talk about customs

J

jackstraw

Joined
Feb 8, 1999
Messages
362
As a collector of Ernie's customs, I miss discussion about them on these forums. Am bored with the "I've been waiting for such and such time for mine" and the "My invoice number is x, what is yours?" threads. I enjoyed the thread about the secondary bevel a few weeks ago. That is the kind of quality discussion that there should be more of. As a collector and long time fan of the Viper series, I am particularly interested in these. For example, the 3 is a very singular piece. Never seen a 4 or a 2. Can't we talk about the work itself rather than frustration about inability to obtain pieces?

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You can't stop the waves but you can learn how to surf.
 
jackstraw, I agree even though I've been guilty in these discussions as well. I really like the Viper 3 although I sold mine to a friend a couple of years ago. I think it's one of Emerson's best fighters. The knife is quite large but it is sleek and elegant. I think the design is superb for slicing and thrusting. Too bad I got rid of it!

Jason
 
Hey Jackstraw,
read your post and I thought I'd expatiate.
I have two Viper 3's & am CRAZY about them.
Both of mine have the old half moon logo.
One is Satin finish and the other is a anomaly in my estimation. It is a Black Oxide w/ some grain to it. That is probably
the Heat treat process.
Additionally, it has a unique feature I have never seen on Ernie's Custom's. It has a "Colet" or second Hex Head adjustment on the back side of the Bolster. So in essence it has one hex adjustment on the Pivot and another that swedges against it on the other side. I hav'nt seen this on any others maybe someone else has.
I have had a Viper 1, Viper 2 and Viper 4.
They for me, don't even come close to the devastating blade and design the Viper 3 has.
Truely a Classic fighter from Emerson.
Very comfortable to carry and lots of utility purpose as well. I like alot of the Vipers but the Viper 3 is magic !
biggrin.gif

And no, I do not want to sell them !

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"This is the law:
There is no possible victory in defense, The Sword is more important than the shield, And skill is more important than either, The final weapon is the brain. All else is supplemental."

 
Yeah, the Viper series is overlooked by many members of our subculture. I have seen and handled the Viper 3 once and I was totally impressed with it as a fighter. Granted I did'nt get to see how it flows in hand but then again just holding the Viper 3 told me alot. This knife has the blade length necessary to do the job. Despite the blade length the handle on the Viper 3, as with the more demure Viper 1, is efficiently designed around the blade making for easy carry.
I really like the Viper 1 as an everyday carry knife. It maximizes blade length for its size and has very elegant, unobtrusive lines. The Viper 1 lacks the SEAL cache that the Viper 5, ESM and the famous CQC knives possess but that's OK with me. I'm just a guy who likes knives.

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Never argue with a man that wears a size 5 hat.

[This message has been edited by arkhamdrifter (edited 02-15-2000).]
 
I'm glad that this post got some talk started. Interesting also to see who is responding...what a truly small club we seem to be. My Viper 3 has the "Viper" logo with a small "Emerson" underneath. I don't know how old that makes it. Anybody have any idea? I love the fact that it is unusual for Ernie in that it is a true "v" grind as opposed to his signature chisel grind. Only other "v" grinds of his that I own are two pre-tactical, fancy folders with the old, half-moon logo. Both have app. 5" blades, one has a tan micarta handle and the other has a jigged bone handle. Both of them have anodized bolsters and liners.

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The wheel is turning and you can't slow down,
You can't let go and you can't hang on,
You can't go back and you can't stand still,
If the thunder don't get you then the lightning will.
 
Jackstraw,
Your Viper 4 sounds pretty cool. I'm not absolutely sure about what CIRCA your knife is I would seek the consultaion of Derek,
if he does'nt know he can find out.
That's one of the great things about this stuff. There are some really unique pieces out there and I finding out that they were abberations at times which really make this stuff unique and rare. Regardless of all the other issues, I enjoy and have worked my tail off obtaining Custom Emerson's. I know Arkhamdrifter and Nyeti have as well !
biggrin.gif


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"This is the law:
There is no possible victory in defense, The Sword is more important than the shield, And skill is more important than either, The final weapon is the brain. All else is supplemental."

