• The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is ready to order! See this thread for details: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/bladeforums-2024-traditional-knife.2003187/
    Price is $300 $250 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
    Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/ - Order as many as you like, we have plenty.

  • Today marks the 24th anniversary of 9/11. I pray that this nation does not forget the loss of lives from this horrible event. Yesterday conservative commentator Charlie Kirk was murdered, and I worry about what is to come. Please love one another and your family in these trying times - Spark

Where can I find direware overbuiltedness <$400?

Comeuppance

Comeuppance

Fixed Blade EDC Emisssary
Joined
Jan 12, 2013
Messages
4,765
After a lot of buying and trying, I've found that $400 is a pretty resolute cutoff point for what I'm willing to use. Frustratingly, a lot of what I'm looking for falls well outside of that range.

Zero Tolerance has it going on with a lot of their knives (I noticed someone made a praise thread about them recently. Some people...), however, what I'm looking for falls in a niche they have not filled: ridiculously overbuilt knives with insane blade steels. Okay, I mean, yeah, they kinda do that already, but I'm talking the next tier. Something akin to Direware.

The closest knives I've found are the Spyderco Tuff, which I hate because of the very small cutting surface (which is also what keeps me from liking striders) and the MPR by Benchmade (too small). I have to be missing something, right? Is a Direware the only company that does that kind of thing?
 
Cold Steel certainly has some extremely overbuilt folders with the strongest lock out there, but as you likely already know, the blade steel leaves something to be desired for most knife nuts.
 
Lionsteel SR-1 titanium are big beefy, very well made knives.
Sleipner tool steel is no slouch.
You can usually catch them on the exchange for under $300.
 
jstn said:
Cold Steel certainly has some extremely overbuilt folders with the strongest lock out there, but as you likely already know, the blade steel leaves something to be desired for most knife nuts.
Click to expand...

Exactly - if Cold Steel used better (considerably better. Unreasonably better.) blade steels, this thread wouldn't exist. Similarly, if:
The Tuff didn't have that stupid, stupid, stupid choil, and instead had cutting surface in its place.
The same for Strider.
The 0550 used something like M390 for the blade steel.
The 755 was a bit larger.
The 7505 wasn't an auto. (I know it's dual-action, but that doesn't keep it from being crazy illegal here)
 
grybsh7 said:
Lionsteel SR-1 titanium are big beefy, very well made knives.
Sleipner tool steel is no slouch.
You can usually catch them on the exchange for under $300.
Click to expand...

You know what's kept me off the Lionsteel train all this time? Rotoblocks. I haaaaaate secondary safeties. I know it's such a tiny nitpick, but I really do hate them. I only own two knives with secondary safeties - some Hogue EX-02s and a CRKT Mah Eraser. Both of which have safeties that you have to really purposefully engage. Taking the rotoblock out makes the knife look weird, too.

Also, I dunno, it just never lit my fire. I'd sooner get an 0551, which I totally forgot about until just now. The 0551 comes pretty close, but is discontinued.
 
What Direwire folder are you referring to? I see either radical grinds, big flippers sticking out or Strideresque choils.
 
Yeah I have a 0561 and an 0801 and they are what I consider very nice knives for the money. I think I'll wait for the
0562s to come out for my next ZT purchase. These days all the custom and mid-tech ti frame locks I'm interested in are just so damn expensive
it makes them tough to carry.
 
Scurvy092 said:
I think you can pickup the 0600 for around $400 still.
Click to expand...

Indeed!

The Zero Tolerance 0600 is tough and sleek with a 4.25" blade of B75P that's 0.19" thick with titanium handles and frame lock. Smooth flipper action for something weighing over 7 ounces!
 
Last edited:
Scurvy092 said:
wait for the 0350M390?

I think you can pickup the 0600 for around $400 still.
Click to expand...

You mean the 0801CF? The 0350M390 has been out for ages. Assists and recurves aren't my thing. Luckily, as RetiredGuns pointed out, neither is Direware's lineup of blade shapes. (Edit: To clarify, when I say "luckily", I say that because I might otherwise be tempted to buy one.)

I actually have a LNIB 0600blk on the way that I snagged off a different forum, heh. It's too big to legally carry where I live, but not where I work. I dislike my job anyway, so, if I get fired for accidentally terrifying someone, I'll have a good story and more free time to job hunt.

