How do you feel about Emerson knives?

Time to abandon this thread since the haters are starting surface. To the thread starter buy a Emerson and you won’t be disappointed. I’ve had many and loved them all and wishing you the best with your journey :)
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I like it as a beater knife, it takes an insane edge real fast, its my go to knife when I’m gonna use it hard. I leave my nice folders for EDC needs
 
TheFactor said:
Time to abandon this thread since the haters are starting surface. To the thread starter buy a Emerson and you won’t be disappointed. I’ve had many and loved them all and wishing you the best with your journey :)
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The title of this thread asks how people feel about Emerson knives, and is not titled “Emerson Knife Lovers’ Only Thread”. Although Emerson knives ended up not being for me personally (after several years of trying them out), I am NOT an Emerson knife hater. But it seemed as if OP wanted to know people’s feelings on Emersons ... good, bad or whatever. And different people are going to have different opinions.

Just like whenever someone asks about CRK knives (one of my favorite brands). There are always those who like them, but there are always those who don’t like them, or think they’re overpriced/overrated. That doesn’t bother me, and it shouldn’t bother anyone else, either. Different opinions are what make a discussion forum.

Jim
 
The only Emerson that interest me is a CQC7.

However, I own four Griptilians. I don’t see much that a CQC7 offers over a Grip.
 
I have a couple (CQC-13 and Gentleman Jim), love and hate them. Love the ergonomic, blades design and f&f, overall fealing of the knives. They cut great, it very easy to sharp, and I am absolutely fine with steel choice and treatment quality.
But I hate the locking mechanism. Everything in it is disaster )))) You never know what kind of lock-up you will get - it can be dangerously early or totally late almost hitting the opposite site. Due to poor tolerance it also influence on blade centering - I fixed poor centering on GJ only when change the pivot on custom one. And what is killing me, both of my knives don’t have the detent lock at all, and that is the serious problem. I had to over tighten the pivot to avoid the risk of spontaneous opening.
At the end, if you ask me, should you try an Emerson, my answer is definitely yes, I love them much more than hate them, they are really something more then just a knives
:)
 
desmobob said:
I tried a Commander way back when, after reading "Rogue Warrior" by Dick Marcinko. That was around 1993. I didn't like the single-sided grind but man, that Wave feature sure hooked me! I later bought three more Waved Emersons and could hardly get myself to carry anything else. You just cannot deploy any other blade as fast or as easily; not even an auto. After getting used to Waved Emersons, carrying a normal one-hand opening tactical folder felt like carrying a traditional slip joint, as far as speed/convenience was concerned.

I bought a CQC-7V to get a conventional blade grind and I converted a Horseman to V-grind, and I felt like this helped make those Emersons a better EDC choice. But for the price, the blade steel and fit and finish are not what I'd hope for. I still carry them regularly but a lot of my good one-hand opening tactical knives are back into the EDC rotation.
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Marcinko was an influence on my first Emerson as well. Ernie is a business man and a promoter; reportedly the Rogue Warrior movie knife and OpSec super-secret goins-ons led to Dick using Spyderco knives in his subsequent novels - nothing to do with the actual knives themselves.

I too got "hooked" on the Wave. Bought, carried and owned (still own) a raft of his knives. I carry them more often than all other brands.

I put up with the idiosyncratic "character" traits of Emerson Knives because they were cool, and Ernie seemed like a nice enough guy, patriotic, and while it suits his business model - I truly believe he is genuinely that way independant of his business. I have no first hand knowledge of him saying or doing anything that would cause me not to respect him.

That being said, and I have no problem with each and every facet of the EKI knives and the business model being directed at profit. That's not a bad thing. After all, that's why businesses are in business - otherwise they would be called a charity or a hobby; the latter is actually the basis for an IRS rule. Everything mentioned in this thread and elsewhere seems to be directed at minimizing production costs (other than the admirable made in USA) and maximizing revenue - to include the admirable made in USA.

