!
The sheath is also very high quality. It is made out of a hard plastic, it reminds me about Zytel, because it's very dense and incredibly strong, not cheap plastic or anything. It has a cordura beltloop which can be taken of. It has a retentionsnap, but it sucks, not because of the quality, but it's to big for the handle. Luckily, the retention is tight, very tight, you will have to pull this blade out rather than using your thumb on the upper rest. It locked by two knobs on the sheath. There is no rattle whatsoever and I know a lot of people will find the retention way too tight. Be careful when pulling the knife out, or you may cut of the retentionstrap. Look up a picture and you'll see what I mean. The Sheath is MOLLE compatible and comes with two MALICE clips. The lower one can also be taken off, so you have a standard beltloop knife. Because of it's retention and modular attachment system, you can wear it upside-down or whatever you want without losing the knife. It will also stand up to parachute jumping without the retention strap.
The sheath is also very thin and takes minimum space. One last attachment method is to a NATO-style pistol holster. It comes with a attachmentdevice for this and it is very strong, almost unbreakable. This is not a MOLLE system, but a "railslot"-system, you probably know what I mean. Obviously, if you have MOLLE webbing on your holster, you can use it on the sheath.
All in all, this is a great all arounder knife, allthough is specifically aimed at the military and other tactical units. The price is good and the quality is superb, trust me, I have owned a lot of high-end knives, so I know what I'm talking about. Competitive options, if you don't take bladesteel to account, there's a lot, like the SOG Seal Pup Elite, ESEE RC3, RC4 and so on. But there is one knife that is VERY identical in my opinion, and that is the Benchmade Nimravus. They're almost identical in size, both bladelength and handle length, they both have single piece full-tang and high-end aluminum handles. So which one is better? I haven't really used a Nimravus, but I have used a knife with 154CM steel and I prefer S30V over it anyday. The Yari 2 is also a cheaper knife as far I'm concerned, allthough the Nimravus is a better looking one with a better finish and a beautiful Cordurasheath. I know there's a huge Benchmade fanbase, but the Yari 2 is definately worth the money and I think it is as good as a Nimravus. It really comes down to if you prefer S30V over 154CM or vise versa. They're both made in the USA and they're both very high-end.
Have a nice day
The Gerber Yari 2 is a small to medium sized utilitarian/tactical blade made out of Crucible S30V. It is a full tang construction with Type 3 6061 Aluminum handleslabs. The knife is 24 cm long with a 11,4 cm blade. It's offered in tanto and drop point configuration. Sadly, it's not offered in a plain-edge variety. Only comboedge. This Gerber is made in the USA and kind a reminds me about the new Gerber Warrant. I have the tanto version because it's the only one I could find. The pricing on the Yari 2 is as far as I know pretty good for a knife in S30V. I bought mine here in Norway, but taken Norwegian prices to account, I got it fairly cheap.
First of, the blade. The knife is made out of a solid piece of S30V. It is a comboedge and the serrations are the typical "one large, two small" pattern which is found on most knives by Gerber. It is coated with a similar coating found on the LMF2, Prodigy. Not the best coating, but it works.
The bladegrind is a sabergrind which starts pretty high up. The blade came extremely sharp. The blade is thin, around 3mm. This is not a dealbreaker for me, because it will cut better. This is not a knife suitable for heavy battoning, although the steel is strong enough. The tang is hollowed out to make it lighter. The knife is around 6.3 ounces I think. I haven't tested this knife properly in the woods, but my impression so far is very positive. As mentioned, you can also get this in a drop point configuration, which will be suitable for the majority. My only gripe on the blade is the lack of a full, plain edge. The tang is protruding and will also serve as a glassbreaker, less than lethal impact device. The S30V does not need any introduction.
The handle is in my opinion one of the knife's best sides. It consists of two Type 3 hard anodized 6061 Aluminum slabs. They are both 6 mm thick. The handles are held together by torx screws. It is a one cylinderscrew and one pinscrew configuration, which is the strongest and most reliable one. It is loctited, so be careful when trying to remove the slabs for the first time. The ergonomics are very good. I have medium hands and the handle fits perfectly. If you have large or extra large hands, you may find the handle a little too small, but it can probably be worked around. The handleslabs have deep grooves to provide grip, even when wet. Aluminum handles get a little bit slippery when wet, but the ergonomics and good jimping will keep your hand from egressing forward. They also get very cold, especially if you're out in cold weather and don't wear gloves. Other than that, they're incredibly strong and extremely resistant to the elements. They will also scratch easily if you're not careful, but these handles are VERY high quality, they're even CNC-machined. I can verify that, because there are no faults or "dents" on them. The knife has a lanyard hole, but no purposebuilt choil, Thanks Gerber, for not having a ridiciously huge choil taking up bladespace!
The sheath is also very high quality. It is made out of a hard plastic, it reminds me about Zytel, because it's very dense and incredibly strong, not cheap plastic or anything. It has a cordura beltloop which can be taken of. It has a retentionsnap, but it sucks, not because of the quality, but it's to big for the handle. Luckily, the retention is tight, very tight, you will have to pull this blade out rather than using your thumb on the upper rest. It locked by two knobs on the sheath. There is no rattle whatsoever and I know a lot of people will find the retention way too tight. Be careful when pulling the knife out, or you may cut of the retentionstrap. Look up a picture and you'll see what I mean. The Sheath is MOLLE compatible and comes with two MALICE clips. The lower one can also be taken off, so you have a standard beltloop knife. Because of it's retention and modular attachment system, you can wear it upside-down or whatever you want without losing the knife. It will also stand up to parachute jumping without the retention strap.
The sheath is also very thin and takes minimum space. One last attachment method is to a NATO-style pistol holster. It comes with a attachmentdevice for this and it is very strong, almost unbreakable. This is not a MOLLE system, but a "railslot"-system, you probably know what I mean. Obviously, if you have MOLLE webbing on your holster, you can use it on the sheath.
All in all, this is a great all arounder knife, allthough is specifically aimed at the military and other tactical units. The price is good and the quality is superb, trust me, I have owned a lot of high-end knives, so I know what I'm talking about. Competitive options, if you don't take bladesteel to account, there's a lot, like the SOG Seal Pup Elite, ESEE RC3, RC4 and so on. But there is one knife that is VERY identical in my opinion, and that is the Benchmade Nimravus. They're almost identical in size, both bladelength and handle length, they both have single piece full-tang and high-end aluminum handles. So which one is better? I haven't really used a Nimravus, but I have used a knife with 154CM steel and I prefer S30V over it anyday. The Yari 2 is also a cheaper knife as far I'm concerned, allthough the Nimravus is a better looking one with a better finish and a beautiful Cordurasheath. I know there's a huge Benchmade fanbase, but the Yari 2 is definately worth the money and I think it is as good as a Nimravus. It really comes down to if you prefer S30V over 154CM or vise versa. They're both made in the USA and they're both very high-end.
Have a nice day
