Got An UMNUMZAAN

Nathan Ihrke

Nathan Ihrke

Joined
Sep 28, 2008
Messages
864
So, after owning a seb for about a year and getting hooked on TI framelocks, i ordered and received an Umnumzaan. I am now wondering why these knives aren't more popular? When i first ready the reviews saying the are just new improved sebs, i thought "how could that be". Now i see that this doesnt even come close to giving this knife the credit it deserves. Just wondering how owners and skeptics feel about the knife
 
I love mine! I feel that it raises the bar for longevity in a framelock and the combination of features (scraper tip, glassbreaker)make it very versatile.

Since my receiving an Umnum it's been my most carried knife, edging out strider, hinderer, and ZT's from my edc rotation.
 
I normally say that the primary selling point of the Umnumzaan is its name. You just have to love it.
Practically though, the design actually does fix nearly all my complaints with the Sebenza, and then goes the extra mile with the smoothest Reeve Integral Lock ever made.
The only reason I don't have one yet is that I'm waiting for the S35VN version. S30V is just too common to pay $400 for it.
(I'd also pay an extra $100 for S110V)
 
Hi Nathan -

I am not a skeptic of the knife, and I think they are very high-quality etc., however, in answer to your question of "why aren't they more popular", I would submit that the >$400 price is a factor for many.

best regards -

mqqn
 
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Joshua J. said:
I normally say that the primary selling point of the Umnumzaan is its name. You just have to love it.
Practically though, the design actually does fix nearly all my complaints with the Sebenza, and then goes the extra mile with the smoothest Reeve Integral Lock ever made.
The only reason I don't have one yet is that I'm waiting for the S35VN version. S30V is just too common to pay $400 for it.
(I'd also pay an extra $100 for S110V)
Click to expand...

Can you list your complaints with the Sebenza? Not trying to pick a fight or fan a flame, just interested in your personal opinion. I am still thinking it's basically a coin-toss.
 
mqqn said:
Hi Nathan -

I am not a skeptic of the knife, and I think they are very high-quality etc., however, in answer to your question of "why aren't they more popular", I would submit that the >$400 price is a factor for many.

best regards -

mqqn
Click to expand...

Actually, I think the going rate on the street is $385 for a single-lug large Sebenza, which almost makes the Umnumzaan look at least competitive if not actually a little bit of a bargain?
 
JNewell said:
Can you list your complaints with the Sebenza? Not trying to pick a fight or fan a flame, just interested in your personal opinion. I am still thinking it's basically a coin-toss.
Click to expand...

It almost came to a coin toss for me. I found a dealer with both a Sebenza and an Umnumzaan. I liked both and let my wife pick one. She chose the Umnumzaan. She said she picked it because it looked and felt like a more expensive knife as compared to the regular Sebenza. She mostly liked the fact that it doesn't make any noise when it locks open.

I've owned it since last May and I love it.
 
Best knife ever.

I wish I could combine the Sebenza and Umnumzaan though.

The resulting Umnubenza...or Sebnumzaan would be amazing I think.

For me:


Umnumzaan features
Blade Profile
Glass Breaker
Pivot
Perforated Washers
Ceramic Ball Lock Interface
Lanyard Pin


Sebenza features
Bushing
Blade Stop
Double Thumb lug (w/o rubber stop)
Handles (micarta inserts for me!)



I'd like the thumb studs not to double as a blade stop
I would want the titanium handles to be thick like the Umnumzaan
Not sure if the handles would be Regular/Classic/21
The portion of the blade not a part of the scraper edge would be crowned like the Seb



Talk about the ultimate knife! :eek:
 
JPD1998 said:
It almost came to a coin toss for me. I found a dealer with both a Sebenza and an Umnumzaan. I liked both and let my wife pick one. She chose the Umnumzaan. She said she picked it because it looked and felt like a more expensive knife as compared to the regular Sebenza. She mostly liked the fact that it doesn't make any noise when it locks open.

I've owned it since last May and I love it.
Click to expand...


I am, and am not, surprised by your wife's reaction. I do think the Sebenza, especially in the large size, feels very, very plain, which could be interpreted as "cheaper." However, many NKPs and even some KKs I've shown the Umnu to think it looks too "aggressive." Go figger...
 
I have one and I go back and forth between thinking the Unum is the best knife ever and thinking it is really over-embellished mall-ninja knife.

Right now, I'm liking my Sebbies a lot more, but ask me next week......
 
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It is hard to dispute that compared to the Sebenza, the umnumzaan is a bit more aggressively styled, more embellished, and (just maybe) more mall-ninja-esque, what with the glass-breaker and all. Compared to any other knife though, it is exactly the same thing that the sebenza is: superior.

I'm loving mine either way. Now if only I could attach a wave-feature somehow...
 
There is absolutely no doubt that all of Chris Reeve's knives are of great quality. The sebenza is a great knife but there are some factors that the um has greatly improved upon. I think the action of the knife is much smoother and not as stiff. I can flick it open and I got the knife a couple of days ago. The sebs blade top is all rounded so you have to use the actual edge to throw a spark if you need to. The um has a sharpened swedge on the harpoon that can be used to do this. The seb can be assembled and disassembled with no special tools, unlike the um. Although the bull pivot on the um makes it feel like a tank. The plain TI handles on the seb dont offer as much grip as the checkered um. However, there are many handle options for the seb and none for the um. The seb has few blade options and these are rarely seen. You can get the um with a wicked tanto edge which i seriously considered (might get if i get a good refund check). Thats my breakdown of the two. I would def. post pics but my cam is about 2 hours away and not making that trip. Any seb is worth buying, however, I think the um is the boss of CRK's folders.
 
Congrats. I want to get one of those eventually. Then again there is a lot of blades I need.;)
 
Mine just came in at 11:30 am today:)

It is a great knife and I'm looking forward to putting it through it's paces and getting to know it better.
 
mmarkh said:
Congrats. I want to get one of those eventually. Then again there is a lot of blades I need.;)
Click to expand...

Oh man, I'm with you on that one. I made a list of all the knives I want to get and there were about 50 knives... Between five and six thousand dollars worth of steel and labor. Im slowly going through and checking them off my list though :)
 
Congrats on the Umnumzaan. I bought alot of CRK before I finally tried a Umnumzaan. The Umnum made 30 CRK, so I thought I had waited long enough. I got it in a trade from a fellow member for a strider sng. My only regret is that I waited so long to get one. It has been in my pocket since I got it in november or there-a-bouts. My much loved sebbie took a back seat for a bit, now I switch them off and on depending on my mood. There are features I like on the sebbie that the umnum does not have, and there are things on the umnum that the sebbie does not have. As mentioned above in a previous post, a combo of the two would be the best folder ever. Maybe someday I will do a mod with all the features I like and try and put them into one, but I have to wait until I get my shop up and running first. I give the umnum :thumbup::thumbup: Mr. Reeve definately hit a homer with this one !!!
 
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