While I am still heavily invested in Emerson steel, Ti and G10 (gotta eventually sell off some EKI Safe Queens) I do not buy into the mantra that if you don't appreciate the fit & finish or rough "design" then you just don't "get it" and that you'll never be a SEAL, CIA Operative or Super-Duper Black Bag High Speed - Low Drag Operator. Think about it, if Marcinko's earlier novels never mentioned Emerson and if Ernie didn't foster, maintain and enjoy some level of some connection with the NavSpecWar community would his company be as successful? He would still be respected as one of the founders if not the founder of the tactical folding knife; he would still be credited with the Wave but it does beg the question: how long can you surf that (forgive me) wave before your products have to stand on their own in categories like fit, finish, quality, value and customer service. Sooner or later customers want what they want for their money and to survive or thrive, it has to be provided.
 
I bought a used Emerson Mach 1 a number of years ago to use while working. It had obvious signs of use but not abuse and I got it for $80 on e-bay. It has served the purpose of a hard use folder. I can't say that I have really warmed up to the chisel edge but the knife has worked everytime that I have needed it and I certainly am not worried about scratching it up. The blade geometry seems optimized for penetrating rather than cutting. I have sent it back for servicing and sharpening a couple of times. The turnaround time and quality of the service were good on both occasions. I don't regret the purchase.
I met Emerson once at the SoCal Custom Knife show several years ago. He seemed like a decent individual and was treating everyone pleasantly.

Foxdoublegunner
 
Have several, overall, they work ok, but the last two I purchased had critical flaws. The A100 wouldn't open, one handed, blade was off center, lateral blade play, and it wouldn't lock up. I decided to troubleshoot it, and found a non-lock side warped liner, poor lock tension, and there was manufacturing "Flash" material around the liner pivot cutout, that pressed passed the washers and was grinding a nice arc into the blade. The other was a new-old-stock waveless CQC7, that has lateral blade play and lock wobble. That was also fixed with some adjustments. Neither should have left the factory. If you get a good one, they are solid pieces, but it's always a crapshoot.
 
I wish that I had known about them when I was in uniform.
I really would have enjoyed a CQC7. I liked tanto blades quite a bit back then. I carried a CRKT M16-02 back then.

Sometimes I carried a CRKT Prowler. It looks very Emerson like in the handle and is still one of my all time favorite knives even though the steel is lacking.
 
I like Emerson’s warranty service. I sent them a CQC 15 that I had swapped some PB washers into they fixed it no questions and left the PB washers in. Total turn around was 7ish days
 
I have owned a LOT of Emersons. 60+ productions and at one point I had 13 or 14 customs. In the end I just got turned off by several things.

The customs could be fantastic, or really subpar. Which for table price or secondary market price is unacceptable. I'm not talking about the blade grinds - I mostly had the full zero grind blades and Ernie does those extremely well. But the fit and finish on the handles could be hit or miss. Centering could be hit or miss. Ease of opening could be hit or miss. Sometimes to keep the blade centered the pivot had to be obnoxiously tight.

Productions could be great or really "meh". Also unacceptable for the price. It's hard to spend $350 on a rough handled G10 knife with nylatron washers and stiff ass action and the v-chisel grind when you can get a Reate Crossroads for the same amount.

But I think the final thing for me was just the cash-grabiness of a lot of the stuff they released last year. And when they do the auctions - online or otherwise - I don't get why they stick in stuff no one wants like the Chopstick or the steak knife etc. Just make more of the knives people want. Sell the goofy experimental vanity project ones in the Area 57 Proto part of the website. It just seems silly?/unfair?/selfish? to run the auction the way it's run (random knife and name selection - you must buy the knife if selected or you will be excluded from further auctions) when people really want like 10 of the knives and realistically enter the auction hoping for one of those. Most people are not in the auction for a Bulljack or Chopstick or Folding Steak Knife.

To each their own though. I leaned a lot from Emerson knives about what I want in a knife (or don't), how susceptible I am to marketing, and how to make a good cost to value assessment (based on my criteria). In the end I'd just rather get more ease of function (i don't need or like the wave), comfort (better and smoother handle materials), and a more realistic blade grind for the same money (FFG, Hollow, etc.). I now have no Emersons. I just expect more from my knives and knifemakers.
 
