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So, this is my full review of the Borka Blades SBTF by Sebastijan Berenji. My aim of this post is to get more detailed information about this knife out into the wild where only silent short videos or pictures exist. In the interest of keeping things well, interesting, I decided to try a slightly different format than what most reviewers use while still sticking with my objective open-minded platform.
Expectations vs RealityThe days of knife collecting have drastically changed over the past decade. Now days you have numerous methods of virtually trying a knife before you buy it. However, we all know at the end of the day, it’s just not close enough. So, what do we all do? We build up expectations in our mind of what we perceive the product will be like. This ultimately results in what I call the “satisfaction score” (just shit I made up) which is the accuracy of what the knife is compared to what you built up in your mind based on pictures, videos or the influence of social media. Who knows? Maybe this satisfaction score can predict the statistical chance of you reselling the knife?
Well what is my satisfaction score you ask? After having the knife in my possession for just five days, it’s 98%. That’s the accuracy of what I perceived the knife to be compared to what it currently is. Granted, this measurement is dynamic so only time will tell but I’ll be damned if that isn’t pretty high compared to many of the knives that have crossed my path. Over the course of this review I’ll be hitting on the realities of this knife which set that score but at a high level – I was expecting this knife to be a solid built knife with clean aesthetics and a memorable action.
The HardwareI’ll be discussing what I call “The Anomalies” at a later part in this review but when it comes to the hardware, Sebastijan seems to be going with the latest trends such as M390 steel for the blade and full Titanium for the handles. While this is a pretty typical combo for current times, it’s a safe combo and one that seems to be aging well.
When it comes to specs, dimensions are dimensions so if you’ve been handling knives for any decent length of time, you probably already have a magic number for blade and overall length. With that being said, you can’t appease everyone but at a BL of 3 1/8” and an OAL of 7 5/8”, it’s near perfect to my modest EDC knife.
From what I can tell, the screws are titanium since they are perfectly anodized the same bronze color as the handles and kept to a maximum of two different size Torx bits which is always appreciated when it comes to maintenance. The standoffs appear to be stainless steel as to not over-bronze the whole package and provide a nice matching contrast with the blade.
Speaking of the blade. The SB/F series knives generally come in two different blade profiles (there are others though), neither of which are my first choices in blade shapes: a Persian and tanto style. It’s been about 9 years since I’ve owned a tanto style knife, but I figured what the heck. Luckily, Sebastijan did not disappoint. The tanto profile is ground at the perfect angle and curve to make it just subtle enough so I don’t throw it into the category of gas station tantos. Another selling point of this specific model despite it being against my norm was the anticipation of an amazing hollow grind. My god the hollow grind!
If you watch any knife review videos out there, you’re bound to come across someone talking about the pocket clip. A pocket clip can make or break a knife’s value. Have you ever seen a picture or watched a video of a knife where you were like damn, that’s a clean looking knife? Only to see the other side and witness a pocket clip that looks like a male extremity? What about a knife where just touching it made the pocket clip ping against the handle because there was a gap between the two pieces? Well that crap doesn’t exist with the SBTF. The tolerances are tight and the design is clean.
Last but most certainly not to be forgotten about on our journey through the hardware is the washers. Like most other people, I got on the bearings train for a while but recently shifted back and man what a time it is to be alive. After getting to experience all styles and implementations of bearing pivots, they have their complexity. Sometimes at the end of the day, you just want something simple that you can use hard then service quickly and easily all while still maintaining a reliable action. I have not taken this knife apart yet, but I’m made to believe it has washers and they perform fine. While some knives can see a negative drawback to washers, this knife doesn’t due to the combination of factors which I’ll be getting into in the next part of the review.
The SoftwareWhat was I saying? Oh right. Going back to my earlier mention about expectations of a memorable action, the deployment of the blade is truly a memorable feeling. It’s hard to explain but if I had to guess - the combination of design and materials just creates for a solid feeling and sounding action that are unique all on their own. The lockup on this knife is about 15% of the way over. So, it’s not as drastic as a Chris Reeve but also not as sketchy as a Shirogorov.
Getting back on the topic of deployment, I will say that this knife has a unique strategy when it comes to opening. Since the thumb studs rest literally on the frame of the knife, you will need to apply a direct upward push on the thumb stud. Anyone who has experience with CRKs shouldn’t have a problem and will know what I’m talking about. If you’re feeling a bit fancier and want to show off, I’m pleased to say that the design of this knife makes it pretty easy to “spidey flick” open.
As for the ergonomics. They aren’t amazing but they aren’t horrible either. I mean, obviously the handle shape is a generic uniformed shape so there’s going to be some hot spots. If anything, I’ll hark back to the perfect size which would compensate a little for fatigue when using it hard.
Something I noticed about this knife is the fact that there is no lock bar insert. The lock bar vs no lock bar is already a huge debate within the community. For the sake barely making this review within the character limit, I won’t go into detail. I personally have had knives of both varieties but never used them long or hard enough to make one determination over another. Until one occurs, I’m happy to use both. The only question I have for Sebastijan is why he chose what he chose?
The second anomaly is similar in topic to the first. I noticed that there is no over-travel stop. This isn’t as much a surprise though as most makers have the over-travel stop be the same piece of metal as the lock bar interface. I don’t think having one or not having one is any righter than the other. The justification of an over-travel stop should depend on the size and tension of the lock bar. In the case of this SBTF, the lock bar is designed well enough to not need one.
