This is a review of the Hinderer XM-18, 3.5” model.
I got this knife straight from Rick and ordered it with the features I wanted.
I specified a stonewash blade and frame, non-flipper, black scales.
I paid $395 for this knife. If you are considering paying twice as much for one of these, then stop reading this review right now. None of the accolades apply to this knife if it costs $800.
Most of you know the general specs of this knife such as the construction and blade shape. Here are a few more detailed specs per my digital caliper and scale:
Folded length- 4.8 in.
Extended length- 8.25 in.
Weight- 5.6 oz
Blade thickness- 0.165 in.
Handle thickness- 0.54 in.
Background:
I have been searching for a folding knife for several years now that would fill my need for heavy duty / survival use. A few that I have purchased, and used, have been the Fallkniven PXL, Al Mar SERE, ZT 0200, Emerson A100, Benchmade Ritter Rsk1 w/Wilkinsgrips, Spyderco Para and Extrema Ratio BF2.
All were fine knives and proved very capable in their assigned duties.
Of course there are two other brands that have defined this genre, CRK and Strider.
These are the two brands I will compare the XM-18 to, because they represent the benchmark for production hard use folding knives. I own folders by both of these manufacturers and have used them extensively.
I have used Sebenzas over the years but never liked them well enough to purchase one.
I used an Umnumzaan after they first came out and thought it was enough of an improvement over the Sebenza to buy one.
After long term use with the Umnumzaan, I found that there were still a few things I didn’t care for.
- Slow and comparatively hard to open. Better than Sebenzas, but still not easy.
- Ergonomics. This is still a straight handled knife. Very old school.
- Beadblast finish, a CRK trademark. Scratches very easily. Not terribly important in terms of function, but annoying. I buffed mine out within months because of this.
Overall, an excellent knife, it just didn’t bring it all together for me.
I have used Striders over the years but never liked them well enough to purchase one.
The older ones were very crude and blocky. When the Sng GG came out, I was happy enough about that change to purchase one. The F&F was markedly better than the Striders I had used in the past and the ergos were, in some ways, better as well.
After long term use I found that there were still a few things I didn’t care for.
- The handle is too thin for extended use. It carries very well though.
- While better than past Striders, the F&F was not as good as CRKs.
- Function is not as smooth as CRKs, or many other knives.
Overall, an excellent knife, but it didn’t do it for me either.
What I really wanted was a knife that brought together the best aspects of CRK and Strider. So, this will be a comparison between CRK, Strider and Hinderer, in addition to the review of the XM-18.
Enter Hinderer:
I have been intrigued by this knife for a couple years. It looked like a good candidate to fill the voids that CRK and Strider had left unfulfilled.
Availability has been the major issue with this knife. But, I got one, so that point is moot now.
Here are my thoughts on the XM-18:
Size / Weight- The knife is thinner than I was expecting, which is good. It still has enough width to be very comfortable in the hand while pushing hard on the blade. This is the tradeoff with folding knife handles. Thin handle=good carry characteristics, thick handle= comfort. The Strider is one of the thinnest folders made, which is good. But using it hurts my hand after a while. The Zaan is a little bit thicker, but still not that pleasant to use for extended periods. The XM-18 strikes a good balance between comfort and carry IMO.
The weight, while not light, is definitely better than say, a ZT 0-series. Anything beyond 6oz is getting heavy in my book. 8oz,or more, is annoying to me, especially when there are high end folders that are as strong, or stronger, than those heavy beasts. Light weight and strength are not mutually exclusive; you just have to pay for it. The XM-18 is very pleasant to carry considering its capabilities.
Ergonomics / Function-
The ergos are excellent on this knife. The natural point is much better than the Zaan. The choil works well for me. There have been some complaints about the blade edge coming into contact with peoples fingers due to the size of the choil, (mostly on flippers). I have fairly thin hands so it doesn’t affect me. If a person has very large or fat fingers it could be an issue.
All hand positions are useable and comfortable on this knife. The user can easily and quickly grip, choke up and reverse positions. The jimping is in all the right places and well executed. The G-10 slab has a nice texture. The stonewashed Ti side doesn’t show scratches. The overall handle shape is great.
The thumbstuds, which are now like ZT designs, are well placed and allow easy, fast manipulation of blade deployment. The blade detent works fine for me. It is strong enough to safely hold the blade in place when closed, and allow the blade to snap open with a flick of the thumb. CRKs generally have slow deployment, (even worse with gloves), Striders feature fast deployment. The XM-18 got this whole aspect right as well. There is no fumbling around trying to deploy the blade on the XM-18, it is both intuitive, easy and fast.
The XM-18 lockbar release is easy to disengage since Rick uses a carbidizer on the lockface and got the geometry right. The Zaan excels at lock release due to the ceramic ball at the lock point, whereas the Strider took me several hundred opening/closings before it broke in. It works good now but sheesh! The XM-18 had no such break-in issues and releases easily. Lockup came in around 20%, thanks Rick! I know I’m the odd man out on this issue, but I don’t want a new knife to lock up at 50%.
The lanyard hole has been a bone of contention for many owners. However, I don’t use lanyards on any of my knives so for me it is a non-issue.
The pocket clip is reversible and feels good in my hand in either position. The little filler piece Rick includes is a nice touch. Oh yes, Rick started using Phillips head screws for the clip attachment now, so that is good.
Overall, the design and ergos of the XM-18 are very well thought out and executed. This is a modern design and succeeds in every area.
