Sebenza Inquiry

Joined
Feb 8, 2003
Messages
345
You all can laugh at me for asking this BUT I need to know a few things on this knife.

1) Why does this knife get soo much attention on the forums?

2) What makes this knife soo good?

3) Is the quality of this knife better thenlets say a Microtech, Master of defense, or a benchmade?

I am not trying to start a debate on which IS better( I see you guys have enough of those :) ) but I just need to know why its such a high rated knive amoungst(sp?) you guys. Thx!
 
You stepped into it now! :eek: I have had the opportunity to handle a small Sebenza and it didn't impress me. Maybe it is like a Harley Davidson thing? There are people who like to bash Sebenza's. They remind me of the people that used to bash REKAT knives every month. To each his own.
 
My answers to your questions are:

It gets attention because people feel strongly one way or the other. So almost anytime someone says sebenza a war breaks out.

Good is both subjective and objective. I think most agree that it is a knife that is well engineered, uses great materials, and overall has a high precision. Subjectively, looks, feel, ergos, etc. some like it some don't.

I've only handled micro tech's and masters of defense and in my opinion it beats them in the objective sense of quality. Benchmade, IMO, ranks somewhere between CRKT and Spyderco, so yes it beats bencmade handily.
 
The Sebenza is a well designed, very well made knife. The company that makes it has first rate customer service. It's a production knife primarily in the sense that it is not made to order by a single smith from start to finish, like a true custom knife, but it's hardly what one usually thinks of as mass-produced. There is nothing magical about it, there is no special ability it has over other quality knives such as Microtech or Benchmade. Though the tolerances and fit/finish does appear a bit finer than either the Microtech or Benchmade. I can only say that because I own examples of all three. Most of those who dislike it, find it's design is not to their taste, or it did not withstand some abuse as well as they thought it should. I don't believe I've ever talked to anyone who's ever complained they found any material defect on one, and if they did, it wouldn't be a problem, given CRK's customer support. If you like the Sebenza's design, and want somthing that is a bit nicer (in my opinion) than most production knives, and are willing to pay a little extra to get it, then the Sebenza is for you. If you have unrealistic expectations, or expect the knife to never dull, scratch, or sustain damage under hard use/abuse, then don't waste your money. The knife is indeed mortal, and will not long endure extensive abuse such as using it frequently as a prybar, or screwdriver, as a wire cutter or as a hatchet, without sustaining the inevitable damage known to result from such abuse. It's simply a knife, made to a bit higher standard, that is reflected by a similarly higher cost.
Hope this helps.
 
Ill touch on what others have said and add a few things.

There is both a subjective and objective component to judging the Sebenza. Some people dont like how it feels in their hand, though many do, some people arent crazy about the thumbstud design, some like it a lot, so with these sorts of subjective issues, what it comes down to is a matter of taste and whether the knife feels good to YOU.

However, objectively, i dont think ANYONE will step forward and say its not a well made, very solid knife. So, its pretty much a given that the knife is of very high quality. I honestly cant recall anyone, not even the most vocal Sebenza bashers, claiming the knife isnt a very well made knife, and thats sort of remarkable if you think about it, even its haters grudgingly admit its a high quality knife and base their dislike on either what they feel is too high a price, or ergonomics, which is fine, to each his own.

Whether the knife feels right to you, and whether you think the superior quality justifies the higher price is up to you.

[Warning, what is written below is an opinion and not fact] :)


Personally, in terms of strength, design, fit and finish, i think it is truly one of the best made folders available, and that includes most custom knives i have examined. I have never once seen a Sebenza with any type of flaw. In my experience, and I have examined probably at least 100 of them, they are remarkably consistant knife to knife and i have yet to see a single one with any sort of defect or flaw in fit or finish, and thats something i just cannot say about any other production knife, and i have seen far too many custom knives that were not as well put together as a Sebenza. If Chris Reeve can have no blade play EVERY time, so should a $500-$600 custom, if CR can center the blade perfectly EVERY time, so should a $500 custom, if CR can make sure the lock is perfectly fitted to the blade EVERY time, so should a $500 custom, and yet, I have seen an awful lot of customs that were failing in one or several of these areas. Some of these makers are well known and popular.

Microtech has pretty decent fit and finish, though not perfect, i HAVE seen several that slipped by QC. Benchmade, well, let's just say, MT and CR are definitely a cut above, as they should be, at their higher respective prices.

I think that with the Sebenza, as is the case with many things in life, you have diminishing returns. What i mean is, yes, the Sebenza does cost quite a bit more than a Benchmade, and the Benchmade is not a bad knife, but, as is usually the case, you pay a disproportionately high amount to get that last little bit of quality, so, you pay maybe 100% more to get something that may only be 10% better, but thats always the case when buying very high-end products. Whether that last little bit of quality is worth a lot more $ to you, is, well, up to you.
 
Well done guys! Bravo! 4 replies so far, and this post is still civil.;) Good reviews of the Sebbie without shoving a bunch of hype down Aniketos' throat. Good job. That's how to get non-Sebenzaists to convert.:)

Mike
 
Originally posted by DaveH
Benchmade, IMO, ranks somewhere between CRKT and Spyderco

hmmmm......have to differ on that one. I reckon Benchmade is right up there with the top production knives. Also in terms of product range, BM beats Spyderco hands down.

Spyderco has too many lockbacks and not enough liner locks. As for Axis......we'll give em a little more time to sort themselves out there.;)
 
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