Why did you choose an ESEE?

[Cobalt]

Well considering that there is a guy on youtube throwing the crap out of an ESEE Junglas with no damage at all including several misses, I would say it will do fine. Another guy is breaking concrete blocks with one and it did not break. So I do think that it would survive all that no problem. The warranty is no questions asked, but maybe they will call you stupid, so what. At least they replace your knife if you break it throwing it.

Scrapyard/swamp rat and GSO do use better materials, but you will pay twice as much for those. They are worth it, but the ESEE Junglas is a bargain at it's price point. Top quality sheath and top quality blade with micarta handle for under $200. I like GSO's offerings, and I love Swamp Rat and Scrapyard. I also love ESEE Junglas. Also, the junglas has a cool story behind it and it is basically the proper descendant of Livesays RCM with Randall's modifications that culminated in the Livesay/Randal RTAK made in 1999. So that design has been around for a long time and was designed with input from several sources who new what they were doing.

 

[HotRodColt]

I love Esee's for the bang for buck.

The Laser Strike is like a fat girl with braces. May not look that exciting, but one roll around in the dirt with it and you won't want to be without it.

TKC scales really change the feel on an Esee as well. I love them on my 4, but the LS doesn't seem to need them.

I like my Beckers, but, I feel like I need to swap scales and buy a sheath immediately so I wouldn't consider them a "better" value.

You gotta have atleast one Esee.

 

[bghorn]

Anyway, to ESSEE owners, just curious before i pull the trigger. Why did you go the way you chose? Right now the biggest win for the Rat is higher performing steel. Price and warranty are comparable. Thoughts?

I got an ESEE (6) because I needed a medium sized knife and all the hyped up internet reviews. It's an OK knife with decent fit and finish. I'd say overpriced for what you get. Sheath needed insert made of clam shell plastic packaging. Without it would rattle like crazy. Sheath molded plastic is also too soft. Belt clip sucks.

Blade on the cutting edge side is way too thick for knife to be a good slicer. On the other hand, knife is too small for tasks beyond cutting. It also came with dull edge.
Edge retention is not good at ESEE recommended 20 degrees per side.

Knife is advertised as 3/16 thick, but only tang and ricasso are that thick, blade is thinner, about 0.165" or so. I don't think it needs finger choil at this blade length. Some like it though.
Handle is good. Micarta scales do absorb lots of bodily fluids and dirt though and after some usage it will feel tacky. It cleans easily though.
Coating looks like freshly paved asphalt, but is easily removed. Steel under the coating looks like it already has some sort of patina.

It comes with good warranty, but if knife is as good as some say, you won't need it.
It would be a solid product at about $80-90 price range.

It's an OK knife but definitely over-hyped.

 

[bdmicarta]

The Laser Strike is like a

It seems that the ESEE 5 is considerably larger than the Ratmandu, but I think the Laser Strike is similar to the Ratmandu. I like the looks of the Ratmandu myself but they are a little out of my comfort range right now.

 

[brancron]

I got an Izula because the scales glow in the dark: https://instagram.com/p/2tigmsR9Xq/?taken-by=brancron

 

[rcb2000]

I have a Ratmandu, in INFI steel,, and if its the only knife I ever own,, I'll be happy with that.
That being said, before I pulled the trigger on it I held an Esee 6, and REALLY loved it.
Both companies have the only (to my knowledge) UNCONDITIONAL Lifetime warranty, and lets be honest,, you would be happy with either knife..
Get one and use it,, worst comes to worst,, you sell it and get the other.

 

[rcb2000]

It seems that the ESEE 5 is considerably larger than the Ratmandu, but I think the Laser Strike is similar to the Ratmandu. I like the looks of the Ratmandu myself but they are a little out of my comfort range right now.

After handling the whole Esee line,, the closest thing to a Ratmandu is the 6,,, the 5 is a THICK beast,, and not really comparable to the RMD.
Laser strike and the CMC 6(?, I forget the name) didn't seem as balanced as the 6,,, but then again it was 2 minutes in my hand at Blade HQ,, so not a thorough comparison.

