SNG vs. Sebenza vs. Umnumzaan?

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d.weglarz13

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Jun 4, 2008
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Okay, so in search of my new edc, I am just determined to spend some cash and buy one of these 3.
Well, to be honest, its really down to the
SNG
PT
Sebenza
Umnumzaan

I am going for the perfect EDC, and want quality, and since I haven't owned any of these, I feel Im missing out. So, for help with my decision, and for fun, which do you prefer out of these, and WHY or why not?

Thanks guys, i can't wait to read some updated posts about your opinions on this. I know there are other threads, but how about a current debate.....Again, thanks for any and all opinions.

dave
 
Chris Reeve has higher tolerances and higher overall quality, Strider has a better warranty. Most likely, Both knives will last a lifetime by virtue of both build quality and warranty services on both sides. It comes down to what pulls on your heartstrings harder... There are a lot of diehard fanboys on both sides, declaring with certainty that their maker is superior for x reasons.. Both are excellent. I myself am a Strider fan. Always will be. To me, Striders just have so much more character, while CRKs seem almost sterile and lifeless. That's just how I feel though. Everybody is different! Buy what makes you drool, and you won't be disappointed!
 
I've handled both CRK's and Striders. Hated the Striders. Opening a Sebenza is like a soft white angel coming down and gently touching your hands and letting out a small sigh of joy to let you know that the blade is fully opened and engaged.
 
Good advice OlyBears.

At the moment, I have a Strider PT in my pocket. It has a little side to side play and a slightly sticky lock, but it is a mini tank and I don't hesitate to use it hard. It isn't that great if a slicer, but it does just fine at any task I have done with it. It fits my hand tightly and I love the choil.

That being said, I almost always carry a small Seb--usually an Insingo. It is my very favorite EDC knife because it is a mean slicer, I love that there is absolutely no blade play or lock stick and full plain titanium slabs just speak to me.

I have had an Umnum but wasn't in love with it.

I had an SnG but found it to be too large and unwieldy for my tastes.
 
CJZ said:
I've handled both CRK's and Striders. Hated the Striders. Opening a Sebenza is like a soft white angel coming down and gently touching your hands and letting out a small sigh of joy to let you know that the blade is fully opened and engaged.
Click to expand...

I've only handled a sebenza once and that was me exact response in my head.
 
I have owned many small and large sebbies. I have loved every single one. It seemed like each one had its own personality. Weird, I know.

That being said, I always wanted a PT. I read many reviews on the knife. Many loved it and many hated it. The ones that loved it, loved it for its flaws and toughness (and warranty). The ones that hated it, hated the flaws and poor fit and finish.

So, if you want a knife that has a great warranty and you can dig in the dirt with it and beat the crap out of it; get the Strider. If you want a more sophisticated piece that you can get 'intimate' with, get the Sebbie. I have never owned an Umnum.
 
Sng, well built, rugged looks, quality materials. The Sng feels a bit more stout in the hand as well. Sebenza's are alittle to stream lined for me. Excellent warrenty as well.
 
The Crk knives are going to be made closer to 'perfect' than the Striders. I liked the Seb 25 and would of liked the Umnum if it had better ergos (which, admittedly is a personal thing)

Consider this: You can void the warranty on a Crk by (wrist) flicking it. You cannot void the warranty on a Strider. (without modding it)

Verdict? Smf in my pocket and I no longer own any Crk knives at this time.
 
Good point about the whole wrist flicking voids the warranty... really doesn't breed confidence in the toughness of a product if opening it a certain way is considered abuse.
 
I would take the SNG for the ergos. I find them better than the lg sebenza. However the fit and finish of the CRK will be better. So I guess it depends on what is more important to you as both will serve you well. Oh, if you go with the lego sng it wont really show wear at all. The bead blasted finish on the crk get scratched very easily if that is something you would worry about as it is an edc.....