 
Well, I only have two Emerson Customs, but this seems to be the perfect thread on which to talk about them.
First of all, my CQC6 is the knife which I'm NEVER without. It's about '96 vintage, with a single-bevel chisel grind and a satin finish. More acute point than the newer ones. Specwar logo, too. No filework on bolsters or secondary "dimple" on the right bolster. Maybe I'm weird, but I love the pointed pommel; I can do some wicked guntings with it in either the closed or open positions.
My other one is my CQC8. It is also a few years old, I think. The entire knife is black, the blade and the liners both got the black titanium finish. Specwar logo and a spooky sharp edge. The handles are a work of art; they're nicely contoured in cross section, rather than the flat commander style slabs. It secures in the pocket with a "Benchmade" stamped clip.
I also have a Rhino on order, as I've said before, but that's for another topic.

Ryan
 
Yeah, this is a pretty small club (I think we are being called "the usual suspects" by others). I traded the Viper I had for about 2 minutes for the CQC8 that I carry daily. I have one of the old Bananas, but I haven't carried it since I got the beater (oops, I mean "newer") 8. I have been thinking a lot lately (I think its my ongoing conversation with Les on the custom forum) about what has happened in the custom market. I have come to the conclusion that this got too big for Ernie, and there is no real good dealer network in place that should have been there to handle the customs. Anyways, it is nice to be discussing the real deal Emersons. By the way, has everybody traded in their AFCK's that they really carried everywhere for easily obtained Commanders? And I'm sure everyone of you has a La Griffe around their neck as we speak (I retired my "custom" La Griffe to the safe, and the production one is my daily carry-just to clarify). Good Luck Guys.

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He who advances is sure of heaven-He who retreats of eternal damnation.
 
It is nice to talk to people who have an understanding of the knives without resorting to lengthy explanations. Did anyone else have a Viper 1 until they got a 6? I thought my Viper was great, especially the handle to blade ratio, until I got a CQC6. Holding the two side by side was like looking at a gent's knife and a tactical blade. After about five minutes I realized there were no situations where I'd rather be holding the Viper than the 6, so I decided to sell it. And the Viper 2 I had, without a clip, seemed even less useful, so it followed. As I sometime collector, I kinda regret the sales, but as a knife user I,ve never given it a second thought. The Viper 3 and 4 are different stories = great tactical knives with differences in design but the same parentage as the 6. Anybody else feel this way about the Vipers?
 

I did mention that I think that the Viper 1 makes for a nice carry knife but who am I kidding! The Viper 1 that I own really just sits on display in a lucite box along with my other Emersons. It is a gentleman's knife. I don't think that it makes for a first choice edged defensive tool. Then again I don't think that the CQC-6 does either. I'll probably catch hell for this but I always thought that the CQC-6 needed more blade. Kinda like those tanto prototypes Ernie made once upon a time. Sorry for digressing.

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Never argue with a man that wears a size 5 hat.
 
There is a very nice detail on my CQC6 which I was very surprised to discover. It showed me that Emerson really built this knife with street self defense in mind.

The flats of the blade are satin finish, but the spine of the blade going over the thumb ramp and the whole tang, it is bead blasted. This basically allows the user to carry the knife in the hand closed without the shiny satin finish to give away the presence of the knife. Basically, when the knife is closed, all exposed parts of the blade are bead blasted, while the rest of the blade is a beautiful satin finsh. A nice touch.
 
A lot of people bring up the fact that the CQC6 should be longer. Do people think this because it is possible to fit more blade into the CQC6 or because they just want a knife with a longer blade? Because most people defend the argument of "The CQC6 is too short" by saying the handle can fit more blade instead of saying they like the design and wish the blade were longer. For certain situations I'm very used to the 3.25 blade length and actually like the larger handle of the CQC6. Extra handle doesn't hurt in my opinion.

The old CQC6's were 3.5 just like the CQC7's are now. Anyone know why Emerson changed the blade to handle ratio or shortened the blade?

Jason
 
I also had a Viper 1 several years ago that I thought was too nice to use. . . so I sold it wanting instead to buy only knives for personal use. My normal carry now is the CQC7, and would like to find a user 6. Anyone have one for sale?
 
