Izula thoughts after a holiday EDC

Hi everyone.

I received this one a while back and thought I would share a few thoughts.

The knife is small. I get about 3 fingers and a bit on it and I have large hands. The size is very useful nun the less.

The kydex sheath with the knife is VERY well made. My girlfriend cant get it out so I have confidence in the sheath.

I opted to make a leather sheath with a kydex clip so that I can carry it in my right cargo pants pocket. It disappears unless you know that it is there always at the ready.

The steel is 1095 Carbon so it will rust, however if it is a user as mine dont worry about it. Just use and sharpen, use and sharpen and it will not be a problem.

I have used the knife for cutting irrigation pipes, a lot of ribs for the holiday, kitchen duty, cutting wood, batoning small pieces of wood and many other things.

The coating has held up great. Unlike other coatings that are rubbed off after such use this coating actually gets smoother and thinner as you use it before it will start coming off. Some really great stuff!

I have the full kit, but I have no photos of the kit yet. These were taken shortly after the knife was bought and I used it extensively the past vacation.

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Girlfriend loves it in the kitchen

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More pictures and a few videos to come in future.
 
D

Dug2

Joined
Dec 19, 2010
Messages
187
besides the knife, i like how they give you the card w/ the r.a.t. pack #.
i look forward to the izula folder. thanks for the review. i will be picking
one of these soon
 
besides the knife, i like how they give you the card w/ the r.a.t. pack #.
i look forward to the izula folder. thanks for the review. i will be picking up
one of these soon
 
TheHunt said:
Dangerous way to cut a tomato...

I assume its just for the pic?
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You are correct. Only for the picture

Dug2 said:
besides the knife, i like how they give you the card w/ the r.a.t. pack #.
i look forward to the izula folder. thanks for the review. i will be picking
one of these soon
Click to expand...

The R.A.T Pack number does not come with the knife. I received mine some time ago. You have to ask for one in the ESEE knife forum, the other card does however come with the knife.
 
I consider it too small and too expensive. Any frame-locked folder of simple ergonomic design should do the same things just as good.
 
Gambrinus said:
I consider it too small and too expensive. Any frame-locked folder of simple ergonomic design should do the same things just as good.
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Yeah, I'm sure any folder of any cost would cut up a tomato as well, but I don't think you're going to find any folder of any cost that will match the strength of the fixed blade, and as far as being too small, given that most folders fall between 3-3.5" I haven't felt that it's too small. Maybe the handle is a little small, but it fits my hand well. I guess if you just want to consider folders with really strong locks, I still couldn't think of how you could match the low weight since the thing is only 2 oz, and then there's all the carry options, handle configurations, etc.

I haven't left mine at home since I got it because it's just the right size and it's so convenient to carry and comes in just as handy as a folder, yet I get so much more knife than I would if I just had a folder. I got mine for $56 too, and I can't really think of many folders other than my Needs Work that I got for less, and that one cost me $40.

One of the things about the Izula though is that it's supposed to be a stout knife able to take abuse. It's got a .160" blade thickness, and since it's only at 57 HRC it's really tough. ESEE makes knives for serious work that might have to be abused; mine already saved my butt by prying open my ice-clad gas-hatch. Bottom line though is that the knife is made to take anything, and they offer a no questions asked warranty to boot; if you break it, they will replace it. I don't know how that alone isn't worth $50 but put it all together I don't see how it's too expensive in the least. It's value is probably one of the most attractive parts about it.

I really like this video of it in action: DO note, this is by a reviewer called Blunt Truth, I merely reposted it
[youtube]tSrlvqrZQKY[/youtube]

marthinus, what do you think about the edge retention so far? I didn't know if I would like the low hardness, but it holds an edge reasonably well. I cut through radial tire, carpet and 2x4 and it didn't do too much to it, and it's a breeze to sharpen back up.
 
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I liked your video review! Good work. I am thinking about getitng one. I may get the one with micarta handles. any suggestions and how does it carry? Thanks.

