Smith and Wesson Knives

lagarto

lagarto

Joined
Oct 26, 2001
Messages
1,438
Does anyone know who makes S&W's knives for them and if they're any good. I know several of their fixed blades look suspiciously like ER knockoffs, so I have a feeling it's probably some chinese company and they're imported by U.C. but I was hoping that it might be otherwise, because they do make a few models I think look interesting at a decent price point. Thanks for any input you might have.

Lagarto
 
Smith and Wesson knives are liscensed and produced by Taylor cutlery I believe. Taylor just bought what was left of Schrade also. The quality of the Smith and Wesson knives varies alot from model to model but most are made in China. Some seem to be put together quite well while others leave alot to be desired.


John
 
Thanks for confirmation, I figured they were probably made in China, but really hoped not.

Lagarto
 
Yeah, S&W has a lot of QC problems. I have had people swear by their orginal SWAT line, but I see so many people asking for screws that just came out of the handle, I can't recomend them in good conscience. Many of their designs are just dumb. Their HRT tanto boot knife couldn't cut cold butter. It's not even the steel per say (although they do lose their edge quickly) but just very poor edge geometry.
My advice: Stay away.
 
Some of them are pretty good, but I don't buy them anymore because none of their designs are original.
 
The only ones worth looking at IMO are the Darrell Ralph designed ones.
 
I got a SWAT before I knew anything about knives. I regret getting it. It hold an edge ok but it chips very easily. The lock is nothing to speak of, I do not trust it at all. the lock has never failed on me but that is because I have been extra careful with it. My advice stay away from S&W and get a CRK&T or something like that.

TBG
 
madcap_magician said:
Some of them are pretty good, but I don't buy them anymore because none of their designs are original.
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I think all the designs are original. Certainly there are similarities in generic knife types like "military tanto fighter" but I don't think Taylor does any copycatting. If they do, I haven't noticed it.
 
I bought one just because it matched a pistol I wanted to take some pics of. It's the worst knife I've ever owned. I don't think it was ever sharpened, it's literally as dull as a butter knife. Blade coating is poor, lockup doesn't inspire confidence, materials feel thin and cheap......oh yeah, it is cheap. I only paid $20 for it so I most likely got what I paid for.

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MrMojoRising said:
....oh yeah, it is cheap. I only paid $20 for it so I most likely got what I paid for.
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From the ones I have held, and the one I won as a door prize at a knife show, you were overcharged by about 100%.

:D :D :D

Nice photo though!
 
I had a Smith and Wesson automatic knife.....notice HAD. When the POS finally broke I sent it back to Smith to be repaired (actually went to Taylor Cutlery). While it was gone I bought a cheapy Benchmade red label knife for $32.

That BM knife made my $50 Smith automatic feel like a gum ball machine price. The Smith was a joke, I will never buy another one.
 
I had one that looked like a Darryl Ralph design (linerlock with a swell-center handle). It was really nice, although the handle screws did not want to unscrew (I like to buff down some internal parts on most knives). But it opened smooth and locked OK.

I also have one that is a clone of the Gerber Harsey Air Ranger, and it's good too, though again the screw construction is deceptive.

I have seen some other models in stores which are total garbage. The worst was an assisted opening folder.

You can get the two good ones I described from eknifeworks for $10 each. I would stay away from the rest.
 
Thanks for the information all, I was afraid most of the responses would be in a similar vein, although several years ago, before I discovered BF and learned what truly good knives were like I think they would have appealed to me. I'm actually more interested in their fixed blades than folders, but even so they looked like cheap knockoffs. Guess I was right(ish).

Lagarto
 
Yeah their survival knives look just like Extrema Ratio! When I first saw them I was shocked at the recemblance, talk about a ripoff! :thumbdn: :barf:

TBG
 
They claim that most of the blades on their models are made from 440C which is a pretty good steel for such inexpensive knives. Are they really 440C? How can you tell?
 
searcher said:
They claim that most of the blades on their models are made from 440C which is a pretty good steel for such inexpensive knives. Are they really 440C? How can you tell?
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Judging by my experience with them, I'm inclined to say "No. They are not really 440C." If they are, then they have the worst heat treat I have ever seen on that steel. Their edge holding is on par with a wallhanger katana.
 
Taylor Cutlery's quality control leaves a lot to be desired. You'd have to look through several S&W SWATs to find one that isn't flawed in some way. But were not talking about the kind of knives that you would want to pay full MSRP for at a cutlery shop, either.

If you are looking for a good budget folder, I'd steer you toward a Benchmade Pika.
 
searcher said:
They claim that most of the blades on their models are made from 440C which is a pretty good steel for such inexpensive knives. Are they really 440C? How can you tell?
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A lot of Chinese knives are now 440c. It's not so unlikely if one or more steel suppliers over there decided to make that their standard offering. Except for one thing. It's probably really some steel SIMILAR to 440c. Spyderco was supposed to be getting 440c for their "byrd" knives, then found out it wasn't exactly so and renamed it, but then also is beginning to find it might actually be somewhat BETTER than 440c.

The two S&W knives I have which seem fairly well made also have decent steel for the price. I think the Chinese Bucks are supposed to be 440c also, and they are good too.

But Taylor is just importing whatever they like and labeling it S&W, so it's no surprise if some are good and others are junk.
 
Knife Outlet said:
I think all the designs are original. Certainly there are similarities in generic knife types like "military tanto fighter" but I don't think Taylor does any copycatting. If they do, I haven't noticed it.
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I have a S&W HRT knife... looks suspiciously like a Fred Perrin. A lot of their knives look like ER knives, and their military boot knife bears a strong resemblance to a couple Gerbers. They may well be original designs, but not very.
 
The original S&W knives were made in a plant they have in Holden, Maine. A dealer once told me Eye Brand was involved, but this seems false.

Later they had another line that was Japanese, I believe.

These were high quality.
 
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