Strider PT- first impression and light review

moonwilson

moonwilson

Joined
Aug 10, 2006
Messages
7,250
I just picked up a little Strider PT, and I'm glad I did! I've been around the forums for a while, and have been collecting knives much longer. On this particular forum, general wisdom seems to be that Strider knives are over priced, poorly made garbage. My personal observations in the past led me to agree with this. I bought a Strider fixed blade a couple years back, and immediately sold it, because it was indeed, poorly made and over priced.

HOWEVER- this little knife has caused me to change my opinion of the company, or more specifically, the knives that they make. I know the history, I know the reputation of the founders, which is justly deserved, IMO. But looking at this knife, politics aside, it is NICE. Super nice, in fact.
So nice that it compares favorably with my small Sebenza, and my Case Tribal Spear, which I have right here alongside it.

stridercasesebenza.jpg


First off, the knife is tiny. Dinky, almost. This is a good thing for me. I live in Atlanta, where 3" is the maximum blade length. I don't find myself in knife fights very often, nor do I need to chop down trees with my pocket knife on a regular basis. What I need in a pocket knife is something light, convenient, nicely made, and sharp. The PT is all of these things. It's also something I feel I could pull out at the mall to cut my son's food with without terrifying my neighbors. It's cute. The thing isn't any bigger than the average Swiss Army knife, but obviously it is much, much tougher.

The reason I wanted to write this review is because I wanted to say that this little Strider is well made. Extremely well made. Chris Reeve well made. Yes, I said it. This Strider is made and put together just as nicely as a Sebenza. I love my Sebenza. I carried and used it every day for over a year. It is flawless, a perfect object in almost every respect. I feel the same way about this Strider. Lock up is TIGHT. Crazy, fixed-blade tight. Lock bar engagement is perfect, right at 50%. The blade is perfectly centered. The grinds are perfectly symmetrical and crisp. The blade finish is gorgeous- transitioning from the stonewash on the flats to a nice satin on the spine. The titanium is perfectly machined and finished, and all of the edges have been slightly rounded off, evenly, all around, so there are no sharp edges. And the factory edge is SHARP! Stupid sharp. And because it's S30V, it should stay that way for a good long while before I have to mess with it.

All around, it is just nice, nice nice. My one complaint, (and it's not really a complaint, because I knew it was going to be this way) is that the blade is a little bit tight to open. No big deal, I'll just play with it until it loosens up. I expected that, and honestly have been looking forward to it. Strider may have had some QC issues in the past, but if this knife is any indication, that no longer seems to be a problem. I've been focusing my collection on traditional knives for a while, but my Case Tribal Spear has kind of ended that for a bit. It is just so good that anything else I get pales in comparison. I'm going to continue to carry my Tribal Spear for the foreseeable future, but I'm going to carry this Strider along with it for a while. :thumbup:
 
Great review, is always nice to have an open mind. :)

If there was not some substance to the hype I doubt they would still be around :thumbup:
 
I never got the impression Strider knives were looked down upon on this forum??? From my personal experience, Strider is high end all the way. Anyway...nice review. Now you have a knife you can flick open with one hand without voiding the warranty.:D
 
Great review.... we have similar taste in knives. I love both the Case Tribal Spear ( I got one a few weeks ago) and my SnG that I've had a few years.
 
Good review. It's nice that you gave Strider another shot, after your first disappointment. Personally, I like Strider knives. Having said that, I do think that they are overpriced, by around $100 or so. The quality is too hit or miss, and the CS is... strange. If they're cool with you, the service is great. If you somehow offend them, you'll get no service. But, overall, the knives themselves are excellent for what they are: hard-use knives.
 
I enjoyed your post. After my previous negative experiences with Strider's products and customer service (or lack of...), I'm still a bit gun-shy about giving them another shot. However, a review like this puts them back into the realm of possibility with me.

Enjoy your knife...looks like you got a good one!
 
Nice review...I'm definitely fan of the PT, having just gotten a TNK Tanto PTCC for Xmas. I don't completely agree with comparing them to a CRK though. In my experience FF on the CRK's is much better. Out of a half dozen Sebe's and a couple Mnandi's I've owned, only one had an issue with a gritty pivot. Striders on the other hand are a bit more spotty. While I've never had an issue with the 4 SnG's I've owned, PT's are another story. Out of ~8 PT's....it's been 50/50 on centered blades, and vert. play. Even the new one I just got is slightly offcentered...but that really doesn't bother me. I like hard use knives and Striders are rock solid. they almost make my CRK seem dainty. Ergo wise Striders are perfect for me. I'm currently saving for another SnG, which is my favorite work EDC, hopefully I'll hold onto this one....lol
Anyways congratulations on your new PT...I am sure it will serve you well, and thanks for the nice review.

Dave
 
Interesting perspective. Being both a Criss Reeve and a Strider owner I have not experienced a similarity in quality. I find Criss Reeve to be far superior. But I have never held a Strider PT before so a guess I should reserve judgment.
Have you ever used any other Strider folders? The Sng in particular? That is the only Strider Model I have ever handled and I own one but my Umnumzaan is a much better made knife IMHO.
 
