Kizer Cutlery - experiences?

goldie said:
All the knives posted by extremaddiction are original designs;if you disregard the 401 series because no one knows the truth,they are cool designs with quality materials.Their line is being carried by some of the biggest online knife stores. The only china made knives i have is a kershaw scrambler,dimension,injection,& this kizer,I was once the biggest hater of made in China knives,for me to own one says alot imo....
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They're the SanRenMu/Enlan of Midtechs.

Which I quite like.

I'm trying to get my hands on a KI405 and a KI4412, as those are the ones that caught my eye. I have an ebay offer going on one, and I might just have to buy the KI405 outright at full price (which I basically never do) because it's just so damned nice. Time to switch up my keeper knives, methinks.
 
goldie said:
All the knives posted by extremaddiction are original designs;if you disregard the 401 series because no one knows the truth,they are cool designs with quality materials.Their line is being carried by some of the biggest online knife stores. The only china made knives i have is a kershaw scrambler,dimension,injection,& this kizer,I was once the biggest hater of made in China knives,for me to own one says alot imo....
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Glad to hear all the good things you had to say in your previous post goldie! It makes me excited to get the Ki4411-F1. And I can't wait to hear about the Gringrich GTi when it comes in.

I'm not too sure that these big online companies would carry the Kizer brand if they suspected there was something amiss with the materials. Longbow has already said his Kizer was working to his expectations, and he has been around here for 15 years last month, WOW, and long enough to know whats what!:thumbup: Goldie has been here 14 years this month, WOW, and I also think he would be able to tell what came out of the box. Guess I'm saying that if Kizer is scamming they sure have a lot of very knowledgeable people fooled. And what small number of reviews I have read the writers seem to be very pleased with the quality of knife they are receiving. Discomonkey, what material could Kizer be using other than titanium? And I am asking this question in all earnestness, and not trying to be a smartazz. At any rate I am sold on these knives and plan for the Glenn Klecker designed 4411 to be my first Kizer later this month and if it checks out, then The GTi will be next.

Btw, thanks for the top down picture of the 4411 EA!:thumbup::)
 
Ive been collecting for 35 years. ive handled & played with hundreds of knives. i have a half dozen Brian Tighe customs,knives from Randy Duecette,Crawford, Crusader Forge,Demko,Chris reeve,Jeff Hall,Darrel Ralph, to name a few.If i thought this knife i got was junk in any way it would have gone right back in the box & ready to go back monday,which ive done on a few occasions.The only thing unknown is how the heat treating of the s35vn is; i dont really abuse & beat up my knives, so i may never find out.Every time in the last few years when there was a post about a cool knife,cutter17 was always right in there;im sure he's handled many good blades,lets hear what he has to say when he gets that 4411,which looks to be built like a tank.I couldnt see Klecker & Gingrich giving designs & working with a company who is using trickery or inferior materials.Its a better direction than the ones taken by Duncan & Dalton....
 
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cutter17 said:
Discomonkey, what material could Kizer be using other than titanium? And I am asking this question in all earnestness, and not trying to be a smartazz.
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I was saying that more toward the people in disbelief. It appears to be genuine titanium, but all I've seen are pictures. For all I know, it could be aluminum (lionsteel has anodized aluminum framelocks) or SS with an elaborate pattern. I'm a see it to believe it kinda person. However I'm gonna pull the trigger on a kizer while I'm waiting on my preordered ZT. I have high hopes by what everyone is saying!
 
I used a magnet,it doesnt stick in the least;& like i said earlier, the lockup is very strong,like a sebenza,that i cant release with my index finger with my left hand.i dont know if aluminum can be made that rigid;never handled an aluminum lionsteel;had the ti version, it was pretty rigid,too.I can easily release the lock of a zt560 or 551,this lockbar needs much more pressure to disengage than those....
 
Wait, Longbow, I don't get this - the knife you got says 4.7" blade length in the ad, 9.67" overall, and 8.4oz weight. 9.7 / 2 = 4.8, so the handle and blade length are almost exactly the same length.

ExtremAddiction has this knife, and they/he personally measures them, and according to him, it's 9.7 overall, 8.4oz weight, with a 4.1 inch blade.

So, could it be that the 4.7" is actually the handle length, and the ad/sites that claim it has a 4.7" blade length misread the information given by Kizer, or something like that?
 
I measured from the tip to the handle , it looks like they measuring from the tip to the center of pivot (just a guess) really dont know how they come up with this numbers .
 
I have the plain, all Ti Kizer model (KI3404A3). It appears to be the same as the model with the skulls but without the skulls.

Despite the specifications on Kizer's website and that the company gave to dealers, the blade is indeed 3-inches, or perhaps just a hair longer. Kizer seems to have some issues with its specifications.

Here's what I like:

- Size and weight (about 3 oz)
- Stonewashed S35V blade
- Double thumb studs (and they work)
- Hinderer style lockbar stabilizer
- Open-pillar construction
- Good flipper!

Here's what I don't like:
- Proprietary pivot. Can't tell yet if pivot is Loctited.
- Clip is tip down only (works for me) but the end of the clip angles up and could stab you or your clothing. This needs a new clip!
- The blade came with a spectacularly ugly decal saying "Made in China." But you can roll it off -- I kid you not!

