- Joined
- Jul 30, 2006
- Messages
- 43,075
I got one of these a couple of weeks ago. Its new enough that it is not listed on the KaBar web site. I found it at a couple of on-line dealers. It looked interesting and the price was right. I haven't had time to really work the steel yet, but I can tell you more than any of the online stores can. This is the Large Dozier with 3.6" blade, not one of the standard size Doziers with 3" blade.
Specs:
Dozier drop point design. Has a very high grind, almost a flat grind.
Blade is AUS8, ~3.6" long, 0.155" thick at the base of the blade.
Total knife handle thickness is about 7/16"
Closed length is just shy of 5"
The promos say the Rockwell hardness is 56-58. Mine tested out at 59 in the engineering lab. (Just one measurement, but at least we are in the ballpark for meeting the spec.)
Lockback.
FRN handles. No liners
Dual thumb studs
Metal pocket clip set for tip up carry. Can be repositioned to either side of the knife, but must be tip up.
Made in Taiwan
Online price: $25.
My opinions on the knife:
Fit and finish: Pretty fair. There is no noticeable blade play in vertical or horizontal when the blade is locked. It feels very solid in either open or closed position. Tried some mild spine whacks and it passed those. The blade finish was excellent. The edge grind was centered. The edge had some minor grind marks (visible with a hand lens, not really noticeable with naked eye), but they were not as deep as the ones on my Spyderco Native III. They were easily removed. If I rated Benchmade at a 10 and Spyderco at a 9, this KaBar would be a 7-8. Nothing specific, just lacks polish. I find it completely acceptable.
Sharpness out of the box: Exceptional. It pushcut newspaper 1" from point of hold. It was easily the equal of Benchmade or Spyderco. This was right out of the box, before using the Sharpmaker to remove the fine grind marks.
Edge Grind angle: 15°. No edge angle adjustments necessary to use the 30° Sharpmaker setting.
Blade Design: I am fascinated by the blade design. Here is a very thick blade that, because of the semi-flat grind, does not bind when cutting. You can easily put your thumb out on the back of the blade, but there is no choil on this (which pleases me) so you have to control the blade from the handle. I cut through some boxes, trimmed heavy plastic. I found it very comfortable to use and easy to control in everyday slicing and cutting. This is all the more impressive when you consider that I have small hands. KaBar got more than a name in this Dozier design.
Handle: FRN with a fairly grippy pattern. Not as grippy as G10 can be, FRN isn't. But it is quite satisfactory. This is a large handled knife. Comfortable to my hand. Has a slight nib towards the front that helps keep the hand where it should be when cutting. It has no liners, but the FRN is suitably thick and the handle is quite solid. In addition to the thick FRN, the lockbar for the blade mechanism is about 0.15" thick and extends the length of the handle. This chunk of steel makes the handle feel even more solid and, IMO, improves the balance.
I found the thumb studs to be well positioned and comfortable to use. It is not lightning quick in deploying the blade, but most lockbacks arent. As I said, I have small hands. Someone with larger hands might be able to get the blade out faster.
The pocket clip allows for deep pocket carry, tip up. I wear jeans and carry my knife in my back pocket. I had no problems putting it in the pocket or getting it out. I felt there was about the right amount of resistance. YMMV. . It did not feel overly thick in my pocket.
In my hand, the knife felt very large and solid, much more so than other 3 1/2" bladed knives I have used, yet completely controllable with good ballance.
For as much as I've used the steel, which is not a whole lot yet, my preliminary assessment is that the edge retension is less than my VG10 Native III. But better than my 425M Buck Cadet, which I've carried a lot recently at work. (new knife rules, no blades over 2.5". No news flashes here. This performance is about what one would expect from these three steels when properly done. None of the performances were measured side by side, just looking at how fast the edge dulls and keeping track of how much cutting I've done with each and what it was that I cut.
