New gen 3 Hinderer XM-18, lots of pics!

zephy5

zephy5

Joined
Oct 10, 2005
Messages
1,207
I just received a new generation 3 XM-18 so I thought I would post post some images of it on its own and in comparison to my generation 2 XM-18. This new generation 3 knife has a bead blast finish on the handle and the blade. The 3.5" blade is DuraTech 20CV and is flat ground. The older XM-18 one is tumbled finish on the handle with a hollow ground 3.5" satin S30V blade.

The new XM-18 compares very favorably to the older one. Both feel exactly the same with a great lockup and no blade play. Both are hair shaving sharp. Both blades are centered nicely. The handle is beautifully finished and the new Hinderer mark looks great.

The new flat ground blade is every bit the monster cutter that the older one is, if not more so. When viewed from the top of the blade, the taper of the spine is a little different which make the newer blade look thinner but it isn't. The width just in front on the thumb piece is the same, .165". I did notice more hand work on the older blade, especially around the thumb groves where the edges are knocked off but this largely a matter of aesthetics.

Overall this is a great knife at a great price. In my opinion, in this price range this one of the best values out there. This new XM-18 is in my pocket now and has become my new EDC!

Enjoy the pics!

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Here it is next to my gen 2 XM-18.

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I'm waiting for mine to ship. This will be my first custom. I can't wait. Thanks for the pictures.
 
Were you on the wait list? I've tried to score one for a while and finally stopped really looking. No places have this beautiful piece in stock, right?
 
sirahren said:
Were you on the wait list? I've tried to score one for a while and finally stopped really looking. No places have this beautiful piece in stock, right?
Click to expand...
Go to Blueline Gear, and get on their E-mail list. They wil E-mail you when XM-18's arrive.
 
sirahren said:
Were you on the wait list? I've tried to score one for a while and finally stopped really looking. No places have this beautiful piece in stock, right?
Click to expand...

I scored this one at Arizona Custom Knives. I'm on their email list for Hinderer items and got an email when they posted them. They had seven and sold out within a few minutes. Try Blue Line Gear as well, they are supposed to get a bunch. I'm not sure how long the list is there though.
 
Thanks for awesome pictures.

I find it interesting that Hinderers are so wildly sought after with just pure basic old-fashioned function. No engraving, no artsy/science-fictiony texturing and coloring, etc.

Just some simple attention to useful features, like a very strong tip.

The only thing special is the 20CV steel, and the lock-bar stabilizer.

BTW, what do the steel gurus on this site think of 20CV? Are Hinderer and SOG still the only ones using it?
 
thanks for the pics! they both look great.

are there any other threads that compare the xm-18 to the sebenza in terms of overall quality, smoothness, tolerances, lockup, etc.? (i don't have the search function).
 
I have sebenzas and I have handled the passaround X18, as far as I can tell and IMO Rick's work matches that of a sebenza, top notch.
 
I congratulate! Thanks for photos, the difference between generations now is well visible.
 
Zephy5, great comparison pics. I never really paid that close attention to the differences between the different generations of the XM-18.

Differences I see:
Bead Blasting
Hinderer stamped on the frame
Different thumb ramp
Different blade grind & different contour at Spanto end, straight vs slight curve

Different blade contour from your top side views of the blades.

Thanks for the great pics.:thumbup:
 
wutitiz said:
Thanks for awesome pictures.

I find it interesting that Hinderers are so wildly sought after with just pure basic old-fashioned function. No engraving, no artsy/science-fictiony texturing and coloring, etc.

Just some simple attention to useful features, like a very strong tip.

The only thing special is the 20CV steel, and the lock-bar stabilizer.

BTW, what do the steel gurus on this site think of 20CV? Are Hinderer and SOG still the only ones using it?
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'Fraid I don't qualify as a guru. But I'll post on the question anyway.
Here's the data sheet from Latrobe.
http://www.latrobesteel.com/assets/documents/Sheets/Knife/DuraTech_20CV.pdf

Look at the bottom right hand corner of the first page to find their CATRA edge retention results:
They say that in the CATRA tests, it performed 1.8 times as well as 440C. They also claim excellent toughness for the 20CV steel. I'm not sure that I've ever seen CATRA comparison of 440C to S30V.

There was a thread a couple of years ago in which folks were talking about their 20CV blades (all customs, I think). I think their consensus was that it held an edge about as well as S30V, but was easier to sharpen.

add:
Found the old thread:
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=363408&highlight=20cv

Also found this. Here's what Sal Glesser had to say about comparing 20CV to S30V
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showpost.php?p=3199515&postcount=4
 
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I like it. I like the look, and I like the possablilty that this new XM-18 will be more available.
 
knarfeng said:
'Fraid I don't qualify as a guru. But I'll post on the question anyway.
Here's the data sheet from Latrobe.
http://www.latrobesteel.com/assets/documents/Sheets/Knife/DuraTech_20CV.pdf

Look at the bottom right hand corner of the first page to find their CATRA edge retention results:
They say that in the CATRA tests, it performed 1.8 times as well as 440C. They also claim excellent toughness for the 20CV steel. I'm not sure that I've ever seen CATRA comparison of 440C to S30V.
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on that comparison, 14-2-4 CrMoV would likely be S30V (if made by cpm), and the 14-4 CrMo would likely be 154CM
 
Thanks, hardheart. Another observation about the Latrobe data. That large chart shows the properties of 440C as a reference standard, but the 440C was only hardened to 56!:eek: I've not seen any knifemaker posting a hardness for 440C of less than 58, and most harden to the 58-60 range.

We call that a cheatsie where I come from. That slants the data for edge retention comparison in favor of the 20CV. They tweaked the standard to make their stuff look better. No fair tweaking the standard!
 
Thanks all, I'm glad the pics are helpful. I don't have a Sebenza to compare it to, yet. I've had my eye on one but lucked into this XM-18 which will do nicely for now :)
 
Hinderers sure have been getting alot of positive attention on the forum lately. There must be something to them...
 
pkdmslf said:
Differences I see:
Bead Blasting
Hinderer stamped on the frame
Different thumb ramp
Different blade grind & different contour at Spanto end, straight vs slight curve

Different blade contour from your top side views of the blades.
Click to expand...

Correct, all good observations. One more, the titanium liner on the gen 3 knife is a little thicker. I didn't notice it until someone on another forum saw my pics and noticed it.
 
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