The Sebenza 31 initial thoughts? The best CRK I've owned.

BMCGear

BMCGear

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I've owned multiple 21s, Inkosis, and Zaans. Up until this point I probably preferred the look of the 21 but was tied between the Inkosi and the Zaan for my favorite. When the 31 came out I was really excited about it. It combined the bushing pivot which the Inkosi and Zaan are missing with the ceramic lock-ball. Then the reports of lock rock came out and I decided not to grab one.

A couple of buddies got one and had no issue so I decided to pull the trigger. I received the knife this morning so keep in my this is an initial review.

The knife is the smoothest CRK that I've owned. It has the spirit of the 21 with the refinement that the company has put into other knives. I know the 21 is sacred but this is an evolution that I can get behind.

Anything else I could say right now would just be a repeat of what has been said about the 21. I have no issue with the 31 and I'm glad that I purchased mine. I do miss the oversized pivot of the Inkosi (aesthetics) but have no doubt this knife will handle anything I'll need it to.

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Good to hear. I have a PJ lefty damascus on order from CRK. I was having doubts about it, but your review is encouraging. I imagine the lefties, especially in damascus are still many months away.
 
Evany said:
Good to hear. I have a PJ lefty damascus on order from CRK. I was having doubts about it, but your review is encouraging. I imagine the lefties, especially in damascus are still many months away.
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That's one reason I felt the need to post something. I was really excited about this knife when it was announced but the initial reports kind of put me off of it. My example is excellent and I'm glad I own it.
 
Most definitely the smoothest CRK out there. So glad you are happy with yours. A very capable knife indeed. :) Congrats!
 
Mine was perfect out of the box, but it somehow developed play in every direction. Up/down and side/side. I’m thinking the knife was “tuned” to be perfect with a defect/burr on one or both washers and a few openings/closings wore that burr down and unveiled the side/side play. If I hadn’t also purchased a new Sm Inkosi at the same time that is CRK perfection, I would be pissed. I could easily fix the issue if it weren’t for the new stop pin. The 31s stepped stop pin design is a step backwards.
 
archieblue said:
Mine was perfect out of the box, but it somehow developed play in every direction. Up/down and side/side. I’m thinking the knife was “tuned” to be perfect with a defect/burr on one or both washers and a few openings/closings wore that burr down and unveiled the side/side play. If I hadn’t also purchased a new Sm Inkosi at the same time that is CRK perfection, I would be pissed. I could easily fix the issue if it weren’t for the new stop pin. The 31s stepped stop pin design is a step backwards.
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2nd day but no issues so far. The knife was taken apart and went back together perfectly. I'm confident CRK will take care of me if anything goes wrong.
 
PiterM said:
My Micarta 31 is quite perfect, no issues so far. Springy action on lock under considerable force on the spine is fine with me, I prefer to cut with actual edge, not spine ;)

Here’s my EDC with that micarta Seb 31:

s31mic_web.jpg
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That's a cool shot man.
 
I like the look of the micarta on the 31s but was not sure if I was going to jump onboard with them or not as I really like my 21s. But I also like my Inkosis and Zanns ... the 25 is the only model that I have teetered on and it somehow has managed to stay in house here so it must not be too bad. I will most likely pick up a micarta 31 at some point.
 
I will try the 31 Black Micarta when they are available with the new steel. From a place that I can return it easily in case of a bad luck. Not in a hurry since I just got the perfect 21
 
PiterM said:
My Micarta 31 is quite perfect, no issues so far. Springy action on lock under considerable force on the spine is fine with me, I prefer to cut with actual edge, not spine ;)

Here’s my EDC with that micarta Seb 31:

s31mic_web.jpg
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Awesome picture, I have the same one and just took it apart for the first time. Have you noticed the Micarta 31 still has the machined hole (just covered by the inlay on presentation side) while the PJ obviously no longer has the machined hole. Found this interesting and wonder if it is really that much easier to make this scales with the hole in it which is why they continue to do so on inlay versions.
 
Camp11 said:
Awesome picture, I have the same one and just took it apart for the first time. Have you noticed the Micarta 31 still has the machined hole (just covered by the inlay on presentation side) while the PJ obviously no longer has the machined hole. Found this interesting and wonder if it is really that much easier to make this scales with the hole in it which is why they continue to do so on inlay versions.
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I've read that the hole is there on inlay models to facilitate removing the inlay in case of need for repair. Don't have a source for that though.
 
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