Knives you would never buy again!

Anything by Smith and Wesson (never held an edge, hated the serrations, lock failed). Bought my first modern folder back in '99 but I learned my lesson since.
 
Anything from Gerber, they have become lousy sell outs, crappiest folders I've ever had, steel is junk, poor craftsmanship, quality control. One of their folders became butter knife dull just from whittling a stick, which was in fact a soft wood, I got the 10 or so Gerber knives I had at the time and threw them in the garbage
 
csisland said:
doesn't the kershaw blur have the speedsafe? i owned one for a short period of time before losing it but it felt solid but i didn't like assisted opening anyway.
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All my SpeedSafe knives were built well but I had the SpeedSafe spring snap twice in less than 2 weeks. Now a friend has had it for 6 months with no problems. I also carried SpeedSafes 10 years ago with no problems.
I am not doubting it's reliability for others, but I have lost trust in it. Since there are so many other knives, I am not too bothered. :)
 
anything made by boker and crkt in my opinion looks really cool, but doesnt hold an edge. is that an issue for a sharpener of ten years, no, but i like my spydercos and benchmades.
 
Original Ka-Bar. Had one snap in half while it was on my leg, not being used. Probably a freak incident, but it left a bad taste in my mouth.
 
Easy for me - I (stupidly) bought a HEST 2.0 folder instead of a ZT0550 (which I ended up buying in the end anyway!).

It was a POS. Rock-lock from day 3, awful blade centering oh and it cut like a blunt chisel.

I hate(d) it so much that I couldn't even bring myself to give it away, let alone sell it. So it is still in my possession. Regret it - you bet I do!
 
Going to have to agree with any SOG knife. Like the Vulcan. Many people like it, the one I received was TERRIBLE.

Also, Buck folders don't really do it for me. Regretted purchasing knives from the Vantage series.

Nemesis MANX. Looks cool and feels good in the hand w/ good steel, but the design of the lock produced unfixable bladeplay in mine.

Boker Titan was the first knife I ever gave away. Hated it.

H&K Enigma. Really wanted to like this knife, but the glass nylon scales aren't nearly firm enough. When you tighten the screws they lift slightly off the frame at each end. Tried sanding them down a bit but that shouldn't be necessary. Should have just used G10 scales like everyone else..
 
T.L. said:
Going to have to agree with any SOG knife. Like the Vulcan. Many people like it, the one I received was TERRIBLE.

Also, Buck folders don't really do it for me. Regretted purchasing knives from the Vantage series.

Nemesis MANX. Looks cool and feels good in the hand w/ good steel, but the design of the lock produced unfixable bladeplay in mine.

Boker Titan was the first knife I ever gave away. Hated it.

H&K Enigma. Really wanted to like this knife, but the glass nylon scales aren't nearly firm enough. When you tighten the screws they lift slightly off the frame at each end. Tried sanding them down a bit but that shouldn't be necessary. Should have just used G10 scales like everyone else..
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i'm a little surprised about the buck. mine has been rock solid and came perfectly centered and has stayed that way.
 
SOG Trident, Way to hard to open with the thumb stud. so much so that my thumb slipped and got a deep cut on the serrations.
Poor blade centering, and blade play.
Gerber Ripstop, and pretty much any Gerber.
While the ripstop is good in theory, the fit and finish is poor. Pivot too tight, can't loosen unless you have 2 torx drivers, as the pivot has screws on both sides.
The blade doesn't sit fully in the frame, and has cut me a few times. Clip is tip down carry only.
It's funny because the SOG was about $50 and my $20 Buck Vantage is PERFECT. Blade centering is dead nuts, very sharp out of box, and it holds a decent edge for 420HC.
I'd compare it to 8CR13MOV as done by Spyderco on my Ambitious.
I've definitely been spoiled by my Spyderco's (Delica, Ladybug, and Ambitious), and my Benchmade's (551 Grip, and 556 Mini Grip).
 
Ka-bar ZK Acheron. It sucks. Don't waste that $12. Buy a Mora or Opinel instead.

Cold Steel Gurkha Kukri. Because I know I'll never have to buy another one. ;)

Spyderco Calypso. I don't even have mine yet and I know I'm going to love it so much that it'll be as irreplaceable as my kukri.

