My First Hinderer (XM-18 Gen 5)

[augustus88]

My new Hinderer arrived in the mail yesterday. It's an XM-18 Gen 5 with 3.5" working finish sheepsfoot blade, Battle Bronze titanium and FDE G-10. As mentioned in the title, this is my first Hinderer.

I've never even held a Hinderer before, so I was a little worried about the flipping action due to a weak detent based on a lot of internet comments. I have no difficulty light-switch or push-button flipping the knife open every time right out of then box. It doesn't rocket open like a ZT 0456, but it flips reliably for me. The detent is strong enough to keep the blade securely in the handle when shaken. It also makes the blade a bit tough to flick open with the thumb studs.

I can’t find a single fault with this knife. It has the sharpest factory edge I’ve ever encountered out of the box. The edge isn’t as pretty as the mirror polish I get with my Wicked Edge, but it’s just as sharp. Everything else is spot on and works beautifully.

Took it on a 13 mile hike to "break it in" today. I've put 800+ miles of hiking on that walking stick and Camelbak pack and over the last 4 years. Can't tell by looking at my fat butt that I hike a lot. LOL

 

[BMCGear]

I may be getting one of these myself. Thanks for sharing!

 

[whitty]

This post and I have a lot in common. I love Hinderer Knives, love the 456 and my fat butt likes to hike a lot too! Congrats on the new Hinderer, use it and enjoy it!

 

[Officer's Match]

Congrats, that looks very nice. It appears the sheepsfoot on yours has been thinned behind the edge more than the other blade profiles I've experienced on XM's, a very welcome change IMHO. I base that upon the apparent size of the sharpened edge.

 

[TRfromMT]

Nice.
I'd like to see this next to a MP-1 blade for comparison.

 

[augustus88]

Congrats, that looks very nice. It appears the sheepsfoot on yours has been thinned behind the edge more than the other blade profiles I've experienced on XM's, a very welcome change IMHO. I base that upon the apparent size of the sharpened edge.

It's not the thinnest blade behind the edge, but it's definitely not a splitting wedge like some other beefy knives. It seems thinner behind the edge than my We Knives 705 and Benchmade 940-1. Not sure how it compares to the slicer grind, but it's plenty "slicey" for me. I love sheepsfoot blades and tumbled bronze anodized titanium, so I pounced as soon as I saw this one available for sale. Glad I did!

 

[Officer's Match]

It's not the thinnest blade behind the edge, but it's definitely not a splitting wedge like some other beefy knives. It seems thinner behind the edge than my We Knives 705 and Benchmade 940-1. Not sure how it compares to the slicer grind, but it's plenty "slicey" for me. I love sheepsfoot blades and tumbled bronze anodized titanium, so I pounced as soon as I saw this one available for sale. Glad I did!

If it were anything like a 940-1 behind the edge, it is SUBSTANTIALLY thinner than the Spanto, Bowie and Wharnie XM's I've had.

 

[jstn]

I can't say I appreciate this review. I was considering a Gen 5 XM-18, but was on the fence. Now I think I need one for sure. My wife and my wallet do not approve!

 

[AwayFromMySpydieHole]

I also picked up a new Gen 5 sheepsfoot. I've been buying XM18s since 2010.

I can say without a doubt that this gen 5 is the most dialed XM18 I've ever had. There is literally not a single flaw with anything, and that's rare for me to say considering I have high standards and crazy attention to detail.

Enjoy the knife man!

 

[mongomondo]

Looks great and I want one with the same battle bronze finish. I'll wait for one without the flipper hopefully.

 

[augustus88]

If it were anything like a 940-1 behind the edge, it is SUBSTANTIALLY thinner than the Spanto, Bowie and Wharnie XM's I've had.

Rather than guess, I decided to measure a few popular EDC knives that I own. Keep in mind that I used a hand held Harbor Freight digital caliper and eyeballed the placement as close to the edge bevel as possible. I did zero it out before each measurement. Thickness was measured behind the edge in the typical spot most of use on our blades. The Benchmade 940 was considerably thicker at the heel right in front of the sharpening choil than where I measured in the photo. The Spyderco and Hinderer were both a bit thinner at the heel than pictured. The Rat 1 was the thinnest by far and was fairly consistent from heel to tip.

