Mabye Emerson?

E

Elefantener

Joined
Jul 1, 2014
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I have been looking at the Emerson Patriot and thinking about picking one up, I love the knife and the story behind Emerson knives. How is the fit and finish? How is the Stonewash finish? Competitive options? Pro & Cons?
 
I don't have a Patriot, but I have many other Emerson's. The fit and finish will be good, no question. If you are expecting a Sebenza level f&f you will be disappointed. These were made to be tools and used. The stonewashed finish in my opinion is the best from any company I've seen, including Hinderer and CRK. As far as competitive options, you have Benchmade Blue Class, ZT 0560 and 0300, and of course other similarly sized Emerson's. It all depends on what you want in your next knife.

Pros - it's an Emerson, steel sharpens easily, simple easy to maintain design, excellent warranty and customer service

Cons - if you can't sharpen a recurve it will be more difficult to sharpen, only tip up right hand carry if that matters to you.

I say try it out, Emerson's are no nonsense tools and are great knives. You can always sell it if you don't like it and I'm sure one of us would pick it up.
 
Fit and finish seem to be improving from what I've heard. I've been a bit disappointed in the past, but it seems like they've stepped up their game in the last few years. The stonewash is, in my opinion, the best in the industry. Since they've cleaned up the F&F I would say the biggest cons are break-in period and price. You can get significantly higher end materials for a lower price if that's what trips your trigger. Pros are gonna be ergos, design, wave and, in my experience, near-perfect grinds.
 
Everything Silvanus said covers most of it if not all. I do have a Patriot stonewash and it is a fantastic finish. The Patriot is my favorite recurve from Emerson to date. Don't know about other brands being that I gave up on them and ONLY use Emerson knives.
 
Emerson's blades are truly fantastic: the grinds are so beautiful that I typically choose the non-coated stonewash, which is, as pointed out, the most beautiful stonewash you will find - bar NONE. Compared to some others, the liners will appear rather pedestrian, but don't be fooled - they are very high quality. Polish 'em up if that's your thing. G10 scales are definitely showing improvement in cosmetic detail of the last couple years, and a texture that could chafe and elephant (it's easily tamed if desired).

What is harder to define/quantify/explain is the way they feel in your hand, especially when put to good use. One by one my other brands are "turning into Emersons". And, if they turn out to not be your cup of tea (it does happen), selling them is stupid easy.
 
Officer's Match said:
What is harder to define/quantify/explain is the way they feel in your hand, especially when put to good use. One by one my other brands are "turning into Emersons".
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Quoted For Truth.

One thing I love about the stonewash blades are that they are finish ground after the fact, making for a beautiful contrast. Not too many brands take that extra step except maybe LE's.
 
It is a "hard use" knife. Kinda like a M1 Abrams tank, fit and finish is not the 1st priority. It is mission oriented. I, along with a lot of other enthusiast think they are great knives.
 
General Knife Discussion tends to take a crap on Emerson, so take everything they say with a grain of salt.

That being said, for the longest time I did not like Emerson, until I picked up a CQC-8 about 20 months ago. I ended up trading it off but I have been very very happy with my Emersons. The F&F are good, but not CRK levels. That being said, they are tools. I find myself carrying Emersons every day. And I mean every day. I've owned knives from most major companies and the only one which gave EKI a run for its money is Spyderco. That being said, Emerson is extremely consistent in their heat treatment of 154CM and they make their G10 in house (95% sure thats the case, maybe EmersonRep can chime in?). One last thing, I'm a journeyman roofer. I'm not afraid to use my Emersons at work. Any other brand? I'd balk and use my roofing knives. YMMV.

Oh and get the Patriot. It's an awesome looking knife.
 
ibute21 said:
Haha no I don't! I carry a 15 most of the time, that recurve works very well on the roof!
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I had a 15 and have been carrying a Mini15. I actually think it my be trying to compete for "most usable utilitarian" with my 10. Sucker is so darned efficient, I like it a LOT. I particularly like how the finger choil is close to the pivot, allowing a very "forward" grip, even ahead of the lockbar interface. Pretty unique amongst my EKI's, and a helluva knife.
 
Emerson F&F seems to be improving, but the knives could be described as "rough".

Of the knives I've bought recently, out of 6 knives, 3 had problems and 3 were perfect. Emerson took care of every problem I've asked them to, even paid for shipping back to the factory for one knife, and the turnaround was about a week which is incredible.

I'm not slamming Emerson, as I believe my 50% success rate was just bad luck, but I couldn't confidently tell someone that Emerson knives have excellent fit and finish. I'd say that EKI designs are incredible, and they have adequate fit and finish for a user knife.

If you are picky about your liners fitting the G10 perfectly, machining marks on the blade (my stonewashed blades have such rough machining that it makes a zzzzzzzzzip sound when I run my fingernail down the blade), etc. then do NOT buy an Emerson production folder. However, if you want a tough, efficient cutting tool then Emerson is the knife company to go with.

I'm super picky, but right now I'm wearing an A-100 BT that has machine marks on the blade and liners, a backspacer that is a little bit crooked, and G10 scales that do not fit the steel frame underneath... But it was designed by a master knifemaker to feel incredible in any grip, lock open safely, and cut like crazy. Out of all of my folders, it's by far my favorite knife in spite of the unimportant lack of perfect fit and finish.
 
MatthewSB said:
Emerson F&F seems to be improving......my stonewashed blades have such rough machining that it makes a zzzzzzzzzip sound when I run my fingernail down the blade knife.......
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I said this in a thread in the GKD, but my Emerson Regiment I just received is on par F&F wise with any ZT or Benchmade I've ever owned. I've owned all together 10 Emersons ranging from 2001 to 2013 and never had an issue.

As far as the machining marks on the blade, I'm pretty sure that's on purpose to make a two-toned finish and not a F&F issue.
 
MathewSB, are you talking about the lines below the swedge toward the blade edge? I don't believe those are rough machining marks. I've seen a lot of Emersons and this is the stonewashed blade. I love this blade as a matter of fact. You can probably see them lines in the picture below.

If yours are deeper and rougher please post a pic.

2w36blu.jpg
 
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