Vallotton Chameleon

[markusblattner]

Has anybody handled these yet?
How do they feel in the hand and how secure is the lockup?
Also does it have titanium liners?


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[mgkrame]

I just got one a couple of weeks ago.
The knife is very smooth in both auto and manual modes. IMHO the blade is very well ground, a deep, high hollow grind. Lockup is
fairly tight, there is a little play in all directions, but less than most of the button locks I've handled. It's a really neat knife, but a little expensive. As far as I know, the liners are stainless.

 

[chrisJohn]

Smooth, yes. Neat design.

Keep in mind that you are buying a 350 dollar synthetic scaled knife. I don't know that the rationale is for this type of scale, either light weight and or durability, but the over all feel of the knife turned me off in the extreme. I would personally have a hard time paying over one hundred dollars for one, let alone three fify. They feel cheap to ME.

The newer models have their release underneath the kraton pad, and the older ones udnerneath the pocket clip. None of the ones I have seen have been particuarlly sharp, but the blades looked relatively good.

A lot of folks swear by them, and as far as I know they haven't had a lot of problems. Be sure to handle one before buying. Good luck.

 

[mgkrame]

The first time I handled a Glock, it felt cheap to me. While I'm not going to do any testing on my Chameleon, I imagine that those synthetic scales are pretty durable, and will hold up well in the long run. The knife was pretty sharp when I got it, but, as with most knives I own, I did end up giving it a final touch up to get
it hair popping.

 

[chrisJohn]

Ahh, but Glocks aren't 900 dollars are they?

Nope Glocks are as billed, the best no frills combat hand gun made, period.

Would I like a manual safety? Sure, but keep in mind that with a little looking around one can buy a NIB Glock 17/19/22/23 for 350 which happens to the list price on the Chameleon. Just isn't worth it to ME.

Again, handle one, you may love it. Different strokes for different folks. I only write about the Chameleon because I came within a hair's breadth of buying one several times before handling one, and am glad I waited!

 

[Patrick Lee]

I have to agree with ChrisJohn on this one. Here's my post from the custom forum:


The samples I've handled were ok, but they showed alot of the same problems.

Zytel handles. Pretty cheap looking, you could still see the sprue marks where they were clipped off the molding trees.

Fit and finish. The back spacer had very visible gaps between it and the liners. The scales were just attached to the liners, but it appeared that no finish work had taken place to make everything completely flush. For a knife in this price range, I'd expect better fit and finish.

Serrations. There was still a visible to the naked eye burr left on the sharpened serrations.

Thumbstud. Don't know about you, but the thumbstud with the checkering on the top just doesn't look or work as nice as
some of the other styles.

On the bright side: much better action than the Microtech version, option to have the button under the rubber, much slimmer,
attracts less attention.

Oddly enough, the first two samples I handled (which sadly enough I didn't buy) that were from much earlier in the production run were pretty much perfect. They were marked "Butch Vallotin Custom Knives" instead of just "Vallotin Custom Knives"


IMHO, just spend the money on a decent auto like a Socom. The Chameleon is overpriced.

-Pat