Hibben Draon Lord..... Piece of junk?

X

Xarg

Joined
Feb 21, 2013
Messages
3
I ordered this knife new from Amazon, BudK as the dealer, a few days ago, and it got here today. The first thing I noticed was that I could see glue around the little dragon on one of the sides. Another thing was, the "knuckle guard", claw.... thing. It was wobbling, and fell out not long after I'd taken the protective plastic off of the knife. Being the genius I am, I JB welded it back into place. The thing that really irks me though, is the handle. It's just a little bit loose. The whole thing has the slightest amount of shake. Know of any way to tighten this thing up? Maybe twisting the skull-cracker thing on the bottom?

screenshot-1607-1
 
To honest yes it's junk....I'd try a esee 3 or 4 there not really cheap but they'll last ya a life time!
 
My man, those fantasy knives from the BudK catalogue were meant to be displayed in a case or on some sort of desk or wall mount. They're just for looking at, not for carrying or (god forbid) cutting. As a cutting tool it's a total POS. As a display item? Well.... It is what it is.
 
BudK is the dollar store of the knife world. If you want a fantasy blade like that for actual use, make it yourself or pay a skilled maker to design one for you.
 
Purely decorative I'm afraid. Probably no way to tighten it up since it's likely joined with cement rather than a mechanical fastener.
 
I wouldn't expect the tolerance on most fantasy blades to rank very high since they aren't really meant to be used..?
 
These cheap Hibben fantasy knives are designed almost exlusively as wallhangers and are not really intended to be functional. A few pieces are fairly well made, like the Silver Shadow dagger I used to own, but some others are not. It's very likely that the skullcrusher piece on the end of the handle is threaded on the inside, and you may be able to turn it to the right to snug it down, but I don't know for sure. It's also likely to have some form of rat tail tang (welded on threaded rod), so even if you get it tightened, it may not hold up to much actual use. If you can disassemble the hilt completely, I'd sure like to have a look at exactly how it's put together.

edit: 42 posted while I was posting. He may indeed be correct on the hilt attachment. I also wanted to add that Gil Hibben is a heck of a knife designer, but his name has unfortunatley become linked more with this fantasy stuff than his functional designs. :(
 
Theoretically you could fill the handle with glue and that would probably keep it solid, but I'm not sure it would be worth the cost of the glue for a wallhanger...
 
Sorry about this purchase. Stick around, do some research on what makes a good knife, and buy with caution. Welcome to the forums!
 
If you are looking for a bomb proof knife with a knuckle guard and a skull crusher, check out the Busse AALB on bussecombat.com
 
Ah. Crap. Well, at least I know to never get lured in by a fantasy knife again until the next time I do. So if there's no real way to actually get this thing tightened down, would it be better to try to tear it down and salvage the blade, or just keep it as a ceremonial chicken execution tool?
 
Xarg said:
Ah. Crap. Well, at least I know to never get lured in by a fantasy knife again until the next time I do. So if there's no real way to actually get this thing tightened down, would it be better to try to tear it down and salvage the blade, or just keep it as a ceremonial chicken execution tool?
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Yup.....really though if you just need a good user knife look at mora of Sweden knives they can be had for around $14 and are of good quality.
 
Grease said:
Theoretically you could fill the handle with glue and that would probably keep it solid, but I'm not sure it would be worth the cost of the glue for a wallhanger...
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I think the manufacturer was thinking the same thing when they assembled them. :D
 
Xarg said:
Ah. Crap. Well, at least I know to never get lured in by a fantasy knife again until the next time I do. So if there's no real way to actually get this thing tightened down,would it be better to try to tear it down and salvage the blade, or just keep it as a ceremonial chicken execution tool?
Click to expand...

Neither.
Buy a hard use ESEE4 and beat the snot out of it.
Stick around here and learn about proper knives.
After a while it will dawn on you, what a POS you bought off BudK.
When your toes are uncurled again, you throw out the BudK POS or sell it, if you can bear do that to some unsuspecting smuck.
Then go use the ESEE some more and feel better knowing your shelled out for at least one proper tool.
Never never never tell anybody, that you actually paid for that BudK abomination and try to forget about it yourself (buying real knives helps).
We have all been there to some degree - I would tell a tale of a cheapo hollow handle 'survival' knife, if it wasnt a repressed memory (thats my story and Im sticking to it).
 
BladeScout said:
Neither.
Buy a hard use ESEE4 and beat the snot out of it.
Stick around here and learn about proper knives.
After a while it will dawn on you, what a POS you bought off BudK.
When your toes are uncurled again, you throw out the BudK POS or sell it, if you can bear do that to some unsuspecting smuck.
Then go use the ESEE some more and feel better knowing your shelled out for at least one proper tool.
Never never never tell anybody, that you actually paid for that BudK abomination and try to forget about it yourself (buying real knives helps).
We have all been there to some degree - I would tell a tale of a cheapo hollow handle 'survival' knife, if it wasnt a repressed memory (thats my story and Im sticking to it).
Click to expand...

I love ESEE and own several but one doesn't need to shell out big bucks for a quality knife. Just pick up a Mora for starters and you'll be lightyears ahead of a United Cutlery Hibben display knife. :)
 
Xarg said:
Ah. Crap. Well, at least I know to never get lured in by a fantasy knife again until the next time I do. So if there's no real way to actually get this thing tightened down, would it be better to try to tear it down and salvage the blade, or just keep it as a ceremonial chicken execution tool?
Click to expand...

I'd say go use the thing until it disintegrates, and take pictures all along the way (and then post them too). You bought the thing as a user, why not use it? Despite what everyone says, I'm sure you'll get a little bit of fun out of it at least.
 
Xarg said:
Ah. Crap. Well, at least I know to never get lured in by a fantasy knife again until the next time I do. So if there's no real way to actually get this thing tightened down, would it be better to try to tear it down and salvage the blade, or just keep it as a ceremonial chicken execution tool?
Click to expand...
That thing might self destruct if you used it to kill a chicken!--Like they said. Get a Mora or Svord peasant knife.--KV
 
Xarg said:
So if there's no real way to actually get this thing tightened down, would it be better to try to tear it down and salvage the blade, or just keep it as a ceremonial chicken execution tool?
Click to expand...

If you like the style, hang it up or make a little display stand for it. As far as carrying it to use as a knife, it doesn't look safe or useful.

Best luck to you, and Welcome to BladeForums.
 
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