As I understand it, the Viper series includes models one through five,even though they are not all currently catalogued. It is my further understanding that all were available with the thumb disk. Am I right? Which number model is the rarest and hardest to get? No one seems to be getting their CQ's How about viper delivery? Another question: At about what time did Emerson start using the flat, commander-like scales on the CQC8?, and about when did the secondary bevel style begin on the CQ's. A lot of questions,I know. Thanks for the help
 
Hey Sniper! I believe I have seniority on trying to buy a user 6! As a school trained 8541 (MOS), you know we're on the same page.

Eric - In my own experience, the Viper 4 is next to impossible to find. There are a fair number of 5s out there, which looks like a 4 except for the extreme turn-down handle. All came with thumb discs, although my 2 had a thumb stud, so that was an option. (Actually, it was an option on all of Ernie's knives back in the days when he was just making custom knives by himself.) The two is a 3/4 version of the 1. As far as delivery is concerned, my Viper order is dated June 1995, and no firm date has been honored. I am pretty sure that 6s ordered after that date have been delivered, but can't say for sure. And, not to get started on this again, but....the commander style handles coincide with the introduction of the Commander, and the secondary bevel on a CQC6 (and the beadblast finish) coincides with the introduction of production knives with similar blades. Like a single bevel was good enough for 7 or 8 years until he started having a production facility turn out blades that needed a secondary finish. Just a coincidence I'm quite sure.

Fenris - Did you ever see a 6 with a 3.5" blade? My old catalogue (only has the Vipers and the CQC6 in it) shows 3.25" for the 6, and the newer "old" catalogue shows a 7 with 3.45" blade, but I've never seen a 6 with the longer blade. That would be a real rarity.
 
Jason,
When I mentioned that I thought the CQC-6 could benefit from more blade I did not consider the issue regarding the additional handle space. Actually I never really examined that detail of the CQC-6. I just really like the larger, longer blades of the tanto prototypes. Also the protos have a finger stop which I think is very practical on any "hard use" knife.

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Never argue with a man that wears a size 5 hat.
 
Jbravo. .

Now you've already got a CQC6. I've only got a CQC7. You could always turn your 6 into a user if you wanted to! For gods sake lets not turn this into a "collectors only" forum! LOL . So . . come on sellers, give me a shout.

I'd like to pick one up from Nyeti. - Since we both work in the same slimy element. But unfortunately he's a little shy and not willing to post his e-mail address, so I can't contact him. (Shameless plug, ... come on Nyeti, e-mail me!)

Keep the comments coming guys. Unfortunately it doesn't appear any of us are able to discuss any "recently received" customs direct from Emerson. - However the only knife I have on order from him was taken with no deposit required, - and a lengthy wait mentioned!
 
I would like to at least reseve this thread for NOT talking about delivery times.
I'm hoping others are in agreement.
I think Ernie started changing Handles of CQC 8's et al, around 3 years ago.
I acquired my first ES1-M then and I noticed handle changes on "Bananas" subsequent to that time.
Secondary bevel I'm not positive about, but around two years ago seems about right.
The Viper 3 has the longest Blade of the Viper series at 4". I really like it especially in Largo or sumbratta range.
For me it flows for my attributes better than the other Viper's I have owned or played w/. But keep in mind these were/are Tactical designed knives w/ a specific purpose in mind. Often a secondary purpose or use evolves and a utility is discovered.
From my understanding the Viper 4 seems to be the most elusive. Most Vipers came w/ "Disc's" as I mentioned in a previous thread, according to Ernie. The Slotted Tanto 4" prototypes are real nice and I would'nt be surprised to see them availible in a production version someday.
I wonder If I will ever find the Pentultimate Knife Design or is it a process ?
biggrin.gif



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"This is the law:
There is no possible victory in defense, The Sword is more important than the shield, And skill is more important than either, The final weapon is the brain. All else is supplemental."



[This message has been edited by Tamishigiri (edited 02-16-2000).]
 
In the words of my old Sifu and former Ranger, Rick Hernandez: "It's a process... Now do it again."

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Never argue with a man that wears a size 5 hat.
 
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