Sebenza Question

[fespo276]

I am about to buy my first expensive knife. I think I have it narrowed down to a Sebenza and another $400 folder which I will not name because I am not asking you guys for ANOTHER comparison thread. I have plenty to read, thanks. First, I know Sebenza's are very high quality, I know their tough, I know their fit and finish is tops. That's why I want one. My question is this. I am used to flicking open via the thumbstud (hard and repeatedly) all of my Benchmade axis knives. As you know, with the bigger blades, you can get those puppies flying. Thwack!!! I have heard that flicking a Sebenza open like that is bad for the knife because of a softer lock bar(?). Can somebody put this fact/myth into context for me? Do I have to "gently" open the knife? Can I give it a medium and solid flick with the stud? I am NOT knocking the knives. I want one and just need to know what I can do with it. I know this is a SMALL aspect of the knife, and does not even speak to its overall ability or quality, I was just wondering. My month(s) long reseach is part of the purchasing process for me. Thanks.

**Edited*** I should have done a search. Found plenty on the subject. Thanks.*************************

 

[APerna]

I bought my first seb in 1997. I have opened and closed that knife 1000's of times. the action is so smooth on a seb right out of the box that flicking is not necessary! I own dozens of custom made knives. My sebs are my edc 95% of the time.

 

[Hair]

Flicking a Sebenza is no worse for it than it is for other knives. The Sebenza can stand up to flicking as good as any Benchmade.

The whole "don't flick a Sebenza thing" comes from two places.

1) Chris Reeve is against flicking unless it is to break in the knife after assembling or reassembling it. He considers it abuse since it is not needed and will cause more wear (on *ANY* knife) than opening it normally. He will not cover damage due to flicking under warrenty.

2) The Sebenza has a very stiff detent and pointy thumbstud. This makes it extremely hard to thumb flick open.

Titanium is not as hard as steel, but the titanium that CRK uses is no softer than that used by Benchmade, or Strider, etc... So the lock is just as able to take the wear- if not moreso since CRK's locks are more consistant and have tighter tolerances to begin with. Likewise, the stop pin is very beefy and the pivot is strong and made to tight tolerances.

I, personally, feel a Sebenza will hold up to flicking better than any other production knife.

If the knife is a good knife, I'd rather open it normally anyways to enjoy feeling the action. I'm not really into flicking.

But if you want to flick, well, the Sebenza will be a pain in the ass since the thumbstud is pointy and the detent is very stiff. The action of the Sebenza is also fairly tight and cannot really be adjusted because of the bushing. The action is VERY smooth, but very tight too, not loose and sloppy.