Ontario Rat 1 - 0.48mm
Hinderer XM-18 3.5" Sheepsfoot - 0.69mm
Benchmade 940 - 0.73mm
Spyderco PM2 - 0.75mm

 

[AwayFromMySpydieHole]

If it were anything like a 940-1 behind the edge, it is SUBSTANTIALLY thinner than the Spanto, Bowie and Wharnie XM's I've had.

It is actually quite thin behind the edge for a knife of this ilk. I'm a fan of it, because I actually use my knives to cut things. This wharnie is actually a pretty good cutter.

 

[ATJ999]

I was thinking about getting one of them too. It will be my first Hinderer. I have been waiting for them to put in a S.L.I.

 

[blades&wrenches]

Rather than guess, I decided to measure a few popular EDC knives that I own. Keep in mind that I used a hand held Harbor Freight digital caliper and eyeballed the placement as close to the edge bevel as possible. I did zero it out before each measurement. Thickness was measured behind the edge in the typical spot most of use on our blades. The Benchmade 940 was considerably thicker at the heel right in front of the sharpening choil than where I measured in the photo. The Spyderco and Hinderer were both a bit thinner at the heel than pictured. The Rat 1 was the thinnest by far and was fairly consistent from heel to tip.

Ontario Rat 1 - 0.48mm
Hinderer XM-18 3.5" Sheepsfoot - 0.69mm
Benchmade 940 - 0.73mm
Spyderco PM2 - 0.75mm

Just measured my slicer and it's about the same as the sheepsfoot. Measured a Manix 2 and a Delica I had close by as well.
XM18 slicer - 0.70mm (0.027")
Manix 2 - 0.60mm (0.023")
Delica - 0.45mm (0.017")

 

[Officer's Match]

The Hinderers I've had all came from the ranch at about .032" behind the edge and 50 degrees inclusive. Needless to say that leaves plenty of room for slicing improvement.

 

[Dallas T]

My new Hinderer arrived in the mail yesterday. It's an XM-18 Gen 5 with 3.5" working finish sheepsfoot blade, Battle Bronze titanium and FDE G-10. As mentioned in the title, this is my first Hinderer.

I've never even held a Hinderer before, so I was a little worried about the flipping action due to a weak detent based on a lot of internet comments. I have no difficulty light-switch or push-button flipping the knife open every time right out of then box. It doesn't rocket open like a ZT 0456, but it flips reliably for me. The detent is strong enough to keep the blade securely in the handle when shaken. It also makes the blade a bit tough to flick open with the thumb studs.

I can’t find a single fault with this knife. It has the sharpest factory edge I’ve ever encountered out of the box. The edge isn’t as pretty as the mirror polish I get with my Wicked Edge, but it’s just as sharp. Everything else is spot on and works beautifully.

Took it on a 13 mile hike to "break it in" today. I've put 800+ miles of hiking on that walking stick and Camelbak pack and over the last 4 years. Can't tell by looking at my fat butt that I hike a lot. LOL

So how do ya like the lock insert compared to plain Ti?

 

[Officer's Match]

So how do ya like the lock insert compared to plain Ti?

I won't purchase (or trade for) a Gen5, specifically because of the implementation of the lock bar insert. The detent ball is on a post that protrudes thru the steel insert - I have no idea why Rick&crew thought that was a good idea.

 

[91bravo]

Welcome to the Hinderer club!

 

[sXePhenomenal]

I won't purchase (or trade for) a Gen5, specifically because of the implementation of the lock bar insert. The detent ball is on a post that protrudes thru the steel insert - I have no idea why Rick&crew thought that was a good idea.

don’t like it either plus the screw on the lockbar is ugly and I think it’s unnecessary

 

[augustus88]

So how do ya like the lock insert compared to plain Ti?

This is my first and only Hinderer, so I can’t say I prefer it over the plain Ti without the steel insert. It works fine with no lock stick, so I like it. I don’t mind the look of the screw on the lock bar.

The only knife with plain Ti that I’ve ever had problems with was a CRK large Sebenza 21. Horrible lock stick that was repaired at the factory. My southern Grind Spider Monkey and We Knife made Ferrum Forge Gent are plain Ti and they have zero lock stick issues.