Shirogorov , or Medford knives?

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mbkingshane

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Looking for a little help with members who have had one or the other or preferably both. I've had Shirogorov hati in the past and thought it was the greatest knife I've ever owned. Unfortunately I had to sell it needed the money. Now I'm in the market for another but also really like the looks of the Medford 187. Just curious if one is better than the other quality wise I know the Shiros are fantastic but I've never held a Medford. Let's just put it this way you can only own one or the other which would you choose and why. Thanks for your time.
 
This is probably not the answer you're looking for, but right now I'd get a Medford if I were equally interested in both.
Purely based from a monetary view, the Medford is probably more 'worth' it.

It's kind of a variation on the Rockstead vs Shirogorov discussion, where one key point for me is that Shiros are a 'hype', and pricing has exploded at this point in time, whilst Rockstead was and will be expensive.
Even though both are great knives, I feel Shirogorov isn't worth what needs to be paid at this point. They're awesome knives, built with pride and great craftsmanship, but in the end I would be bummed and feel I made a bad decision later on if for example I got one for 1k now, and the prices drop to half that over X years.

Please note, this has nothing to do with quality or one being better than the other. It's purely based on my view of the market at this particular point, and the fact that TS can't buy both.
 
I don't see resale value as a reason behind buying or not buying a knife: I see a knife I like, in a price range I'm comfortable with, and I buy it.

That said, if I was in your shoes, actively in the market for a high end folder, and stuck trying to decide between a Medford and Shirogorov, I would simply pick the one I liked the looks of better, both being very well built, high quality knives...

That said I would personally take a Shirogorov f95 over anything Medford has to offer, I just personally don't find medfords visually appealing in the slightest.
 
Thanks for the replies so far. Both make sense and visually I like the Shiros more, but something HD looking about the Medfords.
 
If i'm looking for a big solid well built knife... It's Medford every time. But they are not for everyone.
 
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Your welcome. It's a sizable investment and I would recommend handling a few first. I personally love the TFF-1, Marauder and the full size Praetorian. The only model that doesnt speak to me are the 187 models.
 
Speaking just for myself here, personally I do like overbuilt folders, but only to an extent I guess you would say, because I don't hard use to the extent of borderline abuse with my folders. If a job requires that extra "umph" I opt for a fixed blade, and the medfords, idk, they look bomb proof, but they just look a bit overkill to me for a folder and what I use my folders for.

If there were decepticons that turned into knives, I imagine they would look like medfords ;)
 
Chopper88 said:
This is probably not the answer you're looking for, but right now I'd get a Medford if I were equally interested in both.
Purely based from a monetary view, the Medford is probably more 'worth' it.

It's kind of a variation on the Rockstead vs Shirogorov discussion, where one key point for me is that Shiros are a 'hype', and pricing has exploded at this point in time, whilst Rockstead was and will be expensive.
Even though both are great knives, I feel Shirogorov isn't worth what needs to be paid at this point. They're awesome knives, built with pride and great craftsmanship, but in the end I would be bummed and feel I made a bad decision later on if for example I got one for 1k now, and the prices drop to half that over X years.

Please note, this has nothing to do with quality or one being better than the other. It's purely based on my view of the market at this particular point, and the fact that TS can't buy both.
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I think a SHirogorov 95t in m390 or similar is fair valued at about 600-650

I don't think they are that overpriced anymore. Compared to most mid techs. I found my 3 shiros to have fit, finish, materials and quality higher than that of my 5 CRK knives. This is neither a plug for shiro as the best or a knock on CRK. I'm just saying for the quality and design I do not think SHirogorov knives are that over priced anymore (go back a year ago and they probably were)
 
