Worth the money?

C

Cr4ze_w0lfe

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Jun 6, 2013
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I've been looking into purchasing my first Emerson for some work around the farm. And looking at the materials they seem a little pricey, could any of you long time Emerson users let me know how they are ( please no fanboys)? Do all Emerson's have titanium liner lock? And will any problems occur do to the titanium being a softer steel? Being on a farm I really want a heavy duty knife that's USA made and has great and lasting quality. I will also be carrying this knife as a EDC and would want to stay under 200$. It won't be used for dumb hard use (batoning or prying) but the knife won't be babied (cutting paper and boxes). Let me know what you guys think, thanks for any help.
 
You are GTG with any Emerson you choose.
I'd go with a Sodbuster though if I were you.
 
Emerson makes solid knives and I doubt you'll be unhappy with one. That said, Spyderco, Benchmade and ZT all offer some great knives that are tough, made in the states and offer quite a bit more bang for your buck than Emerson. If you're in love with a particular Emerson model, go fr it, but if you just want an American made workhorse the Adamas, Contego, Military, Manix 2 XL, ZT 0200, ZT 0350 and ZT 0700 are all less expensive than most Emersons.
 
One thing I always really appreciate about Emersons is that they're designed as a tool. A functional tool that can be easily maintained. Taking apart and putting back together for a thorough cleaning requires no more than a small phillips screwdriver, flat screwdriver, and some WD-40 or whatever you have handy (I use Slip 2000 from my gun cabinet mostly). And the chisel edge only requires sharpening on the one side.

I definitely think they're worth it. And there are "lightly used" ones all over for a good bit less than MSRP.

Its true you can't go wrong with other aforementioned brands, but I found the Emersons have been the easiest to maintain in my experience.

Now, I'm a "fanboy" as I have way more Emersons than any other brand in my collection. But that's because that's the brand I favor. I'm not a knife expert, nor do I have a vast assortment of tools and sharpening skills at my disposal. I just enjoy having high quality, rugged pocket knives that I'm comfortable maintaining that's exactly what I've found in the Emerson brand.

Also - I've harped on the cleaning/maintaining a lot but I would also say that they're "low maintenance". I don't have to do it often. But I've purchased a couple used ones in rough shape and brought them back to excellent working condition with very little effort on my part and I'm by no means an expert.

ETA - I'm also a big fan of good customer service and I've had nothing but outstanding experiences with Emerson in that context as well. Just emailed them this morning and got a response back just a few hours later.
 
Thanks for all the help, I have a ZT 0200 and love it but the recurve is a pain for me to sharpen. And I love knives and have always wanted a Emerson but just never got one.
 
I would recommend the Horseman. Great knife for the price.
Ernie Emerson designed a smaller 8 to work around his horses and came up with the Horseman.
I have many folders, but my 3 Emersons do most of the work.
Cheers
 
I switched to Emerson after carrying a Spyderco "Military" for over a decade. While this will be deemed sacrilege by many knife aficionados, I'd had my fill of maintaining S30V steel and find the 154CM steel on the Emerson easier to keep up with. My CQC-10 has not disappointed and I'm happy to have made the switch.
 
hatidua said:
I switched to Emerson after carrying a Spyderco "Military" for over a decade. While this will be deemed sacrilege by many knife aficionados, I'd had my fill of maintaining S30V steel and find the 154CM steel on the Emerson easier to keep up with. My CQC-10 has not disappointed and I'm happy to have made the switch.
Click to expand...

Hatidua - Not trying to hijack the thread but I was curious about maintaining S30v steel over 154CM. I mostly carry a Mini A100 or a Traveler and really like them. I do have a couple other brands in S30v. I was under the impression S30v was meant as a premium steel. And to the OP, give Emerson a try and should you not like it, I'm sure many on this forum would be pleased to buy it. :)

Joe
 
Joe58 said:
Hatidua - Not trying to hijack the thread but I was curious about maintaining S30v steel over 154CM. I mostly carry a Mini A100 or a Traveler and really like them. I do have a couple other brands in S30v. I was under the impression S30v was meant as a premium steel. And to the OP, give Emerson a try and should you not like it, I'm sure many on this forum would be pleased to buy it. :)

Joe
Click to expand...

S30V is a premium steel because of it's wear resistance, but it is more of a pain to sharpen due to that same wear resistance.
 
I own two CQC7's and agree with the "designed as a tool" philosophy, I have more confidence in maintaining a good working edge with that grind to cut through tough stuff like plastic ties and heavy cardboard.
 
Emerson makes good knives, currently my super roadhouse has up and down play from either a worn stop pin or linerlock, pretty sure its the stop pin because the waving action is pretty violent to that stop pin. Just waiting to find time to even bother sending it in...
 
I have had the same cqc7 spear point for years and years, and it has held up great! A another poster mentioned they are easy to clean and sharpen and built for use. However, there are lots of great knives out there for $200. You might want to spend some time looking at the exchange before buying any knife new.
 
What other knives would you recommend? I was looking at the Emerson horseman which is 140-160$. I own a ZT 0200 and love it.
 
Get the Emerson but look at Spyderco also. A serrated edge might be to your advantage.
 
You can get a serviceable work knife for much less, but yes, Emerson's are worth the money.

They are not pretty, but they are well built and will perform for the purpose intended.

I only have experience with the chisel ground CQC-7, but it is a fine knife that will do what you need it to do, but it won't impress people who don't know what it is.....

As a suggestion, you could save enough to take your favorite girl out for a date if you bought a Kershaw Blur instead. Just a suggestion.

best

mqqn
 
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