sgt1372
Platinum Member
- Joined
- Oct 16, 2018
- Messages
- 6,650
Ok, I got my CRKT Provoke today and I'm glad that I "only" had to pay $100 for it and that I didn't buy 2 more at that price as I could have.
I've only had it in my hands for less than an hour, so these are all just initial impressions but I think that they will be lasting opinions.
First, the good. The method of deployment is really COOL! Just like the way you can open the blade by pressing on the lever w/your thumb. Nothing better than that in terms of ease/simplicity but is it better than a properly drawn waved karambit, like the P'Kal or Karahawk? I think not.
Warning, the rest of my comments will not be positive.
Second, the knife is too heavy and bulky to be used as effectively as a lighter and more compact karambit. This should have been obvious at the outset but w/o actually handling the knife, I couldn't make that assessment.
The main problem w/the bulk of the knife for me is that the ring is too thick and when I grasp the knife tightly in my hand w/my index finger inserted in the ring, the edge of the ring (which is also too large for me) rubs painfully against the top and inside of the knuckle my index finger as well as the inside my middle finger which makes simply holding the knife, as well as flipping it to initiate certain combat moves, very uncomfortable.
Wearing a glove (which the oversized ring opening facilitates) would help but I do not often wear gloves.
Third, the clip is very difficult to use. In order to attach the clip to your pocket, you have to lift it up but the clip lies so closely against the frame that it requires a conscious effort to do this; you cannot just slip the knife in the pocket under the clip w/o thinking about it. I find it simpler to just slip the entire knife in my pocket which is large enough to hold both a wallet and the knife flat inside it but those w/smaller pockets will have problems doing this. So, a belt holster for this knife would be a very useful accessory.
Fourth, there is no way to close this knife w/o using 2 hands. I am not a big "one hand" knife guy, so it really doesn't bother me but, for those of you who are, there's is no way to "easily" close this knife w/one hand. There is a way to do it as explained below but it is awkward and I think you need long fingers to be able to do it well. However, for those, like me who don't mind closing a knife w/2 hands, the process is (like the clip) too fiddly and requires too much thought. It's simpler and safer to just close the blade w/2 hands.
I'm a pretty mechanically minded guy but it took me a few minutes to figure out how to close the knife. There's a locking lever located just below the ring that you have to move left which then releases the mechanism allowing you to close the knife. However, in order to do that you have to pull the blade assembly towards you but the initial impulse (at least is was for me) is to go in the opposite direction and to try to close it like a normal side opening knife by pushing the blade to the right.
It's obvious upon reflection that you can't do that but I nonetheless stupidly spent several minutes trying to figure out why the knife "wouldn't" close in that way. I won't be surprised if others "complain" about this "defect" when they finally get their knives but can't figure out how to close them. LOL!
I'll add further comments if any occur to me.
Needless to say, I will not be carrying the Provoke very often if at all. It's an interesting knife and I'm going to keep it but compared w/my Bastinelli/Marcaida Pika (that I am currently carrying) it's like comparing a Porsche w/a bloated and overloaded Suburban. Just ain't no comparison.
I've only had it in my hands for less than an hour, so these are all just initial impressions but I think that they will be lasting opinions.
First, the good. The method of deployment is really COOL! Just like the way you can open the blade by pressing on the lever w/your thumb. Nothing better than that in terms of ease/simplicity but is it better than a properly drawn waved karambit, like the P'Kal or Karahawk? I think not.
Warning, the rest of my comments will not be positive.
Second, the knife is too heavy and bulky to be used as effectively as a lighter and more compact karambit. This should have been obvious at the outset but w/o actually handling the knife, I couldn't make that assessment.
The main problem w/the bulk of the knife for me is that the ring is too thick and when I grasp the knife tightly in my hand w/my index finger inserted in the ring, the edge of the ring (which is also too large for me) rubs painfully against the top and inside of the knuckle my index finger as well as the inside my middle finger which makes simply holding the knife, as well as flipping it to initiate certain combat moves, very uncomfortable.
Wearing a glove (which the oversized ring opening facilitates) would help but I do not often wear gloves.
Third, the clip is very difficult to use. In order to attach the clip to your pocket, you have to lift it up but the clip lies so closely against the frame that it requires a conscious effort to do this; you cannot just slip the knife in the pocket under the clip w/o thinking about it. I find it simpler to just slip the entire knife in my pocket which is large enough to hold both a wallet and the knife flat inside it but those w/smaller pockets will have problems doing this. So, a belt holster for this knife would be a very useful accessory.
Fourth, there is no way to close this knife w/o using 2 hands. I am not a big "one hand" knife guy, so it really doesn't bother me but, for those of you who are, there's is no way to "easily" close this knife w/one hand. There is a way to do it as explained below but it is awkward and I think you need long fingers to be able to do it well. However, for those, like me who don't mind closing a knife w/2 hands, the process is (like the clip) too fiddly and requires too much thought. It's simpler and safer to just close the blade w/2 hands.
I'm a pretty mechanically minded guy but it took me a few minutes to figure out how to close the knife. There's a locking lever located just below the ring that you have to move left which then releases the mechanism allowing you to close the knife. However, in order to do that you have to pull the blade assembly towards you but the initial impulse (at least is was for me) is to go in the opposite direction and to try to close it like a normal side opening knife by pushing the blade to the right.
It's obvious upon reflection that you can't do that but I nonetheless stupidly spent several minutes trying to figure out why the knife "wouldn't" close in that way. I won't be surprised if others "complain" about this "defect" when they finally get their knives but can't figure out how to close them. LOL!
I'll add further comments if any occur to me.
Needless to say, I will not be carrying the Provoke very often if at all. It's an interesting knife and I'm going to keep it but compared w/my Bastinelli/Marcaida Pika (that I am currently carrying) it's like comparing a Porsche w/a bloated and overloaded Suburban. Just ain't no comparison.
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