Help me choose a new knife!

S

slorenzo

Joined
Jan 16, 2015
Messages
373
So I am planning on buying a new knife today with one simple caveat, it can't be a Sebenza.

For the past couple of weeks I have only been looking at/ buying Sebenza's. I would like to add something new today to the collection. So far I have found a couple of knives I am interested in buying, here and in other forums.

They are:

Todd Begg Mini Glimpse Friction Folder (have never owned a friction folder, other than my SAK's. Was wondering how practical this would be for EDC)

Matt Cucchiara Dorado Stage 1 (would like to know how this compares to the Sebenza in terms of fit and finish. How does it 'feel')

Southard Avo (I am familiar with the Spyderco Southard, is there a big difference in terms of quality? Is it worth the price difference between the two?)

Ferrum Forge Ferox (how does this compare to the Avo?)

Bill Akers "Back Pocket" (stumbled across this one in the custom section, it is a fix blade. It just caught my eye, but I know absolutely nothing about this maker. Any information would be appreciated.)

Thanks in advance for the help, I will ideally like to make a purchase by tonight!
 
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I cant speak to your needs or wants. I can only tell you the choice i would make. The begg would be a no way for me. Decent knives but terribly overpriced for what you get. And in my experience they have zero customer service. The dorado is viewed as a mid tech. It is made from parts machined in taiwan yet has a lot more handwork involved in each knife when compared to many mid tech offerings. And while that particular knife lacks bearings in the pivot most reports elude to them simply not needing them. Still for me i would upgrade to a higher level stage or just buy the kizer dorado. He kizer version has ti handles and you can get his skull pattern machined handle as well as an s35vn blade for right around $200. The southard avo to me is not woth the money. I simply dont care for the design and i actually think the spyderco southard has more in common wih brads work that the avo does. I cant speak on the bill akers as i dont do the fixed blades. Imho if you are lookingnfor something on a higher plane of manufacturing i would save and increase your budget to something really worth the extra cake. Because to me the majority of so called mid texhs really are just small run production knives. And to that end while tey have slightly more exclusivity you dont gain anything in performance or uniqueness and isnt that really the point of going custom? I know you say you dont want a sebbie but that is the best knife you mentioned imho and i dont even own a sebbie anymore nor am i a chris reeve fan in general. But as a lesser of all evils answer i would advocate for matts dorado mid tech. While it lacks some of the options i would like and i do feel the kizer offers more value at least each dorado sees attention from matt. And he is accessible in the event of an issue.
 
Thanks for the reply! these sort of opinions are exactly what I was looking for. You have given me a lot to think about.

So far Sebenza's are the most expensive knives I own. Past that I have absolutely no experience and am completely lost. I have not considered spending more than $500 on a knife, primarily because I thought I have always viewed this as my point of diminishing returns.

If you had to pick one knife under $1,000 that upon handling I would say to myself "ok, I get why I paid $500 more than a sebenza for this" what would it be? I guess my needs/wants is a knife that will hold its value, aesthetically pleasing, and above all else great fit and finish.
 
The next logical step above a Sebenza would be a Rockstead. Perhaps a Higo if you want the design to be close.
 
Jasonsdman said:
The next logical step above a Sebenza would be a Rockstead. Perhaps a Higo if you want the design to be close.
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That is an amazing suggestion! I had never seen the Higo before it looks spectacular.

Please keep suggestions like this coming, thanks guys.
 
The more I read about the Higo, the more I like it.

I think this is going to be my next purchase!

Are there any other knives out there that compare at this price range? Even though it is not a custom it seems to be comparable to a custom at this price point.
 
You want a Todd Begg cheap? It's absolutely new, was bought at BLADE; never used, cut or carried, is MINT and $100 off of list.

I have carried a large Sebenza or an Umnumzaan for several years. Right now the AVO is in my pocket. Nice knife; no doubt; but it's over $500 on the Exchange and you can get my mini-Glimpse and have about $300 left over. I think that the mini-Glimpse is a super EDC; depends on what you want to spend. Note that it is carried in a pouch, as there is no pocket-clip.
Look at the pics, and you can see that with the blade-choil, it is easily large enough to fit even my "large" hand.
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...er-Black-Sun-Burst-225-00?highlight=todd+begg

sonnydaze
:thumbup:
 
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Sonnydaze said:
You want a Todd Begg cheap? It's absolutely new, was bought at BLADE; never used, cut or carried, is MINT and $100 off of list.

I have carried a large Sebenza or an Umnumzaan for several years. Right now the AVO is in my pocket. Nice knife; no doubt; but it's over $500 on the Exchange and you can get my mini-Glimpse and have about $300 left over. I think that the mini-Glimpse is a super EDC; depends on what you want to spend. Note that it is carried in a pouch, as there is no pocket-clip.
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...er-Black-Sun-Burst-225-00?highlight=todd+begg


sonnydaze
:thumbup:
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I saw this listing, thanks but I think I am going to bite the bullet and go in a different direction. I have a lot of knives in that price range and have nothing above $500. I think it's time for me to make the jump.
 
slorenzo said:
Thanks for the reply! these sort of opinions are exactly what I was looking for. You have given me a lot to think about.

So far Sebenza's are the most expensive knives I own. Past that I have absolutely no experience and am completely lost. I have not considered spending more than $500 on a knife, primarily because I thought I have always viewed this as my point of diminishing returns.