RKH
 
Gambrinus said:
I consider it too small and too expensive. Any frame-locked folder of simple ergonomic design should do the same things just as good.
Click to expand...

A folder may cut as well but certainly won't hold up to any hard use,and certainly not for a price less than the Isulu, you can get one for around $50.00, i personally don't own any knives that were less than $50.00, i need to be able to depend on my knives.
 
i can attest to the edge retention of this steel, in my esse 4, i was kinda surprised though didnt put it to the same test as bluntruth did in his video i did a fair amount of cutting on wet wood and after i had the same results, in fact it almost seemed sharper than it was before. ive seen the izula less than $50 also, but it was a bare bones knife with no handle or cord wrapped. the price quickly goes up as you get what i consider basics added to the izula. like a belt clip and a handle, you cant really get the kind of performance that bluntruth has in his vid without something to grip. for what the izula costs with handle you can get into a esse4 with a nice micarta handle. for some reason they dont include a belt clip either, give you a molle with it. as far as comparing to a folder i think yea if u need a edc thats more rugged than a folder then its size and weight make it a desirable alternative. Its still longer overall than a folder of the same blade size and not available in stainless steel. which is a factor for allot of people. 1095 will rust pretty fast. Most people are not going to want to deal with that kind of maintenance every day. its really the only issue with this knife i have (in my case my esse4) other than overall size.
 
bada61265 said:
i can attest to the edge retention of this steel, in my esse 4, i was kinda surprised though didnt put it to the same test as bluntruth did in his video i did a fair amount of cutting on wet wood and after i had the same results, in fact it almost seemed sharper than it was before. ive seen the izula less than $50 also, but it was a bare bones knife with no handle or cord wrapped. the price quickly goes up as you get what i consider basics added to the izula. like a belt clip and a handle, you cant really get the kind of performance that bluntruth has in his vid without something to grip. for what the izula costs with handle you can get into a esse4 with a nice micarta handle. for some reason they dont include a belt clip either, give you a molle with it. as far as comparing to a folder i think yea if u need a edc thats more rugged than a folder then its size and weight make it a desirable alternative. Its still longer overall than a folder of the same blade size and not available in stainless steel. which is a factor for allot of people. 1095 will rust pretty fast. Most people are not going to want to deal with that kind of maintenance every day. its really the only issue with this knife i have (in my case my esse4) other than overall size.
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With the survival kit ( which includes a full length of paracord for wrap ) it was $56 and the micarta slabs were $18. So basically $74 for the works.

Can I mention the retail outlets that I bought them at, or is that dealspotting?
 
Gambrinus said:
I consider it too small and too expensive. Any frame-locked folder of simple ergonomic design should do the same things just as good.
Click to expand...

I have several folders that cost more than the Izula. I think I spent about the same amount on my last Delica as I did on my Izula. I think that there are a number of things that a small, stout fixed blade will do better than any folder.

Bruceter
 
I like small skeleton handled fixed blades, no cord wrap, no scales. These are the ultimate in quick-and-dirty, cut it up and clean them up, no gunk inside a lock or pivot. They lie flat which makes my Izula in its sheath a perfect backpocket carry. I have large hands and the butt of Izula tucks into the heel of my hand for control and force.
 
There's now the Izula II with the same blade but a slightly longer handle. The Izula's handle is just a hair too short to be really comfortable to me, but works well enough that I don't plan on getting the II anytime soon. But if it had been available when I got my Izula, different story.

It's a great pocketable small hard-use fixed blade. Last time I used mine was over Christmas, batoning thinnish firewood chunks into kindling for a fire. Not the sort of thing you'd want to do with a folder...
 
Thanks....just seen the vid, now I'm buying one! :)
Getting the black one...and paying only 39.99 with shipping comes up to 46.94 did I do good?
 
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C.M.L said:
Thanks....just seen the vid, now I'm buying one! :)
Getting the black one...and paying only 39.99 with shipping comes up to 46.94 did I do good?
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You did great!
I absolutely never leave home without my Izula 2 (previously it was my regular Izlua). And I have many high quality, expensive folders and fixed blades to choose from.
 
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