I've got it narrowed down to three knives.

[hybr1d]

Actually, out of the three, I would choose one of the two CKRT knives, because the Scallion is too small for real use, and I think they are higher quality than the Blackout or Whirlwind. If you are really set on getting a Speedsafe knife, I would recommend an Avalanche or Boa, they both have excellent steel (CPM440v) but cost more.

 

[m@thew]

How about a Camillus EDC? I think its within the price range, or at least pretty close.
Also I have a Whirlwind, here's the lowdown;
pros: speedsafe is fast and effective, actuated by the thumbstud. Edge holding is great, especially for the price range. Handle is comfortable and the knife comes sharp.
cons: The lock is weak, i can make it fail using pressure from my other hand on the spine. The handle is made of zytel, which looks and feels cheap.
Personally i'd look into the EDC, it's designed by Darrel Ralph, has a stronger lock, a recurve blade and a nicer handle.

I might just have to buy more than one knife !

There's no might about it! You may buy just one knife for now, and you'll satisfy the craving, for a few days.....

 

[ian_j]

Thanks for the input everyone. I think I'm gonna have to go ahead and get the Kershaw Scallion(I can't resist the speed-safe. I'm a gadet junky first and foremost), and if I'm not happy with it I'll break down and buy a Camillus EDC or an Outdooredge Paragee.

This will give me an excuse to purchase more than one knife

 

[avpshadowman]

umm , with the speed safe kershaw thing, i hear they break after a thousand openings or so. just you might want to know they may have a reliability problem

i second the EDC though, small blade, recurve makes it cut well, sexy curves *if i may say so myself* and very classy. all of my friends love it. anyway, strong lockup, good steel *got 154CM version* and the clip clips perfect. you might also wanna checkout what buzzbait did on his EDC's with paracord, which would be a nice carry option.

M16 apparantly has some problems with the liner lock, ive heard of times when they disengage because they are too thin. but its not a real problem i guess, rarely happens. think it would be a good idea to check the knives out at a B&M shop so you can see what suits your needs.

good luck

Daniel

 

[calyth]

Originally posted by avpshadowman
M16 apparantly has some problems with the liner lock, ive heard of times when they disengage because they are too thin. but its not a real problem i guess, rarely happens. think it would be a good idea to check the knives out at a B&M shop so you can see what suits your needs.

I'd counter that. At times I flick the knife open so hard the liner locked up quite a bit and takes a bit of effort to unlock it.
However, I never manage to get it to fail.
If you think the M16's liner is thin, you might want to look at the scallion. Scallion's liner is tiny in comparison.

 

[allenC]

If you open the M16 and apply the LAWKS then it's impossible for it to disengage.

Allen.

 

[one2gofst]

M16s do not have the LAWKS, rather it is the M18s that come with LAWKS.

 

[ian_j]

Originally posted by avpshadowman
umm , with the speed safe kershaw thing, i hear they break after a thousand openings or so. just you might want to know they may have a reliability problem

really? I've been reading up alot on them, and I havn't heard anything bad about them really. Apparently the torsion bar rarely cracks, but Kershaw is apparently ready and willing to fix this problem for you.

 

[m@thew]

I have had no problems with the speed safe, though i only used the knife for a few weeks or so. I have also heard that in some cases the mechanism breaks after a few thousand openings, but that indeed Kershaw is willing to fix it. Do yourself a big favour and get yourself an EDC as well, you could keep the Scallion in your pocket for light use and flicking-fun whilst using the EDC for bigger cutting tasks. The EDC has no complicated mechanism, an advantage from the viewpoint that it's less likely to go wrong. Tell us how you go

 

[JERRY SHIPMAN]

They break after a 1000 openings or so ( thats got to be the funniest s$$$ I've heard in a while ) . And just how many knives carried do you think actually see 1000 openings and closings ?

 

[calyth]

Originally posted by one2gofst
M16s do not have the LAWKS, rather it is the M18s that come with LAWKS.

The bigger M16-04Z (the one with zytel scales) does have the LAWKS.

