Got my Boker Trance yesterday...

jthomas

jthomas

Joined
May 20, 2006
Messages
1,596
This isn't really much of a review as such, but I thought I'd share. I wasn't really sure what to expect from this knife, but I had read some favorable things about it here on the forums, so I decided to get one. It came in yesterday (Thanks Roger!!) and I am really pretty impressed. The knife feels much bigger in the hand that it is, and the grip is very comfortable. Lockup on the knife is rock solid, with no blade play in any direction. The flipper is a little small, but I can get it open so no real complaint. The framelock engages with an authoritative click and appears to be secure. I have no way to quantify the sharpness of the factory edge, but it was shaving sharp, and as the bladesteel is 'old reliable', upkeep should be easy. I wasn't sure that I'd like a FRN scale on one side of the knife, but now that I have it here it isn't an issue (there is a steel liner under the scale). All in all it is a lot of knife for the size, and it feels great in the hand. I think that CLB hit one out of the park with this one.
trance1.jpg

trance2.jpg

Excuse the gunk in the Leek...
trance3.jpg

trance4.jpg

trance5.jpg

The blade is perfectly centered, I was holding the knife cockeyed.
trance6.jpg

trance7.jpg
 
I just picked one up at lunch. I am a big fan of Chads designs and have been waiting on this one for awhile. The flipper doesn't work as well as I would expect but I think a little oil and loosining of the torx srrew I will be able to flip it open with no trouble at all.
The lockup is just as you said rock solid.
Chad you have done it again.
 
The Subcom still has the best grip on a small knife I know of, and the blade isn't much shorter than the Trance. I like to keep one or the other with me, really reliable knives. I've used both enough to resharpen them, which was not difficult. My Trance's flipper does nothing, but I don't care, since the thumbstuds fire it open amazingly fast.
 
Something else I like about both the Trance and the Subcom is the low riding clip. They almost dissapear in my pocket or in my waist band behind my belt.
 
I've bought 3. One for my brother, one for me, and one for my friend eojk. We all love them. All 3 were razor sharp out of the box, and IMO they have the best feeling FRN out there. I'll probably wind up buying a few more for close friends. Can't go wrong with these knives.:thumbup:
 
Boy I just handled a Trance and I was really really impressed with both the design and the execution. The knife is well-made with very solid lock-up and looks to be an awesome cutter. It fits my hand amazingly well and puts the blade very close to the index finger which I like, great for fine manipulation. Feels outstanding in forward or reverse grip. And it is so thin that without a pocket clip it's practically a wallet-knife. This one is a must-have, congrats to the designer! The only flaw I've found is that the flipper requires a lot of wrist-flick to operate, as opposed to the JYD2 for example which for me can be operated without flick (but it's a heavier blade by far).
 
I've had mine for about a month now and it impresses me more each day. First of all I wasn't expecting much from a $26 knife from Taiwan. Boy was I wrong. It is extremely easy to carry, being very thin and the clip enables you to carry it very deep. Three ways to open: Thumb stud= very easy and ergonomic, Flipper= minimal effort and it pops open, Wave= Yes the left thumb stud enables you to draw it out of your pocket completley open. http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=471067&highlight=TranceJust When drawing from pocket put outward pressure and the left thumb stud catches on the pocket seam. AUS8 is not the greatest steel put it maintance a very sharp edge. Nice and secure. Only fault that I have found is the three screws holding the clip tend to loosen up. A little locktite fixed this. All the other screws hold tight. You gotta love the frame lock. Gotta love the full flat grind.
 
I got one a few weeks ago and I'm really happy with it. I ground of the guard/flipper thingy which I didn't need.

My only complaint is the bead blasting, I live in a very humid place and bead blasted blades rust faster than carbon steel blades. My Trance started to show rust spots after two days of carry.
 
Thanks for the cool pictures and the "initial impressions".

I might just have to get me one.
 
When I need a thin slicer with a lock, I reach for my Trance. As everyone's said, you really can't go wrong with it. The only negative is that it is biased toward right-handers, but even this design is operable with the left after some practice. The holes next to the clip actually made good tactile points for the fingers of the left hand.

Thanks again, Adam!
 
The Trance is a fine little knife. I'm right hand, yet can easily manipulate the knife left handed.
imgp3108smallic0.jpg

imgp3109smallfj9.jpg

imgp3110smallaz4.jpg

imgp3111smallvk3.jpg
 
jthomas, thanks for the mini-review. Your timing was perfect, being as I was in the midst of choosing a new knife for myself. My Boker Trance is now on its way from New Graham :).
 
I just got my Boker Plus Trance and initially was not happy with it...a little too fat and heavy compared with my normal edc--the Gerber mini-covert. Could one of you more savvy about blades tell me what the pros or cons are of such a hefty blade??
 
EDCeeker said:
jthomas, thanks for the mini-review. Your timing was perfect, being as I was in the midst of choosing a new knife for myself. My Boker Trance is now on its way from New Graham :).
Click to expand...

I think you'll be really pleased. I'm glad I could 'share the love' as it were. :D
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top