Smooth opener, but not a para. Suggestions please?

donutsrule said:
My smoothest openers are ball locks, with the P'kal being the smoothest.

After them, I think it's my beater ZDP Delica. The detents on all my Taichung frame locks (PPT and Techno) and my compression lock models are too overzealous for truly smooth opening, though my new green PM2 is breaking in very nicely.
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Thank you. I have the P'Kal. Smooth, for sure.

My PPT isn't smooth for regular opening. Its a beast when flicked, but want something smooth for the conventional way too. My Techno is smooth opening, but its just too small for me.
 
nccole said:
I second the Gayle Bradley. It is crazy smooth. My Zulu is also crazy smooth, and my Chokwe's are as well. Of course my Southard is amazingly smooth, but it rides on bearings. Smoothness is different than resistance imo. My Caly 3 is smooth, but it requires more force to close like all lock back models. I think smoothness is not always dependent on this model or that, but other factors like particulars workers or maybe the day of the week. I have heard others talk about their Sage's being super smooth and my 1 and 2 aren't bad, but not Gayle Bradley smooth. My green Para is smooth, but seems fast more than anything. My Domino is starting to smooth out, but that detent ball dragging on the blade tang is hindering it. I was thinking of taking it apart and polishing the path on the tang where the ball rides. It has a faster feel, where the Southard has a more hydraulic feel to it. I like opening the Southard, GB, Zulu, and Chokwe's slowly because of the hydraulic feel.
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Thank you. GB is appealing with all the endorsements. I agree on the resistance vs. smoothness. But I guess I want smooth without resistance. The PPT is still not smooth once you get beyond the detent.

Domino isn't as smooth as the Southard? Interesting. Thanks. It was also starting to grow on me, but not if it isn't buttery.
 
nccole said:
I second the Gayle Bradley. It is crazy smooth. My Zulu is also crazy smooth, and my Chokwe's are as well. Of course my Southard is amazingly smooth, but it rides on bearings. Smoothness is different than resistance imo. My Caly 3 is smooth, but it requires more force to close like all lock back models. I think smoothness is not always dependent on this model or that, but other factors like particulars workers or maybe the day of the week. I have heard others talk about their Sage's being super smooth and my 1 and 2 aren't bad, but not Gayle Bradley smooth. My green Para is smooth, but seems fast more than anything. My Domino is starting to smooth out, but that detent ball dragging on the blade tang is hindering it. I was thinking of taking it apart and polishing the path on the tang where the ball rides. It has a faster feel, where the Southard has a more hydraulic feel to it. I like opening the Southard, GB, Zulu, and Chokwe's slowly because of the hydraulic feel.
Click to expand...

Thank you. GB is appealing with all the endorsements. I agree on the resistance vs. smoothness. But I guess I want smooth without resistance. The PPT is still not smooth once you get beyond the detent.

Domino isn't as smooth as the Southard? Interesting. Thanks. It was also starting to grow on me, but not if it isn't buttery.
 
Might want to try the Spyderco Air? I think the blade's a little too small, but it was nice and smooth for me- smoothest one to date.
 
NoFair said:
Viele Phoenix is probably the smoothest Spyderco I've ever tried. Lil'Temp and BG42 CF Military very smooth as well.
My PPT became a lot smoother after I loosened up the pivot and gave it a bit of Nano oil.
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Thank you. Not a fan of the aesthetic of the Viele.

I love my PPT, but when I loosen the pivot the blade is no longer centered, and it has some bladeplay.
 
minimize said:
Thank you. GB is appealing with all the endorsements. I agree on the resistance vs. smoothness. But I guess I want smooth without resistance. The PPT is still not smooth once you get beyond the detent.

Domino isn't as smooth as the Southard? Interesting. Thanks. It was also starting to grow on me, but not if it isn't buttery.
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I should clarify that the Domino is not there yet hopefully. My Southard was not buttery smooth out of the box either.
 
The Chokwe is a very interesting design with a 3.75 inch blade. I don't own one, but f&f is supposed to be excellent and the action is supposed to be very smooth. Hopefully some of you who own it could chime in on that one, as I'm interested too.
 
minimize said:
Thank you. Not a fan of the aesthetic of the Viele.

I love my PPT, but when I loosen the pivot the blade is no longer centered, and it has some bladeplay.
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I forgot to add that I tightened the pivot after lubing:o
 
Why does it have to have a thumb hole? I can understand that you may have a preference for the thumb hole, but to limit yourself to having to have one pretty much just means your looking for a Spyderco. Spyderco's a great company, but there are plently of smooth as silk flickers out there. CRKT Foresight comes to mind if you aren't into the whole spring assist business. Benchmades with the axis locks just fly open too. I hope you find yourself a nice knife. Peace.

:thumbup:

edit: oops I just noticed this was posted in the spyderco section. lol carry on.
 
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Surfingringo said:
The Chokwe is a very interesting design with a 3.75 inch blade. I don't own one, but f&f is supposed to be excellent and the action is supposed to be very smooth. Hopefully some of you who own it could chime in on that one, as I'm interested too.
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The Chokwe is the only Spyderco I have bought two of, that is how much I like it. They are discontinued and becoming harder to find, so if you are interested I would grab one. Its uniqueness, large blade in a light package, and smooth action make it awesome.
 
nccole said:
The Chokwe is the only Spyderco I have bought two of, that is how much I like it. They are discontinued and becoming harder to find, so if you are interested I would grab one. Its uniqueness, large blade in a light package, and smooth action make it awesome.
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How do you like the blade shape in actual use? Edge looks very flat with a little belly/kick right near the tip. Is that accurate? How does it perform?
 
I like the shape of it. My second is actually de-clipped and reserved for kitchen duty. It is def. not a hard-use knife, but I have no issues and don't think twice before I use it for my normal chores.
 
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