I've had a bunch of CRKTs over the years. I have four left that I keep thinking I'll sell and turn into one (more) decent blade, but I always end up finding something else to sell instead. Two of the ones I still have, several of y'all have said you have too, a large Crawford/Kasper Fighter:
(Not my picture, nabbed off of Google Images)
And a M16-03Z:
The Crawford/Kasper I have really not used for a single cut that I recall, but I've had all four of these knives for well over 5 years (probably more like 7 or 8....they say the first thing to go is memory.....I forget what the second thing is!
), and the actions are much better than the newer ones I've handled, and I think the blade steel may have changed (for the worse) since I got 'em too. Not positive about that, but I keep the K/C in my center console to use the serrations should I ever have to cut myself or someone else out of my/their seatbelts. So it's virtually new, with just a little bit of wearing off of the black on the pocket clip.
The M16 doesn't see a lot of use, but I do carry it every so often. It's a pre-Auto LAWKS version, meaning it has the LAWKS system, but it doesn't engage automatically. Neither does the K/C or the next one I'm going to show you....
A Ryan Model 7:
I know from previous discussions about this knife that a lot of folks just can't stomach the scale cut-outs. I get it, it's not for everyone, but I like it. I have real big hands, and even though this knife takes more pocket real estate than I wish it did, when it's opened and I'm using it, I don't really mind. It fills my hand well, the handle shape works for me, and I like the forward tilt of the un-serrated part of the blade, which is about all I use. I have recently seen the newer black version of this knife for as little as $22 bucks with no serrations, but the action is nowhere near as smooth as this knife's is. If I had a chance to get an older one without serrations, I'd go for it in a heartbeat, and it would be in my EDC rotation a lot more often than this one is.
And then the last one I still have is another Ryan design, the Plan B. Actually, I have two of 'em, one combo and one plain. This isn't my picture, but these are identical:
As I recall, these were not marketed as "neck knives." I bought them off the web thinking they were more or less a fixed blade version of the Model 7, but they aren't. They're very small, and if they were still being marketed, they would definitely be referred to as neck knives. Whatever, I use the plain blade one almost every day. I leave it in the truck and reach for it about as much as I reach for whatever's in my pocket for one thing or another. I've attached a chain to it and tried it on around my neck, but that just ain't for me. I usually wear Tac-pants or cargo pants, so I always have an extra pocket for a knife, so I just never could see one hanging around my neck.
I've now got a Bradley Alias I and both a Spyderco Meercat and Native, both of those with VG-10 which I really like, and there's no doubt that all my other knives are more high-quality than any of the CRKTs, but hey, I get good use out of the ones I use and enjoy handling the one that has yet to see any use, so I'm certainly not in the "I-hate-CRKT" side of the equation. I know what they are and they've always done what I ask of 'em, so in that regard, I'd have to say I'm givin' 'em some actual love here.
:thumbup:
Blues