Overall I am very pleased with the purchase. The blade design is a delight. The overall design is well though out. The execution of the design is good. Feels good in the hand. Feels good in the pocket. AUS8 is reasonably fair steel. Based on the hardness, I would say it got a good heat treat. At $25, this seems to me to be a good deal on a lockback work knife.
Specs:
Dozier drop point design. Has a very high grind, almost a flat grind.
Blade is AUS8, ~3.6" long, 0.155" thick at the base of the blade.
Total knife handle thickness is about 7/16"
Closed length is just shy of 5"
The promos say the Rockwell hardness is 56-58. Mine tested out at 59 in the engineering lab. (Just one measurement, but at least we are in the ballpark for meeting the spec.)
Lockback.
FRN handles. No liners
Dual thumb studs
Metal pocket clip set for tip up carry. Can be repositioned to either side of the knife, but must be tip up.
Made in Taiwan
Online price: $25.
My opinions on the knife:
Fit and finish: Pretty fair. There is no noticeable blade play in vertical or horizontal when the blade is locked. It feels very solid in either open or closed position. Tried some mild spine whacks and it passed those. The blade finish was excellent. The edge grind was centered. The edge had some minor grind marks (visible with a hand lens, not really noticeable with naked eye), but they were not as deep as the ones on my Spyderco Native III. They were easily removed. If I rated Benchmade at a 10 and Spyderco at a 9, this KaBar would be a 7-8. Nothing specific, just lacks polish. I find it completely acceptable.
Sharpness out of the box: Exceptional. It pushcut newspaper 1" from point of hold. It was easily the equal of Benchmade or Spyderco. This was right out of the box, before using the Sharpmaker to remove the fine grind marks.
Edge Grind angle: 15°. No edge angle adjustments necessary to use the 30° Sharpmaker setting.
Blade Design: I am fascinated by the blade design. Here is a very thick blade that, because of the semi-flat grind, does not bind when cutting. You can easily put your thumb out on the back of the blade, but there is no choil on this (which pleases me) so you have to control the blade from the handle. I cut through some boxes, trimmed heavy plastic. I found it very comfortable to use and easy to control in everyday slicing and cutting. This is all the more impressive when you consider that I have small hands. KaBar got more than a name in this Dozier design.
Handle: FRN with a fairly grippy pattern. Not as grippy as G10 can be, FRN isn't. But it is quite satisfactory. This is a large handled knife. Comfortable to my hand. Has a slight nib towards the front that helps keep the hand where it should be when cutting. It has no liners, but the FRN is suitably thick and the handle is quite solid. In addition to the thick FRN, the lockbar for the blade mechanism is about 0.15" thick and extends the length of the handle. This chunk of steel makes the handle feel even more solid and, IMO, improves the balance.
I found the thumb studs to be well positioned and comfortable to use. It is not lightning quick in deploying the blade, but most lockbacks arent. As I said, I have small hands. Someone with larger hands might be able to get the blade out faster.
The pocket clip allows for deep pocket carry, tip up. I wear jeans and carry my knife in my back pocket. I had no problems putting it in the pocket or getting it out. I felt there was about the right amount of resistance. YMMV. . It did not feel overly thick in my pocket.
In my hand, the knife felt very large and solid, much more so than other 3 1/2" bladed knives I have used, yet completely controllable with good ballance.
For as much as I've used the steel, which is not a whole lot yet, my preliminary assessment is that the edge retension is less than my VG10 Native III. But better than my 425M Buck Cadet, which I've carried a lot recently at work. (new knife rules, no blades over 2.5". No news flashes here. This performance is about what one would expect from these three steels when properly done. None of the performances were measured side by side, just looking at how fast the edge dulls and keeping track of how much cutting I've done with each and what it was that I cut.
Overall I am very pleased with the purchase. The blade design is a delight. The overall design is well though out. The execution of the design is good. Feels good in the hand. Feels good in the pocket. AUS8 is reasonably fair steel. Based on the hardness, I would say it got a good heat treat. At $25, this seems to me to be a good deal on a lockback work knife.
