The Bears' Den--Shirogorov Showcase

[JB in SC]

Here is a video of me somewhat awkwardly opening the NeOn Ultra-Lite with my left hand. It's easy enough and a real-life lefty would likely have more dexterity making it even easier. I do have a small cut on left index finger now.
Never mind... I can't post it

Oops, I hope it's not bad we left hand people have had to learn to adapt to a right hand world all our lives.

 

[aleforme]

Those pics of your Turtle are absolutely stunning, aleforme . Nice pick-up of a sweet knife.

My F95T is older--as in pre-R series--with SRBS, but not of the same vintage as yours as mine has jimping and M390. I have two Bears in S30V, though--the NeOn UL that's being discussed here currently and my F3 Python--and Shirogorov does a great job with that steel. It takes a wicked keen edge easily and keeps it much better than iterations of the same by other makers. It comes back great, too, with stropping or a light touch-up with The ShrpMaker fine or ultra-fine rods.

I've mentioned before too how my SRBS Turtle flips much more authoritatively than its MRBS F95R brother as well as being more drop-shutty. On the other hand, the MRBS knife is smoother, and flips easily with less pressure and a lighter detent.

Thanks. I found this older vintage F95T for a good price and I was a little hesitant on the size. Figure I would try it out without spending as much. It's a big knife but I really like it. The SRBS on this one is super smooth and the action is amazing.

 

[Megalobyte]

What do you guys think of Cultrotech? They seem to be aiming directly at the Shiro CD’s and full customs.

 

[marchone]

I visited the CultroTech table at the NY Knife Show this past fall. The Svord folder is an art piece that had a lot of people swooning over it. I personally was more impressed with their fixed blades. Crazy expensive though at $1000 a pop for a fixed blade. Because of language difficulties I don't know if they are in production, or are one-offs. Still, the quality was outstanding, the fit, finish, hand feel, pointability and usability were all top top notch. Seamless wraparound Micarta handles were the icing on the cake. It was the proverbial wand in hand. What a knife. Maybe compared to Kramer originals it isn't so expensive? I'm conflicted.

 

[JB in SC]

marchone

Wayne, are the guards integral? Nice looking blades.

 

[marchone]

They appeared to be. I asked if the bottom could be ground off to suit my needs for food prep and they said yes.

 

[Curl of the Burl]

I just stepped into the den. Started off light with a Neon Ultra Lite in Elmax. Looking forward to getting it in hand. I’m mostly into CRK, and only flipper I’ve had was an Olamic Wayferer 247.

 

[JB in SC]

I just stepped into the den. Started off light with a Neon Ultra Lite in Elmax. Looking forward to getting it in hand. I’m mostly into CRK, and only flipper I’ve had was an Olamic Wayferer 247.

You're wading in the shallow end, like me my NeOn Ultra Lite will be here tomorrow.

 

[ChazzyP]

I just stepped into the den. Started off light with a Neon Ultra Lite in Elmax. Looking forward to getting it in hand. I’m mostly into CRK, and only flipper I’ve had was an Olamic Wayferer 247.

Nice to see you over here, Curl, as we know each other from the Chris Reeve pages. I'm still way into CRKs too, and those and my Shiros occupy the top tiers of my knife collection hierarchy in terms of appreciation and use. They're very different in deployment, pivots, and style but very much the same in simplicity/purity of design as well as outstanding build quality.

You're wading in the shallow end, like me my NeOn Ultra Lite will be here tomorrow.

Always glad to welcome new Den-izens. I'm looking forward to seeing your new knives and reading your impressions of them. The NeOn is great mid-sized EDC knife--absolutely my favorite in that size range.

 

[marchone]

I just stepped into the den. Started off light with a Neon Ultra Lite in Elmax. Looking forward to getting it in hand. I’m mostly into CRK, and only flipper I’ve had was an Olamic Wayferer 247.

The man has good taste.

 

[JB in SC]

ChazzyP well I got it, and it's just not working out for me. A beautiful knife regardless.

 

[CPP]

The knife in general is not working out or it not being a lefty specific knife?

ChazzyP well I got it, and it's just not working out for me. A beautiful knife regardless.

 

[CPP]

 

[JB in SC]

The knife in general is not working out or it not being a lefty specific knife?

More in general, it's a little too slippery and doesn't seem to fit my hand well (surprising to me) but the functioning is fine.

 

[Curl of the Burl]

ChazzyP thanks. The Shiros seem to always have glowing reviews. Looking forward to getting mine in hand. Now just clicking refresh on my tracking number.

Thanks marchone I’ve been reading up in this den on and off for sometime. Great wealth of knowledge and great folks on this thread.

 

[Ajack60]

More in general, it's a little too slippery and doesn't seem to fit my hand well (surprising to me) but the functioning is fine.

The Neon didn’t do it for me either and I tried it twice. The F95 and the F3R are the ones that do it for me. If you get your hands on the F95 with the micarta inlays, it may be a game changer for you.

 

[Curl of the Burl]

The eagle has landed and me likey. Been breaking it in this week and it flips like a dream. It fits perfectly size wise right between my CRK’s.

 

[Casinostocks]

Still lurking but haven't posted in here for a while. Belated Happy New Year to all you bears' den dwellers. As for me, I have an inbound F3R described as LNIB which I bought off of the Exchange here a couple of days ago. I was resisting the addition of another Shiro for a while and had passed up on a couple of this model in the past just because they didn't give me the right sorta "feelings", because as you know buying a 2nd hand Shiro albeit LNIB can be a bit daunting.

I had stayed away from the full size Hati models despite some good offerings by trusted members because I didn't want any more of the CF/Ti hybrids so I was thinking either all congruent Ti handle scales or all congruent CFs. Anyway, looks like my 111 CF will be having a smaller brother to keep its company soon The F95T(R) and the NeOn Lite were having way too much fun at the expense of their lonely bigbadass brother

Group photos to be added, hopefully at some point during the next weekend

 

[ChazzyP]

The eagle has landed and me likey. Been breaking it in this week and it flips like a dream. It fits perfectly size wise right between my CRK’s. View attachment 1052444

Nice group shot, Curl. Your NeOn sure does fill its own little niche amongst your CRKs. My first Reeve knife was a small 21 with cocobolo inlays that began my journey down the CRK rabbit hole, but I found it didn't fit my hand at all well and reluctantly sold it after acquiring two or three larges. Somehow my NeOn UL is a much better mate for my arthritic, beat-up old carpenter's mitts despite being only a smidge bigger than a small Seb and finds its way into my pocket and daily use fairly frequently despite my preference for larger knives.

 

[Curl of the Burl]

Yes, I agree the NeOn UL is a much better size than the small sebenza. I was at a function this weekend and someone needed a knife to cut some ribbon. Shiro to the rescue. I feel it was small enough to not intimidate or shock anyone. Really a perfect EDC flipper. I’ve noticed no jimping on mine which I find very sleek and goes well with the lines of the knife.