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ElConquistador

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Feb 12, 2007
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605
Well I finally broke down and bought a Sebenza. Not that you all haven't seen a regular plain ol' Large Sebenza 21 but I've added pictures for your enjoyment.

I love Striders and have a couple SNGs. I've never been super interested in CRK knives, they look a bit plain to me and I'm not a fan of the hollow grind blade. I tend to be attracted to the more tactical (whatever that means) knives. A while back, maybe a year ago I bought a Small Starbenza, I didn't like how small it was and sold it right a way.

Recently I've been kind of keeping an eye out for Sebenza 25. I thought the slightly thicker blade and flat grind was going to be the perfect CRK for me. I got more serious about looking and had money ready to go when I saw the new Micarta 25. I liked the look of it and started looking into the plain 25 vs the Micarta 25. ...so how did I end up with a Large 21 you may ask? The more I looked the more I like the simplicity of the 21, the busing pivot, no loc-tite needed, no silly notch on the top of the blade. It just seems to me that the 25 has been engineered to be built more easily than the 21. Overall the 21 just seems to be the epitome of a CRK knife.

Once I decided on a 21 I toyed with the idea of getting a fancy one, I like the "Tanker" model or the "Glorious" one. I would have been willing to pay the extra money but I ended up deciding that the plain Large 21 was the perfect CRK for me, I like the blue accents and the plain scales that will wear and show some character after a while. I would have got a dual thumb stud model but I couldn't find one.

When the knife arrived I think I finally understood what all the CRK guys talk about. It's perfect, not a tooling or grinding mark to be found, I've never seen such a perfect blade and edge. It looks great, it's very smooth and getting smoother. It's definitely a keeper for me. The sweeping motion to open it is different than I'm used to but i's really not designed to flip and doesn't flip open well anyway. It's a little different than what I'm used to but I like it a lot. I left the lanyard on... ...it made it for about half a day before it drove me nuts. My only criticism is that it is only acceptably sharp, it will take a hair or two off your arm but is not shaving sharp like my Emerson's or Striders.

...I'm so impressed with the 21 that I started looking for a Umnumzaan... ....never a good idea. I found one for a deal I couldn't pass up and it should be here Saturday. I hope that I will like the Umnum as much as the 21.

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Congratulations! Welcome to the world of CRK. If I was you I would look into a future rehabilitation center for Mr. Wallet, because he's going to need it forthcoming, lol. I just bought a CRK Umnumzaan recently that I received yesterday and absolutely love it. It's such a beast of knife but should fit right in with your liking, especially since you seem to enjoy Striders. Nice Digicam SnG by the way!
 
Second one on the way already?? Before long you will have 14 (my current count) and wonder why you waited so long to get one!
 
Congratulations on your new 21, it is a beautiful knife. I am interested to hear what you think if the Umnumzaan as that is the knife next on my Radar. CRK's only get better overtime and I think you will find, I did anyway, that they become the standard that you measure all of your other knives against.
 
I did the same thing you did. A few years ago, I bought a Small 21 and wasn't terribly impressed with it. I carried it for a few days, then sold it. I just assumed that CRK's were overrated.

After a while, I realized that I didn't like *any* of my knives, and I figured out that it was because they were all too small, so I started carrying larger blades. I went through a few SnG's, a couple Hinderers, some Benchmades (all great knives). Ended up with a Large 21 and loved it, but sold it for a SnG.

Blah blah blah fast forward to 2 weeks ago, I picked up a Large 21 damascus and almost immediately after I picked up an Umnumzaan... and, just so you know, the Umnum is fantastic - you will love yours.
 
Welcome to the CRK club! You bought a legendary, classic knife. You should like the Umnumzaan, great knife as well.

Only thing I disagree with in your post is the "silly notch" comment on the 25. Why is it "silly?"

It actually looks fine in person, at least to me. I would consider it a little "flair" and watch knocking the 25, I thought the 25 micarta was ugly in photos and now that I have one I honestly think it's the overall nicest of the 7 CRKs I own, including a regular 25. Nothing wrong with that knife whatsoever. Ever hold one?

It will be interesting to see how many you own in two years! A bunch of us thought one would do it too...and you're already at two in how long?... ;)
 
Great choice Conquistador! I love the plain-Jane large! The plain-Jane Large Sebenza 21 is neither more nor less than anything you need it to be. The ultimate statement of form follows function. Use it well.
 
Well the Umnumzaan showed up right on time yesterday and was waiting patiently for me in the mailbox when I was finally able to get it this morning. The Umnum is very different than the Sebenza, it would be hard to pick a favorite.

I have always liked the look of the Umnumzaan, especially the blade but there were a few things about it that I didn't know if I would like. I turns out that none of those things are an issue and I really like the knife as a whole. These were my potential concerns.

  • Thumb studs: They look too smooth, I was worried that they would be hard to get a grip on to flip the knife open, I was also not thrilled with the O rings. The thumb studs work just fine. I'm still not the biggest fan of the O rings but they seen to work just fine as well.
  • Lock bar: In reviews I have read/watched people complain about the sharp edge on the lock bar making it painful to disengage. They also complain about the access to the lever being too low giving up leverage and making it hard to move. I found that the lever moves just fine for me and is no stiffer to move than other knives. It's a total non-issue for me... ...though after playing with the knife all day my thumbs are a bit tender. Not the knife's fault I just can't leave it alone.
  • Opening Action: Some people talk about he Umnumzaan being difficult to open etc. I have to wonder if these comments come from Sebenza owners, the Umnumzaan opens differently from the Sebenza but more like other knives I have/had 0550, CQC-8, BM 710, mini A100, etc. You push the thumb stud forward, rather than sweeping it open like a Sebenza, and it snaps open. The Umnum opens well and I think it will get better as it breaks in a bit. I prefer this to the Sebenza action though the Sebenza seems more civilized/gentlemanly.

So far I really like the Umnum. I still think the Sebenza 21 is the perfect CRK but I may like the Umnum just a bit more... ...if that makes sense.

Thanks for all your comments. Here's a photo:

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Nice, I knew you'd like it!

Have you thought about changing out the stock o-rings for a little bit of "color"? You may like them more with a little bit of flair. Also, do you plan on keeping the lanyard on your Umnumzaan?
 
I haven't taken the lanyard off yet. The Sebenza had a simple hangman's noose type knot on it so it was easy to remove and retie, this one looks a bit more complicated. I'm trying to like the lanyard but it's not growing on me yet.

I don't care for the look of the colored o-rings, if anything I'd replace them with light grey ones to make them less noticeable. I think it would look nice to have a blue anodized stand-off but not enough to pay a bunch of money for one... ...if such a thing even exists.
 
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