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Who actually buys mantis knives or dark ops?
- Thread starter Nntrance
- Start date
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I don't like going to malls and would rather hang around my own house, so I consider myself a House Ninja. May not sound as impressive as a Mall Ninja, but while I sit at home playing video games and eating my $500 box of ebay Twinkies, my ninja powers are becoming more awesome than you can possibly imagine...
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That was always a suspicion in my mind. Sort of like when I read about Scientology and the concepts therein, I always think its an elaborate sarcastic joke Hubbard played on the world and then died leaving a bunch of fools who didn't get the humour to either believe it blindly or fight it seriously.
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Update re: Mantis. Was perusing their forum a few minutes ago and it appears Jared West is leaving the company. It'll be interesting to see what direction they'll take now and how their designs may change as a result.
Sadly it wasn't in tell I had already bought A Pit Boss that I saw all the older threads on here about Mantis. Knife looks like a factory second, I am so mad. Mantis says they will fix it only after 2 emails with 6 question do I get a reply email that looks like it was sent from an Iphone, no header, no logo, just text.
jwest@mantis.bz
Why dont you just send it to us so that WE can fix it?
Indeed we do offer an unconditional lifetime warranty and we will fix the item within 24 to 48 hours of receipt.
Our address is
Mantis Knives
520 Cameron St.
Placentia, CA 92870
I know 2 man business with more professional looking Emails. No RMA number just an address. Thing is the knife was $42.99 + shipping. Drive to the post office give or take $5 gas, shipping $5-$7 Insurance $5-$7 so $15-$20 to fix my $42.99 knife. So $42.99 plus shipping plus all the return cost $65-$70 spent on a $42.99 knife.
Seven Mill lines and what ever you call the skid mark down the middle
Something pressed texture into the milled flat area
Washer is discolored and has black stuff in the pivot holes
I could live will all that, but the liner and scales have gaps and are not straight
You can see at the top the washer is higher on one side on the pivot than the other
I could try and return it from the place I got it from, but they state that some items with warranty's will need to be return to the makers, betting Mantis is one.
They would return the shipping on a defect but not the Insurance cost which they recommend to use, so I would be OUT MONEY TO GET A REFUND.
I just hate to have to spend money getting something fixed the way it should have came. The Email is jwest@mantis.bz don't know if it is really jwest answering but any signs of caring would have gone a long way. Little thing like sorry about that here is a RMA number, which he could have pulled out of his a$$ and ANY info on how to return it. Or what is your address I will send a return label for you, instead I got a, drive to post office, buy a package, buy shipping, buy Insurance write a note for the inside telling us your info because linking to this email with a RMA number is to much for me to do.
Part of it is I sent them pics, so they KNOW how screwed up my knife is and hearing they will fix it, kinda put me off. I would REPLACE the knife. Blade messed up, scale messed up, washers on pivot messed up, not 1 but 4 or 5 things WRONG not opps I missed this, but this and this and this too.. With the lack of caring I was afraid they would just tighten the pivot and send it back and for 30% of the original cost to ship. I just ordered a wrench for 6 pin pivot screw for $1.50 + shipping. I should not have to pay a penny to get something this messed up fixed.
jwest@mantis.bz
Why dont you just send it to us so that WE can fix it?
Indeed we do offer an unconditional lifetime warranty and we will fix the item within 24 to 48 hours of receipt.
Our address is
Mantis Knives
520 Cameron St.
Placentia, CA 92870
I know 2 man business with more professional looking Emails. No RMA number just an address. Thing is the knife was $42.99 + shipping. Drive to the post office give or take $5 gas, shipping $5-$7 Insurance $5-$7 so $15-$20 to fix my $42.99 knife. So $42.99 plus shipping plus all the return cost $65-$70 spent on a $42.99 knife.
