- Joined
- Oct 11, 2014
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- 2,646
I don't start threads often and i know that "suggestion" threads abound, so my apologies if you have seen something like this before. I have mostly been a "traditionals" guy when it comes to pocket knives and still carry one every day. However, over the last few months i spent some time looking at some new modern knives. After a little research i decided to just buy a few that were similar in size and design, and in a general price zone, and see what i liked.
One thing i would like to say is that this thread is not meant to spark any kind of argument amongst people who love certain brands. I simply bought several knives to see what i personally might like and am only discussing knives that i actually did like. Anything that i bought and didn't personally care for, i have just left out of the discussion. All of these are great and well respected companies.
My purpose is just to ask, based on what i liked about the knives i have bought so far, if anyone has a suggestion that i might have overlooked (super self-centered of me, i know).
I bought the following and they arrived in this order:
ZT 900 Les George
Emerson CQC7
Benchmade 928 Osborne Proxy
Spyderco Domino
At this point i have carried them all and used them for day to day tasks, but none have been used extensively. Long term edge holding, durability, etc will have to be assessed later and this is just a set of first impressions. My quickly summarized first impressions are as follows.
All the knives below seem to be very well built.
The ZT 900 Les George arrived first and is probably closest to the size i would like in a modern carry knife. It is incredibly smooth to open with the flipper but that is really the the only opening option. You can open it two handed, but it isn't particularly easy. I also think i made a mistake on this knife by ordering titanium handles as they seem too slick to me, although they help make the knife quite beautiful.
Next came the Emerson and i liked it a lot. Love the grippy handles and the three opening mechanisms. Easily opened with the wave, thumb disk and flipper. Very smooth. Can also be easily opened with two hands. Don't love the chisel grind and i have never had one before, but it certainly cuts well and i am sure i will get used to it. Did i mention that i really like the wave opener?
Following that the Benchmade arrived. Open and closed i really, really like this knife, although it is the largest of the group i ordered and maybe a little too large for me to carry regularly in slacks. The handle is very comfortable although not as grippy as the Emerson or the Spyderco. The blade can be opened by the flipper or two handed. Unfortunately, the downside of this knife is that it doesn't open as smoothly as the others with the flipper and the thumb stud is kind of useless for opening the blade. The flipper action was very stiff out of the box. I have worked with it a good bit since and it is a lot better, but still not as smooth as the Emerson, ZT, or Spyderco. I do think it may continue getting better over time.
The Spyderco arrived last. It opens very smoothly with the flipper, thumb hole, or with two hands. The handle is very comfortable to me and grippy enough. It is a super slicer and i have carried this one more than the others. I wish it also had a wave, but i won't improvise one. Probably my favorite of the group.
All of the knives seemed to lock up well enough, although there were different mechanisms used and i am still trying to understand the pros & cons.
In final analysis, I think the Benchmade will loosen up even more over time and i am really going to like it, but the Emerson and Spyderco may get the most use (although, my wife may take over the Emerson as she keeps using it).
I also plan to order a different ZT (recommendations welcome), since i think i may not have chosen the best one to compare with the other knives. I think i will avoid aluminum or titanium knives going forward.
I know there are a ton of people on the forum with extensive experience with modern flippers. What should i try next (both in the $200 price range and not) that is about the size of the ZT, reasonably grippy, has more than one opening mechanism and opens smoothly, can be easily opened with two hands, is reliable, etc? Thanks in advance for the help.
Hope this wasn't tldr.
One thing i would like to say is that this thread is not meant to spark any kind of argument amongst people who love certain brands. I simply bought several knives to see what i personally might like and am only discussing knives that i actually did like. Anything that i bought and didn't personally care for, i have just left out of the discussion. All of these are great and well respected companies.
My purpose is just to ask, based on what i liked about the knives i have bought so far, if anyone has a suggestion that i might have overlooked (super self-centered of me, i know).
I bought the following and they arrived in this order:
ZT 900 Les George
Emerson CQC7
Benchmade 928 Osborne Proxy
Spyderco Domino
At this point i have carried them all and used them for day to day tasks, but none have been used extensively. Long term edge holding, durability, etc will have to be assessed later and this is just a set of first impressions. My quickly summarized first impressions are as follows.
All the knives below seem to be very well built.
The ZT 900 Les George arrived first and is probably closest to the size i would like in a modern carry knife. It is incredibly smooth to open with the flipper but that is really the the only opening option. You can open it two handed, but it isn't particularly easy. I also think i made a mistake on this knife by ordering titanium handles as they seem too slick to me, although they help make the knife quite beautiful.
Next came the Emerson and i liked it a lot. Love the grippy handles and the three opening mechanisms. Easily opened with the wave, thumb disk and flipper. Very smooth. Can also be easily opened with two hands. Don't love the chisel grind and i have never had one before, but it certainly cuts well and i am sure i will get used to it. Did i mention that i really like the wave opener?
Following that the Benchmade arrived. Open and closed i really, really like this knife, although it is the largest of the group i ordered and maybe a little too large for me to carry regularly in slacks. The handle is very comfortable although not as grippy as the Emerson or the Spyderco. The blade can be opened by the flipper or two handed. Unfortunately, the downside of this knife is that it doesn't open as smoothly as the others with the flipper and the thumb stud is kind of useless for opening the blade. The flipper action was very stiff out of the box. I have worked with it a good bit since and it is a lot better, but still not as smooth as the Emerson, ZT, or Spyderco. I do think it may continue getting better over time.
The Spyderco arrived last. It opens very smoothly with the flipper, thumb hole, or with two hands. The handle is very comfortable to me and grippy enough. It is a super slicer and i have carried this one more than the others. I wish it also had a wave, but i won't improvise one. Probably my favorite of the group.
All of the knives seemed to lock up well enough, although there were different mechanisms used and i am still trying to understand the pros & cons.
In final analysis, I think the Benchmade will loosen up even more over time and i am really going to like it, but the Emerson and Spyderco may get the most use (although, my wife may take over the Emerson as she keeps using it).
I also plan to order a different ZT (recommendations welcome), since i think i may not have chosen the best one to compare with the other knives. I think i will avoid aluminum or titanium knives going forward.
I know there are a ton of people on the forum with extensive experience with modern flippers. What should i try next (both in the $200 price range and not) that is about the size of the ZT, reasonably grippy, has more than one opening mechanism and opens smoothly, can be easily opened with two hands, is reliable, etc? Thanks in advance for the help.
Hope this wasn't tldr.
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