- Joined
- Jan 15, 2013
- Messages
- 2,496
Okay, I know the Strider debate is nothing new but after a long struggle, I opted to pick up a slightly used SnG CC from a fellow board member at a fair price.
Now, I'm a Spyderco and ZT fan and both have knives in my daily rotation but favorite knife is my left handed small Sebenza I bought new one year ago. To me, the fit, finish, lock up and ergonomics of it are perfect and while it was expensive, I can justify the cost in my mind based on the knife in hand.
Since that time, I've wanted to try a Strider but was turned off by board talk on the QA issues and Mick Strider as a person as well as overall value of a $400+ knife. That said, I still couldn't shake the desire to try one. My solution was to buy a lightly used one and catch and release if I didn't care for it and that leads us here.
As I mentioned, I picked up a lightly used Ranger Green SnG CC and it arrived on Friday. It's been in my pocket ever since. My initial impressions are that the fit and finish on the knife were very good. The G10 and frame match perfectly. The stone washed finish on the blade is excellent and looks really good. The lock up is solid although a little sticky. The blade has no up or down play but has a very slight side to side. It's almost too slight to notice. The ergos on the knife in hand are awesome.
Now, is it worth $475 new? I'm not sure yet. The fit and finish and material, while good, didn't seem to be on the same level as a Chris Reeves. The cutting edge on the blade is much shorter than the over length of the blade due to the choil and I was surprised at the limited cutting edge.
In comparison, the SnG CC to me is very similar in size to my Spyderco Sage I. The SnG CC of course has a much heavier pivot and thicker steel, but for every day tasks I'd guess the two would perform very similar.
That said, I'm not downing it right now. Overall I'm very happy with it but I'm just now sure that new, it's worth the asking price. I plan on carrying it daily for the next month and at that time, I'll post back with my long term impressions.
Now, I'm a Spyderco and ZT fan and both have knives in my daily rotation but favorite knife is my left handed small Sebenza I bought new one year ago. To me, the fit, finish, lock up and ergonomics of it are perfect and while it was expensive, I can justify the cost in my mind based on the knife in hand.
Since that time, I've wanted to try a Strider but was turned off by board talk on the QA issues and Mick Strider as a person as well as overall value of a $400+ knife. That said, I still couldn't shake the desire to try one. My solution was to buy a lightly used one and catch and release if I didn't care for it and that leads us here.
As I mentioned, I picked up a lightly used Ranger Green SnG CC and it arrived on Friday. It's been in my pocket ever since. My initial impressions are that the fit and finish on the knife were very good. The G10 and frame match perfectly. The stone washed finish on the blade is excellent and looks really good. The lock up is solid although a little sticky. The blade has no up or down play but has a very slight side to side. It's almost too slight to notice. The ergos on the knife in hand are awesome.
Now, is it worth $475 new? I'm not sure yet. The fit and finish and material, while good, didn't seem to be on the same level as a Chris Reeves. The cutting edge on the blade is much shorter than the over length of the blade due to the choil and I was surprised at the limited cutting edge.
In comparison, the SnG CC to me is very similar in size to my Spyderco Sage I. The SnG CC of course has a much heavier pivot and thicker steel, but for every day tasks I'd guess the two would perform very similar.
That said, I'm not downing it right now. Overall I'm very happy with it but I'm just now sure that new, it's worth the asking price. I plan on carrying it daily for the next month and at that time, I'll post back with my long term impressions.