-I owned a zaan, it was nice but liked the 21 much better for some reason.
-I handled a pt and found it to be too small for the ideal edc imo
 
I really love my large micarta insingo.. it has style out the wazoo and cuts like nobodys business. It is thin and narrow and take up very little pocket space, which is important to me b/c I have to be able to get to my money clip easily and I have my hands in my pockets frequently. There are lots of knives that I really like outside the fact that when I put my hand in my pocket it gets scratched from a wide knife or I have to move my hand all around to get at my money/cards/etc. I think the whole "toughness" issue is silly b/c they are both high quality durable blades. It's a folder and I use it as such, not like a fixed blade or pry bar. The #1 thing I carry my EDC for is that it needs to be able to cut/slice.. that's it's job, and a super thick blade can cut but not as well as a thinner one. I've heard of guys sending in CRKs to get a little spa treatment, but never seen any broken ones (though I'm sure of issues at some point with both companies). The wrist flicking is probably b/c to tolerances on the Sebenzas are so tight. You're not going to bust anything doing it, but you don't need to as they butter right open. Two slabs of Titanium are tougher than one of Ti and one of G10. Blade thickness is only 1/2 of the equation. So for me, it has to cut well and carry well.. Sebenza here. If I were to go with a Strider, it would be the SJ75.. thinner blade for better slicing than the SNG, and pocket comfort is better. Not to mention it looks fantastic is a bonus. PT is just to small for my hands. Best of luck brother.
 
I've never had or touched either.
These are purely opinions based on the forum and videos.
I am NOT saying either one is superior. But, I would gravitate towards Strider.

The CRK is supposed to be perfect.
I never hear about anyone using them hard.
Lots of pictures of pristine ones and cutting food.
People are more picky with them
Look innocent-perfect-sheeple friendly-but can handle hard CUTTING
If the knife is supposed to be perfect and a "work" knife, then why does opening it hard void the warranty?
It seems like a "stand behind my product" thing.
He urges disassembly and cleaning, and gives you a tool.

The Strider is supposed to be beat on.
There's a few threads of intentional "abuse" in which it survives.
I hear the warranty is %100 no questions asked unless you modify things.
Digging, prying, throwing, shoot it with a 12 gauge, get it fixed.
Sometimes has bladeplay and bad centering.
Strider claims they are hand fit, and will not affect anything. (If it did they'd fix it)
More tactical-hunting-fishing-hard use-don't hold back.
Does not care about cleaning, and requires a special tool.
 
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@bladeboss...

I use my Sebs plenty... Not just for food prep, but for anything that comes my way. Granted, I am not a black ops tactical operator and this haven't had to use my Seb or Strider to fend off any foes or pry open a tank hatch... I have CUT a lot of things with both.

A word on the warranty--CRK has an excellent warranty and customer service that goes above and beyond to keep customers happy. They ALWAYS return emails promptly and thoroughly.

Striders warranty may be bullet proof, but their customer service is riddled with holes. I have had several emails either forgotten or ignored--never got a response. Not saying ALL emails have been disregarded, but a couple I have sent about a warranty issue went unrequited.
 
I've owned a Wilson Combat Umnumzaan and countless Striders. All of them have been sold or traded. Unfortunately, I regret getting rid of basically every single one. However, I will say that I regret trading/selling my Strider SMFs the most. While the Umnumzaan is a superb knife and one that, without a doubt, can take a serious beating; the SMFs/SnGs offer a few things that I feel the 'Zaan lacks.

