Rockstead Knowledge Thread

[The Aflac Duck]

I picked up my first Rockstead, a Shu in ZDP 189 in the midst of a knife buying binge. I had wanted a Rockstead in general for some time and as many people seem to do I considered it financially out of bounds. And I couldn't decide on a particular model. After comparing various models over the course of years I narrowed it down to the Shu and the Ryo. The $300 price difference was only a minor factor because the cheaper of the two, the Shu, is ~$1,500 so what's a few hundred more dollars on top of that? The psychology of an obsessive I suppose as I am hardly Daddy Warbucks. For the first time in my years of knife collecting and use I have taken pictures of one for other than the purpose of selling it. Were I to write up a mini-review of the Shu would this be the appropriate thread to place it in?

Cocngrats on the Shu!
This is the perfect place to write up a review.

 

[The Aflac Duck]

Has anyone seen the new Ritsu that's being released this month? I think I'm gonna need to sell a kidney

 

[lex2006]

Oh My Goodness

 

[CPP]

Shu Review Part 1

I picked up my first Rockstead, a Shu in ZDP 189 in the midst of a knife buying binge. I had wanted a Rockstead in general for some time and as many people seem to do I considered it financially out of bounds.

The review of the Ryo at the now defunct Edge Observer site was my introduction to the brand and I was initially adamant that if I ever had enough money to spend on a knife that would be the one. I then looked into the various Rockstead models and couldn't decide on a particular model. After comparing folding models over the course of years I narrowed it down to the Shu and the aforementioned Ryo. The $300 price difference was only a minor factor because the cheaper of the two, the Shu, is ~$1,500 so what's a few hundred more dollars on top of that? The psychology of an obsessive, I suppose, as I am hardly Daddy Warbucks.

The deciding factor for me between the Shu and the Ryo was the pocket clip. The Shu comes with a lock-side which all of my knives with pocket clips have, while the Ryo has a retractable spine mounted clip. The Ryo's clip looks innovative and functional but was also an unknown variable as I was unsure how it would sit in my pocket especially on pants made from thinner material. In addition, I respect how they attributed part of the retractable clip mechanism to its inventor, Joseph Caswell, licensing it to him once that issue was brought to their attention. Both knives have the same handle and blade material, are roughly the same size, have the same convex grind, thumb studs and button lock as well as a forward finger choil. The familiar pocket clip sold me on the Shu.

I ordered the Shu from BladeHQ in the darker of the two colors offered. While the presentation of the knife's packaging is only secondary to the knife itself it did increase my anticipation as I removed it from the box it was shipped in.

Followed by a branded wooden box inside the cardboard sleeve.

And, to continue with my tedious strip-tease approach to showing you my new purchase, there was a layer of foam inside.

And finally the Shu itself in all of its titanium glory. The knife comes equipped with a filler tab in place of the pocket clip with the clip itself inserted in the foam separate from the knife.

And here it is:

And:

To be continued after a bike ride in the belated spring weather...

 

[CPP]

Shu Review Part 2

Both sides of the titanium handle are engraved with what Rockstead describes as a "Japanese apricot motif" each side being a unique version of the motif. This is my first knife with decorative engraving and while I can't say I bought the Shu because of it I also didn't do so in spite of it. That being said I t has grown on me and I think it adds a certain subtle sophistication to its appearance and possibly some traction in the user's hand.

You can also see the relief in the scalloping which appears on either side of the handle. The angle this relief is ground at allows your index finger to sink into to place resulting in a secure and comfortable grip.

The Shu also has a forward finger choil half of which falls on the handle and half on the blade allowing the user to choke up on the blade for delicate cutting tasks. What stands out about this forward choil is that is just as comfortable to use as to not–it is truly an optional feature as opposed to the default grip.

I have had three Spyderco knives, the Dragonfly II, the Lil' Native and the Sage I and with each using the forward choil is the only way to usefully grip the knife. This is meant not as a criticism of Spyderco's use of the choil as they clearly intended it to be used as such but as an observation. On the CFK Peace Duke using the forward choil is the more natural grip but gripping it with your index finger behing the flipper tab is also functional. The only knife I had with both grips being more or less of equal comfort was the Hinderer XM18.

