sebenza or custom?

J

jonmok

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Jan 26, 2003
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I'm looking to get a "higher" end knife, and have narrowed it down to either getting a custom or a sebenza. I am not talking about those $500 and up customs, but something less than $400. Which one would you go for and why?

A question about customs - I heard that the CRK warranty is pretty good, but how are warranty's with the lesser expensive customs?

Jonathan
 
CRK warranty is great and so is the Sebenza, i would go for that and forget the custom for now, after getting a using a Sebenza you will see how really good a pocket knife can be. That way you will have a standard to compare what a great knife should be like including customs, which IMO can't beat the warranty, price and quality of a Sebenza. BTW there for sale here from time to time at around $250 for a large Sebenza in LNIB condition.

James
 
What APM said, I have the large Sebbie and ordered the small.
Great knife at reasonable cost.
 
I like to maximize my purchases. Every knife that I'm considering goes thru set of "pro's & con's" before purchase. That way. . .I'm ensuring myself that the knife that I'm soon to possess has met the highest standard in the selection process ~ may it be a custom or a production knife.

Using the term "custom" is too broad. Narrow your quest or search down to 3 - 5 (or a few more) custom makers. One way of doing that is surfin' a large # of knife dealer and maker sites. That takes time. . .but time should be on your side considering that your getting ready to drop some hefty frog skins on something that you intend on keeping for some time.

I have both customs and Sebbies and each knife was selected for its merits.

Let us know what you end up getting. :D

And good luck with your quest ! :D
 
The Sebenza is a very high quality knife. I have a large, and carry it often. In my opinion, I rate the Sebenza, an Al Mar SERE, and my Benchmade AFCK M2, all about the same. What determines what I carry is my mood more than anything else. I go through stages where one of the three seems to be my favorite for a couple of weeks, and then I switch to another. I would say I carry the Sebenza and the AFCK the most.

Re: customs, I have several, and don't carry them. I am not sure why, except that I can bear to loose (and have!!) one of the above, but not a custom.
 
Good luck with your choice. Hard to see you going wrong either way.
If you really want help spending your money, go here http://www.marloweknives.com
and buy the green handled gents tactical. I am weakening buy the day and if I buy it, my wife may actually hurt me.

Again, good luck and have fun.
Ed T
 
Definately without hesitation go custom. For that price, you can get a Mike Obenauf folder, large or small, with the blade steel/shape of your choice and the handle material you want. Mike makes an outstanding folder that will not fail, holds it's resale value should you need to part with it, and his warrenty is second to none. CRK charges you to refinish your knife. Mike will do it for free as long as he physically capable of doing so. All you provided is the return shipping. Several dealers stock Mike's work and sometimes will have them in stock for immediate delivery. www.arizonacustomknives.com or www.robertsoncustomknives.com would be 2 good starting points.
Also, In this price range, you can get a Kit Carson custom. You can find them on the secondary market or from Kit at a show in your price range. His wait time to have one built for you is about 2 years, right now.
Another amazing custom maker to think about is JW Smith. He makes framelocks in your price range that are second to none. Smooth is an understatement.
For your price range, you can hands down beat the sebbie by going custom. The customs I mentioned will have much better resale value should something come up. We all hate to sell knives, but things happen. Might as well have one that will get you your money back. You can get choices in the blade steel and shape. You can get choices in the handle materials (especially if you go with a liner lock.) You can get a much more eye-pleasing knife this way as well. Go custom, but be warned, once you take that step, you are in for life. About 3-4 years ago, the thought of owning a custom folder was absolutely absurd. Now my daily carry is a custom I laid out $650 for. It's an addiction without cure. And if there is a cure, keep it for yourself as I have no use for it.

JR
 
Just cut to the chase and go to www.knifeart.com and check out the framelocks by J.W. Smith. The large RF-1's are the same size as the Sebbie, while there is a small RF-1 that is about the size of a small Sebbie. Prices range between $400 to $425. Great knives, great deal, GREAT maker!!

With that said you ain't going to go wrong with a Sebenza either!:D :D

Btw, Jeremy mentioned MikeO and he is right on the money with him. His stuff is fantastic at the price it sells for. And don't forget Charles Marlowe either as he is making some GREAT looking and very functional knives...........as a matter of fact my next custom is coming from Charles.:D :cool: :)
 
Great advice here from all. Stick to it and you can't go wrong with your decision. Take your time. After all 400 is a lot to spend on a knife. (I know I do it all the time :)).

The most important thing is that you will end up happy with it long term. (If you buy quality and are happy with it, you forget about the cash fast.) :D.
 
The above mentioned makers all do fine work and if you are right handed you can have your choice. One advantage that CRK has is that they are not a one man operation. They always have someone there to answer the phone and to help with questions/orders. Their customer service and dedication to getting a job done right are remarkable. As a lefty all mine have to be preordered. I have one that I am waiting for from Mike Obenauf that is almost 2 months late. I was told a five week wait and 3 months later I'm still waiting for the knife. For day in and day out I use a small sebbie. It slides out of my pocket and into the open postion in a blink of an eye. I like my customs but I use my Sebbies. I think that any dedicated collector should have a variety of knives. How many custom makers encourage you to take the knife apart to clean? I say get them both. If you start with a Seb, you will probably end up with a custom. I don't know, flip a coin, there are many good knives out there in the price range you mentioned and many great makers to make them for you. I myself tend to lean in the Sebenza direction.
 
