As I mentioned above, I decided on the Boker Barlow that
@dammyippon suggested in post #3. It arrived today so I thought I would share my initial thoughts and some photos I took on this overcast day.
It tops out at the maximum limit of two of the requirements in my original post. It's right at 3 1/4 inches closed and the price was just a few cents less than my maximum limit. Pull is about an 8 on the pull scale and because of that it's mildly difficult to pinch open. There's enough steel there to grab onto and I can pinch it open with moderate effort but I don't think I could do it if my fingers were the least bit damp or sweaty.
View attachment 958112
View attachment 958113
Fit & finish is very good although not perfect. In my first pic above you can see a slight wave in the bolster near the front of the knife. This is only present on the mark side bolster.
View attachment 958115
View attachment 958116
The wood is very smooth to the touch and all the pins, as well as the shield, are nicely flush with the handle slabs.
View attachment 958118
View attachment 958121
For some reason I didn't expect the shield to be pinned but much to my surprise, it is! (shows my lack of experience with the German made Boker lineup)
View attachment 958122
The edges of the tang are slightly rounded off. Apparently, to minimize the risk of wearing a hole in the pocket. I like this feature a lot and it's rarely seen on new knives in my experience.
View attachment 958123
Blade is off center when closed but it doesn't touch the liners. I've reached my picture limit for this post but I'll include the blade centering pic in a post following this one. The action is crisp and snappy at open, half stop, and closed and the 440C blade is tight with no play at all.
For the price I paid for this knife I'm very pleased overall. There isn't anything about the knife that I dislike to any major degree but there's plenty that I do like. In fact, I'm more impressed than I expected to be.
Thanks for reading.