 

[Armadew]

I have the Izula, Candiru and the 4. I don't remember which I got first, but it impressed me enough to get the others. I've beat the snot out of all three and they keep coming back for more. The warranty gives me great confidence as well.

 

[TinyDog]

I have a 4, several 5's, and a 6. I bought all of them with three considerations. The type work they will do, Cost, Value. I am not disappointed at all. One can preference a lot of differing makers, but the fact is none are perfect! There are plenty of other knives that may have better steel at a much higher cost. IMO do you really need it? or is that also hype? Value does go down when I purchase more than what I need to do the job at hand. All of these knives get plenty of use....

 

[Mannlicher]

ESEE's 1095 steel might not be the 'toughest', but I've beat the snot out of several of them for years now, with no degradation of performance. Good steel, excellent warranty (which I have never come close to needing), great people. Not saying the other makers are not also good folks, but my mind was made up years ago.

 

[Cobalt]

ESEE's 1095 steel might not be the 'toughest', but I've beat the snot out of several of them for years now, with no degradation of performance. Good steel, excellent warranty (which I have never come close to needing), great people. Not saying the other makers are not also good folks, but my mind was made up years ago.

That because ESEE knows how to heat treat a knife(actually Rowen). There are enough people using ESEE's that if there was any problems, it would be well known by now. ESEE's also come with excellent blade geometry and extremely sharp edges.

 

[B34NS]

Because Survive! Knives wasn't around yet!

 

[craytab]

Why would the ESEE-owners have so little faith in Rowen's manufacturing? No idea, but I try to respect their opinion of their own knives and not buy them since they lack confidence in their durability. *shrug* They call me an "idiot" for throwing knives built to withstand much harsher treatment, much stronger forces, and demonstrably capable of such? *shrug* Their position seems irrational. If one of my knives breaks from throwing, I promise to post about on BF :thumbup:

That would be your opinion of Esee, not the opinion of Esee owners. And for all your big long posts filled with lots of info and big words I figured you would understand the physics behind why throwing a knife can be so devastating to said knife.

I got an ESEE (6) because I needed a medium sized knife and all the hyped up internet reviews. It's an OK knife with decent fit and finish. I'd say overpriced for what you get. Sheath needed insert made of clam shell plastic packaging. Without it would rattle like crazy. Sheath molded plastic is also too soft. Belt clip sucks.

Blade on the cutting edge side is way too thick for knife to be a good slicer. On the other hand, knife is too small for tasks beyond cutting. It also came with dull edge.
Edge retention is not good at ESEE recommended 20 degrees per side.

Knife is advertised as 3/16 thick, but only tang and ricasso are that thick, blade is thinner, about 0.165" or so. I don't think it needs finger choil at this blade length. Some like it though.
Handle is good. Micarta scales do absorb lots of bodily fluids and dirt though and after some usage it will feel tacky. It cleans easily though.
Coating looks like freshly paved asphalt, but is easily removed. Steel under the coating looks like it already has some sort of patina.

It comes with good warranty, but if knife is as good as some say, you won't need it.
It would be a solid product at about $80-90 price range.

It's an OK knife but definitely over-hyped.

Seems like you bought a knife based on reviews but you didn't listen to the reviews! All the things you complain about are easily seen on paper or in the most basic review. To avoid such hype-disappointment in the future maybe try to form your own opinion based on the easily attainable facts at hand :thumbup:

 

[bghorn]

Seems like you bought a knife based on reviews but you didn't listen to the reviews! All the things you complain about are easily seen on paper or in the most basic review. To avoid such hype-disappointment in the future maybe try to form your own opinion based on the easily attainable facts at hand :thumbup:

Only way to do that, besides of knowing basic measurement and materials used from the spec sheet, is to get one and use it.
That's my experience.

 

[craytab]

Only way to do that, besides of knowing basic measurement and materials used from the spec sheet, is to get one and use it.
That's my experience.

From where I sit, everything you complained about could easily be learned through research. I guess we have different definitions of research of potentially purchased items. That's fine. You believed this "hype" thing you mention. I went with facts :thumbup:

 

[Tachead01]

From where I sit, everything you complained about could easily be learned through research. I guess we have different definitions of research of potentially purchased items. That's fine. You believed this "hype" thing you mention. I went with facts :thumbup:

Yeah really, +1.