Well you have to remember that custom does not necessarily mean superior to a production knife.Not many custom makers can build a Sebenza quality,strength, and tight tolerances for that price range.On the other hand in a custom you can get unique features tapered to your personal needs and have a handmade one of a kind knife for about as much as the Sebenza costs.To be honest,I would say for me it would depend on the maker,knife,and cost to make my decision between the two.I think also you should compare apples with apples.This meaning if your looking at a frame lock like the sebbie,then you should compare custom makers framelocks.Not that you can't by a custom linerlock,just imho.good luck
 
Are you looking for a worker or a looker? A plain Sebenza, large or small, bought off the Exchange forums, can start you off much cheaper than most customs and will get the job done. Then you can take your time studying the market and saving your money for something more elegant. You won't find anything better made.

There are plenty of customs that are as reliable as a Sebenza, once you know what to look for, but learn for yourself. I can tell you I treasure -- and carry -- my Darrell Ralphs now, and the Sebenzas have been shelved for a while. But tastes differ.
 
thanks for all your responses

I still don't have my mind made-up yet, so I have a few more questions.

The knife I am looking for is for EDC, something under 4 inches for sure, and something that will hold up (if custom, I would like it to be as 'sturdy' if not sturdier than the sebenza). Looks are not a priority, just as long as it isn't ugly.

Who are some other custom makers to research?

thanks again,
Jonathan
 
Sebenzas are a great choice.

i've owned 6 of them and continue to use them all over the years.

great tools.

imho, there is NOT a finer made folder for the money, period.

respects, Guro Jeff
 
Look over several "custom" makers and find a few models that you like. After you've narrowed the search, compare them with the Sebenza. Get whatever appeals to YOU the most. That being said, it's damn hard to go wrong with a Sebbie :D .

Paul
 
All i can do is share my experience.

There are certainly some custom knives that rival or even beat the Sebenza in looks, materials, design, ergonomics, etc, and there are even some customs that might have slightly better fit and finish, BUT, i will say that the fit and finish on a Sebenza is not only just about perfect, and really tough to beat, even for a custom maker, but remarkable because this perfection and precision is so incredibly consistant knife to knife, whereas in my experience, you dont find that same consistancy when buying custom knives, even from many of the top makers. I find it all too common to see several customs by a well regarded maker, all beautifully made, and then see another of his knives with, for example, an off center blade, or a liner or framelock that engages the blade too far to the right. It seems that many custom makers, even some of the top guys, can't match the consistancy that CRK has.

And, ill say this, there may be custom knives that you like more than a Sebenza, for any number of reasons, but VERY few knives have better fit and finish than a Sebenza, and i will make the bold statement that NO custom knife "blows away" the quality, fit and finish of the Sebenza, because that just isnt possible, you may not like its looks, you might prefer a different design, or different, fancier materials, whatever, thats your taste, but to say any knife blows away the Sebenza in fit and finish is plain silly. They are so consistantly smooth and perfect, i have never seen one that wasnt about as perfect as a knife can be, and thats very tough to beat.

I have owned and examined a lot of customs, from tacticals to expensive, very upscale folders, and when i order a custom, i know its a crapshoot, and that theres a fair chance the knife will disappoint me with one or more flaws like slight blade play, poor lock engagement, or a poorly centered blade, in fact, i have seen all of these flaws in customs from some very highly regarded makers, but when i order a Sebenza, i have no fear, i fully expect it will arrive with none of these flaws and absolutely perfect, because i have yet to see one that wasnt, and unfortunately, the same cannot be said for many customs.

Again, im not saying the Sebenza is the best knife out there, or better than a custom, what I AM saying is that the Sebenza is remarkable for being so consistantly flawless knife to knife, and when you think of how many of them are made, the fact that they are so consistant is astounding and something every factory or even custom maker can aspire to.

Flame away, but it is absolutely my experience that you are more likely to encounter a flaw in a custom than a Sebenza. Your experience may be different, but, as i said at the beginning, this is MY experience. And, if youre a perfectionist like me and are very disappointed by flaws, a Sebenza may be your best bet, again, not neccessarily the best knife, but it will probably satisfy your craving for perfection better than many customs could.
 
It depends on what you want, megalobyte and others have elaberated on most of where the customs have an advantage, such as if you want somthing diffrent than the Sebenza, like you really want tip down carry or really want file work, or stag handles or somthing. I agree that I've never seen a custom in the Sebenza's price range with a better fit and finish. Maby on the $1000+ customs, but while there are quite a few custom makers that can match the Sebenza's fit and finish, there are quite a few that can't. I've several custom knives that don't. It all depends on what you want. If the Sebenza is what you want, you won't be able to do better, if it's not quite what you want, then there are custom makers who'll make what you want. Hope you ain't in no hurry, if you can even get one to take an order, good luck with guy's like Carson / Mayo / Onion / etc....!
 
I would agree that Sebenzas are more consistently well made than the average custom. Still, if one orders a custom from an internet purveyor, the knife can usually be returned within a period of time like a week or three days if one finds it unacceptable. Therefore, buy what you want Sebenza or custom, it's your money.
 
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