Fit and finish is not perfect but is pretty darn good. Ramin probably will have photos once his arrives.

One dealer told me that some of his his models came slightly off-center. Mine is perfectly centered. And did I mention -- it's a good flipper!

Compare this $115, 3-inch Ti flipper to another flipper of the same size -- the new $159 - $179 Brous Bionic, listed as made in USA (but mine didn't look like it.) There's no comparison, folks, the Kizer walks all over the Brous in what you get for your $$.

These are out-of-the-box impressions and it remains to be seen how the Kizer holds up and what the heat-treatment is really like.

Meanwhile, I give the little Kizer a qualified rave. And just try to find any other 3-inch Ti flippers at the price!
 
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flash900 said:
I have the plain, all Ti Kizer model (KI3404A3).

Compare this $115, 3-inch Ti flipper to another flipper of the same size -- the new $159 - $179 Brous Bionic, listed as made in USA (but mine didn't look like it.) There's no comparison, folks, the Kizer walks all over the Brous in what you get for your $$.

Meanwhile, I give the little Kizer a qualified rave. And just try to find any other 3-inch Ti flippers at the price!
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The quality is there and tremendous bang for the buck.

The Brous Bionic underwhelmed me and they go for $159-$189! Compare S35VN vs. D2, much better flipper action, about the same size (thinner but wider than Bionic), titanium frame lock vs. liner lock, titanium handles vs. aluminum, dual thumb studs vs. none, etc.
 
It'd be awesome to see a fair and unbiased test between a kizer, an XM18, a CRK, and a ZT 0550 to assess the various S35VN steel treatments. I have a feeling that a kizer would beat at least one of the others. They are all similar knives. The only one that doesn't have an overall good reputation is kizer. If kizer beat at least one or two in cutting tests, would the naysayers eat crow?
 
I recieved my 2nd Kizer today, the Justin Gingrich collaberation knife. for 129 its an incredibly well made knife.very sharp out of the box.its very very smooth; you would think it has ikbs or some kind of bearing system.the cone shaped screws are cool looking, & everything has a nice quality to it.the liners are thick & multi color anodized. blade centered early lockup.cannot find any fault with this knife,and at this price its definitely amazing. Like i said in earlier posts,if this was on a table at a knife show along with the 401x, you would never think it was made in china, & you would think it was going to cost much more than its going for.When Cutter17 gets that klecker,im sure there will be much more praise for these knives,unless by some chance he gets a lemon....
 
So I recently bit, and bought on one of the deals from knifecenter.com: The Kizer/Klecker Ki3411A1 Liner Lock 2-1/2". S35VN Stonewash Blade, G10 and Titanium.

First impressions (this hasn't seen any real use) are that it it opens smooth, locks up well, and came fairly sharp (maybe 8 out of 10) with an even grind. It has a very small, reversible clip. The blade came with a small removable "Made in China" sticker. It seems somewhat over-built, with 10 screws holding the handle, grips and backspacer together, not including the stop-pin and the pivot. To me, it does not feel chunky or heavy (it's listed at 3.1 oz).

I have a lot of folders in this size range (prefer those 3" and smaller) and this one looks and feels unique to me.

The deeply checkered G10 is very grippy, which leads me to my only complaint. You can practically hear your pocket being ripped apart as the G10 patterning is pretty aggressive.
 
I have been looking at these for a while. Trying to decide if a top quality Chinese made knife is out there and if so, is worth $100+.

Just got thru ordering a Kizer 302BC, Damascus VG-10, titanium from ExtremeAddiction. Really looking forward to getting this one in my hand.
 
I dont mind that made in china decal it comes right off,id rather have that decal to remove then made in china stamed on the blade permanentely.the less writing on the blade the better.
 
ChrisB507 said:
So I recently bit, and bought on one of the deals from knifecenter.com: The Kizer/Klecker Ki3411A1 Liner Lock 2-1/2". S35VN Stonewash Blade, G10 and Titanium.

First impressions (this hasn't seen any real use) are that it it opens smooth, locks up well, and came fairly sharp (maybe 8 out of 10) with an even grind. It has a very small, reversible clip. The blade came with a small removable "Made in China" sticker. It seems somewhat over-built, with 10 screws holding the handle, grips and backspacer together, not including the stop-pin and the pivot. To me, it does not feel chunky or heavy (it's listed at 3.1 oz).

I have a lot of folders in this size range (prefer those 3" and smaller) and this one looks and feels unique to me.

The deeply checkered G10 is very grippy, which leads me to my only complaint. You can practically hear your pocket being ripped apart as the G10 patterning is pretty aggressive.
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Thanks for the impressions. This now listed as "discontinued."

Question: What will you use to adjust the proprietary pivot?
 
I dont mind that made in china decal it comes right off,id rather have that decal to remove then made in china stamed on the blade permanentely.the less writing on the blade the better.
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Yes, the "Made in China" is a small clear sticker that comes off. The blade is hardly sterile though, with Klecker and the serial number on one side and Kizer and the blade steel on the other.

This now listed as "discontinued."... Question: What will you use to adjust the proprietary pivot?
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A version (Ki3411A2) shows in-stock from the vendor I mentioned originally...as for the pivot, I don't know! It's fine now. I suppose if it comes loose I'll figure something out; it is an odd shape.
 
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