If you had to pick one knife under $1,000 that upon handling I would say to myself "ok, I get why I paid $500 more than a sebenza for this" what would it be? I guess my needs/wants is a knife that will hold its value, aesthetically pleasing, and above all else great fit and finish.
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Honestly IMHO in the under a $1000 market I dont think you will find many knives that you can actually say that about. Chris Reeve is one of the companies that has truly earned their stripes. They are not a flavor of the week brand. And while I feel there are knives out there that have as good of fit and finish in the under $1000 mark I dont think many of them will hold their value and none of them will be as iconic or desirable. Sure there are rocksteads, shirogorovs and bodegas. Some people swear by them. Some might even feel they are superior to a CRK. I think if you truly want something that will hold its value, have great fit and finish you pretty much own the pinnacle of that criteria. Buying anything else would be buying it for the sake of having something different. But I must say knives are horrible investments. And they are even worse investments in the under $1000 market as many of them straddle the line of being worth it and having $200-300 worth of hype added to the price. I cant recommend a specific model but I would say above anything to remain patient and wait till something really special pulls on your heart strings. Because you have some really good knives until that happens and I simply dont think there is anything out there that will meet your expectations in that price range.
 
I just bought a New Gareth Bull 3.5 large Shamwari. If you wish to step up, that guy makes good stuff. Also like Burger knives; model LEXK. Both are knifemakers from South Africa.. These are $500-$650 ballpark.
 
PURPLEEDC: That is very wise advice. You make some very good points. I agree with you when it comes to hype. A lot of knives that consistently sell for more than Sebenzas seem tohave inferior tolerances.

Sonnydaze said:
I just bought a New Gareth Bull 3.5 large Shamwari. If you wish to step up, that guy makes good stuff. Also like Burger knives; model LEXK. Both are knifemakers from South Africa.. These are $500-$650 ballpark.
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I am currently deciding between that, a large carbon fiber 21, and the higo I discovered thanks to this thread.
 
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PURPLEDC is correct... if it doesn't tug on your heartstrings, then go find a better investment opportunity.

Pick up this Tighe Coon by Brian Tighe, or grab that Tim Wegner designed Pro Hunter from Phil Boguszewski.... Or a hundred other examples I can point you to...

Then stand there and ask yourself "Why would I pay $XXX more than a Sebenza for this?"

You'll either know why, or you won't have an answer and you'll pass it by. No Wall Street banker will explain it to you.

Want to make the purchase by tonight? My advice is this.... Don't hold yourself to a deadline.
 
Brian Tighe is one of my favorite designers. They are hard to find though. They start at $525 and go up, way up from there.
 
Velitrius said:
PURPLEDC is correct... if it doesn't tug on your heartstrings, then go find a better investment opportunity.

Pick up this Tighe Coon by Brian Tighe, or grab that Tim Wegner designed Pro Hunter from Phil Boguszewski.... Or a hundred other examples I can point you to...

Then stand there and ask yourself "Why would I pay $XXX more than a Sebenza for this?"

You'll either know why, or you won't have an answer and you'll pass it by. No Wall Street banker will explain it to you.

Want to make the purchase by tonight? My advice is this.... Don't hold yourself to a deadline.
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I no longer have a deadline. Originally I did because those knives were all listings I had found here and in other forums that interested me and/or were a great deal.
I 100% agree with you about knowing whether you make a connection with a knife when you handle it. With the Sebenza that is how I felt, I knew right away it just felt right. I would love to have a chance to handle a variety of custom knives. I am trying to see if I can convince the wife to plan a trip to blade, atlanta. Now that I plan on spending a little more, I will take my time to make a decision. That is unless Gareth Bull decides to answer me and agrees to make me a custom. That is the knife knife maker I continually get drawn to.
The Tighe Coon is an extremely cool knife. I would love to own a button lock. I saw Jim Skelton's videos a while back reviewing that knife. It seems like a great knife for the price, but it just does't seem like a knife I would use much. I am also drawn to simpler style. The pro hunter I have also encountered before, I am not to crazy about it. Aesthetically it reminds me too much of the Spyderco Gayle Bradley.
 
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Why not look at Reate knives? Still a lot of bang for the buck there. And the most incredible deal in custom knives (at ANY price, but these tend to be under $1000, sometimes well under), and the best, most beautiful and the finest/smoothest/fastest flippers made...Andre Thorburn. Those who've personally handled them know what I'm talking about.
 
Scrim said:
Why not look at Reate knives? Still a lot of bang for the buck there. And the most incredible deal in custom knives (at ANY price, but these tend to be under $1000, sometimes well under), and the best, most beautiful and the finest/smoothest/fastest flippers made...Andre Thorburn. Those who've personally handled them know what I'm talking about.
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The Reate knives don't do it for me, but those Andre Thorburn have me drooling. How long is the wait for one of his knives.

These are the kind of suggestions I was looking for!

Im am going to modify my list. As it stands so far the knives I am considering are:

Garteth Bull Shamwari (carbon fiber, and damascus), Andre Thorburn L51 Flipper, Rockstead Higo, and Laconico Jasmine (I like this knife, but the the price is throwing me off. I see them going for around $900, they seem a bit over priced. At $700 I would buy one)

I would love to hear opinions from anyone that owns any of these. Please post up pictures!
 
I don't have any experience with the Shamwari. Lots of experience with many Thorburn models. If I can assist further, let me know. I can say, with a good amount of confidence (not knowing you but knowing Thorburns) that if you get a Thorburn, chances are good that you'll be extreeeemely happy with it.
 
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