mbkingshane said:
Looking for a little help with members who have had one or the other or preferably both. I've had Shirogorov hati in the past and thought it was the greatest knife I've ever owned. Unfortunately I had to sell it needed the money. Now I'm in the market for another but also really like the looks of the Medford 187. Just curious if one is better than the other quality wise I know the Shiros are fantastic but I've never held a Medford. Let's just put it this way you can only own one or the other which would you choose and why. Thanks for your time.
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I think for majority of work that you would expose to both of them, the Shirogorov would be the better choice.
- better balance in hand and will not be a hog in your pocket
- better blade shape for EDC, great slicer / utility blade
- if you live in or travel to more humid areas, Shirogorovs use stainless steels whereas Medfords are D2 (you can buy up to S35VN which is a true stainless) NOTE: I don't worry about this as blade care and storage can easily mitigate the concerns of corrosion with a semi-stainless, but some like to be more carefree with their blades

I love Medfords and own a few of them, but if I had to pick based on my general needs, a Shirogorov would get my vote.
 
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Amurr said:
I think a SHirogorov 95t in m390 or similar is fair valued at about 600-650

I don't think they are that overpriced anymore. Compared to most mid techs. I found my 3 shiros to have fit, finish, materials and quality higher than that of my 5 CRK knives. This is neither a plug for shiro as the best or a knock on CRK. I'm just saying for the quality and design I do not think SHirogorov knives are that over priced anymore (go back a year ago and they probably were)
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I think 600 is a fair overseas price for the materials, fit and finish that is delivered with the top models as well. But I didn't think that's the going rate for a 95t in m390? I do see they're coming down a little, but the ones I see in the 600/700 range are mostly nudes or Hatis in s30v. And that is on the secondary market (perhaps nib, but not from a dealer).

When you can find a new 95t in m390 at that price point, I wouldn't be bothered with the pricing.
 
Can buy a bnib Hati cf in S30v for 580.00. Not cheap no doubt but for what you get seems fair I suppose. I love the praetorian, but doesn't at all look like a good edc. The f95 the Shiros are my favorite but getting into the 7 to 800 $ range. Too rich for me. Well I guess I'm just not willing to pay that much for a knife I'm going to use and carry.
 
F95s are coming back down to earth. There are a lot of great direct sellers on the forum you can work with. It's the resellers you have to worry about as the demand is still quite high. I bought my last 95T M390 for a little over 650 new.

As far as steals go, whether it's M390, Elmax, or S30V...I've heard Shirogorov hits their heat treats (which is more important), so buy with confidence and don't think you are getting any one that is "lesser".
 
Thanks for the info. And I to believe that heat treat is more important than the super steel they are using.
 
I have knives from free to $4000 customs, and my production Shirogorov 95T and Hati still continue to impress me. The heat treat, blade geometry, action, and fit and finish are just in a class of its own. Every Shiro I've owned are just a pleasure to use, a joy to fondle, and a visual treat to admire. IMO production Shiros represent the apex of modern production knives. With the prices of Shiros finally coming down to a more reasonable rate of 500-800, I think they beat out every midtech knives out on the market in all the criteria that I've mentioned. I just picked up an used Hati for $360, so if you shop smart, you can really pick up some great deals.

I don't care for Medfords because of how obtuse the designs are and the few that I handled just told me that they're more of pocket anchors than actual knives.
 
Hairlesstwinkie said:
I have knives from free to $4000 customs, and my production Shirogorov 95T and Hati still continue to impress me. The heat treat, blade geometry, action, and fit and finish are just in a class of its own. Every Shiro I've owned are just a pleasure to use, a joy to fondle, and a visual treat to admire. IMO production Shiros represent the apex of modern production knives. With the prices of Shiros finally coming down to a more reasonable rate of 500-800, I think they beat out every midtech knives out on the market in all the criteria that I've mentioned. I just picked up an used Hati for $360, so if you shop smart, you can really pick up some great deals.

I don't care for Medfords because of how obtuse the designs are and the few that I handled just told me that they're more of pocket anchors than actual knives.
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Thanks for your thoughts. The hati I had was so nice with perfect centering and machining I honestly didn't think there could be a better more well built knife. So I just bought a new carbon fiber hati just like the one I had to sell for $550.00
Can't wait to get it.
 
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