Strider Knives?

[scotty1984]

Here's my strider story up to now.

Ever since I was about 13 I've always wanted a strider - #1 on my gear list. I finally got one this year (im 20) and I can say that I love my SNG, its my first "high end" knife. Mine is a SNG with a digi camo blade and gunner grips. I don't have any side to side/up down play issues with the blade. As others have said, its not the sharpest knife I own, but again, its a utility blade.

HOWEVER, b/c of the cost, I am almost hesitant to use it as my main working blade, especially underway. For that, I'd rather use my $100 5.11. For me, this blade was bought for the looks and the name, not so much with the intent of being able to slam it up against a bulkhead. There's a couple minor things about this knife I don't like. One is the ease of deployment. The other is the fact that my black gunner grips made of G-10 now have a whitish tint to them b/c my hands sweat a lot during most of the use. I've tried to wash it off a little, but I think its just that the sweat is exposing the different layers of the material and its making it look white. Kind of a bummer aesthetically but what the heck.


Summary:

Love it (despite cost)
Sometimes afraid to use b/c cost/looks
Hard to deploy (maybe break in more?) and grips have changed color a little
Worth about $200 less to me.

**as you can see from the right side of the G10 to the rest of the handle where I grip the blade, it's developed a whitish tint, probably not striders fault, but one of my observations from usage. The white is over pronounced b/c I'm lighting the picture with an LED light, just to show what I'm describing**

-steve

p.s - going with a sebbie or a ZT next time.

spray some WD-40 on your Gunners and it will bring the black back!

 

[Pbsteve77]

^^^thnx man problem solved - now is there a way to redeem some of the cost, haha.

 

[knerd]

Buy a Zero Tolerance and save a ton of cash.

That's not a very good solution. ZT's are great knives, but they don't have the same thing going as Strider's. I initially bought a ZT 302 because people were saying it's just like the SNG and it's cheaper, it's nothing like the SNG. It's far heavier, assisted opening, recurved, wider blade, hollow ground, and the handle is nothing like the SNG. It's a great knife, but if someone's looking at getting an SNG it won't fill that gap.

 

[Kaizen1]

One thing over the years that I've noticed that isn't mentioned much about Strider Knives is their warranty. I've always considered their fixed blades to be overpriced. What people should probably keep in mind about these knives is that their warranty is like Busse's, for both their fixed blades AND folders. All productions, customs and sprint runs are all covered. If it breaks, they'll replace it with an identical blade. That's kinda crazy I think. And it really does increase the value of one significantly IMO. I just picked up a TAD Gear/ Strider collab "D.U.K." made out of S110V. It comes unwrapped and without tek-lock. The sheath is included:

 

[boatsman]

I don't own a Strider yet, although a SMF is certainly on my must have list. That being said I do have 2 ZT knives and their F&F is fantastic. Both the 0200 and 301 fit my hand perfectly and the weigt does not bother me at all. I also have an original Manix that I feel is certainly a hard use capable knife. The full flat ground blade makes a great slicer.:thumbup:

I do have a Buck/Strider 889 that I am very happy with, I plan on upgrading this knife with G-10 handles and screw attachments. That will be my Strider until I can financially afford to spend huge $$$ on a SMF. Yes I do feel they are worth the $$$, I woudn't mind spending less though!

 

[Lycosa]

Strider?? Oh Yea.

 

[redisburning]

Is a strider worth the money? IMHO yes. In fact, I like the SnG rather more than the sebenza and it's not at all because of some perceived toughness factor (which doesnt matter at all to me). The design is really tops, especially the pocket clip, the choil, and the integrated back spacer.

FWIW my SnG is a little rough in the lining up of the g10 and Ti, a minimal thing but it's not something I would expect to find if CRK. Also Im not sold on the way the bevel is ground near the tip (a criticism that extends to the sebenza actually) but I understand that that has more to do with who is sharpening the production knives than anything else.

Also understand that some of the cost of your knife is going to the warranty. As long as you dont dick it up with your dremel or belt sander it's going to get fixed/replaced.

