Spyderco Lum Chinese Nishijin Vs. Spyderco Sage 1 or 2

Can you pinpoint what you don't like about it?
Good on you for not returning it to the dealer just because its not to your tastes.
 
The handle is great, let me say that first. The action is super smooth and the lock is strong. I really think it is the blade shape. It sorta makes me think of a Kayak paddle. It is such a wide blade. I now remember that this was why I traded away my Sage 1 also. That would be my only problem with it, sadly it is a deal breaker for me.

The knife I find myself carrying the most is honestly my Buck Vantage Pro. It hits all the right spots for me (I just wish the blade was 3") I do love the look of Sebenzas but it is nearly impossible for me to rationalize that kind of price. Those are the sort of blade shapes I like. I like the knife to be thin in the pocket with a deep carry clip too. One of my all time favorite spyderco designs was the old Jess Horn with the micarta handles. Sadly I lost mine years ago.
 
Currently in the collection I have a Kabar Phat Bob, Large Buck Vantage Avid, Small Buck Vantage pro, CRKT M16 tanto (full size), Kershaw Cryo, Kershaw Leek, Boker Plus Nano. I have recently been letting some knives go.

Stuff that I have had are...Small Bradley Alias, Spyderco Sage 1, Spyderco Zulu, Spyderco Leafstorm, Enzo Birk 75, Benchmade AFCK, Benchmade Griptilian, Benchmade Stryker, CRKT Heiho, CRKT Ripple 2 (new and old), ESEE Zancudo, Ontario Rat 2, Kershaw Skyline, Kershaw Zing, Byrd Crow.. I think that is all. I have a few fixed blades too but I'm looking for a folder.

cchu518 said:
What do You have in your collection right now what have you had in the past?
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Hey brother... At this point you are where I'm at. Add up all that you've spent not counti g sold or traded and you have more than a sebenza.

The sebbies are thin no nonsense high precision knives. Besides price it hits on everything you want. I'm going to pick ip a micarta small insingo after I made this same realization.

I currently have a custom fixed, some slip joints a mini presidio two mini grips ukpk delica skyline buck vantage. These guys are all staying!

That said the buck vantage blade shape which I love is very similar to the sebenzas.

I've gone through at least a half dozen of eaxh major brands buck, spyderco, benchmades, Kershaw and crkt and the whole knife journey leads me to believe that for me the ukpk, delica and caly series are perfect. It doesn't matter that they are kinda not high end or very fancy folders.

The buck vantage when opened is super comfortable, the skyline is just super convenient to have as a utility knife, the mini presidio cuts like crazy. I don't really like the grips so much but I have one in the car and in the basement and I k ow they wont rust or fail when I need it.

That said ignoring the price it sounds like a sebenza would work really well for you. Try a crkt drifter large and see if that might work for you. In terms of trying out stuff you ate left with the zancudo rat 1 and 2, zt and cold steel. For me outside of the axis lock, spydie hole and Emerson wave notch there's nothing really that different about any given knife as they all cut stuff pretty good.

The sebenza is it!
 
Well, that whole list is about 15 years in making with all knives considered. I do however love the Sebenzas look and it would probably end the whole search for a good amount of time. Id have to get one with inlaid wood though. I love wood or natural material handles. It gjves the knife a bit more soul in my opinion. I just rarely have $400 extra buck layin around. That is where the problem lies. Anyone wanna start a " get Jake a Sebenza" fund? Just kidding.
 
I knew there was one I left out of that list. I had a Drifter with the framelock. I liked it a lot, but hated the pocket clip. It was terrible, the rest of the knife was great.
 
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I'm still curious about the new large drifter! To date all ofy favorite knives are sub $75. And I have literally ran out of choices in terms of trying out knives that 1) by and large gimmicky 2)fit my normal criteria blade 3" in length, slim handles and possibly boxy.

I love the snakewood, cocobolo and micarta sebbies and am definitely going with a small with inlays!

Right now I'd like to check out a drifter large in g10, two of the new emerson /Kershaw collabs when they come out, wh carbon fiber, a real or licensed berger exskelibur and not much else. So I think for me its time to try a sebenza. I've only handled plain ones and they were great.
 
