When was the last time you were pleasantly surprised?

[Wolverine666]

Rarely am I surprised by knives I buy/use. I've been at it for many years now so I know what I like and don't like. But every once in a while it happens.

I've disliked liner locks due to a cheap liner lock I tried which belonged to a friend years ago. The locking liner was flimsy and failed. It was the first liner lock I had ever tried. So I wrote off liner locks then and there. Until I was seduced a few months ago by the Spyderco Military in dark green G10 and 204P. Absolutely love this knife. The liner lock is very well-made and sturdy as hell. I guess I let a piece of junk from a decade ago sour me on the lock type. But after trying a quality example of said lock design , I'm hooked. Nice surprise.

I feel it's about to happen to me again....I've never really like coated blades. And brown G10 has always been "eh" to me. But that S90V Yojimbo2 sprint (which has both a coated blade and brown G10) is about to be my next purchase. For some reason , the black/brown combo just works for me. And I dig the black hardware. I'm just surprised that two features I've never warmed up to can work together to create a knife that I really want. So I'm gonna pick one up. Probably a couple.

Enough about me. When/how have you been surprised by a knife?

 

[WadeWilson]

For me it has been the BM 943. But before everyone says, "well duh." I have to admit, I never warmed up to the 940's blade shape. I just found it a bit odd and I couldn't make myself like it. I always knew the 943 also existed but it never garnered the love the 940 seemed to. Anyway, must've been about a month ago I was at my local brick and mortar knife store and I saw the 943 and decided to pull the trigger.

I've made a few posts before about how much I like this knife but I can't praise it enough it seems. The blade shape is much more appealing to me. It seems to have the right amount of everything: blade length, handle length, the weight is nice, the slim profile is nice as it takes up little room in my pocket. As a lefty I really appreciate the ambidextrous nature of the Axis lock. The moveable pocket clip is a huge plus. I like the colors of the 943 more than the 940 as well. Black and blue back spacer as opposed to green and purple back spacer. The S30V is great; BM seems to do a good job with it. Now as far as QC goes, because I know it get's talked about a lot for BM, I have zero complaints. The edge came shaving sharp, the blade is still perfectly centered, no blade play in any direction, and the pivot is wonderfully smooth. It has truly been a pleasant surprise.

 

[jstn]

Actually, the Yo2 was mine. Bought one on a whim years ago thinking it would be a transient purchase, but it became one of my favorite blades. I am really tempted to pick up one of the brown G10/ coated blade models, but in my experience with DLC PM2 models the coating makes them open much less smoothly. Plus I have a pair of CF/S90V Yojimbos already. Let us know how yours turns out Wolverine. It is a sweet color combo for sure!

 

[User17]

I was really surprised by the Ontario RAT 1. amazing knife for the money.

 

[LX_Emergency]

Spyderco Lefty Mili....I mean...I don't like that I like it. It think it's a hideous knife and WANT to hate it. But somehow it's a great knife that cuts well and would hold up well to heavy use.

 

[palonej]

Don't hesitate on the exclusive!! Got mine last week and I can say with confidence.....it is as close to perfect as can be!!
Amazing free dropper out of the box!
The build on it is incredible!
Grab one!
Joe

Rarely am I surprised by knives I buy/use. I've been at it for many years now so I know what I like and don't like. But every once in a while it happens.

I've disliked liner locks due to a cheap liner lock I tried which belonged to a friend years ago. The locking liner was flimsy and failed. It was the first liner lock I had ever tried. So I wrote off liner locks then and there. Until I was seduced a few months ago by the Spyderco Military in dark green G10 and 204P. Absolutely love this knife. The liner lock is very well-made and sturdy as hell. I guess I let a piece of junk from a decade ago sour me on the lock type. But after trying a quality example of said lock design , I'm hooked. Nice surprise.

I feel it's about to happen to me again....I've never really like coated blades. And brown G10 has always been "eh" to me. But that S90V Yojimbo2 sprint (which has both a coated blade and brown G10) is about to be my next purchase. For some reason , the black/brown combo just works for me. And I dig the black hardware. I'm just surprised that two features I've never warmed up to can work together to create a knife that I really want. So I'm gonna pick one up. Probably a couple.

Enough about me. When/how have you been surprised by a knife?