This next topic is not as heavy a debate but just one of preference. While definitely not hidden, the detent ball track can easily be seen outside of the handle. I’ve heard many debates on whether it’s better craftsmanship to have that ball track visible. Now I’m not a knife maker or designer so I’ll never assume to know better. There could very well be a calculated design choice for this. Regardless, it does not affect the function of the knife in any way and is more of a preference.
Next up on my list of anomalies is probably one of my biggest questions. Being one of the first things I noticed, was a gap between the tip of the blade and the standoff. Now I know I said earlier that the blade length meets my magic number and it does but I mean, I guess the frugal part of me says that’s wasted opportunity? Now I do have a theory of why this could be which could justify this design. My theory is that Sebastijan left the space so that we could tie a lanyard on either one of the standoff screws without the fear of the blade cutting into the lanyard. Again, any of my fellow CRK collectors will know what I’m talking about.
Finally, on my list of anomalies, I’ll end with a much-appreciated surprise. You may notice on the blade tang what appears to be a small notch taken out of it. This small notch or ramp allows the guided and smooth transition of the detent ball to travel up onto the face of the blade while closing the knife. Surprisingly this feature is not used as much as you think and it’s for sure never advertised so when I stumble across it, I just get that much more respect for the maker.
Final ThoughtsIt still baffles my mind as to why there isn’t much being openly said about this knife or it’s counterpart, the SBKF. This knife ticks a lot of boxes and is exemplary in the areas of build and aesthetics. I look forward to seeing how this knife ages under carry and use. I’m sure most collector would agree that there’s not a single knife that can scratch that itch but if you spare the time to handle a Borka Blades knife or drop the coin to own one, you won’t be disappointed.
Expectations vs Reality
Well what is my satisfaction score you ask? After having the knife in my possession for just five days, it’s 98%. That’s the accuracy of what I perceived the knife to be compared to what it currently is. Granted, this measurement is dynamic so only time will tell but I’ll be damned if that isn’t pretty high compared to many of the knives that have crossed my path. Over the course of this review I’ll be hitting on the realities of this knife which set that score but at a high level – I was expecting this knife to be a solid built knife with clean aesthetics and a memorable action.
The Hardware
When it comes to specs, dimensions are dimensions so if you’ve been handling knives for any decent length of time, you probably already have a magic number for blade and overall length. With that being said, you can’t appease everyone but at a BL of 3 1/8” and an OAL of 7 5/8”, it’s near perfect to my modest EDC knife.
Speaking of the blade. The SB/F series knives generally come in two different blade profiles (there are others though), neither of which are my first choices in blade shapes: a Persian and tanto style. It’s been about 9 years since I’ve owned a tanto style knife, but I figured what the heck. Luckily, Sebastijan did not disappoint. The tanto profile is ground at the perfect angle and curve to make it just subtle enough so I don’t throw it into the category of gas station tantos. Another selling point of this specific model despite it being against my norm was the anticipation of an amazing hollow grind. My god the hollow grind!
Last but most certainly not to be forgotten about on our journey through the hardware is the washers. Like most other people, I got on the bearings train for a while but recently shifted back and man what a time it is to be alive. After getting to experience all styles and implementations of bearing pivots, they have their complexity. Sometimes at the end of the day, you just want something simple that you can use hard then service quickly and easily all while still maintaining a reliable action. I have not taken this knife apart yet, but I’m made to believe it has washers and they perform fine. While some knives can see a negative drawback to washers, this knife doesn’t due to the combination of factors which I’ll be getting into in the next part of the review.
The Software
As for the ergonomics. They aren’t amazing but they aren’t horrible either. I mean, obviously the handle shape is a generic uniformed shape so there’s going to be some hot spots. If anything, I’ll hark back to the perfect size which would compensate a little for fatigue when using it hard.
The Anomalies
Now comes the interesting part of the review. The anomalies section is dedicated to things that I consider uncommon or against the grain of current trends. I don’t consider these either good or bad aspects of the knife but think they’re important to talk about for the sake of friendly banter as well as getting us to think objectively about them.Something I noticed about this knife is the fact that there is no lock bar insert. The lock bar vs no lock bar is already a huge debate within the community. For the sake barely making this review within the character limit, I won’t go into detail. I personally have had knives of both varieties but never used them long or hard enough to make one determination over another. Until one occurs, I’m happy to use both. The only question I have for Sebastijan is why he chose what he chose?
The second anomaly is similar in topic to the first. I noticed that there is no over-travel stop. This isn’t as much a surprise though as most makers have the over-travel stop be the same piece of metal as the lock bar interface. I don’t think having one or not having one is any righter than the other. The justification of an over-travel stop should depend on the size and tension of the lock bar. In the case of this SBTF, the lock bar is designed well enough to not need one.
This next topic is not as heavy a debate but just one of preference. While definitely not hidden, the detent ball track can easily be seen outside of the handle. I’ve heard many debates on whether it’s better craftsmanship to have that ball track visible. Now I’m not a knife maker or designer so I’ll never assume to know better. There could very well be a calculated design choice for this. Regardless, it does not affect the function of the knife in any way and is more of a preference.
Final Thoughts
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