I decided it was time for me to get a folding knife that was fit for EDC to replace my bulky Cold Steel Recon 1. The two knives that I chose were the Lion Steel Daghetta with G-10 scales, and the SOG Flash II (plain drop point).
) and the Flash II early today. My first impressions of the Daghetta were odd, it's a nice knife, but it seemed to be dry and with little lubrication when you open the blade. It's also very stiff to open, but I'm sure that can be fixed by adding lubrication and loosening the screws slightly.
The other thing I noticed was the engraving had either rust or dirt in it (took photos of this). There is no blade play in any direction when opened. The blade did come very sharp. A negative, IMO, is the blade steel 440C. While I have heard that some people prefer this to various common folder steels, I do not. I'm aware that it's edge retention is DECENT, but not better than AUS 8. I'm pretty sure the 440C is also what makes the knife itself a bit heavier than the Flash II, but I don't consider this negative. There is also more steel all over the knife (such as steel liners) in comparison with the Flash II, adding another small amount of weight. One advantage the Daghetta has over the Flash II is rust resistance; the Flash II will rust quite a bit quicker.
Lion Steel Daghetta:
The rust/dirt in the engraving:
SOG Flash II:
I received the Daghetta yesterday (Unfortunately mine is not a D2 model ) and the Flash II early today. My first impressions of the Daghetta were odd, it's a nice knife, but it seemed to be dry and with little lubrication when you open the blade. It's also very stiff to open, but I'm sure that can be fixed by adding lubrication and loosening the screws slightly. The other thing I noticed was the engraving had either rust or dirt in it (took photos of this). There is no blade play in any direction when opened. The blade did come very sharp. A negative, IMO, is the blade steel 440C. While I have heard that some people prefer this to various common folder steels, I do not. I'm aware that it's edge retention is DECENT, but not better than AUS 8. I'm pretty sure the 440C is also what makes the knife itself a bit heavier than the Flash II, but I don't consider this negative. There is also more steel all over the knife (such as steel liners) in comparison with the Flash II, adding another small amount of weight. One advantage the Daghetta has over the Flash II is rust resistance; the Flash II will rust quite a bit quicker.
The Flash II, which came today, was as expected. There is and was no blade play up or down when opened and locked. I've heard of problems with the safety switch moving in-pocket and keeping the blade from opening. It seems that this was fixed as mine doesn't feel like it will have that issue; the switch is either locked or unlocked, it doesn't slide towards the middle. The blade on the Flash II also came very sharp. The blade steel is AUS 8 with SOG's cryogenic heat treatment; the blade will supposedly have better edge retention and less chipping than standard AUS 8 steel without SOG's cryo treatment. I have not proven this, as I have only had it since this morning. As I said above, the Flash II is slightly lighter than the Daghetta due to steel type. This is can positive or negative based on opinion.Lion Steel Daghetta:
The rust/dirt in the engraving:
SOG Flash II:
I haven't gotten a chance to test them yet, but they both seem as though they would be great as utility EDC knives. Both came quite sharp out of the box. I'll most likely end up using the Flash II due to better edge retention, I wouldn't want to get the Daghetta dirty anyway.
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