My first ever Hinderer arrived in the mail today. It’s an XM-18 Gen 5 with working finish 3.5” sheepsfoot blade, Battle Bronze titanium and FDE G-10.
Honestly, I was worried about poor flipping action, but mine flips just fine. No problem light-switch or push-button flipping. This is my first time ever touching a Hinderer. No need to push forward then back like online videos. It has a nice detent that keeps the blade shut and is really hard to shake open. The detent makes it a little hard to flick open with the thumb stud, but it’s doable.
I can’t find a single fault with this knife. It has the sharpest factory edge I’ve ever encountered out of the box. The edge isn’t as pretty as the mirror polish I get with my Wicked Edge, but it’s just as sharp. Everything else is spot on and works beautifully.
My first impression of the XM-18 wasn’t an orgasmic experience. However, it’s the only holy grail knife purchase I haven’t been disappointed in or had issues with out of the box.