What's the most disappointing knife you own?

Milu

Milu

Joined
Oct 11, 2003
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355
In my case the Gerber Chameleon.
I bought it as I wanted a utility folder to keep in the car. I hate the damn knife.
I hate it so much I don't keep it in the car. I use it every chance I get in the hopes of breaking it or wearing it out. I can't.
It is a rough, clumsy, stiff opener. I thought it would wear in - it hasn't.
The lock is iffy, after opening I always check it a few times to make sure it's locked up - great on what should be a one hand opening knife.
I cannot get it to take a really sharp edge. (On the positive side, the edge it does take seems to last)
Despite all the usual abuse I heap on this knife I'm trying to destroy, it always looks pretty much like when I bought it. (Not a positive in this case)
The idea is good but it's badly executed on the cheap.
The other one I loath is a Gerber Touche belt buckle. Again, a good idea, ruined by executing on the cheap.
In case anyone thinks I have it in for Gerber I also have an original Guardian which with the PCC Samson I consider to be the classic bootknife, and a Gerber moneyclip with blade and scissors which is compact, effective and sheeple friendly.
What knife left you disappointed?
 
I once bought a Boker 1004 Damascus knife with a 2" blade, just because I wanted a Damascus knife.

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Really way to small and not such a good finish to be worth > $150

I was glad to be able to sell it for 100 euro's

Ted
 
My SOCOM Elite simply because it fails the spine whack test with the slightest tap. :(

Other than that, it's a great knife. Excellent fit and finish.
 
The Gerber AR 3.00 Comboedge:barf: . The knife came to me dull, had side to side blade play and the kraton inserts added very little to my grip. It did have some redeeming factors in that it rides well in the pocket and is a pretty knife. Maybe now I need a AR 3.50 with a plain edge and some time on a sharpmaker.
 
A Ontario USMC fighting knife. The edge at the point was not even finished, and I had to grind it even myself. And the blade was bending towards the left when looking at its spine. It was the most crappy product I`ve ever seen:mad: . I know understand why your troops buy their own blades.
I will never even look at anything made by Ontario.

Tor
 
What if none of your knives are dissatisfying? Even my 420J2 kerambit that I paid too much for (got it for around $30, saw it later for $12, then my wife got me a much better-designed one in 440A for $10) is cool. It's not practical and its edge is short lived, but it was a learning experience for me and the picture on the box had all of these cool, little dinosaurs on it. There was a pteradactyl, brontosaurus, tyrannosaurus rex, and, I think, a dipplodoccus. Not enough to justify the price, but I'm still not disappointed. They're my "for show" knives. Who cares if my "for cutting" knives often look better?

I did throw out most of my HSN 50 knives for $70, though. I'm too much of a rube to appreciate a mediocre chisel grind (not knocking chisel grinds, just the ones on these blades). Kept the six little blue lockbacks and they've earned that $70 over and over.
 
I didn't buy it, but the most disappointing knife I ever handled was the Alaskan Pro Guide, designed by Hibben. The advertising photos looked great, like the perfect skinner, but when I actualy handled one the boxy, squared off edges on the handle slabs made it extremely awkward and uncomfortable feeling. Just a slight bit more work on the handle edges could have made this a great knife. Maybe I just happened to pick up a QC fugitive, I don't know.
 
Thom,

Oh my, you bought 50 blades for 70 bucks! I've seem similar ads on cable, and I just wonder. Still, if you got some knives that perofrm, it's not a total loss.

I cannot say tha I've have disappointments on an entire knife. There are features I found odd. One of the last Emerson CQC-7B's I bought had what appeared to be a mighty thin liner lock. Mine never failed, and it got few complaints here. I had a totally serrated Jot Singh Kalsa where the serrations were a tad too coarse.

Usually there was some specific reason I bought the knife. Almost all of them did their purpose.
 
My Emerson Commanders come pretty close to being the most disappointing knife I own. When I first bought them (I own 2) I loved them. They seem to be "hot". First I noticed that the blade would drag on a liner when opening them and putting any pressure at all on the thumb stud. Then I noticed that the blades would not center when the knives were closed. I did finally get them centered, but they would not stay centered for very long. Then the locks started to wear very quickly. Then I noticed far too much flexing when I would twist the knife during even light use.

I still carry the knives periodically, but overall I do not hold them in very high regard any longer. I don't really hate them. They are just a disappointment.

On the other hand my CQC7, by Ememerson, have been fine.
 
Originally posted by The Tourist
Oh my, you bought 50 blades for 70 bucks!
Click to expand...

Yeah, I think I'm the only one who did. It's hard to get experience without making bad decisions... I probably would've kept the other 64 if they didn't have names like "Marine Recon", "Quiet Man Who Kept to Himself Special", and "O'Donnell/Clinton 2004".

I hate all of the macho-named knives. That is, I sometimes like the knive, but the names upset me. Hence, my "Vaquero Grande" is now my "Mocha Latte" and my AFCK is my "Advanced Folding Christmastree Knife" (Thanks, Easyrider!).

When I get an SnG, it will be my "Swell 'n' Groovy" folder.
 
Emerson Commander and mini CQC7. Neither were smooth openers, very gritty and the blades rubbed on the liners. The wave feature on the Commander ate pockets and the blade play was unbearable. I'll never buy an Emerson again.
 
My MOD tempest. Firstly it dosent fit my hand well, secondly the quality of it is not great. The blade has developed some lateral play and a poor design means that the grease migrates from the joint onto the blade. The hole for the lanyard has lots of thick swarf that had been anodized and looks really messy.

After a few weeks the rubber insert fell out and had to be glued back in. And one more thing the two screws that hold the clip on each had different shaped heads.:p

Guess you can't win them all
 
Emerson commander, i traded a BM 940 for the thing, at least i no longer own it.


shane45-1911, how does your SOCOM Elite Fail the spin wack test? is it the regular microtech SOCOM, not the elite? (nested liner lock vs microbar). I have a SOCOM Elite and it is probably the best lock out there other than the super locks (axis and company). I would send it in to microtech, there is no way it should fail the spin wack test.
 
I would have to say the Lone Wolf Paul knife without scales. Very loose lock-up, rough opening, and it felt cheap. It should have been priced at $35 not over $100.
 
The Cold Steel Spike.
Wonderful design by Barry Dawson, but completely F'ed up with the use of crappy, soft 420 steel.
Damm near imposible to get rid of the wire edge it is so soft.
 
I would have to agree with some of the others on the Emerson Commander, for what you pay for the knife should be better than what it is. The one I had the blade rubbed on the liners, and it was a not very smooth opener. The liner lock on the Commander didn't impress me much either, looked a little thin for that size knife.

JMHO.
 
CRKT Pesh Kabz, Nice design but the fat tip without an edge is usless. Lucky for me I had to send it in for a repair and CRKT allowed me to trade for Folding Crawford. Thank God!

Joe
 
As a class, I've been disappointed in non-steel knives, the most egregious example being the Boker Infinity.
 
That would be my stainless Spyderco Police model...It's a disappointment only because the pocket-clip isn't on the correct side for me...(I'm a "lefty").
 
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