Help me Spend Money - Flipper

J

JMaher

Joined
Mar 26, 2001
Messages
69
I am looking to buy a knife and while I have spent more than a fair amount of time over the past week reading comments and reviews I am still a novice at this.

I own a Sebenza and love how it is made but in general I find it a little difficult to open with one hand and the idea of a good flipper seems to make sense. I want it to be light enough to be a EDC some days, reasonable slicer, flip well (fun factor), look good and be well made. There are few they seem to be spoken of in awe (starts with an S :) but seem above my willingness to spend money on at this point but I want something that will be a long term keeper.

I started out with a Massdrop FF Falcon and like it but it might be just a little smaller than what I want. Maybe something somewhere from 3" to 3.75 probably in the smaller end.

After a lot of reading these seem to be highly regarded:
Kizer Gemini
ZT 0450
Olamic Wayfarer 24

Any thoughts about these or others would be greatly appreciated.

Jim
 
I have a 0450. It is really nice. Although... not muchhhh bigger than a falcon. Maybe look at the 0452. Depends on your budget too. ZT will be the best value for the best flipper hands down, in my opinion.
 
The 0450 is on my list right behind a XM-18 and a 0562 custom anodized by USA Made Blade. I'll get the blacked out CF model. It's had glowing reviews and from my exp with ZT it'll be a real winner. Good price point too especially if you get one second hand
 
The Falcon is very small. If you have the extra money, you should also get a Real steel Sea Eagle. Amazing knife for 50 something dollars. So smooth and quite solid. Really impressed with this knife, especially for the price! I prefer the carbon fiber model. Just a preference, it isn't textured under the pocket clip, to it won't wear your pocket material prematurely lie the rough textured G10.
 
I have all three of the knives you've mentioned and can offer some comments on each one...

The Kizer Gemini is a fine knife and probably the least expensive of the ones you're considering. If you choose the Gemini make certain to ask your vendor if you would be getting a second generation Gemini with a milled pocket clip. The original Gemini had a fairly ugly stamped clip and the new ones have a nicer, milled clip. I bought a Gemini when they first came out but now the knife seems a little bit "2016'ish" to me. The handles are fairly boring and plain and the blade has simple, functional lines. There's nothing wrong with that but now the Gemini seems a little boring. If you want to try out a Kizer flipper in a similar size, you might also consider the T1 or the Envoy. Both seem to have a little more character and appeal, at least to my eye.

The ZT0450 is a great knife but proceed with caution here if the Falcon felt too small for you. The ZT handle is a little longer but slimmer. Many folks had trouble with the 0450 flipping well because they struggled with keeping their fingers off the lock bar. All in all the 0450 is awesome but it just didn't work for some people. You might also look at the new 0609. I'm lusting after it and plan on getting one but might wait until a sprint run is offered. I know many folks who swear by the ZT 0456. It's kind of a big-little knife, if you get my meaning. If you're considering a ZT, check out some of the cool annodizations offered at USAMadeBlade for no extra cost.

The 24/7 is almost a work of art. I have one and it's a little too fancy for me to carry often, but I really enjoy it when I do. The action is incredible and the options that Olamic offer to create a personalized knife make it a lot of fun. The Olamic is also going to be the most expensive knife among these three and you'll always fight the battle of diminishing returns that always kicks in as the price tag goes up.

A few other options you might consider if you're willing to foot the bill for an Olamic are the Reate Wave and Mini Horizon, the Liong Mah Lanny (if you can find one), the Giant Mouse GM3 (I liked it even if nobody else did) and any of the WE Knives that seem to catch your eye.

Good luck and have fun!
 
Love my 0450!
Smooth as butter flipping and solid lockup. You would love Im sure ;)
 
Another vote for the ZT 0609
7S9VWGT.jpg
 
JMaher said:
I am looking to buy a knife and while I have spent more than a fair amount of time over the past week reading comments and reviews I am still a novice at this.