This arguably broadens the potential uses for this knife. This choil has a short section of lateral texturing which in conjunction with the relief being gripped by the middle finger in a choked-up position provides the user with a very firm hold on the knife.

The spine of the handle is formed by the two titanium scales meeting with a visible but not obvious line. The fit-and-finish is such that not light is visible where the two scales are held together by three Torx screws the heads of which appear on the side with the pocket clip and with no trace on the other. A series of engraved lines traverse the the majority of the spine flaring out toward the pommel with the seam serving as the middle line passing through a relatively small lanyard hole.

The inch or so of the handle just before the blade features texturing that is a fragmentation of the lines just described. The spine of the blade also has texturing similar in both depth and frequency to that found on the Sebenza and Manandi. Restricting my grip to the handle I find my thumb lands on the handle's texturing in spite of the picture above showing my thumb on the spine of the blade. When choking up with my index finger in the forward choil my thumb naturally falls on the blade's texturing and is complemented by the texturing within the choil. To reiterate, both grips are secure and comfortable.

 

[toal299]

Both sides of the titanium handle are engraved with what Rockstead describes as a "Japanese apricot motif" each side being a unique version of the motif. This is my first knife with decorative engraving and while I can't say I bought the Shu because of it I also didn't do so in spite of it. That being said I t has grown on me and I think it adds a certain subtle sophistication to its appearance and possibly some traction in the user's hand.

You can also see the relief in the scalloping which appears on either side of the handle. The angle this relief is ground at allows your index finger to sink into to place resulting in a secure and comfortable grip.

The Shu also has a forward finger choil half of which falls on the handle and half on the blade allowing the user to choke up on the blade for delicate cutting tasks. What stands out about this forward choil is that is just as comfortable to use as to not–it is truly an optional feature as opposed to the default grip.

I have had three Spyderco knives, the Dragonfly II, the Lil' Native and the Sage I and with each using the forward choil is the only way to usefully grip the knife. This is meant not as a criticism of Spyderco's use of the choil as they clearly intended it to be used as such but as an observation. On the CFK Peace Duke using the forward choil is the more natural grip but gripping it with your index finger behing the flipper tab is also functional. The only knife I had with both grips being more or less of equal comfort was the Hinderer XM18.

This arguably broadens the potential uses for this knife. This choil has a short section of lateral texturing which in conjunction with the relief being gripped by the middle finger in a choked-up position provides the user with a very firm hold on the knife.

The spine of the handle is formed by the two titanium scales meeting with a visible but not obvious line. The fit-and-finish is such that not light is visible where the two scales are held together by three Torx screws the heads of which appear on the side with the pocket clip and with no trace on the other. A series of engraved lines traverse the the majority of the spine flaring out toward the pommel with the seam serving as the middle line passing through a relatively small lanyard hole.

The inch or so of the handle just before the blade features texturing that is a fragmentation of the lines just described. The spine of the blade also has texturing similar in both depth and frequency to that found on the Sebenza and Manandi. Restricting my grip to the handle I find my thumb lands on the handle's texturing in spite of the picture above showing my thumb on the spine of the blade. When choking up with my index finger in the forward choil my thumb naturally falls on the blade's texturing and is complemented by the texturing within the choil. To reiterate, both grips are secure and comfortable.

Very nice review. I have seen these come up from time to time but have never pulled the trigger. How do you feel about the button lock?

 

[CPP]

Very nice review. I have seen these come up from time to time but have never pulled the trigger. How do you feel about the button lock?

Thanks and stay tuned! I'm actually enjoying this!

 

[brandoak]

Beautiful knife! Its looks comfortable in the hand for sure. I think you made the right choice in not getting the Ryo. Its clip is not very suited for edc and is problematic in my opinion. Although I was pretty burnt on my first Rockstead experience, I do think Ill try again. Maybe this time the Higo or Higo X. Having a hard time deciding between the two. Ive watched Blues video about 20 times now and theirs something to say about that stainless frame that just shouts durability. I think the yxr7 is the way to go because of its toughness over the zdp. The Higo x not having a clip bothers me but where theirs a will there a way..

 

[Dangerously]

Has anyone seen the new Ritsu that's being released this month? I think I'm gonna need to sell a kidney

I was so happy years ago when I saw that rockstead didn’t make a fixed blade I like. This is terrible news! That knife looks great.