You mentioned that you didn't like the Sage 2 because of the titanium grips. The titanium is exactly why I like this folder so much. My favorite knives are all simple titanium-gripped blades. They feel good in my hands. Knives like the Grayman DUA (had two), Three Sisters Forge Beast (had 3), small and large Sebenzas (perhaps twenty in most grip designs, such as
simple titanium, fancy wood inlays, micarta inlays, graphics designs, etc. I love the look of the wood inlays, but never carry them. My favorite is always the titanium slabs. Once you carry one enough to get lots of spider-trails, you can get the knife cleaned, sharpened, and sand-blasted to as-new condition by the CRK Spa for a $15 shipping fee. The knife will last you for your lifetime.
You can buy a small, in barely used condition, often for $265 here on the Exchange. A similar one in the large size will generally run $325.
You only have to do it ONCE. There is no finer folder, IMO, and I've been through a lot.
Note that Chris Reeve has won the BLADE show's Manufacturers' Award many years in a row...an honor which is voted by his knife-maker peers. I've had knives in the $700-range; they didn't compare at all; sold them quickly.
Just my four cents.
Just made certain that your hand size is matched to either the small or large Sebenza model.
IF you buy one and don't like it, you can resell it on the Exchange within a day or so at the price you paid for it.
I LOVE Spyderco knives and gift a lot of them to relatives. But I ALWAYS carry a CRK.
good luck.
 
Thanks for the insight. I have looked at a ton of Sebenzas. A friend of mine had one and there is a local knife store that carries them. I pop in every now and then to handle them and gawk. I agree that it would most likely be a last purchase sort of thing. I'm sure there will be one day where I just break down and get one. I'm just not sure when.


Sonnydaze said:
You mentioned that you didn't like the Sage 2 because of the titanium grips. The titanium is exactly why I like this folder so much. My favorite knives are all simple titanium-gripped blades. They feel good in my hands. Knives like the Grayman DUA (had two), Three Sisters Forge Beast (had 3), small and large Sebenzas (perhaps twenty in most grip designs, such as
simple titanium, fancy wood inlays, micarta inlays, graphics designs, etc. I love the look of the wood inlays, but never carry them. My favorite is always the titanium slabs. Once you carry one enough to get lots of spider-trails, you can get the knife cleaned, sharpened, and sand-blasted to as-new condition by the CRK Spa for a $15 shipping fee. The knife will last you for your lifetime.
You can buy a small, in barely used condition, often for $265 here on the Exchange. A similar one in the large size will generally run $325.
You only have to do it ONCE. There is no finer folder, IMO, and I've been through a lot.
Note that Chris Reeve has won the BLADE show's Manufacturers' Award many years in a row...an honor which is voted by his knife-maker peers. I've had knives in the $700-range; they didn't compare at all; sold them quickly.
Just my four cents.
Just made certain that your hand size is matched to either the small or large Sebenza model.
IF you buy one and don't like it, you can resell it on the Exchange within a day or so at the price you paid for it.
I LOVE Spyderco knives and gift a lot of them to relatives. But I ALWAYS carry a CRK.
good luck.
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I would completely agree with your thoughts on the under $75 range. I have had many that are over $100 but the ones I carry the most and have grown to like the most are around the $40-$50 range.

My problem with the drifter was only concerning the pocket clip. I was able to make a deep carry option for it but would really like it to have a tip up carry option. I got the Cryo thinking it was a similar option but have found that I really don't like assisted knives at all, that and the Cryo just seems cheap and is too heavy.


cchu518 said:
I'm still curious about the new large drifter! To date all ofy favorite knives are sub $75. And I have literally ran out of choices in terms of trying out knives that 1) by and large gimmicky 2)fit my normal criteria blade 3" in length, slim handles and possibly boxy.

I love the snakewood, cocobolo and micarta sebbies and am definitely going with a small with inlays!

Right now I'd like to check out a drifter large in g10, two of the new emerson /Kershaw collabs when they come out, wh carbon fiber, a real or licensed berger exskelibur and not much else. So I think for me its time to try a sebenza. I've only handled plain ones and they were great.
Click to expand...
 
I had a cryo too. It was decent unassisted even without a detent the blade stayed tight. That said, once the edge is reprofiled its a much better knife. I made the edge more acute then gave it to my brother in law.

There is always the ag russell ti gents framelock for 125.
 
I gave mine away as well. I saw the AG Russell too, Looks ok but im not a huge fan. I guess I am just too damn picky when it comes to knives.
 
Like the others here have said, you gotta try a sebenza at least once. I did, and I carried it for a year. It was extremely well made but the overall design wasn't for me. Also I was not fond of the heat treat. However I am glad I gave it a try. And I was able to recover 85% of the money I spent on it. They hold their value very well. I just got a three sisters forge beast and I think this knife may be "the one".
 
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