Newer Emerson's fit and finish

A

Alphy

Joined
Nov 23, 2012
Messages
26
I have had 4 Emerson folders over the past 5 years, and I just picked another one up, a CQC-7. It was made in 2013 and it has the standoffs. I noticed that the fit and finish is absolutely stellar. It locks up tighter than my SnG and my Umnumzaan, it was smooth out of the box (I took it down and cleaned it anyway), and razer sharp. So my question is has anyone else noticed that their QC has gone way up with the new standoff versions of their knives? Here is a picture of mine (which I'm sure you have seen me post around here lately.)

5ydtAAQ.jpg
 
I haven't handled an older Emerson, but I have a few manufactured in the last year. I will say that I don't have any problems with fit & finish on them.

Tom
 
I have Emerson from 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013. The fit and finish has become a lot better over that time. The liners are still rough, but everything matches up really well on the 2012 and 2013 models I've owned and handled. I also find the standoffs to be much easier when it comes to maintenance.
 
my 2000 Commander blows away the fit and finish of any later emerson.. including the new standoff 2013 versions..
 
My 2013 commander has a small overlap between the scale and liner on one side. The action is super sticky but is getting better as I use it.
 
Thanks for the replies guys. I will also add that my lockup is early and my blade is dead centered straight. I was just really blown away with the fit and finish on this particular specimen.
 
I have what I assume is an early mini CQC-7 plain SW finish 2013 version, before they switched to the standoffs. The liners are still rough, the scales don't match perfectly with the liners mostly on the butt-end of the handle, and the back spacer was cut at a bit of an angle (ie, not perfectly horizontal.) Other than that, the blade is perfectly ground and sharp, dead centered, tight, early lock-up and the detent seems quite a bit stronger. The edges of the liners are a little more cleaned up as well as the "tang" area of the blade. To me, it seems the fit and finish is good where it needs to be. Overall I like the knife and would buy another if I had more $$.
 
The new stand offs bother me. I've had a few get stripped easily, plus it means i can't bash as many types of things with the butt end now. On the plus side its easier to clean out in the field. I would agree though that fit and finish has gone up, but i never really thought it was terrible before.
 
geohans said:
Still chisel grind?
Click to expand...

Nope, it's not 154cm anymore, no more G-10 handles and it can't be disassembled by the user anymore without voiding the warranty either.

Is this really a serious question? Emerson is known for chisel grinds... Come on.
 
When I was thinking about an Emerson I read all the fit and finish horror stories. When my mini commander came I was impressed. Fit and finish was awesome, no problems with liners/G10 not matching up, blade centered, smooth action out of the box. Only thing is that my liner lock sticks but it is getting better. My commander comes tomorrow and I am hoping it is just as nice. Already have my eye on a spear point CQC-7.

EDIT- just got my standard commander in the mail, same high quality fit and finish. Love this thing.
 
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I just got my first emerson today (cqc7). I can't give any input of the improvement over time, but my new knife has some pretty noticeable F & F issues. The g10 doesn't match the liners quite noticeably in some places, the blades so off center its rubbing the liner, and the locks incredibly sticky.

None of these issues are beyond my ability to fix, so I'm not really put off by the knife. But I've also never purchased from any other company that has had such obvious issues.

Not trying to bash Emerson, just giving a honest essential as a new customer. I'm actually really liking the knife after tweaking it.
 
Havoc5J said:
I just got my first emerson today (cqc7). I can't give any input of the improvement over time, but my new knife has some pretty noticeable F & F issues. The g10 doesn't match the liners quite noticeably in some places, the blades so off center its rubbing the liner, and the locks incredibly sticky.

None of these issues are beyond my ability to fix, so I'm not really put off by the knife. But I've also never purchased from any other company that has had such obvious issues.

Not trying to bash Emerson, just giving a honest essential as a new customer. I'm actually really liking the knife after tweaking it.
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I have the same issues. It's still a nice knife, but my problem lies in the price. When I shell out 200-300 for a folder, is it unreasonable to expect a certain level of precision?

But I agree with the tweaking part as well I took my commander apart cleaned and put it back together again and its coming together.
 
I received my first Emerson today - traveler, and it had tight pivot to a point where I could not open it single handed. So I disassembled and put it back together, it is a bit okay now but still too tight. The liners don't sit flush with the scales, there was gunk everywhere - pivot, screws, liners, reddish residue on parts of the blade. And it reeked of machine oil. I am not sure why an otherwise fine knife lacks in basic fit and finish department.

But it has some nice (actually very nice) points as well - ability to use a dime to loosen and tighten the pivot, incredibly easy to take down and put back, super strong pocket clip, and bears the hallmarks of a tool, rather than something that sits next to your omega. :-)
 
You can't beat the older Emersons for fit and finish. My 2000 Commander is impeccable.. This 2006 green CQC-7 I just got is also very clean.

DSCN2836.JPG
 
The older ones seemed better from what I have handled.n A few 12 and 10 models were pretty good.

This last two months I have either repaired and or customized 5 emersons. 2 Horseman , CQC 7 and two of the different endeavor models.
I had to tweak the detent and lock bars on each one. All were lightly used or new in box.
All had lock slip or vertical blade play. Each with a horrible detent that barely held the blade shut. I did manage to fix it totally on 3 of the 5. The other two simply had bad tang grinds.
However, the blades are gorgeous and have awesome finish. It is the handle and liner work that is kind of shoddy once you tear them apart and look around. I am more than happy to fix them for folks, but it is a bummer.
I still would be more than happy to purchase one if they offered more V grind models. The designs are very nice and well thought out.

I just played with another endeavor that has come in for work at the end of the month. With the permission of the owner.
The issue is , the lockbar bends with the slightest amount of pressure forward. That causes the angle of the lock bar to change and the lock to slip.
 
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T Schloz said:
I haven't handled an older Emerson, but I have a few manufactured in the last year. I will say that I don't have any problems with fit & finish on them.

Tom
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OnionPoptarts said:
The new stand offs bother me. I've had a few get stripped easily, plus it means i can't bash as many types of things with the butt end now. On the plus side its easier to clean out in the field. I would agree though that fit and finish has gone up, but i never really thought it was terrible before.
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What is the general thinking in here about the switch? I know it makes for easier cleaning and all but you lose strength out the butt. I don't understand Ernie's thinking behind it. I would hope it's not just a cost cutting measure because I know I'll never get one unless it is proven that design is as stout as the setup with the spacer.
 
BellaBlades said:
The older ones seemed better from what I have handled.n A few 12 and 10 models were pretty good.

This last two months I have either repaired and or customized 5 emersons. 2 Horseman , CQC 7 and two of the different endeavor models.
I had to tweak the detent and lock bars on each one. All were lightly used or new in box.
All had lock slip or vertical blade play. Each with a horrible detent that barely held the blade shut. I did manage to fix it totally on 3 of the 5. The other two simply had bad tang grinds.
However, the blades are gorgeous and have awesome finish. It is the handle and liner work that is kind of shoddy once you tear them apart and look around. I am more than happy to fix them for folks, but it is a bummer.
I still would be more than happy to purchase one if they offered more V grind models. The designs are very nice and well thought out.

I just played with another endeavor that has come in for work at the end of the month. With the permission of the owner.
The issue is , the lockbar bends with the slightest amount of pressure forward. That causes the angle of the lock bar to change and the lock to slip.
Click to expand...

I never had a problem with Emerson's finish, but yeah, some of those locks were problematic
 
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