 

[brandoak]

Saw a picture of a Rockstead Higo dlc that was at one point used for cutting fruit, afterwards the blade looked to be a survivor of a home fire due to the permanent patina left by doing so.
Is this a commonality? Is this expected? I think this would deter many potential buyers if this were the case. Are the finish on these blades so susceptible to unwanted patina just from cutting fruit?

 

[The Aflac Duck]

Saw a picture of a Rockstead Higo dlc that was at one point used for cutting fruit, afterwards the blade looked to be a survivor of a home fire due to the permanent patina left by doing so.
Is this a commonality? Is this expected? I think this would deter many potential buyers if this were the case. Are the finish on these blades so susceptible to unwanted patina just from cutting fruit?

I've never had a problem, nor would I be opposed to patina on any knife that I plan on using.

 

[brandoak]

I would be purchasing it as a user Blues, but I would heartbroken if this happens to my new knife...It looks to be a dlc coated blade but Im not sure...this could be an added benefit of choosing the zdp?

 

[Twindog]

With a DLC coating over a non-stainless steel, you can get rust. I wouldn't think it would patina. The knife above looks like it has serious corrosion issues, including pitting. Just a light coat of non-toxic oil will prevent rusting.

On the plus side, I would be happy to use that knife, unlike my only Rockstead with its perfect mirrored coating.

 

[brandoak]

Its neat, but one of the things that attracted me towards the knife was Blue's video's on his Higo and how pristine the blade remained after so much use.

 

[The Aflac Duck]

Its neat, but one of the things that attracted me towards the knife was Blue's video's on his Higo and how pristine the blade remained after so much use.

I've had my Chi and Higo-X (both YXR7/DLC) get pretty wet and muddy, but cutting fruit isn't one of my daily chores. The things I cut are more abrasive, rather than acidic.

On the other hand, I'd have a hard time believing that ZDP-189 would be much better since it has 3% carbon. It's hardly stainless, but since it's loaded with chromium it gets that title.

I seem to recall folks with Spydercos that have 420/ZDP clad blades that have developed a patina on the ZDP "core".

Out of curiousity, was that picture of the "Higo patina" from a Russian knife forum???

 

[brandoak]

Out of curiousity, was that picture of the "Higo patina" from a Russian knife forum???

I dont know. I was image searching trying to decide between the Higo and Higo X and found it. The caption said the patina was a result of cutting fruit one time.
While I have you here Id like to thank you for your videos and info on the subject.
Any advantage to the Higo X over the regular Higo? Thank you Blue's!

 

[The Aflac Duck]

I dont know. I was image searching trying to decide between the Higo and Higo X and found it. The caption said the patina was a result of cutting fruit one time.
While I have you here Id like to thank you for your videos and info on the subject.
Any advantage to the Higo X over the regular Higo? Thank you Blue's!

I appreciate your gratefulness! I'm more than happy to share my experience in using Rocksteads.

I'm sure that it's easy for a bit of patina to develop if you're careless with the knife. However, if you're dropping a large wad of cash on such a knife, why would you treat it carelessly?

Regarding the Higo vs. Higo-X, you're mainly paying for the additional aesthetics of the X. Regarding functionality, they are the same exact blade unless you get a different grind (Shinogizukuri or Honzukuri). Ergonomics may be slightly different since the Higo is a framelock and the X is a linerlock. On the plus side, the standard Higo comes with a pocket clip!

 

[brandoak]

Thank you Blues!
The Higo X is advertised as coming apart easily to aid in cleaning, you wouldn't have or know of any pictures of the insides of the X would you by chance? Cant find a disassembly or exploded view anywhere on the net but would be very interested in seeing how it all comes apart...

 

[The Aflac Duck]

Thank you Blues!
The Higo X is advertised as coming apart easily to aid in cleaning, you wouldn't have or know of any pictures of the insides of the X would you by chance? Cant find a disassembly or exploded view anywhere on the net but would be very interested in seeing how it all comes apart...

It's kinda similar to a Sebenza 21. A couple screws, washers, and a pivot bushing. It's very simple, only 8 parts.

 

[brandoak]

Thank you so very much Blue's! Ive looked everywhere for that! You've made my day Sir.