Spyderco Tenacious. It was a real disappointment for me. I love everything about this knife...except the lock. It's so weak that even light impacts on the spine cause the lock to fail. No thanks. This bothers me a lot because I truly adore my Tenacious' ergonomics, jimping, and especially blade shape.

CRKT Pazoda 2. It's a great knife, very well made with great fit and finish, a superb value to be sure. I highly recommend it...but it's just too tiny for me! I need to buy the full size Pazoda.
 
csisland said:
i'm a little surprised about the buck. mine has been rock solid and came perfectly centered and has stayed that way.
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I love the look and feel of the knives in hand. The opening is also smooth with a very satisfying click. That is where my satisfaction ends, quickly.

The liner locks on mine were extremely weak out of the box to the point of being unsafe. Both now lock to 100% and I haven't used them nearly as much as my other budget liner locks (that I used more) that are still fine (Ontario RAT 1, Kershaw Skyline, etc).

The "BOS heat treat" is complete and utter BS. First off, my 13C26 Vantage Avid holds an edge better than my S30V Vantage Pro. The S30V on this knife is absolutely pathetic it is way too soft the edge dulls so quick. My S30V Para 2 holds an edge exponentially longer and that isn't marketed as treated by Paul Bos. I find it insulting as a knife enthusiast and consumer that they include a BOS stamp on these knives.

The combination of these issues and all the good reviews really put a sour taste in my mouth.

The Vantage Avid was the SECOND knife I ever owned. I used it quite a bit and then found out about other knives and it sat in my drawer for months. Then I took it out again and was surprised because I remembered it being much more satisfying months back. In a vain attempt to ease my disappointment I ordered the Vantage Pro with S30V and G10 scales. Bad decision. I kept both and will give them to friends as gifts some day.


I also have another knive I wish I never bought after looking through my drawer knives. The Cold Steel Ti-Lite. Once this knife is open it is GREAT. Getting it open? The thumb studs are terrible, the "flipper" is tiny, and the "wave" works very poorly. Want to close the knife? The liner is extremely strong which is a good thing but it is really difficult to get your thumb on it and then keep your thumb on it as you push it over. My hands are average size.
 
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TOPS, sold what I purchased a week later, might as well have purchased a butter knife.
Extrema Ratio, sold what I purchased a week later, barely a detente causing blade opening inside pack when it shouldn't.
Hinderer, XM-24 non flipper 4" slicer, more of a piece Museum Art, for me.. heavy and not comfortable "for me".
 
Kershaw Blur: Clunky assisted folder that feels more like a novelty product than an actual tool
 
Ill give another vote for the Gerber paraframe. That was just a waste of money. You know, I'm just coming back into the knife world after being completely out for more than two decades. I could have sworn I remembered having a couple of nice gerbers back in the 80s. I don't know, that was a long time ago, but what I know for sure is that they make junk now.

I actually had someone bring the knife down to Costa Rica for me, and when they pulled it out of their bag and I saw it was in a molded plastic container (that had probably hung from a peg in wal mart) I thought "hmm, that can't be good".
 
For me anything SOG or Buck. The SOG mini aegis felt so cheaply made and the blade play was unbelievable. The Buck vantage pro force I picked up couldn't be flipped open unless I used a ton of wrist action and loosened the pivot to the point of major side to side play even then it was sketchy to open smooth. It also had really late lockup out of the box, it was a hair away from touching the opposing liner when open. I am also a little weary when looking into the Boker plus line its very hit and miss it seems. My nano is perfect but the carbon elegance had a horribly done button lock, the screws holding the scales touched the blade when closed leaving scratches and the swedge on spine of the blade was so uneven one sides swedge was about 2-3mm longer then the other. There are so many Boker knives I like in the plus line but not sure I want to gamble, the Boker Tree brand knives are well done though.
 
Cypress said:
Original Ka-Bar. Had one snap in half while it was on my leg, not being used. Probably a freak incident, but it left a bad taste in my mouth.
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Gotta read the backstory on that. Do you own a ThighMaster or something?

Personally, I won't ever again buy anything with a Wharncliffe blade. Freaking next to useless for almost every common knife task.
 
Guys... you realize that pretty much every knife company warranties their blades, right? A lot of the complaints I see could be fixed with a quick call or email to the manufacturer.
 
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