SOG: Is it worth it?

most knife collectors or reviewers have never seen or held a Sog Tomcat II. You could certainly not swallow it for sure. I am not big on Sog myself, but this is a top 5 folder, in every sense. Yes I have 2 for sale.
 
I currently have four SOG knives and one of their machetes.

- Mini X-ray: this was my first SOG, and is still my favorite of the SOGs I've ever bought. Small, light, and (to me) a beautiful little half-serrated tanto blade and lock mechanism. It is actually one of my favorite knives, and I won't ever get rid of it.

- Flash II: When it was new, and before I'd had exposure to so many much better knives, I thought this knife was great. Light, blade held a decent edge. But after six months of EDC, the auto-assist open feature got...tired. Only way to explain it. When you tab it open now, it doesn't have anything like the snap it had when new. That's crap design. Secondly. the cheap plastic body cracked when I happened to drop it at one point and it landed on the butt of the handle. Lastly, good lord, the blade play. Front back, side to side. TERRIBLE construction. Wouldn't ever buy another one, too many other great knives at this exact same pricepoint that won't have any of these issues.

- Tac-Auto: Ehhhhh...you know, when I bought it, it was the best knife I owned (I believed) at that time. The body is incredibly thin, I thought it was cool because it says "Caution: Full Auto LE/MIL" on the side, and the blade does look wicked when you press the button and it snaps out. But you know what, this knife has really weakened in its opening ability. You depress this small button and the blade is supposed to whip out. Well, it is noticeably slowed down, and it also only did EDC duties for several months (I rotate quite a large number of knives) and wasn't really abused. So, that to me says poor quality. I wouldn't buy another one of these, even though they look cool. The blade on mine was decent, oh yeah, except for the HUGE blade play when locked open. I just never had a ton of confidence in this knife. It sits in my knife box these days. A shame.

- Seal Pup: I have one of the new ones that has the Elite handle. I got it super cheap during a Groupon special that was running a few months ago. I got it for $35 shipped, which honestly, is about all I would pay for this blade. That's not to say it's a bad knife, it's just that I don't really have any need for a fighting knife, which I think this knife would serve best as. I have so many more competent bushcraft/woods knives, which would be my primary use for a fixed blade. But if you were a super stealth black ops SWATSEAL Delta Commando operator, who needs to sneak up behind the guard at the enemy compound and shiv the guy in the neck for a silent take-down...this knife is for you.

- Short Machete: I have that short machete they make, with the little ridged butt-cap (in case you need to beat some brush over the head, I guess) and it's decent. It's done everything I've needed a machete for. But then, my Chinese Fiskars Gerber machete has done the same thing, and they both cost the same, so there's nothing this blade really offers that says "OMG Buy the SOG!" over other offerings.

All in all, I don't really see myself buying any more SOG products. I just don't really feel any connection to the company's products or their message. And definitely, as others have said, there are better products available at these exact same price-points, so why bother? Your mileage may vary, but these are my direct experiences with these products.
 
My overall opinion of SOG is....
Their lower-end stuff, i.e. flash, aegis, seem to be good/ok out of the box but not for very long. They have terrible issues w/ play and the knife overall just doesn't hold up well. Now, you get hold of a Vulcan or better and you've got yourself a really nice blade. I owned a Vulcan for about a year and a half and I never had one complaint. The VG-10 stayed sharp, the handle took abuse well and the blade always had solid lockup. And, the Arc Lock was beast! I've heard very similar stories of most of their Arc Lock models. So, if you're looking for an inexpensive blade, stay away from SOG and get a RAT1/2 or similar.

As for their fixed blades, I have no experience and therefore no opinion.....
 
I paid waaayyy too much for my SOG's 6-7 years ago. In retrospect, a lot of SOG designs scream "MallNinja" to me now. I never carried any of the SOG's, I'm more of a collector, so I don't feel qualified to weigh in on EDC or hard use issues, but I will say that the fit and finish straight out of the box are fair to good. I've handled some of the SOG "Fusions"..they may be decent for the money,more like a beater you wouldn't worry about. I think SOG has mastered marketing more than anything else, hiring R.Lee Ermey a few years back was genius.
 
I have two SOG knives: Aegis and Flash 1. I don't carry either one. Both have terrible lateral blade play and it appears that you need some kind of specialty screwdriver to adjust the pivot as it doesn't match any precision torx or hex tool I have. I will say that I did enjoy the Flash 1 while I did carry it. The size was great. It was also easy to sharpen.
 
I had a twitch 2 that I liked enough. Used it a bit.

I used a large Flash as a backyard knife until that got some terrible play both up and down and side to side.

To be fair, I did some unspeakable things to it.... So I guess just ignore my whole post.
 
I do not think they are bad knives, but just not my style. There are other knives I would take over many of the SOGs. Many do not appeal asthetically to me. I have owned two from trade but prefer not to keep them. The Aegis is the main one that I like the looks of and the weight.
 
I've owned several SOG folders but I've kept only one... And that's the a Twitch II. It's a solid little knife. Every other folder had massive amounts of blade play + subpar fit & finish. I'm fine with AUS-8 in a moderate priced knife.

Their fixed blades seem okay. I'm with the other posters though, those that said there are better options for your dollar.
 
In my opinion, SOG catches a lot of flack because of a FEW of their knives arent the greatest in quality (you could say that with most brands.) I have handled a lot of SOGs, and owned a lot. SOG has a lot of products, and they certainly have a few gems. I own a NW ranger, and a gov tac currently. And I could not say enough good things about them. Very solid knives, with well thought out designs, they use quality materials ( aus 8 and kraton grips, cant go wrong with that) and the price is generally just right.

Some of their products arent great, but if you wade through the BS, you will definitely find some fantastic products.
 
I've heard they're nothing special. none of their knives interest me. Reminds me of S&W knives, kind of aimed at people who don't really know what a quality knife even is.

Maybe they have a few winners here and there, but there's just too many others doing a better job. There was a thread a while back about SOG copying designs and it put me off.

SOG doesn't really offer a good value either, $50+ for aus-8 and zytel is alright; there are just so many better options out there for $50.

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php/707760-Just-wanted-to-let-the-folks-at-SOG-know

after reading this thread I decided not to spend a dime on their knives.
 
Hi all,
Old thread but I thought I'd chip in. Having bought SOG many years ago and now in the past year or so, I can definitely see a big difference between then and now. It's almost like two different companies. I've owned a Tomcat I and II, along with Sogwinders I and II. They are not the most high tech steels, but are rock solid in operation, durability and use. No fancy arc lock or frame lock, just old fashioned lock back, no fancy glass fiber or g10 handle, just plain rubbery kraton, but they've tackled everything I've thrown at them and keep coming back for more.
When I read how poor SOG's current offerings hold up, I wish the poster could handle some of these old SOG folders instead. I think SOG would do well to reissue some of these old models (and maybe upgrade the steels as well) as part of a 'retro' line, and win back some followers.
 
neverdie36 said:
I had a twitch 2 that I liked enough. Used it a bit.

I used a large Flash as a backyard knife until that got some terrible play both up and down and side to side.

To be fair, I did some unspeakable things to it.... So I guess just ignore my whole post.
Click to expand...

Lol!!! "Unspeakable" things?!? I picture someone using a knife as a jackhammer :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top