Seven Mill lines and what ever you call the skid mark down the middle
Something pressed texture into the milled flat area
Washer is discolored and has black stuff in the pivot holes
I could live will all that, but the liner and scales have gaps and are not straight
You can see at the top the washer is higher on one side on the pivot than the other
I could try and return it from the place I got it from, but they state that some items with warranty's will need to be return to the makers, betting Mantis is one.
They would return the shipping on a defect but not the Insurance cost which they recommend to use, so I would be OUT MONEY TO GET A REFUND.
I just hate to have to spend money getting something fixed the way it should have came. The Email is jwest@mantis.bz don't know if it is really jwest answering but any signs of caring would have gone a long way. Little thing like sorry about that here is a RMA number, which he could have pulled out of his a$$ and ANY info on how to return it. Or what is your address I will send a return label for you, instead I got a, drive to post office, buy a package, buy shipping, buy Insurance write a note for the inside telling us your info because linking to this email with a RMA number is to much for me to do.
Part of it is I sent them pics, so they KNOW how screwed up my knife is and hearing they will fix it, kinda put me off. I would REPLACE the knife. Blade messed up, scale messed up, washers on pivot messed up, not 1 but 4 or 5 things WRONG not opps I missed this, but this and this and this too.. With the lack of caring I was afraid they would just tighten the pivot and send it back and for 30% of the original cost to ship. I just ordered a wrench for 6 pin pivot screw for $1.50 + shipping. I should not have to pay a penny to get something this messed up fixed.
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Wow, that's a sight!
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- Jan 9, 2006
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- 9,684
I bet they'd replace it if you sent it in (regardless of what they say in an email). I know the added cost of shipping is a bummer, but that's just part of owning knives, regardless of company, and at least you'd end up with a knife you were happy with. What blows me away is that that particular specimen got through QC in the first place. 
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If they were smart, they could have passed that shoddy workmanship and QC off as a feature.
"These knives are meant to do HARDCORE EXTREME TACTICAL WORK, not to look pretty or fit well or have decent machining!"
It's worked for other knife companies, IIRC...
Good luck getting your money back, Kybosshog.
"These knives are meant to do HARDCORE EXTREME TACTICAL WORK, not to look pretty or fit well or have decent machining!"
It's worked for other knife companies, IIRC...
Good luck getting your money back, Kybosshog.
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Ernie, is that you?
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- Sep 5, 2006
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The Darkops folder we had actually had really good fit and finish. Of course it cost around the 200 dollar mark, too.
Turn Lemons to Lemonade ! ! ! !
or beach party's with lemonade
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P49Be1VU2K0
I use a paperclip and pliers to remove the 6 pin pivot screw.
There is a small gap around the pivot screw, where the washer was a little bigger. Makes it look off center in the pics but in person, you see it is perfectly centered.
Guess I got someones return, it came in a plastic bag in a box.........filled with sand. So with the help of some screws I took out of an old Emac G4 pc, a bunch of cleaning off locktite and my trusty dremel I made it MINE. It's well built for the $42.99 I paid, it's a TANK, non-lock side has flat spot holes that hold the spacers, pivot and stop pins in place. At the end of the video you see how smooth it is now. It free falls open with some help of shaking even though it's a little heavy for it's size but yet I can still flick it open with my middle finger using the milled out area. Just feels smoother in the hand and you don't have those damn washers that spin !
or beach party's with lemonade
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P49Be1VU2K0
I use a paperclip and pliers to remove the 6 pin pivot screw.
There is a small gap around the pivot screw, where the washer was a little bigger. Makes it look off center in the pics but in person, you see it is perfectly centered.
Guess I got someones return, it came in a plastic bag in a box.........filled with sand. So with the help of some screws I took out of an old Emac G4 pc, a bunch of cleaning off locktite and my trusty dremel I made it MINE. It's well built for the $42.99 I paid, it's a TANK, non-lock side has flat spot holes that hold the spacers, pivot and stop pins in place. At the end of the video you see how smooth it is now. It free falls open with some help of shaking even though it's a little heavy for it's size but yet I can still flick it open with my middle finger using the milled out area. Just feels smoother in the hand and you don't have those damn washers that spin !
