Quick Review: Gerber LMF II ASEK

[Hammer27]

The Gerber is very well done and made in Portland, Oregon, USA. The handle is very secure and comfortable in everything I've done with it. I was also impressed by the shaving sharpness of the straight edge and how smoothly the serrations cut. I tested the buttcap out on a glass bottle and it performed flawlessly. Some have stated that its "butt heavy" but I never got that impression and I personally like the buttcap the way it is. According to Gerber, the buttcap is meant for breaking canopies of helicopters (which I'm sure it excells at) and I'm sure it can be used for strikes and for breaking holes in other things. In the sheath the large flat portion of the buttcap can be used as a hammer but it is not very good at this (tent stakes and such but nothing heavy). The handle has slight indentations in the handle and two holes for lashing it in order to make a spear. Personally, I would not do this and I think this knife is rather heavy for the task. It chopped reasonably well for a 5inch blade and made fuzz sticks pretty well. The sheath is ingenious with its draw through sharpener, it comes with two adjustable straps for calf or or dropdown carry, MOLLE webbing, and it also has a rescue hook with its own MOLLE sheath. Unfortunately the sheath wears on the finish of the handle at the guard and it takes a little more effort to pull it out of the sheath than other knives. It is an excellent knife on the whole.









Good penetration for such a wide and thick blade:




This was done with hand pressure alone; no baton:




Comparison:

 

[popke25]

this knife looks awesome i really want this knife for a while just for the sheath design... and i was wondering how you posted pics of your knife on your page...

 

[johnu2]

Great review and great pictures too

 

[PatriotDan]

The LMF is in my opinion one of the top production knives meant for serious ems/leo/military use. Great bang for the buck! Contrary to some opinions, the 12C27 is a great beater steel for such an application.

The only thing I have found negative is the sheath. It sits too close to body and the knife is hard to pull out when it's so closely flat against the sheath back. It's hard to get a good grip to pull it out. The sheath is basically well designed.

On the handle, it sits really well for me while some have said it's a little slim to be perfect, but it works well with protective gloves on.

Thanks for your review.

 

[johnu2]

I find that if you place your thumb on the "lip" of the sheath and pushing, while drawing the blade makes it easier

 

[Morablades]

I love mine and use it in the bush all the time. One thing I did was polish the blade for a signal mirror. I have no use for the oxcide coating.

 

[Hammer27]

this knife looks awesome i really want this knife for a while just for the sheath design... and i was wondering how you posted pics of your knife on your page...

I use webshots.com and others use photobucket. Just make an account, upload to an album you create then find the "post in a forum" tab and paste that on here.

 

[Stainz]

My son gave me one in black last summer. Nice knife - but I am not fond of the Molle sheath - a 'basic' Kydex or leather would be better. Still, at $59 a year or two back for some variants from a few sites, it was a steal. As a gift from #1 son, mine was an even better deal! It made me buy my first bought tactical knife... a Buck 650 Nighthawk. To me, 'tactical' means I can sneak up on a package to open it... probably another delivery box with a knife or two within... like the Vic SAK 'Farmers' I recently received. That box never knew what happened - and it was open - and I had my new SAKs!

Stainz

 

[Gusurvivor]

Morablades - Would you mind posting a pictures of your polished blade? I would be interested in seeing how you did this.

Gus

 

[JD Mandrell]

My son gave me one in black last summer. Nice knife - but I am not fond of the Molle sheath - a 'basic' Kydex or leather would be better. Still, at $59 a year or two back for some variants from a few sites,

Stainz

Just a quick note on that, if you check on some places, I think for sure Amazon.com, you get get the green handled one with no sheath for under $40.00, have a nice kydex one made and you would have a real good setup.

 

[Mistwalker]

I bought one last summer. It is a well made knife and great for it's intended role. The heavy pommel is not attached to the tang allowing for the cutting of hot electric wires, and the shapener works pretty well for field sharpening While I am sure the knife is great in plains or desert type terrains, I didn't like carrying it in the bush here (especially on my calf) because I live in a lush growth temperate rain forest and it gets hung on vines very easy and kept yanking the sheath off the harness, I wouldn't want to wear one in a tropical rain forest.

 

[Morablades]

Morablades - Would you mind posting a pictures of your polished blade? I would be interested in seeing how you did this.

Gus

I don't have a camera, but will gladly explain. I simply sanded down the blade by hand with 600 grit sand paper. Once all the oxcide was off I put it on the buffing wheel and did two runs with with Ryobi C buffing compound, then gave it a glossy finish with Ryobi E, two rounds. Lastly, finished up with a couple rounds of the H compound, which gave it more of a shine than intended. Mirror finish in an hour and a half.

 

[Gusurvivor]

Very nice thank you. I haven't bought one yet, but have been inquiring at my local Sportsman ware house since that is the only place that carrys one. $99 just seems a little steep but I'm watching for falling prices.

 

[Hammer27]

Very nice thank you. I haven't bought one yet, but have been inquiring at my local Sportsman ware house since that is the only place that carrys one. $99 just seems a little steep but I'm watching for falling prices.

Not to deal spot but check out lapolicegear.com if you're not bound to a local shop.

 

[Gusurvivor]

Not that I'm bound to a shop, but scared to death of shopping online. Had my identity stolen. Cash only. I'm moving back to industrial aged. This information age is too fast for me. Price does look temping.

 

[Morablades]

Not that I'm bound to a shop, but scared to death of shopping online. Had my identity stolen. Cash only. I'm moving back to industrial aged. This information age is too fast for me. Price does look temping.

knivesplus.com has great security for online shoppers.:thumbup: I do understand your caution.

 

[CaptInsano]

I think I would already have one by now if I could get a plain edge version.

 

[vheaston]

Good review Hammer. Thanks for taking the time. I just picked one up a couple months ago, and I've been impressed thus far. Gerber makes a good knife IMO.

 

[Stainz]

Actually, for a US-made knife with the holster, etc, it includes, a sale price of $100 is more than fair. The $60-$70 price is a 'closeout' for certain variants - and a real steal. It actually is a nice knife - brought to everyone's notice here by a great review, Hammer27 - thank you!!

Stainz

PS Thanks, again, to my son... great hatchday gift!

 

[Hammer27]

Actually, for a US-made knife with the holster, etc, it includes, a sale price of $100 is more than fair. The $60-$70 price is a 'closeout' for certain variants - and a real steal. It actually is a nice knife - brought to everyone's notice here by a great review, Hammer27 - thank you!!

Stainz

PS Thanks, again, to my son... great hatchday gift!

Yep. Made in the USA is something that isn't too easy to find and the sheath and rescue hook it comes with aren't cheap either. I've seen rescue hooks that come with this knife running for $30 or so.