Thanks for the thoughts on the PT. I've often thought about getting one; I dig the size too. Maybe this will push me over the edge and make me finally get one.
 
I have definitely seen Strider folders that were sub-par, and I know a lot of guys have had negative experiences with them. A few years ago, I was appalled by the apparent lack of quality on display at the Strider booth. The grinds on their fixed blades were horrendous- I was astonished that such a famous company was selling such poorly-made knives, and at Blade no less, where the best makers in the world have their knives on display. That said, every year I've been back to check them out, and every year, they seem to be getting a little bit better. I almost pulled the trigger on a PT last year, but didn't because the pivot was so tight. Now I know that is normal, and the pivots seem to "wear in" after a while.

Say what you will about Mick Strider, but dude knows how to design a knife. I've always liked the design of the Strider folders, and have been wanting to get one into my collection, because I feel that they are very representative of the "tacticool" era. Plus, I just like the aesthetics, minus the stupid tiger stripe, Starling Gear chintz or camo stuff of course. I like Chris Reeve's knives a lot, but his aesthetic leaves me a bit cold. Elegant and flawless though they may be, they don't seem to have a soul- to me at least. They lack a certain je ne sais quoi. Strider knives have a real redneck badass quality to them that I can't deny liking.

As for the customer service, I really hope I don't have to deal with it. I seem to have somehow run afoul of that crowd, though I'm not sure exactly how. I've tried to sign up for USN and Jerzee Devil a couple of times, just to look around, and have been refused every time. I wonder if my participation on BFC has anything to do with it. I suppose I could try with a different username.

Anyway, I have been pleasantly surprised with my PT, so much so that I plan on picking up an SNG or SMF sometime soon. I find the build quality on my PT to be every bit as nice as the Chris Reeves I've owned.
 
There are plenty of members here who have USN and JD accounts, so I doubt being a member here has anything to do with it. On USN at least, you need to register with an email account that's not free (no yahoo, gmail, etc).
 
It seems I have an account on USN, but it looks like it's been disabled, and it won't let me do anything once I've logged in. I'll try again on JD. I know other guys from here are on those forums, but I wonder if I said something somewhere that caused me to irritate the folks in charge. Definitely a possibility, I tend to rub some folks the wrong way.
 
Congrats on your PT! Great review.

I own 2 PT's; a regular one & a CC. I love them both. I also own an SnG CC, that I love.
 
Moon, correct me if I'm wrong, but with SB 308, you are allowed to carry up to 5 inches without a CCW. Anything with a blade longer than 5 inches means you need a CCW.

I'm in Joja too.
 
harkamus said:
Moon, correct me if I'm wrong, but with SB 308, you are allowed to carry up to 5 inches without a CCW. Anything with a blade longer than 5 inches means you need a CCW.

I'm in Joja too.
Click to expand...

My understanding of the GA law is that anything up to 4" is legal in the state, but the local restriction in Atlanta is 3" or shorter. On public transit, the maximum length is 2". I would be happy to carry something bigger if it were legal, but this is what I believe the law to be. I'll get my CCW permit eventually, I've just been lazy about it. I have guns in my office, my car, and in my house, so I don't really feel a pressing need to carry one around. I don't spend much time on the street.

I've never even come close to being searched, nor has anyone I know ever had any problems, but I want to stay in compliance with the law. 3" is fine for me, I don't really need anything bigger than that.
 
I got a PT-CC for Christmas '09 that had too much lock bar travel. It didn't take long for overtravel to the G10 scale. I sent it to SKI and went through the usual wait and difficult communication. It finally came back only slightly better and soon the same thing, lock bar overtravel to the G10. At the cost of about $30 per incident (shipping, ins., service fee) I wasn't happy.

This time took longer. I'd sent a black G10/unfinished titanium stonewash. I got a green G10/matte dark gray titanium, stonewash back. The lockbar didn't travel enough, it would sping back about .015" and there was a slight rattle.

I didn't even want to look at it for a few months and sure didn't want to spend another $30 with little confidence I'd get my problem solved.

I thought about selling it at a big loss but decided I'd risk the warnings, took it apart and carefully bent the lockbar in. It now locks beautifully at about 75%.It sounds and feels amazing. Although I resented getting a different color combo than I originally had, I definitely have come to think it's the best of all possible combos. It looks great.

After over a year of of bs I have to say, damn, I love this knife, I can't keep my hands off of it.
 
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Chrome Horn said:
It finally came back only slightly better and soon the same thing, lock bar overtravel to the G10. At the cost of about $30 per incident (shipping, ins., service fee) I wasn't happy.
This time took longer. I'd sent a black G10/unfinished titanium stonewash. I got a green G10/matte dark gray titanium, stonewash back. The lockbar didn't travel enough, it would sping back about .015" and there was a slight rattle.
Click to expand...
I like my Striders nontheless I think they have some wackos working at the shop or may be they do it on purpose so people don't bother them too often...
 
I have a ranger green pt that I love. After about a month of owning it, side to side blade play began to develop. I keep procrastinating when it comes to sending it in, but I will eventually send it in along with my sng that I stupidly broke the tip off of.
 
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