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TheFactor said:
Let’s be clear what your stating is your opinion and far from facts.
That’s from your experience and not from mine and many others or Emerson would not be in business . Everyone I’ve had has been a first class example .
You have some pretty bad luck if what your stating is true. I’ve been buying Emerson’s for over 20 years and never experienced what you have. Either you have some pretty bad luck or I’ve got some very good luck or both lol .
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I've bought three and all three are among the five worst knives I've owned. Glad to hear you've had good luck, but anyone reading this thread can hopefully see that the QC at the Emerson factory seems to be rather lacking.
 
Own 4:
Horseman, 2016 model. Good knife, but the liner travels just a bit against the opposite side during harder cuts, nothing serious. Detent is good. Nothing to complain about

Mini CQC-7, 2014 (i think): good. If I tru to fold it with my hands while its locked I can get the liner to move sliiightly against the liner side. Not bulletproof, but good enough for such a short blade.

CQC 7v, 2016: this was a grail knife for me. Detent and sentering is good, grind is beautiful. It has early lock up when I open it carefully, but during use the liner moves against the opposite side. If I pushcut hard I can get it all the way over, but it will snap closed if I put some mild pressure on the spine with my hands. I can see how the liner flex and creeps towards open when I put pressure gently on the spine.

Commander, 2014 (I think): very weak detent, sliced open my favorite pants when it opened in the pocket. Pivot keeps coming loose. Same lock-up issues as the 7v.

If these knives had the same lock up and detent as my Spyderco Gayle Bradley 2, I would not hesitate to recommend them. The way they are now? No. And still, I really want a 15 and a HD7, but I can’t justify it when I «know», based on my own experiences, that the lock will wear out in weeks.

ps: I open them with the disc, I don’t wave them regularly. But I have tried to wave them, obviously, and when I do, the Commander and 7v will travel all the way over.
 
There are a few emersons that I'd like to try but just haven't yet. Seems like maybe Emersons are like Jeeps. Anyone who's never had a wrangler and then looks at a tj will be surprised at the price and all the visible spot welds in the tub. But there's nothing else like them and people love them. Take a non jeep person for a ride and all you hear are complaints. You either love them or hate them. Just the vibe I get from threads like this. As long as the lock up is ok I think I'd be alright with the other quirks.
 
Something about having a Emerson in my pocket makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside :D
Look at that beautiful grind and that will cut you just looking at it to long. With the soul that only other knives can dream of.
What a beautiful knife I’m proud to carry in my pocket just like every Emerson I own:thumbsup:
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Emerson's are what they are. This isn't his first rodeo...Emerson has been around a long time now. The Commander pretty much solidified him in the 'tacticool' circles many years ago. My impression is outside of his uber high end knives like the CQC6, he generally makes knives intended for 'users' and isn't overly concerned about the keyboard commando/self appointed authority/nitpicker types. The G10 is too grippy...the G10 isn't grippy enough. There was a imperfection in the fitting...154CM is too soft...I had to tighten the pivot screw....yada yada yada. Talk about your first world problems.

Do they have flaws...yep. Can people fiddle with them and make mountains out of mole hills? Yep. Are there other good, solid knives for less? Yes. Better ones? Some would most certainly say yes. ZT's 620/630 are d@mn fine folders.

Don't like 'em, spend your $$ elsewhere...if you want a Sebenza, go drop $400 on one...pretty sure Ernie won't loose much sleep about it.

Personally, I like Emersons for what they are...I carried a particular one for about 10 years...I could easily pull it out of semi-retirement and stick in my pocket right now and it would do just fine. I own a few others that have since replaced it, and they're in the rotation with other brands depending on the day/activity. The Commander is the 'iconic' EKI in my mind, with the CQC8 right there and the CQC7 + A100 as well. I actually like the Journeyman quite a lot...lives up to its intended design purpose quite well.

$.02 worth,
Boss
 
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