Southern Grind

jwh720

jwh720

Joined
Feb 21, 2016
Messages
1,560
Hey I am new to this forum. I have a few knives mostly benchmades. I am looking to expand my collection to include something with the Emerson wave feature. I was looking at the ZT's but then I saw the Southern Grind with the wave feature. Has anyone had any experience with them. how is there quality?
 
I have carried and used on for a good long time. The quality is top notch. Their carbon fiber version is the only one with the wave. The liners are titanium, the scales have a great feel to the carbon fiber, they wave really well and they cut and function great. I have been very impressed with mine. The number one complaint I have read on here is that people think for the price the steel should be of higher quality. I understand that complaint but mine has cut as well as any other knife I have owned and it sharpens back up really nicely with no problems.

https://flic.kr/p/s74F1t https://www.flickr.com/photos/57703464@N02/
 
Fit & finish on my 4" Bad Monkey is very good. Hands down superior to any factory Emerson I have handled (I tend to consider this to be my Emerson-esque knife brand ... ).

Peoples gripes about blade steel in my mind do not take in to account the significance of the heat treat & temper process, focusing too much only on the "superiority" of one blade steel composition over another without factoring the significance H.T. & tempering plays on overall performance (and how performance relates to intended use by individual owner/user). I believe Southern Grind did a excellent treatment on their 14c28n.

For an "American company" producing knives, I would say they are doing a great job.

BTW, the non-Emerson waved versions are a little less expensive. Not all Southern Grind include the patented Emerson hook (mine does not, and I prefer it this way). I do think "The Wave" is cool, but have learned it's not really for me (I do still own a few, but would not "specify" this as a feature I would request in an overall design). The Wave on a Southern Grind however, does work very well (because of the geometric placement & the very smooth action of these knives).

The only negative I would mention is proprietary fasteners. But, then again could argue that this is "cool" more-or-less along the lines of a custom feature included on a factory knife ;-)

3D milled scales, awesome grind lines, ergonomics that work in my hand, quality execution of production & assembly (it's my Tanto version of a Military :-)

Regards,
 
I think the quality of the Southern Grind bad monkey is just a little above Emersons. I have owned a few of both. The only thing smoother than the bad Monkey with the wave feature is the ZT 620/630. Extremely smooth knives and are frame locks. they are also a little cheaper than the bad monkeys and the hardware does not require a special proprietary tool. I do like the swag that comes with the bad monkeys.
 
Thanks for the replies. I will probably be adding a bad monkey to my collection.
 
Jtur7681 said:
I think the quality of the Southern Grind bad monkey is just a little above Emersons. I have owned a few of both. The only thing smoother than the bad Monkey with the wave feature is the ZT 620/630. Extremely smooth knives and are frame locks. they are also a little cheaper than the bad monkeys and the hardware does not require a special proprietary tool. I do like the swag that comes with the bad monkeys.
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The swag was a limited time offer and no longer comes with the knives. However the proprietary bit we now include with all Bad Monkey purchases!
 
This one I have draws like the wave without the hook.
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I ordere my forst Southern Grind last week. Initially my Spider Monkey knife seem solid with nice fit and finish. After further inspection I discovered vertical blade play and a ding on the spine of the blade. I called my vendor and Southern Grind. Very diffcult to get a hold of the girl running QC at Southern Grind. E-mailed, called 3 times one day, she was sick the next and called 2 times the third day. She states there was an issue with a production run of overside pivot holes being drilled. Gonna be a week of new production before she will have one to ship me.

Not a great first impression from Southern Grind. They want to be most helpful, but I am not real sure how "on top of things" they are. I will give them another shot, but if the replacement knife has any issue it will be returned. I will be finished with Southern Grind at that point.

I really dig the Spider Monkey size and construction. Hope they pull through....
 
I love my spider monkey, fit and finish is great. Perfect size EDC form me. It does not have the wave feature, but if you try hard enough you can get it to catch. My only complaint was that the pocket clip was too stiff. I contact their customer service, and they were very responsive.
EAjdjMb.jpg
 
I've had my Bad Monkey for a while, and I absolutely LOVE it. No issues with the steel (takes and holds an amazingly fine edge) and the texture of the carbon fiber handles is very unique. Also a huge fan of their modified tanto design, very cool looking and functional. I've found that this 14C28N blade can hold its own with knives such as my S35VN Protech TR3 Manual Integrity, which is one of the sharpest knives I own. The wave feature is just the icing on the cake, makes the Bad Monkey tough to beat as an EDC / tactical defense blade.
 
nice pic recon...can tell that tip has seen some use :thumbup:
I've been considering picking up a spider monkey recently...


recon0317 said:
I've had my Bad Monkey for a while, and I absolutely LOVE it. No issues with the steel (takes and holds an amazingly fine edge) and the texture of the carbon fiber handles is very unique. Also a huge fan of their modified tanto design, very cool looking and functional. I've found that this 14C28N blade can hold its own with knives such as my S35VN Protech TR3 Manual Integrity, which is one of the sharpest knives I own. The wave feature is just the icing on the cake, makes the Bad Monkey tough to beat as an EDC / tactical defense blade.
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My spider monkey has excellent fit and finish. It is a great for EDC. The bad monkey is too large for my taste, but I wouldn't hesitate to get one if I liked larger knives.
 
whitty said:
The swag was a limited time offer and no longer comes with the knives. However the proprietary bit we now include with all Bad Monkey purchases!
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As my bit is LONG gone, how much is it to purchase a replacement?
 
Everything I've read on southern grind seems to be mostly positive. A few complaints of the steel not justifying the price. I just ordered a spider monkey with s35vn and can't wait to try it out.
 
I got a replacement for the one I had with vertical blade play. The second one they sent was worse than the first. I sent them both back and got a refund. Kinda sucks because it is a great design a I like the size alot. I guess I will stick to my BM Axis locks. They lock up solid.
 
Elite_KG said:
I got a replacement for the one I had with vertical blade play. The second one they sent was worse than the first. I sent them both back and got a refund. Kinda sucks because it is a great design a I like the size alot. I guess I will stick to my BM Axis locks. They lock up solid.
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This is disappointing to hear! PM sent!
 
Elite_KG said:
I got a replacement for the one I had with vertical blade play. The second one they sent was worse than the first. I sent them both back and got a refund. Kinda sucks because it is a great design a I like the size alot. I guess I will stick to my BM Axis locks. They lock up solid.
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I have owned 2 Bad Monkeys, my tanto and a clip with a cerakote blade, both with carbon fiber handles. Neither had any issues. I understand getting a lemon does happen, but don't write SG off completely. Their customer service is absolutely amazing, and their knives are awesome.
 
Customer service responded well. They knew of some issue with recent production and were working through it. I may some time and consider re-ordering.
 
Hey Whitty, I am thinking that I might get a Spider Monkey, I loved my BM but let it go to a friend that loved it more(Big Zac Brown guy lol) are you able to anodize the liners on the SM like my old BM?
 
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