 

[ian_j]

Originally posted by JERRY SHIPMAN
They break after a 1000 openings or so ( thats got to be the funniest s$$$ I've heard in a while ) . And just how many knives carried do you think actually see 1000 openings and closings ?

oh i dunno. I'd prolly break it within 2 weeks of getting it. I would be flicking it over and over whenever I was bored

quote:
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Originally posted by calyth
The bigger M16-04Z (the one with zytel scales) does have the LAWKS.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------



Awww, they should've put LAWKS on the aluminum ones too=/

 

[ian_j]

The rumor is false , I have tortion rods with 60,000+ cycles . Thats not to say they will all make it that far . If there is a nick or imperfection on the mechanism it can cause the mechanism to fail earlier. however these are few and far between and very difficult to detect in large volume befor assembly though Kershaw is getting better at if .
The tortion bar tests consistently at 10.000-14.000 cycles in a continuous cycle test fixture which I feel gives un realistic results due tho the fact that the wire gets hot and weakens upon rapid and continuoius cycling where as real world is 2-25-45-100 (Whatever ) cycles in between rest cycles which gives the mechanism a much longer life.

-Ken Onion

wow thats alot more than 1000

 

[avpshadowman]

yea, those are just things ive heard, dont have any speed assisted knives so i cant tell from personal experience

but it is a bother to send a knife back to be repaired, especially if you live overseas

and the M16 problem is what sort of put me off getting one for myself. and the flipper creates a lot of stress on the frame if used correct, thats why you dont see flippers on most of the carbon fibre models *i think*, cos the stress cracks the scales

good luck choosing a knife. its always a hard decision if youre on a budget i know all too well

Daniel

 

[Manji]

i think the scallion is too small to be able to do any real cutting, most people say that around 3" is the perfect size for EDC but i personally don't like anything less then 3.5" anyways, i don't think theres anything wrong with aus6 steel, with steel everything is a compromise, if you want it to be more "stainless" you have to give up "hardness" and you can't have something that retains a nice edge and be easy to sharpen.

 

[ian_j]

I'm probably going to go with the whirlwind(3 and 1/4th inch blade). I may regret it later, but I can't resist speed-safe.

 

[calyth]

I don't think you'll regret it. Afterall, it's a knife that you want to practice sharpening on... if you wrecked it while learning something, so be it.
I've screwed up the blade on the M16 pretty bad... I'm thinking of getting some cash and getting a spearpoint M16 for carry and leaving this older one for me to mess with. I'm going to try to polish it

 

[m@thew]

I may regret it later, but I can't resist speed-safe.

I don't think you'll regret it either, the Whirlwind is a decent enough utility knife and is a good piece to practice sharpening on. I understand about the speedsafe, it still calls to me, telling me i need a BC or mirror-polished Chive, maybe even a Boa.

 

[ian_j]

Well, changing my mind once again, I went ahead and purchased the m16-03 spear-point plain edge.

It's kind of an interesting story(at least I think it is) which led to my decision, so I've decided to share it. As posted above, I was planing on ordering a ken onion whirlwind, but as fate would have it I was messing around with my brother's old spyderco ladybug(well I guess it is mine now, he gave it to me to mess with), trying to even out the terrible sharpening job I did on it I put on the finishing touches and decided that the block of sharp chedder upstairs had finally met its match.

I went to the kitchen and started my cut, kind of sticking the knife straight into the block of cheese(so the knife was at a 90 degree angle to the cutting board, sticking straight out of the cheese like a pin in a cushion), then rolling the handle towards myself to finsh the cut. This is a stupid way to cut cheese. I beg you not to attempt it Apparently I pushed a bit too hard on my last cut, and the knife went all the way to the cutting board.

The lockback on it buckled and the knife slammed closed on my right hand middle finger(ouch!). Luckily no serious damage was done and with some warm-water and soap and a badaid everything was in order again. It was a foolish thing to do, pushing such a small knife forcibly into anything, and the pain I experienced was a good teacher.

I guess the old saying "Once Bitten, Twice Shy" is pretty darn true. I decided that I was no longer willing to trust my hands to a mere liner lock. I remebered the integral hand guard provided by the Carson Flipper and decided this was the knife for me. Not much chance of the blade folding with my hand firmly placed up against solid steel. Having a finger smashed between the handle and the blade guard is much more enjoyable than lopping off its tip!

So I sent in my order and I eagerly await the arrival Thanks for all the input everyone. This is a great forum and I'm honored to be able share it with everyone here.

 

[calyth]

Have fun with it!
With the M16 (or any other knife with the Carson flipper) I don't think you'll miss the speedsafe much. I open mine pretty much like the scallion anyways.