Foremost, the size to weight ratio on Striders is awesome, especially with the DGG models. I never had any qualms about EDCing my SMFs, although some people might complain about the space they take up or the non-deep carry clip, I felt perfectly comfortable carrying an SMF daily. I can't quite recall the exact weight specs to compare the 'Zaan and the SMF or SnG but I do recall thinking that the 'Zaan felt quite dense for it's size, which brings me to my next point. All Ti handle construction vs Ti/G10 handle construction. This aspect is certainly a lot of personal preference, but I appreciate the confidence that comes with a G10 scale, especially on a hard use knife. Another thing I really enjoy about the Strider design is the assortment of comfortable grips afforded by the handle design, as well as the blade choil. Reverse grip feels great on a Strider but so does choking up on the blade. I should add though, most of my Strider experience was with the DGG and CC models which are obviously more contoured than the blocky Lego model. Lastly, I enjoy the variety of blade steels offered by Strider since it has given me the opportunity to try out some new steels; namely Z-WEAR, PD-1, CPM154 and I think eventually S110V.

So obviously, I favor the Strider option here. The one aspect that might sway some people is the "pocket feel" of the knives. They certainly feel quite different. The Umnumzaan has a thinner profile and a clip that sits deeper, whereas the SMF/SnG are a bit wider and sit higher in the pocket.

Lastly, I don't own any CRKs or Striders at the moment. But I certainly plan on acquiring some in the future. My current EDC favorites are the Les George VECP (MonkeyEdge V2) and Curtiss F3 (diamond, 4"). Both of which, I highly recommend, possibly more than an SnG, SMF or Umnumzaan. So definitely check those out if you're willing to spend a bit more money.
 
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Forget the PT. It's a nice, very SMALL knife, and is not easily compared to the others. I suppose you could replace it with a Strider SJ75 which is a larger, nice-sized folder.
The CRK's have the closest tolerances in manufacturing, and are very smooth. The Zaan (Umnumzaan) is the tactical version of the Sebenza, IMO. I have both. I like 'em both. The large Sebenza is basically the size of the Umnumzaan. The Sebenza is also available in a small version and in various formats.
The Striders have the respect and history of pure "tactical" and I suspect they've earned the right. The Sng is the mid-sized knife; the SMF is the full-sized model, with a very thick blade-steel. Know that the SMF was designed by (and for) the U.S. Marine Corps, and was declared the official folding knife of Det 1 in 2003. If you want really rough and ready, look at the SMF. The Sng if you don't need that big or thick of a blade.
The SJ75 is a smaller knife than the Sng but has the same blade length and is more "pleasing" visually to the Sheeples, but still a very nice knife and has a great leaf-shaped blade.
The SMF and Sng are pure tactical in design and intent. The SJ is kind of a gent's knife. The PT is for my grandson; fine for casual carry or office-work.
Both of these companies have excellent Customer Service.
I've given most of this post to Strider, but I consider the two companies as equals.
These two brands are as different as night and day, and they're both great.
 
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the umnumzaan is a good mix of what's good about both the sebenza and the sng. chris reeve quality with a more tactical appearance.
 
If youre wanting a smaller knife, id get the small seb over the PT. they both sport .125 blade stocks. The small seb fills the niche of "small" knife better than the PT does. Better slicer, and it has the legendary bushings system, which means ease of maitenance for the user. If youre looking for a pocket tank that's short in blade length, id look at something like the spyderco techno or the benchmade 755.
It really depends on what youre planning to use your knife for. If youre gunna use the knife for what pocket knives are designed to do(cut stuff) a sebenza able accomplish this. Its elegant and just slides into your pocket. They last a LONG time and they are very easy to clean. You wont encounter the same issues with lock stick and blade play over time that striders typically exhibit. If you want something that can accomplish tasks that knives arent really designed to do or just want confidence that your knife can handle just about any task, go with the strider. Strider's warranty is unlike any other in the business, they encourage hard use in their blades. im not a big fan of the umnum. If im looking for something hard use, id grab a strider. I dont want to break an umnum blade and pay the money for a fresh S35vn blade from CRK. Also, it doesnt have the same bushings system that the seb has which is kinda disappointing.
I dont think any of the three knives are "tactical" in nature. If you want something designed for combat id look elsewhere. Possibly a new emerson to share pocket time with your new seb/SnG? :)
 
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