Southard or Sebenza?

[wvriverats]

Kinda like dyin' an' goin' to Heaven And there is absolutely no substitute for actually handling the knives. All of us have different tastes and needs. :thumbup:

Well I'm back, and your absolutely right! I love New Graham. I used to think that SMKW was the greatest place on earth, but not since I discovered this place. If you skim the cream off the top of SMKW that is what NG is. I managed to put my grubby paws on everything that caught my eye and ended up leaving with the Southard. I think that it was the flipper feature that sold me on it, really slick! I wanted the RIL, I knew that for sure. Just something different for a change. I did look at a Sebenza 25 and you can "feel" the quality of that knife. I had a super hard time with the thumb stud though. I know that is because I am not used to it. Maybe someday I'll break down and get one, but for today the Southard fit me better. Thanks for all the help from the fine folks here on the forum! I'm happy! BTW can anyone steer me in the right direction for a deep carry pocket clip?

 

[TheModernNeanderthal]

Congratulations :thumbup:

Now you need a custom scale

 

[evilgreg]

Congratulations :thumbup:

Now you need a custom scale

Agreed, the Southard is a great knife that only gets better with a custom scale. Oh, and maybe an STR clip to kick it up a notch further as well, like these:

I highly suggest BF user spketch if you have ever develop an interest in getting fantastic wood scales made.

And I think you made the right choice, wvriverats--I bought a Sebenza, expecting it to be great, and sold it quickly when I realized it didn't really do much for me. I was gifted a Southard, and had hated the look of the model from the first time I'd seen it online. After carrying it for a while I ended up buying a few more because I didn't want to have to not carry it to change things up; now I mostly just rotate my Southards . . .

 

[fzla226]

The only reason the Southard is cheaper than the Sebenza is because its made overseas.

Sal has stated that it would be a $400 knife if it was made here.

That seems a bit loaded. Given there's US made knives that are ti frame locks and flippers with a ball bearing system you can get for $190.

 

[wvriverats]

I played with it a while and noticed that the blade was off-center. I tightened the pivot and it fixed the problem. Kinda new to this type of knife. Should I purple loctite the pivot screw where I want it, or would this hurt something?

Thanks

 

[JNewell]

No, purple will work very well. Blue is safe in most cases, assuming properly fitted and hardened tools and fasteners of reasonable size and dimensional accuracy.

 

[P K]

I own and really like the southard. I also own a sebenza 25 and IMHO the sebenza is a superior knife, and it should be at nearly twice the price.

The Southard is a great knife for the price but there are a couple of decisions that really left me wondering what drove Sal's and Brad's final design decisions on the knife. The g10 scale and the way that is is shaped along with one of the most poorly executed clips in spyderco's cataloge really seems strange to me. Especially when you consider how great the overall design and function of the knife is. As successful and great as it is there is definitely room for improvement in the design/execution of the total package. I realize that I am being very critical of two smaller details of the knife but this is an expensive production knife... It is a great knife with great fit and finish (excluding design choices) and really to me sets a new standard of what a "production" knife should be quality-wise.

I would classify the Sebenza in the "mid-tech" category and there really is not much that hasn't been said already about it. I have owned knives from a number of custom manufactures ranging from Horton, Burch, Mayo, Hinderer, Fellholter, Southard and others, the sebenza is every bit as good as knives that go for thousands of dollars (it is interesting to note that the spyderco southward is much more impressive in operation and quality than a custom sample of his work that I owned). My EDC is a Sebenza 25 and it is going to take a heck of a knife to displace it.

 

[wvriverats]

I loved the Sebenza! I just could not get past the extra Benjamins, since I had soo much trouble with the thumb stud. The Spydie hole on the Southard is not as useable as all the others, but I liked the flipper feature. I wanted a knife with the RIL, that was a must. I have never owned a flipper and I think that I will love it. Personally, as I said, I could feel the quality of the Sebenza. I had trouble with the thumb stud. It would be awesome for him to do a collaborative effort with Spyderco. A knife produced with his exacting standards at his facility that had a thumb hole. I hate to say it, but I would shell out a bunch of bills for that! It will never happen, because a lot of us would probably quit buying knives!

 

[sir_mike]

I loved the Sebenza! I just could not get past the extra Benjamins, since I had soo much trouble with the thumb stud. The Spydie hole on the Southard is not as useable as all the others, but I liked the flipper feature. I wanted a knife with the RIL, that was a must. I have never owned a flipper and I think that I will love it. Personally, as I said, I could feel the quality of the Sebenza. I had trouble with the thumb stud. It would be awesome for him to do a collaborative effort with Spyderco. A knife produced with his exacting standards at his facility that had a thumb hole. I hate to say it, but I would shell out a bunch of bills for that! It will never happen, because a lot of us would probably quit buying knives!