I got this knife straight from Rick and ordered it with the features I wanted.
I specified a stonewash blade and frame, non-flipper, black scales.
I paid $395 for this knife. If you are considering paying twice as much for one of these, then stop reading this review right now. None of the accolades apply to this knife if it costs $800.
Most of you know the general specs of this knife such as the construction and blade shape. Here are a few more detailed specs per my digital caliper and scale:
Folded length- 4.8 in.
Extended length- 8.25 in.
Weight- 5.6 oz
Blade thickness- 0.165 in.
Handle thickness- 0.54 in.
Background:
I have been searching for a folding knife for several years now that would fill my need for heavy duty / survival use. A few that I have purchased, and used, have been the Fallkniven PXL, Al Mar SERE, ZT 0200, Emerson A100, Benchmade Ritter Rsk1 w/Wilkinsgrips, Spyderco Para and Extrema Ratio BF2.
All were fine knives and proved very capable in their assigned duties.
Of course there are two other brands that have defined this genre, CRK and Strider.
These are the two brands I will compare the XM-18 to, because they represent the benchmark for production hard use folding knives. I own folders by both of these manufacturers and have used them extensively.
I have used Sebenzas over the years but never liked them well enough to purchase one.
I used an Umnumzaan after they first came out and thought it was enough of an improvement over the Sebenza to buy one.
After long term use with the Umnumzaan, I found that there were still a few things I didn’t care for.
- Slow and comparatively hard to open. Better than Sebenzas, but still not easy.
- Ergonomics. This is still a straight handled knife. Very old school.
- Beadblast finish, a CRK trademark. Scratches very easily. Not terribly important in terms of function, but annoying. I buffed mine out within months because of this.
Overall, an excellent knife, it just didn’t bring it all together for me.
I have used Striders over the years but never liked them well enough to purchase one.
The older ones were very crude and blocky. When the Sng GG came out, I was happy enough about that change to purchase one. The F&F was markedly better than the Striders I had used in the past and the ergos were, in some ways, better as well.
After long term use I found that there were still a few things I didn’t care for.
- The handle is too thin for extended use. It carries very well though.
- While better than past Striders, the F&F was not as good as CRKs.
- Function is not as smooth as CRKs, or many other knives.
Overall, an excellent knife, but it didn’t do it for me either.
What I really wanted was a knife that brought together the best aspects of CRK and Strider. So, this will be a comparison between CRK, Strider and Hinderer, in addition to the review of the XM-18.
Enter Hinderer:
I have been intrigued by this knife for a couple years. It looked like a good candidate to fill the voids that CRK and Strider had left unfulfilled.
Availability has been the major issue with this knife. But, I got one, so that point is moot now.
Here are my thoughts on the XM-18:
Size / Weight- The knife is thinner than I was expecting, which is good. It still has enough width to be very comfortable in the hand while pushing hard on the blade. This is the tradeoff with folding knife handles. Thin handle=good carry characteristics, thick handle= comfort. The Strider is one of the thinnest folders made, which is good. But using it hurts my hand after a while. The Zaan is a little bit thicker, but still not that pleasant to use for extended periods. The XM-18 strikes a good balance between comfort and carry IMO.
The weight, while not light, is definitely better than say, a ZT 0-series. Anything beyond 6oz is getting heavy in my book. 8oz,or more, is annoying to me, especially when there are high end folders that are as strong, or stronger, than those heavy beasts. Light weight and strength are not mutually exclusive; you just have to pay for it. The XM-18 is very pleasant to carry considering its capabilities.
Ergonomics / Function-
The ergos are excellent on this knife. The natural point is much better than the Zaan. The choil works well for me. There have been some complaints about the blade edge coming into contact with peoples fingers due to the size of the choil, (mostly on flippers). I have fairly thin hands so it doesn’t affect me. If a person has very large or fat fingers it could be an issue.
All hand positions are useable and comfortable on this knife. The user can easily and quickly grip, choke up and reverse positions. The jimping is in all the right places and well executed. The G-10 slab has a nice texture. The stonewashed Ti side doesn’t show scratches. The overall handle shape is great.
The thumbstuds, which are now like ZT designs, are well placed and allow easy, fast manipulation of blade deployment. The blade detent works fine for me. It is strong enough to safely hold the blade in place when closed, and allow the blade to snap open with a flick of the thumb. CRKs generally have slow deployment, (even worse with gloves), Striders feature fast deployment. The XM-18 got this whole aspect right as well. There is no fumbling around trying to deploy the blade on the XM-18, it is both intuitive, easy and fast.
The XM-18 lockbar release is easy to disengage since Rick uses a carbidizer on the lockface and got the geometry right. The Zaan excels at lock release due to the ceramic ball at the lock point, whereas the Strider took me several hundred opening/closings before it broke in. It works good now but sheesh! The XM-18 had no such break-in issues and releases easily. Lockup came in around 20%, thanks Rick! I know I’m the odd man out on this issue, but I don’t want a new knife to lock up at 50%.
The lanyard hole has been a bone of contention for many owners. However, I don’t use lanyards on any of my knives so for me it is a non-issue.
The pocket clip is reversible and feels good in my hand in either position. The little filler piece Rick includes is a nice touch. Oh yes, Rick started using Phillips head screws for the clip attachment now, so that is good.
Overall, the design and ergos of the XM-18 are very well thought out and executed. This is a modern design and succeeds in every area.
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