Re: Umnumzaan

J

jdeangelis

Joined
Jan 9, 2010
Messages
43
Why is stoned washed blades preferable since the Umnumzaan only comes in this blade finish. I have seen stone washed blades arrive with lines or blotches in the stone washing of the blade and almost appear like a dent in the blade? my Spyderco VG10, ZDP189, M4, S30V, etc. have a much more appealing finish in my opinion. I do not abuse my blades so showing or hiding scratches are not applicable to my usage, but for me the beauty and appearance are more important. What's up with stone washing other than hiding scratches because a stone washed blade arrives scratched. For a knife of the quality of an Umnumzaan, I don't understand why no other more appealing blade options are offered, considering in my opinion an Umnumzaan is more of a collector's piece rather than a daily work horse knife and not vigilant about insuring it's stellar condition to which to it keep :confused:in, say for collection and defense usage only?
 
I don't understand why no other more appealing blade options are offered, considering in my opinion an Umnumzaan is more of a collector's piece
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it's simple, you are wrong.
 
The Umnum is a work knife first and foremost just like a plain jane Sebenza. Therefore the satin finish. If you are interested in collectors piece look into the more exotic Sebenzas with inlays.
 
I would never consider the Umnumzaan a collectors piece. Its not that kind of knife. Maybe if you get one of the fancy ones from some of the dealers that are colored and cost close to 2K, then for sure. I consider a Umnumzaan a true workhorse, even more so than a sebenza. Its more heavily built than a sebenza. I have been doing a kitchen remodel and have used my zaan daily for some pretty heavy duty applications and there is not a scratch on the blade at all. A knife that IS designed as a workhorse, I find you could not do any better than a stone washed finish.......I have a small sebenza graphic with a polished blade and I have only used it slightly doing everyday things. The blade has scratches that even after a factory referb could not remove. So for me, its Stone Washed ALL The Way !!!
 
i feel just the opposite...i would love if spyderco did a stonewash finish...i love the look of it:D and the Umnumzaan is not collectors piece...
 
A "Zaan" is a workhorse knife. I felt my girlfriend paying $400 for it that I was going to keep it in unused, prestine condition, to carry and use only in a life threating situation. Now I can understand why stone wash finish is preferable for a work horse knife. I am still hooked on the asthetic beauty of knives, and as such I would rather use a kitchen knife or screwdriver rather than ruin one of my prestigious knives such as my SOG FatCAT, a $350 knife that would be great for a life threatening, protect myself situation. I agree if I want a pretty collectible Chris Reeves, I will buy a Sebenza which i will do in the future.
 
I really struggle with the concept of keeping these knives as pristine. These knives, along with many others, are designed for using. The stonewashed blades are great in my opinion. They are the thing most "non- knife" people like the most about my Sebenza. The finish hides a lot of the abuse you should be putting the knife thru.

Chris will repair any damage you do, so use it in good health. The knife will mean more to you once you put it thru some paces.
 
Between technological innovations that reduce wear, and finishes that hide it, and an impeccable warranty service, Reeve's knives are fairly immortal whether you use them or not.

So my advice is to use them.
 
jdeangelis said:
A "Zaan" is a workhorse knife. I felt my girlfriend paying $400 for it that I was going to keep it in unused, prestine condition, to carry and use only in a life threating situation. Now I can understand why stone wash finish is preferable for a work horse knife. I am still hooked on the asthetic beauty of knives, and as such I would rather use a kitchen knife or screwdriver rather than ruin one of my prestigious knives such as my SOG FatCAT, a $350 knife that would be great for a life threatening, protect myself situation. I agree if I want a pretty collectible Chris Reeves, I will buy a Sebenza which i will do in the future.
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I'm curious how you know when your gonna have a "life threating situation" ?

I prefer to shoot a BG, but i'll stick one with any blade on my person and i don't carry cheap knives.

Use'em if you got'em tiger....Oh yah, i'll take stonewash over beadblast any day...blood wipes off stonewash better !!
 
jdeangelis said:
Why is stoned washed blades preferable since the Umnumzaan only comes in this blade finish. I have seen stone washed blades arrive with lines or blotches in the stone washing of the blade and almost appear like a dent in the blade? my Spyderco VG10, ZDP189, M4, S30V, etc. have a much more appealing finish in my opinion. I do not abuse my blades so showing or hiding scratches are not applicable to my usage, but for me the beauty and appearance are more important. What's up with stone washing other than hiding scratches because a stone washed blade arrives scratched. For a knife of the quality of an Umnumzaan, I don't understand why no other more appealing blade options are offered, considering in my opinion an Umnumzaan is more of a collector's piece rather than a daily work horse knife and not vigilant about insuring it's stellar condition to which to it keep :confused:in, say for collection and defense usage only?
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I have to say I totally disagree with you. Chris makes his knives to be used. A stonewashed finish looks great even when used hard. In fact, I always prefer stonewash over satin.
 
I really like the stonewash, kindof gives it a dirty/rough look. You will see scratches on it after use but it's less than on satin blades.
why is it preferred? I don't know, a matter of taste? I like both types of finish.

Each book I own is full of scribbles, lines and annotations I put there. I'll swear that all my books are worth more because of it.
The knives you use will actually feel more valuable to you since there will be memories attached to the knife.

As far as keeping them as safe queens: I'm not using knives as an investment, there are better ways to make money. If you want to make money from knives, go sell them in large quantities and become a dealer. I'm not using all my knives and have not used them all but I would use them even though they are a collection piece. I find that I can enjoy a used knife as much or more as an unused knife in my collection.

I agree with you in that sense that you'll want more and more of them :)
 
Since the first day I received my Umnumzaan it has been a user. Still looks great and I have used it for yard work, kitchen duty, and anything a typical EDC would be subjected to. Seems to look and wear better than my large and small Sebenzas. The Sebenzas do look great with some "wear" on the handles though. There is nothing better than using a knife hard and feeling confident that it will not fail.
 
jdeangelis said:
say for collection and defense usage only?
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jdeangelis said:
I felt my girlfriend paying $400 for it that I was going to keep it in unused, prestine condition, to carry and use only in a life threating situation.
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:rolleyes:

There is a seperate subforum for that kind of stuff. It's called "practical tactical".

Good luck with your Umnumzaan. I hope you never get in a life threatening situation.

Kind regards,

Jos
 
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