Congrats and Good choice! For some reason I have trouble with the thumb stub on the Sebbie's too! I am sure it is just me and maybe practice will get it figured out but the flipper or the Spydie hole works best for me!

 

[whitedog3322]

If you are comparing the Southard to the small Sebi there is no comparison. The Sebi is simply way too small unless you want a small pocket knife for meanial tasks. If you compare it to the large Sebi then its size is comparable. Even though the handle on the Southard is a bit stubby in the hand it is still much easier to hold onto when performing tasks. Do they compare in quality, no! The Sebi wins that battle. However, I prefer the Southard for how it feels in your hand. The Sebi has absolutely no traction or angle to hold onto. I have owned both and sold the Sebi simply because I do not get the hype. I am more of a mid tech or custom guy now but I still have a Southard. The flipping action is very good. If you want to go a little beefier the Zero Tolerance 0801 flipper is a great choice and they can be had for $150-160 these days and they are a slightly better flipper.

 

[stevekolt]

Congrats on the new blade. We are in WV also, and New Graham is about 1.5 hours south of us. Definitely an awesome store, and wallet killer Just wanted to issue you the standard warning...you will be getting a Sebenza someday, it's just a matter of time

 

[Vilarenso]

Seb W/ the wood or cabon fiber inlays. looks amazing.
wish I had my small Sebenza

 

[LAHST Handmade knives]

I recently saw a thread on a southard cotasrphy where the blade broke off around the internal stop pin that sits really close to the pivot ( I does not leave much material) this was one I had my eye on because of the flipper but not now, I went and got my small sabenza 21 this weekend

 

[JNewell]

If you are comparing the Southard to the small Sebi there is no comparison. The Sebi is simply way too small unless you want a small pocket knife for meanial tasks. If you compare it to the large Sebi then its size is comparable. Even though the handle on the Southard is a bit stubby in the hand it is still much easier to hold onto when performing tasks. Do they compare in quality, no! The Sebi wins that battle. However, I prefer the Southard for how it feels in your hand. The Sebi has absolutely no traction or angle to hold onto. I have owned both and sold the Sebi simply because I do not get the hype. I am more of a mid tech or custom guy now but I still have a Southard. The flipping action is very good. If you want to go a little beefier the Zero Tolerance 0801 flipper is a great choice and they can be had for $150-160 these days and they are a slightly better flipper.

As a note on this, the Micarta inlays add considerably to grip comfort and security.

 

[Syncharmony]

I own and really like the southard. I also own a sebenza 25 and IMHO the sebenza is a superior knife, and it should be at nearly twice the price.

The Southard is a great knife for the price but there are a couple of decisions that really left me wondering what drove Sal's and Brad's final design decisions on the knife. The g10 scale and the way that is is shaped along with one of the most poorly executed clips in spyderco's cataloge really seems strange to me. Especially when you consider how great the overall design and function of the knife is. As successful and great as it is there is definitely room for improvement in the design/execution of the total package. I realize that I am being very critical of two smaller details of the knife but this is an expensive production knife... It is a great knife with great fit and finish (excluding design choices) and really to me sets a new standard of what a "production" knife should be quality-wise.

Yeah, I feel like the Southard is a good knife that becomes great with a new clip and scale. It's kind of a shame that the stock scale is pretty ugly and the stock clip is just not very good and potentially can put a hole in your pants. That being said, replace those two parts and it becomes a real thing of beauty.

 

[Erphern]

They're very different knives. I bought a Sebenza 25 and a Southard at the same time, and kept the Southard. I feel as though the Sebenza could have taken more abuse than the Southard, but I don't intend to abuse the Southard, and it's a lot easier and more fun to operate than the Sebenza. I thought the Sebenza was a pain the ass to open, comparatively.

Now, if the Sebenza were about $200 and had a large hole where the thumb stud currently resides, that'd be an interesting thing...

 

[Officer's Match]

It should be noted that many have had some trouble with one hand opening the Sebbie 25 when brand new, as the large ceramic ball detent creates a very strong retention.

 

[supercoup]

Sebenza, sebenza, sebenza.

If for some reason you don't like it, (you will), you can recoup almost all of your investment on the exchange and then pick up a southard.

 

[Officer's Match]

As an owner of a Southard and a Sebenza (as well as a couple of Zaan's), I can tell you that I'd for sure have gone with a CRK, due to the "serviceability" of the Sebbie (and I'm specifically not referring to the non-pivot bushing 25). Don't get me wrong, the Southard is fun and an impressive design, but keeping it centered (if that matters) and flipping freely is not nearly as idiot-proof as cranking the pivot down on a Sebbie (which needs only one standard allen wrench) with non-muss no-fuss. I have found the Southard's pivot to be extremely picky to get right and to keep right.

 

[atony]

I prefer the Sebenza but Southard is a great knife as well, my favorite production flipper.