Thoughts on the latest folding kitchen knives?

[jdm61]

I refer to them as broken knives because they are broke in half.

Ah c'mon. Be open minded.

They may not be as capable or efficient as a folder, but it doesn't mean they don't exist.

The same could be said for ALL folding knives vs. fixed, right? (and indeed there are people who pocket carry fixed blades for to this belief...)

 

[Smaug]

Update: I got the A.G. Russell folding Cook's Knife 2 the other day. First impression was excellent. Great lock back action, great fit and finish. Smooth G10 had the rivets all ground perfectly flush. I touched up the edge a bit to remove the teeth, and sliced up some food for a salad. It was working GREAT, and was a pleasure to use.

I did have to pull the cutting board to the edge of the counter, as knuckle clearance was an issue. (just a bit of one though; nothing like you'd normally expect to have when using a pocket knife as a chef's knife )

I played around with different opening means: thumb hole smooth and gentle, thumb hole quick-flick, and the jerk-down, then snap wrist open. All worked well, but the latter really did have to be done perfectly.

The handle is huge, to accommodate the wider blade. About 30% bigger than a typical chef knife's handle. Still comfortable, but it made me feel like a little kid holding a full size knife handle. It was a strange flash-back.

After maybe 50 open/close cycles, I noticed something sharp on the handle that almost cut me. I looked at the pivot pin for the lock bar had rotated and worked its way out. Since it was ground flush with the smooth G10, it was only a fit in one very exact position. It had come out maybe 1/16" and rotated.

I got a Phillips screwdriver and hammer and drifted it back into position, but the rotation was wrong, so it was still sharp. Damn. I cycled it probably another 30 times, and sure enough, it started to back out again.

So with a heavy heart, I packed it up and send it back. Asked for my money back, rather than a replacement, as I'm not confident the next one wouldn't have the same issue. I can't decide if it is a QC issue or a design issue. I don't know quite enough about folding knife mechanics to make a fair judgment.

I just found a Spydiechef for sale here, made an offer, and it should be en route Monday. One thing about Spyderco is that their quality is never in question. They're spendy for what they are, but their quality seems to be damn near 100%. Designs are also very good. Maybe the tilted back blade angle will address the knuckle clearance issue.

 

[Hurrul]

Too bad to read about the mechanical failure - the overall blade shape and handle design seemed promising for it's intended purpose.

Thanks for updating this thread with your experience.

 

[marchone]

There is no such animal as a folding kitchen knife.

YMMV