I own a Sebenza and love how it is made but in general I find it a little difficult to open with one hand and the idea of a good flipper seems to make sense. I want it to be light enough to be a EDC some days, reasonable slicer, flip well (fun factor), look good and be well made. There are few they seem to be spoken of in awe (starts with an S :) but seem above my willingness to spend money on at this point but I want something that will be a long term keeper.

I started out with a Massdrop FF Falcon and like it but it might be just a little smaller than what I want. Maybe something somewhere from 3" to 3.75 probably in the smaller end.

After a lot of reading these seem to be highly regarded:
Kizer Gemini
ZT 0450
Olamic Wayfarer 24

Any thoughts about these or others would be greatly appreciated.

Jim
Click to expand...

I cannot recommend Reate more. The Mini Horizon D may be my perfect knife. Ceramic bearings, the best flipper design I’ve ever used, beating out even my F95, so you can flip it comfortably all day long. M390, 3.5”, stout enough for EDC, but thin enough to still cut well.

vpvrQMS.jpg


The Horizon C is also incredible. Ceramic MRBS for $300 CAD, also excellent action. Great steel with the mainstay S35VN

Those are excellent quality knives that you could use guilt free.

If you want a little more flare, the Steelcraft Bodega is the most impressive knife I’ve ever touched. It feels like a custom
 
From the top of your size range, working down: CKF SSE, ZT 0095, Giant Mouse GM3, Hinderer MP1, ZT 0456, Spyderco Mantra2, Spyderco Positron (carbon fiber)
I like bigger knives, and don't mind a 6-8 oz knife; but my absolute favorite from that list is the GM3...with the cf Positron and Mantra2 getting very honorable mentions (in a way, I'm even more impressed with those - because I like them in spite of their size and weight, or lack thereof)
 
If I had not bought $2,500+ worth of knives this week I would be buying a Rick Hinderer Knives Half Track 2.75" Flipper, CPM-20CV.
 
Thanks to all for their comments. Almost everyone has made different recommendations, primarily Reate, ZT and Kizer.

Will look over each and every one suggested on line. If any one has any more suggestions or could suggest the next tier up as well I will take a look at those. A few of suggestions seem to be impossible to find or at least in limited supply.

Thanks again.

Jim
 
Organic556 said:
It’s a newer knife but I’d go with the Zt 0609. Carries nice in pocket not too much bulk and it’s a flipper. Perfect edc knife from Zt.
Click to expand...

I just picked one up. This is a deceptive knife, it feels small because it is light and thin, but its blade is only a whisker shorter than my XM-18 3.5” Bowie. To use a frequent comparison, it is like the BM 940 in the way a lot of blade is packed into a light and thin handle. The blade also happens to be 20cv too.:thumbsup:
 
Andre Thorburn makes a very nice flipper starting at or a little bit above the Olamic price point.
 
Going back to my recommendations - since you referenced weight. The 3 lightest of my list are cf positron (2.6 oz), mantra 2 (2.8 oz), and gm3 (3.2 oz).
Unfortunately, none of those are currently in production (doesn't mean they can't be had)
 
I’m not sure on your budget, but if you own a Sebenza and you want a flipper that rivals the tolerances/QC of said sebenza then I would suggest a Shiro Hation/Hati/Neon/NeonLite? This is the Hati, you’re practically getting 4” of cutting edge while just being a shy over 4oz. To me this is a beautiful thing

 
Would love to try a Neon but I think beyond my current willing to spend :)

Based on all the above comments and my research I am currently looking at and reading comments on:
Reate - Mini Horizon D
Reate Wave
Olamic 24
Steelcraft Mini Bodega
ZT 0609
 
JMaher said:
Would love to try a Neon but I think beyond my current willing to spend :)

Based on all the above comments and my research I am currently looking at and reading comments on:
Reate - Mini Horizon D
Reate Wave
Olamic 24
Steelcraft Mini Bodega
ZT 0609
Click to expand...

I'd look at the ZT 0095 as well. Mine is probably my favorite in terms of its flipping action. I love the Olamic Wayfarer 247 too. While I like my Mini Bodega, it's pretty small. Finally broke down and got a ZT 0562CF. It's also a great flipper and stout blade. So many great knives to choose from. Have fun.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top