 

[Wolverine666]

View attachment 749859 Don't hesitate on the exclusive!! Got mine last week and I can say with confidence.....it is as close to perfect as can be!!
Amazing free dropper out of the box!
The build on it is incredible!
Grab one!
Joe

I'm happy to hear that. Just ordered a couple myself. Looks to be a great knife.

 

[Matador]

Morakniv Basic. Found one at the flea market for a buck. Sharpened it up, used it, now it's my work horse. So much so I've already bought two more at MSRP.

 

[coffeemike]

Kershaw Westin. Picked one up on the recommendation of a family member who liked Les George's designs, and was himself looking to get the higher end version of this design (the Defiant7 Kumu). It takes a wicked sharp edge, and the ergonomics for my big hands are exceptionally good. I can even forgive the assisted opening. It alternates 50/50 with my 940-2 for pocket time, and that's saying something.

 

[goldie]

This Nirvana that I just received from another member;i was worried about the bad rap it got; this one is fine. And if I didn't know it was made by spyderco I would think it was a midtech at the very least . I racked my brains on this one glad I got it. And it was less than the crazy retail.,too which makes it even better.

upload your photo

 

[Wolverine666]

View attachment 749859 Don't hesitate on the exclusive!! Got mine last week and I can say with confidence.....it is as close to perfect as can be!!
Amazing free dropper out of the box!
The build on it is incredible!
Grab one!
Joe

Glad I got my order in when I did this morning. By this evening they were out of stock. I checked a few other online dealers and they all were out of stock too. Popular knife I guess.

 

[Anderdale]

My first kizer. I was in that crowd that thinks Chinese made knives are crap. Boy was I wrong.

 

[Phixt]

Count me in on the Chinese bandwagon. Was pleasantly surprised by my 609E whereas my US custom/limited run purchases as of late have let me down mostly from a cosmetic standpoint. I guess my expectations have a lot to do with it.

 

[palonej]

There's a reason they're gone so quickly.......it is an amazing knife and you're gonna love it!!

Glad I got my order in when I did this morning. By this evening they were out of stock. I checked a few other online dealers and they all were out of stock too. Popular knife I guess.

 

[Cow51]

For me it has been the BM 943. But before everyone says, "well duh." I have to admit, I never warmed up to the 940's blade shape. I just found it a bit odd and I couldn't make myself like it. I always knew the 943 also existed but it never garnered the love the 940 seemed to. Anyway, must've been about a month ago I was at my local brick and mortar knife store and I saw the 943 and decided to pull the trigger

I'm in the same boat as you, except I have a 943 and don't like it. I can't warm up to the clip point, but I think I'd really like the reverse tanto of the 940.

The last time I was surprised was with the Spyderco Dragonfly 2 Salt SE. I knew I would like the DF, but probably hate the serrations. Turns out I absolutely love both!

 

[lieferung]

Most recent is probably my Kizer Feist. The specimen I have does not have the gritty action (or maybe I can't tell, either way I like it), only a super stiff framelock. But what pleasantly surprised me was the front flipping action. It has a learning curve but once you're over, it's a joy to flip.

Prior to that was probably my reprofiled ZT0450 and then the compression lock on the PM2.

 

[91bravo]

I was pleasantly surprised when I got my CF/Cruwear Manix 2! I've had many before, but this one really knocks all the other Manixes out of the park!

 

[Hickory n steel]

The last time I was pleasantly surprised was with those new chicken chips as taco Bell.

As for knives go the last time I was pleasantly surprised was with a Vic tinker that I didn't think I'd like as much as my recruit. I don't like it any more, but thought I might not like the size as much and as it turns out it makes no difference in pocket.

 

[NJBillK]

Saturday (two days ago), when my Lion Steel Euro-Barlow landed. Well, when I fetched it from the post office since I didn't want to wait any longer.

(Sorry for the recycled pics, will take some new ones tomorrow.)

Ti liners and bolsters, M390 @ 60- 61rc, Rams horn slabs, washers. Smooth from straight out of the box, and an adjustable pivot means it will stay how I want it.

 

[GB940Rookie]

The Manix 2 LW for me. A friend gave me one for Christmas. Carry it everyday at work. Size in pocket is a minor inconvenience when compared to the incredible ergonomics, minimal weight, great lock and superb blade design.
Eric's masterpiece in my opinion.