The 0801CF is about as close as it gets, but they'll all be snagged up and upcharged before you can say "predatory secondary market."
 
Comeuppance said:
You know what's kept me off the Lionsteel train all this time? Rotoblocks. I haaaaaate secondary safeties. I know it's such a tiny nitpick, but I really do hate them. I only own two knives with secondary safeties - some Hogue EX-02s and a CRKT Mah Eraser. Both of which have safeties that you have to really purposefully engage. Taking the rotoblock out makes the knife look weird, too.

Also, I dunno, it just never lit my fire. I'd sooner get an 0551, which I totally forgot about until just now. The 0551 comes pretty close, but is discontinued.
Click to expand...

you know if you don't turn the roto lock it just acts as an over travel stop, right? I actually tightened my rotolock right down so I cant even turn it now all it is , is a over travel stop.
 
MicroTech DOC flipper which is a Strider / Marfione collaboration. Weighing over 7 ounces with a 3.75" blade of various steels (Elmax, S30V, 154CM, CPM154) that's 0.16" thick. Aluminum handle comes in various colors: black, red, blue, green, tan. Blade can be had satin, stonewashed, beadblasted or black coated plain or partially serrated. Titanium frame lock.

Three Sisters Forge BEAST with a 3" blade of M390 that's 0.16" thick. Thumb stud frame lock.

Both around $300.
 
A Medford Praetorian comes to mind when I think overbuilt awesomeness but that it up around $600 for the G/T model and you are still talking D2 or S35VN steel.

Your weekly threads have reminded me of the quest for the Holy Grail. Hopefully you don't have to fight too many nazi's or walk on invisible bridges to get what you seek. I actually have found them quite educational though. We're all looking for that perfect something.

The big production companies generally seem to be the only ones who can afford to play around with more exotic steel types. I think with custom makers, they don't usually want to mess around with experimental heat treats and quality control. They find a steel or two they can do good things with and stick with it. Not to mention the wear and tear super-steels cause for their equipment. Direware is pretty unique that they offer some really high end steels in their customs.

Watching Jim Skelton's channel is a good place to see some overbuilt customs, but rest assured they are stratospherically expensive.

I'm typing this as I'm casually searching online and I think I may have found something that kind of fits the bill. Demko AD-10 or 4Max. Here's a link to the website. They come with CPM154 but it looks like you can pay to upgrade to cpm 3V, cpm M-4, cpm S35VN, ELMAX or m390. Looks like the AD-10 starts at 500 though and the steel upgrade would be about $30.

Good luck with your search
 
Comeuppance said:
The 0801CF is about as close as it gets, but they'll all be snagged up and upcharged before you can say "predatory secondary market."
Click to expand...

Not really. Just visit this forum often, subscribe to an upcoming thread on where available and jump on it. You should be able to snag one somewhere between MAP and MSRP ($400). I have a feeling that 1,000-1,500 will be produced.
 
Dcaggie06 said:
Have you considered a grayman satu? Sometimes you can find them in the 450 range.
Click to expand...

$450
S30V
Nah. That's like building the most invincible tank ever and arming it with a high-powered rifle. Both are good things to have, but they don't really make sense together. That's what's kept me from Medford folders.

I have given some serious thought to an AD10. That might be the most expensive knife I consistently see people actually use.
 
If you are willing to go up to $500 then check out the Medford knives. Look at their 187 line especially as it is one of their most recent and made to be affordable, but not lacking quality or the chunkiness Medford is known for. You get a lot for your money with that model.
 
How do you feel about fixed blades. Won't be "overbuilt" in a sense, but you can get the variety you're looking for and some bulk and toughness. See Busse, Dozier, Bawaddiman, some Striders could be right up your alley. Good luck!
 
My 0350m390 appears to be a very strong knife with the premium steel. I ve de assisted mine and it works fine as a manual flipper and regular stud opener. As for the recurve, I dont find any difficulty sharpening it and there is a cutting advantage for the recurve blade . Somewhat small for an overbuilt knife with a 3.25 in blade but it carries well and slices very well. Great buy. I also like my 551 but the edge retention on the 0350 is much better and it seems to be just as strong.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top