SOG Visionary II vs Vulcan

N

Nisdain

Joined
Apr 5, 2016
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So, I'm in the market for a new EDC since I recently lost my SOG Trident that I've had for a few years. I'm going to be using it mostly to break down/open boxes at work, but occasionally I use it when fishing cutting line. I really loved my Trident, I was lucky and had little blade play but I'm convinced on an upgrade.

I've narrowed it down to the two knives in the title, but I can't make a decision on which one to pull the trigger on. Does anyone have an opinion on either of these two knives? I know they're pretty similar.

I'm not sure I care for the flipper on the back of the Vulcan, but I'm not sure about how the black will hold up on the Visionary -- I'd rather have a satin finish. I worry about the of the Visionary getting stuck towards the handle when I'm breaking cardboard down.

Anyone have an opinion on the handle of each? The Vulcan looks more grippy to me, which I like. It patterned like my Trident was. How does the Visionary hold up in comparison?

Any thoughts and opinions welcome.
 
Welcome!For the amount of money you are willing to spend. I would honestly look into other knife brands. If you like the ARC lock I would highly recommend a Benchmade or HK. For instance the Benchmade Griptilian, Presidio Ultra, and HK Axis 14715 are all in the price range of the SOGs you mentioned, but are (IMO) better quality knives, backed by a better warranty.
There are also some Spyderco and Keshaw/ZT offerings you may find interesting.

I lost my Vulcan a few years ago It was an ok knife for what I bought it for (cutting up 5 gal. water bottles. It's lousy for cutting cardboard BTW. Blade is too fat to cut it smoothly). I replaced it with a Benchmade 940. I have not purchased a SOG since. I have, bought more Benchmades though.

SOGs are decent, but you can get so much better for your $. Again that's just my (and most people's on this forum's) opinion.
Best of luck in whatever you choose
 
I own both the Vulcan and the Visionary II. Not only that I saw both models being manufactured in Seki last year. The Vulcan has a better grip in the way it fits the hand, but it is wide. The Visionary II is thin and flat like many other folders and makes for easier carry. I have the satin finished Sanmai Tanto Vulcan. My Visionary II which came nice and black with a more "tactical" blade design lost it's TiNi coating very quickly. I would assume that the standard VG10 Vulcan in TiNi would be the same. Both have the arc lock which is smooth.
In terms of steel, design and quality I believe these SOGs are very good. However they often receive criticism mostly because they use FRN rather than a better material like G10. SOG knives all have a lifetime warranty.
 
NorthernSouthpaw - Good to know about the Vulcan and cutting up cardboard. I really like the 'bayonet style' clip that SOG uses which is part of the reason I was trying to stay with them even though I knew that there were other knives out there that are probably a better value. I am looking for something with an ARC/AXIS lock though also.

Ken - I think the Visionary is technically powder coated, not TiNi I believe. But that was what I was afraid of the coating coming off regardless, which is what you're reporting.

FRN doesn't bother me in the least.

Really glad I've asked here and you guys are responding with what you have so far. From what the two of you have said it looks like I'm going to potentially run into things about either knife I might dislike. If that is the case, perhaps expanding my horizons to something with an Axis lock isn't out of the realms of possibility.
 
I have both the Vulcan and Mini-Vulcan. The Vulcan came first and I felt it too large for me. When the mini came out, I bought it and it works better for me. As far as card board goes, I think a thinner blade stock would work better. The Vulcan was the very first flipper I owned and I flipped the heck out of it until the newness wore off. I now use it as a general work knife.
 
Both models are excellent for edc chores and as Ken mentioned the differences between you should go with what you think is best. You might also look at the tomcat 3.0 from sog too. All their seki-made models are solid performers.
 
Run a sog for my edc, I prefer the handle on the visionary/x-ray vision. So i stick with what I like. Have a few benchmades, haven't bought any. Don't think I will, glad there's a lot of options out there. You sent asking for a lot, find which fits your hand best.
 
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