Near Perfect Knives

J

jvan

Joined
Apr 19, 2006
Messages
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Taking a hint from another (opposite) thread here I thought that I would ask the opposite question. Have you ever received a perfect or near perfect knife after having ordered it?

The closest I have come is my recent acquisition of a Northfield #54 Whittler in Sambar Stag. My knife came with nary a flaw. The three back springs are flush in all three posotions, the back springs appear to be one solid piece of steel, the Sambar is near perfectly matched and it was sharp. The fit and finish is the best I have seen on a production knife. Two thumbs up!
 
I have been lucky. Most of my knives have been perfect. Only a few have gone back for an exchange.
 
I've had near perfect Spyderco's, Benchmades, Kershaws, Seki-Cut and Mcusta.
 
From my most purchased brands:

Spyderco - Maybe 5 out of 20
Benchmade - 3 for 3
Kershaw - About 4 out of 5
 
I am a big fan of Gerber, Ka-Bar, Spyderco, and Cold Steel.
The most perfect knife I have is the Cold Steel San Mai III Trail Master. It's such and incredible knife and it comes with an amazingly sharp rolled edge that can cut through anything. I know it's costly, but man is it worth it. After getting 1 for myself I got 2 more for my brothers as Christmas gifts last year. It may sound kinda creepy, but I often pull it out night before going to bed just to admire it. My wife just shakes her head, but seriously it's about as perfect as you can get with a knife.
trailmaster.jpg
 
knife1001 said:
It may sound kinda creepy, but I often pull it out night before going to bed just to admire it. My wife just shakes her head, but seriously it's about as perfect as you can get with a knife.[
Click to expand...

Yes it is creepy, and I do it too. You know you got a good one when you think about looking it while doing something else, then you actually go find it just to look at it.

I was this way for a while with my Falkniven S1 (quite similar to that San Mai III Trail Master). There is something about a finely made laminate blade that is really shiny.
 
Overall, my best locking folders - in terms of near perfect fit & finish - have been manufactured by Moki of Japan.

Best slipjoints, in the same regard, have been from Schatt & Morgan.
And Victorinox.
 
When talking about perfection I have to look at some of my customs. Bob Lay and Charles May products are perfect.
 
My knives by Nick Allen have been perfect in terms of blade and grip grinds and heat treat. Feels great in hand during use as well.

I have much more expensive knives that do not have blade bevels aligned as perfectly.
 
When talking about perfection, all I have to do is look at my customs; my Begg's, Mayo's, Cucchiara, Terzuola........
 
Two come to mind immediately:

AG Russell Swing Guard, made in Germany.
Schatt and Morgan File & Wire English Jack.

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When a company or maker can put out small runs or individual handmade knives with "near perfection," that's admirable. But when a large company can mass-produce thousands or tens-of-thousands of knives with a consistently high build quality across a product line containing dozens of models, now that's something remarkable!

My hat is off to Victorinox and the Schrade-USA Old Timers!
 
I guess I've always been lucky, and I've never had to send a knife back.

Depending on your definition of perfect, I've gotten a few that came from the factory in butter knife condition. The worst offenders for dull, new knives that I've run across were Benchmade and Camillus. But I wouldn't really consider a well ground but dull knife a defect. More of an irritant as they sharpen up quickly if the edge grind is well done.

The most absolutely flawless knife I can think of is a Cabela's Alaskan Guide Buck 110. Fit and finish were flawless, scales were very well matched, razor sharp S30V blade and a beautiful sheath. I've bought knives that were a lot more expensive than that one, but none of them ever really made me hold it and say "wow." I still love just holding that knife to see how perfect it is.
 
Fällkniven F1 with micarta handle is very close to perfection. Almost surreal how good this knife is. Other near perfect ones: Fehrman EJ, Busses in general.
 
I am fortunate enough to have most of my knives approaching perfection, but the ones that stand out are my Spyderco ZDP-189 Caly 3 and my Spyderco Volpe. Absolutely perfect in every way.
 
Near perfect? Hmmmm...

Kershaw Tyrade
Spyderco Caly 3 ZDP/CF
Spyderco Szabofly
everything RAT Cutlery

those are the knives that made me say wow, but i have been very lucky in that most of my knives came in excellent quality.
 
Fällkniven A1 = 99.9% perfect
a1web.jpg



CRK Mountaineer 1 = 100% perfect
CR-MT1.jpg
 
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