Quality control thoughts and my first Emerson

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longun

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Jul 29, 2012
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I recently purchased my first Emerson. A CQC 7B with wave and serrations. I had read some things about Emersons being more utilitarian and their fit and finish sometimes being sub par.
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When I got my knife I looked it over for awhile and was impressed.

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I think there are some other knife manufactors that should take a lesson from Emerson on what G10 should feel like in the hand. It is grippy without being overly abrasive. I am impressed with the handles.

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I was also impressed with the stone washed finish on the blade. I thought it was very well done also.
So far I am very happy with the knife, but wonder if I had the need for the wave feature. So this brings me to three questions for those of you that have more experience with Emerson knives.
1) How many of you have problems with the knife opening when you draw it from the pocket without using the wave feature? In other words, how many of you prefer the waveless knives?
2) Does the knife ever loosen up to the point where it is easy to flip open with the thumb? I see the liner without the lock bar has a friction feature built into it.
3) Is there much of a problem with the screw holding the thumb disc breaking off? This screw must be very small, and I am hoping it is durable.

I see none of the quality control issues that I have read about. In fact, I think the fit and finish on my particular knife is very well done. I'm afraid this may be the start of an Emerson collection.
 
Welcome to Emerson Knives.
1) You can draw the knife from your pocket without deploying the Wave. Just get used to the Wave being there. Practice deploying the Wave also. It's a great design feature.
2) If the blade gets loose, find the sweet-spot and use locktite. I never had a problem.
3) That thumb disk won't break off.
4) Enjoy your knife.
Rolf
 
You can adjust the pivot, they came out with a new screw, thank goodness, becuase on the older models you had to constantly tighten up your pivot, or find the sweet spot and loctite it. The screw on the thumbdisk is durable I have never had one break off and I have owned a lot of emersons, , and 3rd with time you will realize how to draw the knife and wave it or pull it out and it just open , It's just a matter of technique when drawing from the pocket.
 
I just got the same knife with plain egde and an a huge fan of the stonewash and polished blade. It looks amazing. Mine is a 2012 model and the fit and fi ish are great. Not that my 15 is all that bad but its much better than my 15.
 
Thanks for your thoughts. It seems that most like the wave, but it takes a little learning curve. I like the idea of being able to open the knife as it comes out of the pocket. Guess it is time to practice.
 
I'll second everything Lycosa said. It took a while for me to get the technique for using the wave. Now I can use it if I need to, but I rarely do more than a couple of practice openings just to keep it in mind. My mini-15 works fine with just the thumb disk, which I find I actually prefer to both studs and holes. I've never had a screw anywhere on any Emerson come loose. I've had the action loosen up after a couple of months of use, but that's just normal, I take it. No part has ever gotten loose on any the 4 Emersons that I've had.

No QC issues here with any Emerson. Mine have all been 2011 & 2012 models so far and they've been 100% perfect AFAIC.
 
I personally do not prefer the wave. However I love Emersons and the wave is only on one of mine.

As for QC I've never had a problem. But one of the best things about Emerson knives is that they're so simple to take apart and clean, lube, recenter, etc. it almost doesn't matter if it's a tad off. And they're good people too. They'll take care of you if there is an issue.
 
No QC issues on any of my Emersons. I personally like the wave, but I have a bunch of non-waved too. I've learned how to remove from the pocket using the wave and without using it. Never had any thumbstuds even begin to come loose, let alone break off. You can take apart the knife, clean and lube the washers and the knife will be very smooth opening. I never had to even loctite any of my pivot screws.
 
What I really like is the stonewashed flats and the satin finished grinds. I also really like the G10, it's just right. I'm going to try and find a 10 or a medium sized 7 with the dragons tooth serrations.
 
I HAVE had the thumbdisk FALL off without me even noticing it and my cqc-15 was about 2 days old.
Emerson took care of it and had my knife back to me in a week and it's been a solid user ever since.
The action does loosen up easily, and i think there's some technique required when opening with a thumbdisk.
The wave is definitely a neat feature but i rarely use it.
 
I'm with Rolf on these points as well.
I inspect as knife prior to carry but I have never had a problem with the thumb stud. I have owned Emerson's for well over a decade (OK 2 decades). The knife will break in, so will you. You will become very fluid with the knife and design. I usually don't use the wave when I deploy it. It is more of an Emergency feature for me. When I'm stressed, and I rip the knife out of my pocket or waistband, that is when I automatically use the wave. I have never had a QC problem with any of my Emersons. I understand their CS is the best but I have never used them.
Lycosa said:
Welcome to Emerson Knives.
1) You can draw the knife from your pocket without deploying the Wave. Just get used to the Wave being there. Practice deploying the Wave also. It's a great design feature.
2) If the blade gets loose, find the sweet-spot and use locktite. I never had a problem.
3) That thumb disk won't break off.
4) Enjoy your knife.
Rolf
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