Smoothest opening ball bearing manual flipper?

Out of the flippers I have had the zt 0562cf and 0450cf flip nice. Can't really complain. But the smoothest one I had was a Massdrop Ferrum Forge Crux basically WE knives. It took a little adjustment and some break in but it's still better then the other two in my opinion.

Correct me if I am wrong but does zt use steel bearings? I think WE uses ceramic. So maybe that's the difference.
 
Last edited:
I have a few would be hard to pick if one is better then the others ... but I have to bring up the Gen 6 Hinderer ...

the Tri-way pivot comes with bearings installed and all 3 I have are as smooth as anything else I've tried ...

Hinderer really dialed in the detent and the action leaves older models far behind.
 
evilgreg said:
If you want a free-swinging finger guillotine, let me introduce you to the "look ma, no frame lock detent ball pressure getting in the way" Buck Marksman:

0830BKS-B.jpg


If any Shiro cultist or Thorburn aficionado tells you nothing falls shut like their favorite brand of Koolaid, they need to try a Marksman.

There are also, like, a bajillion brands making bearing flippers that fall shut nowadays. I have knives from a half dozen makers at least that will fall shut if tilted half a degree from the vertical, and that's just the production companies. Don't get me started on the customs--my Jason Clark falls shut from the vertical if someone exhales gently three rooms away.
Click to expand...

No doubt the Marksman is an outstanding free droppeur; but honestly the Shiros I have seen are on another level. I was extremely skeptical about them too until I got a chance to mess with them in person.

Comparing a Shiro to a ZT452 or WE or whatever else which are all very smooth is like comparing a jet plane to a propeller plane, just completely on another level. Atleast the ones I saw.
 
I would say Shiro as well, but my Craig Brown Servo falls shut extremely scarily. (Not a word...but Im ok with that.)
 
More on previous...the servo doesnt fire out quite like a Shiro, but the smaller flipper tab on the servo is a great trade off for smoothness. :D Dont get me wrong...love my shiros.
 
Civivi praxis flipper from WE budget line. Broad chunk of blade steel on bearings with a great detent and action . Hard to believe they are $42! The baklash is good too. Best budget knives out currently imo. F+f is real good too for the price point.
 
There is literally no detent pressure on the Marksman (because it’s such an innovative and unique design) from the moment you pop it free until it locks in place. The bearings are great and I’ve never used another knife like it. Pound for pound it’s incredibly smooth for a reasonable price point.
 
i have a WE Practic that is M390 steel that I got on sale for around $100 that flips and drops shut on par with my $600-$800 custom flippers that are known for flipping and drop shut action.
I was happily shocked with the action when santa brought it to me.
 
Lapedog said:
No doubt the Marksman is an outstanding free droppeur; but honestly the Shiros I have seen are on another level. I was extremely skeptical about them too until I got a chance to mess with them in person.

Comparing a Shiro to a ZT452 or WE or whatever else which are all very smooth is like comparing a jet plane to a propeller plane, just completely on another level. Atleast the ones I saw.
Click to expand...

I have owned three Shiros and while they were smooth, they were in fact definitely 100% not any more free falling than my Buck Marksman, or many other knives I own for that matter (e.g. my CKF Milk, my MicroSuck Mini 777, er, Mini Matrix, etc.). I'm not a fan of the Marksman--the bounce back on a missed flip was just too disturbing for me--but I have never handled a knife that had less friction closing than that knife. the backstrap lock system thing combined with bearings just make it more free swinging than any framelock can. The closest thing to the Marksman I have experienced is on a custom using IKBS made by Jason Clark.

I will say this about the Shiros I've handled, they've all had both very smooth action and strong enough detents to flip well, which is a delicate balance that a lot of makers fail to consistently hit.

My own actual preference is not free-falling blades, FWIW. If a blade will fall shut I usually try to crank the pivot down a bit to see if I can get it to require a wiggle or two to close while still snapping open with authority.
 
If you can get your hands on an older RealSteel Megalodon with roller bearings instead of ball bearings (which the all have now) you will be very pleased. Beyond that yeah there are hundreds of knives that will drop shut and have almost zero friction. If you want to spend a lot get a Grimsmo rask or better yet a Holt Spector these are the two best actions I have ever felt. The North Arm Knives Skaha is good as well.
 
As it relates to the Marksman’s tendency to “bounce”, I have found that there is a sweet spot in the pivot tightness that essentially eliminates the issue. Dialing it in moved my liking the knife to a full blown love affair.
 
I only own two (3) flippers at the moment. Laconico Keen and Shirogorov F3. They’re both flawless and fire like autos.

In the mail today I expect a new MBK EZC. From owners reports I don’t expect it to be quite as good but maybe I’ll be pleasantly surprised.

R5pGnWB.jpg
 
Last edited:
I have not tried all the aforementioned knife brands although I’ve heard nothing but good things!
Nor me, with what I own it’s my Shiro Hati And my Pena Rhino both are just amazing!!
Next would be my ZT0562, this is one of my favorite carry knives and is a really close third to the previous two knives.
Just my opinion
 
I’m not saying the 0560 is the Goat of flippers I am saying that this particular example is the most buttery smooth flipper I’ve ever owned/played with.
184A2039-6325-43B1-8128-B87257D58DA7.jpeg
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top