Newbie knife question.

M

Mundial

Joined
Jul 23, 2002
Messages
11
Hello everyone. Im interested in buying my first quality knife and need some advice on what would suit my needs. Basically I would be using it for EDC and things like fishing and general outdoor work.
I would like it to be fast opening. I was looking at the Emerson wave Commander and thought it looked good. I also looked at some of the M 16 models and really liked them. Could you guys give some feedback as to the quality of these knives and others. Also whats the difference in quality between aluminum and CF. Thanks for any help.
 
I have never owned an Emerson knife, so I can't comment on them, but I do have a M16-03Z, and it dose make a decent EDC. It is not a fancy "high end" knife, but it dose offer a lot of value for it's fairly modest cost, IMHO. My favorite feature is the Carson flipper.
 
After lugging a Buck 110 for most of my adult life, both Emersons and Emerson-style knives were my first 'high end' knives. I had four CQC7's and one Commander. Mine were durable and well made. Blades centered in the grips, tight locking, well fitted grips.

I need more of a double-bevel clip point for the chores I do. However, if a person came to me and said they preferred chisel grinds and were looking for a sturdy knife, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend an Emerson.

They now make a smaller Commander, as well. Good luck.
 
Emerson Commander is good, but the chisel grind limits its usefulness some (I do own one and like it).

Also check out these:

Spyderco Wegner - great all-around knife, on the heavy side, but when you have it in your hand, you'll see why people love it. Hurry, because they're discontinued. www.DiscountKnives.com has them (if you order from them, make sure you specify a trackable, insured shipping method such as UPS).

Spyderco Military - also a great all-around knife. On the large side for a folder but thin and easy to carry. Steel on this knife is reputed to be slightly harder to sharpen.

Benchmade AXIS AFCK 806D2 - A favorite of Bladeformers.

Benchmade AXIS 710 - Another great one, with a smaller handle than the 806 and a recurved blade like the Commander for increased cutting performance.

All the above have G-10 handles. They're tough and wear well. Get a plain edge model, not serrated, unless you need the serrations for a specific purpose.

Let us know what you get and how you like it! :)

Johnny
 
Anything as long as it's under 200. I am curious about the M 16, I really like how they look. What is the purpose of a "tanto" style blade? I do like the Benchmades you recommended. Unless convinced otherwise about the M 16 I'll probably go with the Benchmade.
 
Originally posted by Mundial
Anything as long as it's under 200. I am curious about the M 16, I really like how they look. What is the purpose of a "tanto" style blade? I do like the Benchmades you recommended. Unless convinced otherwise about the M 16 I'll probably go with the Benchmade.
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Dude, you got a helluva lot of choices that you could consider in the $200 and under price range. I've never owned any waved Emerson so I'm going to refrain from commenting on that, but they do make a sturdy knife.

I'm not really partial to a tanto blade, but you will find that there are a lot of people who find them to be very useful--I myself do not. The M16 is a nice knife, and the Carson flipper makes it a fast opener, but I prefer the M18 to the M16. The holes in the scales of the M16 tend to eat up the pocket a bit. M18 has the same Carson flipper and the L.A.W.K.S. but the clip side scale is smooth so it doesn't eat at the pocket as much and it has a recurved blade which I prefer. As to the difference in CF and aluminum, the CF version is a lot lighter than the aluminum handled version but there was mention here a while back of the CF scales on someone's knife chipping away.

For fast opening, I would also recommend the Kershaw Boa. It has an index trigger much like the Carson flipper, but it's aided by the SpeedSafe torsion assist bar which increases opening speed. You may hear that a lot of people don't like the SpeedSafe, but I'm quite fond of it.

Good luck, dude.
 
If you're thinking about going with BM, the only one I'd recommend without any hesitation is a 942. With the Axis lock its easy to deploy and locks up about as solid as you're going to get in an under $200 knife. And I think I'm probably in a minority but I love the reverse tanto blade. That blade configuration is the most useful I've found in ANY knife that I own and that includes a Sebenza, other BM's, MOD's, Microtechs, TOPS, Emersons, CUDA's, and many many more (yes I'm a knife junky).

And I've also got to agree with Zenghost, the Boa is a damn fine knife and I too am fond of the speed safe system.
 
I generally carry a small Sebenza or a Socom Elite (2000 version) but recently I aquired my first Benchmade. It's a 941. It's basically the same knife that Burkstar is recommending except it has a more traditional blade shape.

My best friend has a black handled half serrated 940 and loves it. It's the same reverse Tanto blade that Burkstar has (which is probably ultimately stronger than the version I bought), but with 154 CM on my knife I'm nor worried. My budddy's positive experience is what inspired me to buy the 941 I have. The difference is that I got a limited edition model with a red anodized handle and a Boron Carbide (BC1) treated blade. This knife is RAD! It also has a blue anodized spacer inset along the handle spint that looks like it is fileworked (but of course it's machined as this is a production knife).

I paid around $160.00 with tax at my local knife shop!

While I don't own a bunch of customs, I have a few high end production pieces and this one seems about as well built as any of them. I'm still not sure that the Axis lock is as strong as my other EDCs, but it sure does seem tight.

jmx (recent Benchmade convert)

PS Did I mention that it came sharp as hell and cuts like the devil?
 
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