Did you really think a beefy, 3/16" thick, purpose built, hard use bushcraft knife was going to be a the best choice for a slicer? Did you think Esee micarta was going to be different then regular micarta? Did you think a 6" drop point would be the best option for a chopper? Did you miss the finger choir in the pics?

 

[bghorn]

From where I sit, everything you complained about could easily be learned through research. I guess we have different definitions of research of potentially purchased items. That's fine. You believed this "hype" thing you mention. I went with facts :thumbup:

It's a knife for christ sake. Do you really believe everyone should do in depth research for every tool they buy? Or have to go through the pain of watching 100s of Youtube videos, or read 1000s of pages about which steel is better?

Did you really think a beefy, 3/16" thick, purpose built, hard use bushcraft knife was going to be a the best choice for a slicer? Did you think Esee micarta was going to be different then regular micarta? Did you think a 6" drop point would be the best option for a chopper? Did you miss the finger choir in the pics?

See, another "internet" fact. Blade is not freakin 3/16, it's thinner at the spine. And yeah, overly thick on the edge side to be a slicer. Lot's of thicker knives (bk-7 for example) are better slicers even if they aren't full flat grind.

Neither it is purpose built "buschraft" knife, nor did I ever mention chopping.

And that's the problem with all the internet reviews. Most people just spit something out and try to sell it as a fact. Or they comment on a post they didn't even read in it's entirety.

 

[Quiet]

It's a knife for christ sake. Do you really believe everyone should do in depth research for every tool they buy? Or have to go through the pain of watching 100s of Youtube videos, or read 1000s of pages about which steel is better?





See, another "internet" fact. Blade is not freakin 3/16, it's thinner at the spine. And yeah, overly thick on the edge side to be a slicer. Lot's of thicker knives (bk-7 for example) are better slicers even if they aren't full flat grind.

Neither it is purpose built "buschraft" knife, nor did I ever mention chopping.

And that's the problem with all the internet reviews. Most people just spit something out and try to sell it as a fact. Or they comment on a post they didn't even read in it's entirety.

Are you seriously attempting to sidestep the fact that you failed to do your homework, and every complaint you have with the knife would have been known beforehand if you'd simply spent a few minutes doing some research?

Really? LOL, ok man. :thumbup:

 

[CambodianCowboy]

A lot of good knives on the market. I doubt any modern knife will fail a competent operator. The operator is by far the weakest part of any knife. Using a non-throwing knife as a throwing knife is like complaining that a Philips screwdriver is not very good on a Robertson bit. Get a throwing knife if you want to throw knives, that's why they make them. In a survival/critical situation the last thing I want to do is throw my knife around and risk lost it, dulling the blade and a suffer a host of other negatives.

 

[craytab]

It's a knife for christ sake. Do you really believe everyone should do in depth research for every tool they buy? Or have to go through the pain of watching 100s of Youtube videos, or read 1000s of pages about which steel is better?

No need to bring the lord and savior of millions of people into this. And hey, you are the one complaining about things that a little basic research would have helped you avoid. Hopefully you learned something from your negative shopping experience.

Neither it is purpose built "buschraft" knife, nor did I ever mention chopping.

So what do you mean by this:

Blade on the cutting edge side is way too thick for knife to be a good slicer. On the other hand, knife is too small for tasks beyond cutting.

What else are you going to do with a knife. Slicing is out so it comes down to chopping and batoning. I can tell you it batons just fine.

Knife is advertised as 3/16 thick, but only tang and ricasso are that thick, blade is thinner, about 0.165" or so. I don't think it needs finger choil at this blade length. Some like it though.

See, another "internet" fact. Blade is not freakin 3/16, it's thinner at the spine.

And here you seem to contradict yourself. Sorry, but there are some accuracy and basic research issues going on here.

Are you seriously attempting to sidestep the fact that you failed to do your homework, and every complaint you have with the knife would have been known beforehand if you'd simply spent a few minutes doing some research?

Really? LOL, ok man. :thumbup:

Yes. Can't see it though. Oh well.