Hinderer XM 18 Differences

B

~Bugler~

Joined
Apr 8, 2008
Messages
108
Can someone tell me why some of the Hinderer's have his name either on the blade, scale, or not at all, and the difference in the gens? Thanks.
 
Not 100% sure about where the "Hinderer" name is on the Gen 1s, but here are the differences that I know about:

Gen 1:
-Some might have used a different steel, not sure what (maybe S30V)
-Blade grind: Hand ground by Rick, hollow ground with "spanto" tip
-Non-locking side of frame is G-10 with a partial titanium liner

Gen 2:
-"Hinderer" on the blade
-Steel: Duratech 20CV
-Blade Grind: hand ground by Rick, hollow ground with "spanto" tip
-Non-locking side has G-10 with full Ti liner

Gen 3:
-"Hinderer" on the frame around the pivot pin. Blade is blank.
-Blade grind: Outsourced, saber/flat ground with "spanto" tip
-Non-locking side has G-10/ full Ti liner

Some Gen 3s are full custom. Those are the ones with blank blades and various types of grinds that aren't saber/flat. Some might be the original hollow/spanto grinds, and he's been making others.
 
Thanks. I just bought a Gen 1 and from the pics the name is not on it anywhere.

Does the half liner or full liner make a lot of difference on the scale side?
 
The simple answer is no. Striders and many other uber tough knives (such as Airkat knives) use strictly G-10 (not even a partial liner) on the non-locking side and those guys beat the hell out of their knives. You have nothing to worry about. Enjoy beating the hell out of your knife. You've got one of the toughest in the business. Congrats:thumbup:
 
Kaizen1,

Thanks for the answers. It came in today. It's "smaller" than I expected only because of the reading I've done on them and expected this huge knife to be all that I've read about. It's perfect in size for what I like. Even for the cost I'm looking forward to making this a user and not a "dq".

His name is on the blade like the Gen 2's, just not as bold.

I'm lovin' it. This took the place of getting the sebenza that I wanted for quite some time. No regrets and thanks, again.
 
I'd take an XM-18 over a Sebbie any day, but that's just a matter of personal preference. I just traded my Gen 3 for a Gen 2 and I'm waiting for it in the mail. Congrats JMJ3rd:thumbup:
 
I just looked over all that was sent to me. It appears that the gen 1 and 2 scales are interchangable. It came with a gen 2 scale that has a full ti liner and hardware. I thought it was just another scale. This knife is so cool.

Why did you make the trade to a 2?
 
I like the grind on the 2 better and the idea that Rick personally did the entire knife. There's somewhat of a debate about if the Gen 3 is still officially a "custom" because he outsources the grind. Functionally there shouldn't be a difference between the Gen 3 grind and the earlier ones. It just has a little more metal on it than the Gen 1&2 because it's a flat grind rather than hollow. It's really just a matter of knowing that I have a full custom from Rick. He still does full customs, but unlike his previous Gens which used to cost around $385-$400, he now charges $1000+ for those.
 
Man! It almost makes me not want to use it and wait for my 3 to carry, but I have no idea when it's supposed to be ready. I have started looking for a 2 to aquire. Please give me a heads-up if you see one. I don't care what color, but I don't want a flipper yet.

BTW thanks for the invite. How does that work?
 
Kaizen1 said:
He still does full customs, but unlike his previous Gens which used to cost around $385-$400, he now charges $1000+ for those.
Click to expand...
Rick charges $550 to $650 for a custom ground 3 1/2" XM-18 depending on handle materials.
 
Hammer said:
Rick charges $550 to $650 for a custom ground 3 1/2" XM-18 depending on handle materials.
Click to expand...

My mistake, I must've been thinking of the secondary market. On the secondary market I've seen the custom Gen 3s go for $850-$1k+. I haven't seen any prices lower than that.
 
JMJ3rd said:
Man! It almost makes me not want to use it and wait for my 3 to carry, but I have no idea when it's supposed to be ready. I have started looking for a 2 to aquire. Please give me a heads-up if you see one. I don't care what color, but I don't want a flipper yet.

BTW thanks for the invite. How does that work?
Click to expand...

I'll keep you posted if I do see one. The Gen 2s seem to be going down in price recently due to concerns in the economy. I've seen 2 of them being offered from $725-$750. Unfortunately, they're both gone already.

You might want to make it a habit to stop by the "Custom For Sale" sections right when you get on these forums and before you leave. If it's a really good deal, it can be gone in minutes. The non-flipper Gen 2s seem to be more difficult to find. The 3" bladed XM-18s (both fliper and non-flipper) are the most difficult.

The invite is just something you accept and you can make that same offer to others as you talk to more of the regulars.
 
I found one and made an offer earlier tonight about 23 minutes after it posted. It's a 2 non-flipper.
 
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