Few more loose ends:
1. As far as the xm-18 goes if you can get one at retail yes, I recommend that instead. But good luck with that, seriously.
2. A ZT is not a strider. The 300 series is a nice knife though.
3. Mick Strider is hilarious and if he makes it and I like it Ill buy it.

 

[J85909266]

No, they are not worth the price, in my opinion. The fit and finish and customer service are not on par with other companies at and even below their price range. I was alarmingly let down when I tried an SnG after having EDCed a Sebenza prior.

 

[A.P.F.]

Where Mic Strider is concerned, I practice the 'cast the first stone' principle. I have screwed up plenty in my past, so I am in no position to denigrate the man. Strider has paid his debt to society, so let's move on.

Other than my Buck/Strider 880SP, I don't own a Strider, but I would like to and someday I will. :thumbup:

 

[Kaizen1]

I'm really not trying to create friction with a Seb vs Strider rant, especially since I really like both. Fit and finish for CRK is generally speaking, unsurpassed in the industry. On the plus side for Strider, if you break your knife doing stupid crap you shouldn't be doing, like prying hard and end up breaking your knife, they'll replace it, plain and simple. You technically destroy the CRK warranty from flicking a Sebenza- literally. That's gotta count for something toward Strider.

 

[henry1960]

No, they are not worth the price, in my opinion. The fit and finish and customer service are not on par with other companies at and even below their price range. I was alarmingly let down when I tried an SnG after having EDCed a Sebenza prior.[/QUOTE


Dito On That....

 

[J85909266]

ou technically destroy the CRK warranty from flicking a Sebenza- literally. That's gotta count for something toward Strider.

No, this is a commonly misinterpreted fact.

CRK has made statements that consistently repeated hard, wrist waving inertia openings will greatly increase the wear on the lock up, and that they consider this abuse, and it compromises the warranty. Simply flicking open your Sebenza every now and than is totally harmless, undetectable, and in no way will endanger your warranty.


Repairs are held on a case by case basis. If the knife was clearly misused, and that was a cause of failure, CRK may elect to charge you for the repair, although there are documented cases where they have replaced knives that were abused for free, anyway.

They do expect their knives to be treated like knives, and there is nothing wrong with that.

 

[myowngod]

I have not had a sebenza, but I did have an SNG for a while.. actually sold it to get an XM18... if I had to choose one, I'd take the XM (retail, not $600) - would I buy another SNG, yes. I found the handle to be extremely comfortable, the build quality on mine was great. Lock-bar was sticky, but that is minor to me... Overall, comfy and built like a tank...

On a side note... now that I have my blue manix 2... ergonomically very similar (atleast to me), similar blade shape with same material (neglecting heat-treat), both with strong locks... dollar for dollar - if you like the SNG but aren't sure on the money, pick up one of those blue manix 2's - you won't regret it.

 

[Halfneck]

I have a Strider GB that I am very happy with. I received it for my 40th birthday from my wife. Fit & finish are fine & it's a beast of a knife that I doubt I will ever challenge. So far the toughest thing I've used it for is to scrape off some wet grass & debris that was clogging the blade of my mower.

I also own a Strider MV and use to own a SnG and an EB-LT. All had good fit & finish & were good knives. The SnG was sold since I have plenty of other folders that size & the EB-LT was traded for the MV.

My personal experience with Strider knives, and the people who work there, has been positive so far.

 

[Kaizen1]

No, this is a commonly misinterpreted fact.

CRK has made statements that consistently repeated hard, wrist waving inertia openings will greatly increase the wear on the lock up, and that they consider this abuse, and it compromises the warranty. Simply flicking open your Sebenza every now and than is totally harmless, undetectable, and in no way will endanger your warranty.


Repairs are held on a case by case basis. If the knife was clearly misused, and that was a cause of failure, CRK may elect to charge you for the repair, although there are documented cases where they have replaced knives that were abused for free, anyway.

They do expect their knives to be treated like knives, and there is nothing wrong with that.

I don't remember saying anything about "wrist flicking" or "thumb flicking." I simply said "flicking." That aside, inertial openings are covered by Strider and I would consider that a legitimate plus in favor of owning a Strider knife. Inertial openings are also covered by Emerson.

