Mike Three Outdoor

[Stand Straight]

I've had this Mike Three now for a couple of months or so and am very impressed with the physical beauty of this knife. I thought that the thumb disk might not deploy the blade as easily as thumb studs do but was surprised that it may be even easier, at least with this knife. The action is smooth as silk. I don't know much about the Niolox steel, but it did sharpen up to a near mirror polish on my KME system. I haven't used it all that much to experience cutting or blade durability. I am certainly far from an expert and would only be able to give an opinion if I had one, which I don't.

I have the knife setup for left carry and wondered before my purchase if I would have extra pocket wear that a righty wouldn't have due to the 3D milling of the scales. Nope...exactly the same left or right.

While I like the Mike Three a lot, I do have a looming question that I hope can be answered by those who have purchased this knife and by Phil. I'll get to the loomer in a bit after a small critical comment...the clip is not wearing well, scratching with little use. This is not an issue with me but could be with someone else.





THE LOOMING QUESTION: The lockup of this frame lock is only 20-25 percent. Is that sufficient? The angle on the tang almost guarantees that the lockup will remain in the 20-25 percent area. I'm concerned that if the blade is deployed too weakly, it may not even open to this small tang bearing thereby posing the possibility of accidental blade closure...ouch! Straighten me out if I'm missing something here.




Here is a side by side comparison of the right handed Mike Three and a left handed frame lock that typically locks up at 50% or greater. Mine is close to 60%. Is my Mike Three normal in the Pohl Force world?

Overall, this is a sweet knife and I have absolutely no buyers remorse in this purchase. I know I'll buy another Pohl Force down the road a bit, but have a bucket list that needs to be emptied first.
greg

 

[Pohl Force USA]

Firstly thank you for thee feedback , it is good to hear you are in general happy with the Mike Three.
I wanted to address your concerns and I am doing this following a conversation with Pohl Force in Germany. From a safety standpoint although the blade only engages around 25% within the frame lock it does sit rock solid and the locking system has underwent extreme testing with positive results. I checked several Mike Threes that I have in inventory and 25% lock travel appears to be the norm. That said, with time and good use you may find the lock engaging fully closer to 30% or more. This has been the case on several other models. Another observation, the knives are manufactured for us by Lionsteel and although the designs are Pohl Force, the manufacturing tolerances are quite often influenced and set by Lionsteel. Looking at several Lionsteel models, the lockup on is also around the 25% so it appears this is the way they often do things. To date Pohl Force has had no negative feedback or instances of failure regarding the lock up on the Mike Three.

With regard to the clip, although exposed and quite often coming in contact with other objects it should be able to withstand what could be considered a 'reasonable' amount of surface damage. To the best of my knowledge this is the first time we have used a solid clip , typically we use steel, wire type clip. We will need to keep a close eye and monitor feedback, we certainly do not wish to have unhappy customers.

Once again thank you for your thoughts and concerns, I will certainly welcome from any other Pohl Force Mike Three owners additional feedback :thumbup:

 

[BOSS1]

Greetings,

I've recently acquired this very model as well. I also have the Mike One.

I've had most of the major brands...CRK, Hinderer, Strider...they all have their merits and supporters.

That being said, I'd say for those that don't want to 'follow the crowd' the Pohl force line is worth serious consideration. The ergos are very solid and unique. The quality of construction and materials is top notch. And there's some nice swag that comes along at the price point.

The M3 in particular is in line with the aluminum frame/steel insert frame-locks. The action is buttery smooth, and really takes a back seat to none of the others I've handled. It locks up with zero play too. The M3 also is a simpler knife in that it does not have the RotoLock compared to the M1. And I actually find the M3 feels a little trimmer/nicer in the hand. The smoother, machined alum. scales and more conventional pocket clip slide in/out of the pocket a bit easier compared to the G10/Ti on the M1. The M3 Outdoor has a bit trimmer blade stock, so it should be a better slicer as well.

All in all, if you're looking for something a bit different/unique that isn't the 'same ol' that everybody else is carrying, the Pohl Force line is worth a hard look.

My $.02 worth.

Cheers,
BOSS

 

[Pohl Force USA]

Thank you for your thoughts on the Mike Three . I agree this knife is certainly worth a closer look as with most Pohl Force knives, this is not me trying to sell or push the brand, the knives in general are excellent quality and should be considered. Thank you for your support!