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- Jan 11, 2012
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I ordered one of these about 2 days ago. I'll post some pics when I get it, I'm looking forward to it.
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Nice! Turned out great. Excellent work. 
Love the new pivot screws! :thumbup:
Love the new pivot screws! :thumbup:- Joined
- Jun 18, 2012
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- 97
when i first got into knives and was still experimenting with knives and didn't know much i tried those type of knives but found out their designs were more of a hinderance than of help. i like more simple knives and designs. ( i end up finding out the type of knives i like best are autos balisongs, bowies(9in plus) and mega folders like the cold steel espada and voyager series )
Does owning a tool steel camping knife and fire-steel make me an equipment junky? I use them frequently!
I ordered one of these about 2 days ago. I'll post some pics when I get it, I'm looking forward to it.
You probably chose the one and only decent looking mantis. I'd carry this. The wide grip at the back actually looks ergonomic.
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- Jan 11, 2012
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Well, boy did I f**k up! I bought the Mantis MSR-3.
I thought I'd give Mantis/Famous Trails the benefit of the doubt. I gave them $40 for this knife, and I'm pretty sure at this point that I wouldn't even take it for free if someone offered it to me. It was good to me for the first 5 minutes of owning it, and now I just hate it. I will never buy a Mantis as long as I live, and I pray that they go out of business. Let's go over the list of pro's and con's for this knife...
Pro's:
- Good Ergonomics
Con's
- There is no friction in this friction folder, the blade just swings all over the place
- Blade play
- Pocket clip moves around
- White "G-100" handles get dirty really fast
- The bolt pivot is stripped from trying to tighten it (according to Mantis's customer service instructions)
- I paid for it
Here are the stripped bolts, they are much worse now.
I thought I'd give Mantis/Famous Trails the benefit of the doubt. I gave them $40 for this knife, and I'm pretty sure at this point that I wouldn't even take it for free if someone offered it to me. It was good to me for the first 5 minutes of owning it, and now I just hate it. I will never buy a Mantis as long as I live, and I pray that they go out of business. Let's go over the list of pro's and con's for this knife...
Pro's:
- Good Ergonomics
Con's
- There is no friction in this friction folder, the blade just swings all over the place
- Blade play
- Pocket clip moves around
- White "G-100" handles get dirty really fast
- The bolt pivot is stripped from trying to tighten it (according to Mantis's customer service instructions)
- I paid for it
Here are the stripped bolts, they are much worse now.
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Have you taken a magnet to those bolts? Many chainring bolts are aluminum and the heads strip out if you even look at them wrong. If the factory ones are alum., assuming you can get them out, measure them (I'd assume metric) and get yourself some stainless ones.
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- Feb 12, 2011
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FWIW, those aren't really chainring bolts/nuts. They're two chainring bolts that thread in either side to a threaded bushing. The bolts are usually too long (they were on mine), which means they bottom out against each other before they can get tight enough for the friction to engage.
I'll have to try to get some pics of mine tonight... I got the CF-scaled one, which came with a red anodized spacer. I took out the crappy bolts, and replaced them with matching red anodized *real* chainring bolts and it's awesome now. The length of bolt is for a double-crankset (I'm a cyclist so I had a few lying around to test).
So my advice would be to strip off those bolts, go to your local bike store to get some cheap double-crankset-length chainring bolts and install those properly and you'll be gold.
I'll have to try to get some pics of mine tonight... I got the CF-scaled one, which came with a red anodized spacer. I took out the crappy bolts, and replaced them with matching red anodized *real* chainring bolts and it's awesome now. The length of bolt is for a double-crankset (I'm a cyclist so I had a few lying around to test).
So my advice would be to strip off those bolts, go to your local bike store to get some cheap double-crankset-length chainring bolts and install those properly and you'll be gold.