 

[J85909266]

I don't remember saying anything about "wrist flicking" or "thumb flicking." I simply said "flicking." That aside, inertial openings are covered by Strider and I would consider that a legitimate plus in favor of owning a Strider knife. Inertial openings are also covered by Emerson.

Strider warranty does cover abuse where as CRK covers intended use, only, and that is a plus if you intended to abuse and pry with your folder. However, it doesn't mean much when the customer service is inconsistent, and you may be subjected to various forms of neglect, poor communication, rudeness and unnecessary waiting periods, as has been documented countless times on the forums regarding Strider CS.

 

[Addicted2Knives]

That's not a very good solution. ZT's are great knives, but they don't have the same thing going as Strider's. I initially bought a ZT 302 because people were saying it's just like the SNG and it's cheaper, it's nothing like the SNG. It's far heavier, assisted opening, recurved, wider blade, hollow ground, and the handle is nothing like the SNG. It's a great knife, but if someone's looking at getting an SNG it won't fill that gap.

I've had both a ZT 0302 and an SNG. In my sincere opinion the ZT's QUALITY took the edge over the Strider's. My Strider's lock bar kept on jamming every time I opened it and there was some vertical blade play present. The finish also came scratched up from the factory like if it was intentionally made like that. The ZT's lock bar was perfectly and I mean PERFECTLY linked to the base of the blade to a point where there was absolutely no vertical blade play and it didn't even rub a hair against the base of the blade. That really impressed me, the finish was also nicer than the Strider's. Design and weight is a different thing, I am talking about the quality of the knife.

I have heard bad things about Strider's customer service, whereas the reviews of Kershaw's customer service have all been good. Don't get me wrong I like Strider knives and I know I will be eventually getting another SNG or SMF. I just think they are over priced for what you get in return.

 

[Kaizen1]

Strider warranty does cover abuse where as CRK covers intended use, only, and that is a plus if you intended to abuse and pry with your folder. However, it doesn't mean much when the customer service is inconsistent, and you may be subjected to various forms of neglect, poor communication, rudeness and unnecessary waiting periods, as has been documented countless times on the forums regarding Strider CS.

I really don't know anything about their CS first hand, but I have read some of the complaints. I've heard mainly great results from Spyderco's CS, but unfortunately, my one experience with them was slightly on the unsatisfactory side (Found here). I love Spyderco btw, but I'll call it like I see it. I actually left out one detail that kinda irks me when I think about it that I didn't mention in that thread because I didn't want to cause waves. Back to Strider, they seem to respond rather quickly when someone posts an "Oops, I broke my Strider" thread on their forum, which is probably the way I'd go if I wanted fast results. However, I would count that as a negative against them. One really shouldn't have to go that far to get attention from a company IF that's how they actually are.

Just because I don't plan on abusing a knife, it certainly feels better to know that a company would replace the knife regardless of the use (on paper). I don't want to abuse my knives, I just don't want to feel like I have to baby my knife to protect the warranty. That said, even though I don't wrist flick my knives, it's good to know they wouldn't make a stink of it if I did. Prying, I can understand if a company doesn't cover that, that's a little ridiculous. Wrist flicking seems a little tedious, from my ignorant customer perspective. Especially when other companies like Emerson don't worry about it either.

 

[softrockrenegade]

I like my strider SnG ! Very strong reliable folder that I don't forsee ever breaking, but then again if I do I'm not worried about it. It's one if my work knives along with an xm18 that I have no doubts in strength(i work construction)!!! Some people get in a twist about blade centering issues or a little wiggle but IMO that's what sebenzas are for, Striders are for the down and dirty!!! Just my two cents!!

 

[dinozzo]

One thing over the years that I've noticed that isn't mentioned much about Strider Knives is their warranty. I've always considered their fixed blades to be overpriced. What people should probably keep in mind about these knives is that their warranty is like Busse's, for both their fixed blades AND folders. All productions, customs and sprint runs are all covered. If it breaks, they'll replace it with an identical blade. That's kinda crazy I think. And it really does increase the value of one significantly IMO.

I agree, i love the warranty....and i think that counts for something...