Spyderco Ti Military vs CRK : Opinions and Thoughts

Wolverine666

Wolverine666

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Taking everything into consideration (design , materials , price , fit & finish , performance and of course your personal preference) , how do you feel the Ti Military stacks up to the Sebenza , Inkosi and Umnumzaan ?
 
I think the basic Sebenza is the distillation of a working folder down to its essential elements. It needs nothing more, and could do with nothing less. The same could be said of the Military. Both of these knives are iconic for their respective makers for good reason.

The Ti Military is an addition (ie the metal scales) to the basic knife in G10. Adding weight to this design is counterproductive. Also, the finish on the Ti scales is nowhere near as good as the finish on a Sebenza.

(I have a Military and 2 Sebenzas.)

Both are excellent products, but I think the plain Military is a better comparison, and for the money, equal value to the Sebenza.
 
The CRKs are better built in almost every way.

That said...I've come to the conclusion that most very high quality Ti framelocks are well built enough that I don't care about the difference. That means Spyderco, Zero Tolerance, Custom Knife Factory, etc.

I have owned and carried Sebenzas for 12 years--many of those years exclusively--and I don't care about the difference in build enough for it to be worth the price difference any more. Ten years ago, there wasn't the array of options we enjoy now.

Sebenzas are better built than most other folders out there. However, comparing a $160 ZT 0450 to a $365 small Sebenza, the ZT is so close, and well built enough that I don't care about the difference. After years of using CRKs, many of the other options just make more sense for me now.



Edited to add: well said, jonnie.
 
IMO there is no good reason to buy a Ti Millie. The weak point of a Millie would probably boil down to the fasteners. I've had a few of each Millie's and Sebenzas. Currently I have a CTS-204P Millie and Lg. & Sm. Seb 21s. I would say that a Sebenza is an all around better Knife than any Military. But given that two Millies can be had for the price of one Sebenza, two Millies is money better spent than one Sebenza. IMO, of course.
 
jonnieb27 said:
I think the basic Sebenza is the distillation of a working folder down to its essential elements. It needs nothing more, and could do with nothing less. The same could be said of the Military. Both of these knives are iconic for their respective makers for good reason.

The Ti Military is an addition (ie the metal scales) to the basic knife in G10. Adding weight to this design is counterproductive. Also, the finish on the Ti scales is nowhere near as good as the finish on a Sebenza.

(I have a Military and 2 Sebenzas.)

Both are excellent products, but I think the plain Military is a better comparison, and for the money, equal value to the Sebenza.
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^ Well stated. :thumbup:


archieblue said:
IMO there is no good reason to buy a Ti Millie. The weak point of a Millie would probably boil down to the fasteners. I've had a few of each Millie's and Sebenzas. Currently I have a CTS-204P Millie and Lg. & Sm. Seb 21s. I would say that a Sebenza is an all around better Knife than any Military. But given that two Millies can be had for the price of one Sebenza, two Millies is money better spent than one Sebenza. IMO, of course.
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^ My personal opinion: the Titanium Millie is one of the best bang for the buck folder's out there. I picked a Ti Military up off the forum here, and I've used it as my edc for the past couple of months, and I couldn't be happier.

I really like my CRK Sebenza, but the Millie is such a great slicer and currently better suited for my uses at work.

Both are excellent quality knives IMO. If I were to edc 2 knives, the other would be my CRK. A couple of months down the road, this might be twisted around again. Variety, is the spice of life.
 
My Sebenzas are fine. But I favor the Ti Military more often than not for my edc tasks. Especially at that price point.

However ....I'm thinking of trying a large Inkosi now. Never had one so I think I'll pick one up over the next couple days. Worst case scenario = I don't like it and I sell it on the exchange later in the week.
 
On purpose, fishface5.^
I love the Seb but favor the Military.
rolf
 
I own both Sebenza and Military in multiple different configurations. My CRKs are built nice and solid, but so are my Militaries. For class and fit and finish, the CRK is better, but for a working knife that is used for pure cutting, my Militaries are better slicers than my CRKs. I tend to carry my CRKs on the weekends, when out with the family and such and I carry my Militaries for work, where I won't mind putting scratches on it.
 
Personally, I feel the Carbon Fiber versions of the Spyderco Military are the best. I do not own any CRK knives but have sharpened a few dozen of them, very nice knives with amazing tolerances, I just view them more a luxury items and I tend to gravitate to high performance knives. So, the Millie gets my vote.
 
My opinion: The Military is too large for me, so I don't own one. I am very impressed by the Sebenza, and have 1 large and 3 small, and an Umnumzaan. Great products. I have to agree somewhat with Jason B. above in that the Sebenza is more luxury for those who appreciate the quality of the product. Spyderco does a great job for the price, and I own a few from them. I really like the Sage 2 Ti framelock and many of their FRN handle knives are an excellent value.

To be honest, I feel like the plain Ti sebenzas may be a bit overpriced. All of my Sebenzas are decorated in some way (2 inlay, 1 graphic, and 1 carbon fiber). This makes me feel like I am getting more for my money than a plain Ti slab knife with no contours. The inlays and graphics make it feel a little more high end and worth the price. I got all mine second hand here on BF. The Umnumzaan is plain, but I really liked the blade shape, and it has some machining on the Ti, nothing fancy, but better than plain Ti.
 
Wolverine666- I like the overall design of the Military... The Spyderco blade shape and Hole. The G10 and the light weight.
rolf
 
Even though they are both Ti framelocks... these particular knives are different enough that personal preference/purpose is a key factor in which one you would choose from the two.
 
Incidental note: When the Ti Military came out, some forum wag christened it the "Sal-benza."
 
17 posts and no picture?

20170306_114029_zpsge0szyrh.jpg
 
Wish they'd use something other than S30V in the ti millies. S30V sucks. Even XHP would be better. Would prefer m390 or equivalent. It sucks they use a steel like S30V in arguably one of their best knives. It's a deal breaker and I've often been right on the verge of buying one but can't get over the steel. It's the worst of all worlds except corrosion resistance which is mediocre.
 
bodog said:
Wish they'd use something other than S30V in the ti millies. S30V sucks. Even XHP would be better. Would prefer m390 or equivalent. It sucks they use a steel like S30V in arguably one of their best knives. It's a deal breaker and I've often been right on the verge of buying one but can't get over the steel. It's the worst of all worlds except corrosion resistance which is mediocre.
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That's crazy talk, nothing wrong with s30v. Yes they could have higher end steel on the ti millie, but it's still a great steel.


I've never owned a sebenza, but I'm very partial to a military. If I could have a choice between a ti millie or a sebenza I'll take the millie. Call me crazy
 
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