WE Knife Thoughts

Hackenslash said:
I own several different WEs and I'd say their greatest weakness is they're not great slicers; they tend to be thick behind the edge. They seem to use a lot of 4mm bladestock which don't typically make for a good cutting edge.

The ones I've handled that were "slicier" are the 606, 615 and 616. Some of the newer 700 series look like they might be better slicers, but it's hard to tell from pictures.

If you're looking for the cutting skill of a Spydie, I don't think you'll find it with a WE. I love the looks of many WEs but I find I don't reach for them if I have some serious cutting to do.
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It doesn't have to be a Spydie. CRK, modern Benchmade, even Cold Steel all do a great job getting thin grinds on full sized, field duty folders.
 
kylemiller said:
It doesn't have to be a Spydie. CRK, modern Benchmade, even Cold Steel all do a great job getting thin grinds on full sized, field duty folders.
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I agree, I was just throwing out Spyderco as an example of a slicy knife.

The problem WE has are with blade style. I don't think they offer any hollow grinds. They put out a lot of flat grinds that terminate 2/3's of the way up the blade. With 4mm blade stock it's almost impossible to get a grind like that to be thin behind the edge.

I keep hoping to see a full flat grind but WE likes 2-tone blades with fullers and speed holes.

After giving it further thought I think the Sliciest WE isn't branded by WE at all. Check out the Ferrum Forge/Massdrop/WE Gent. It'll give you a chance to check out WE manufacturing at a great price in a knife that does knifey things quite well.
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I didn't even have any luck with the WE produced Boos Smoke. Looks like a nice FFG, edge geometry of my Adamas (which I can appreciate....on my Adamas).

I hope there's a distal taper grind on the next revision because I loved the design and ergonomics.
 
Owen K. said:
There are many opinions on this forum. Here is mine. I will not spend more then 50$ on a overseas printed knife. I get no pride out of a "Chinese knife" I admit some of WE's stuff is beautiful but it goes against my self established principles. Not caving to this has saved me a LOT of money. As our economy struggles support 'merica as much as possible!
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I get pride in buying a product I like and is worthy of my money, wether it be by design, materials, value, craftsmanship, or all of those in one.

WE has some of those knives!

Zeta is on my radar.
 
I can't for the life of me figure out what you are cutting and what knives you are using if you can't cut with most of the WE Knives - I can use this Kizer which has a thick tactical blade to slice a nectarine paper thin without it squashing. And We knives perform way better than this does.

So what are you cutting? Paper, bread, rope, cardboard, fruit, string, baling wire, drywall ???

 
Hackenslash said:
I own several different WEs and I'd say their greatest weakness is they're not great slicers; they tend to be thick behind the edge. They seem to use a lot of 4mm bladestock which don't typically make for a good cutting edge. ...
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I was greatly concerned about the edge thickness when checking out the new WE 801, I emailed BladeHQ and asked them to check what the thickness was behind the edge, they said .5mm was what they got. So with some trepidation I ordered one and mine measures about .017" so this cuts very very well, an amazing folder.

Untitled by GaryWGraley, on Flickr

Untitled by GaryWGraley, on Flickr

and the texturing of the carbon fiber really adds to the grip of this folder, all other edges are rounded, even the spine of the blade has a very nice way it was rounded.

Untitled by GaryWGraley, on Flickr

Very nice knife right here. Pricey, yes, worth it, for me yep, only about 5 more trips to the blood bank should cover the costs, they make you wait a few days between...:)
G2
 
Hackenslash said:
The problem WE has are with blade style. I don't think they offer any hollow grinds. They put out a lot of flat grinds that terminate 2/3's of the way up the blade. With 4mm blade stock it's almost impossible to get a grind like that to be thin behind the edge.

I keep hoping to see a full flat grind but WE likes 2-tone blades with fullers and speed holes.
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Best slicer I've used from WE is the 703, which has a hollow grind. Was still a little thick behind the edge when new though. The 704 is also a very decent slicer and has a very smooth, full flat ground blade. ;)
 
My only WE is the 603 and it's not terribly thick behind the edge. Pretty average.
 
Has anyone here had any experience with the 702 integral model? I'm considering getting one. From all the reviews I've watched it seems like an awesome knife, and I cant think of any other integrals for less than $300.
 
Gravy said:
Has anyone here had any experience with the 702 integral model? I'm considering getting one. From all the reviews I've watched it seems like an awesome knife, and I cant think of any other integrals for less than $300.
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It is an awesome knife, you won't find a better value among integral builds. Quite thick behind the edge, so don't anticipate para 2 type of slicing.
 
Gravy said: ↑
Has anyone here had any experience with the 702 integral model? I'm considering getting one. From all the reviews I've watched it seems like an awesome knife, and I cant think of any other integrals for less than $300.

We 702 is my 2nd We Knife. The first was a 618 which is a crazy great knife. The 702 blows me away everyday I look at it, which is a lot since it is my EDC. I have the gray one. If I could change anything about it, maybe all matching hardware in gray so it would be mono chromatic just like the 618. The star screws don't bother me a bit.
I would buy this knife all over again in a micro second after getting to know it. Best handle to blade ratio I've ever seen as the blade goes right to the very very end of the handle. Ergos are amazing in hand. Mine is from the 2nd run and it is virtually perfect F&F.
 
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