Would you say Reate is close to CRK quality?

Wolverine666 said:
I was afraid of that. But at the same time , now I know which knife to go with. I can end the internal conflict. Thanks for the heads up.
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Honestly this is one of the rare cases where I would say get the Field Duty from a good store, try it out, see how it feels, if you don't like it, return it for a Umnumzaan. Seems like the best route, that way you can check it out, but you know you can exchange it at the same place for something you know you'll like.
 
falar said:
I'm currently looking at a few Chinese knives though. The Rike 1507t (just a hair short though for my liking, would love this in a 4") and the Reate K2 mostly.

The Stedemon Shy V looks interesting but seems to only be available from BHQ and that company seems to be a riddle with all of its offerings and sub companies.
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I'd stear far away from steadmon, clones and poor quality. and rike has a fair amount of copying issues.
 
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Reate has great technology and clean work.

CRK is top of the line production. We all know that.

They are not comparable whatsoever though. Different markets.

My biggest issue with the field duty is the price. I cannot convince myself to spend $420 on a knife made in China.

However when it comes to Chinese production knives Reate and We stand above the rest from what I have handled.

Most Steadmon models I've handled were :thumbsdown:

Typically I stay away from , China made, bearingz and -flipper only.

A good specimen XM 18 or CRK destroys most other options.

Wolverine666 Wolverine666
 
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I know they sell a lot of junk but the high-end integrals seem like they could be kind of good. Word around the campfire is that they're just a design outfit and farm out designs to different companies. The typical low-end suspects for the low-end models and the high-end stuff goes to high-end makers. Without any kind of transparency though pulling the trigger on one is just akin to gambling I guess. Too bad, the blade shape and size of the integral Shy V with the tanto blade looks really neat.
 
falar said:
I know they sell a lot of junk but the high-end integrals seem like they could be kind of good. Word around the campfire is that they're just a design outfit and farm out designs to different companies. The typical low-end suspects for the low-end models and the high-end stuff goes to high-end makers. Without any kind of transparency though pulling the trigger on one is just akin to gambling I guess. Too bad, the blade shape and size of the integral Shy V with the tanto blade looks really neat.
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I wouldn't support them with a 10 foot pole despite any reasoning your providing.
 
Mo2 said:
I wouldn't support them with a 10 foot pole despite any reasoning your providing.
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Neither will I since you said they are cloning, which I had never heard of until just now. I didn't know Rike was cloning either.
 
b00n said:
Honestly this is one of the rare cases where I would say get the Field Duty from a good store, try it out, see how it feels, if you don't like it, return it for a Umnumzaan. Seems like the best route, that way you can check it out, but you know you can exchange it at the same place for something you know you'll like.
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Yup , you're right. That's definitely an option.
 
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ErocSD said:
I can say you should have no issue with Chinese blades if you buy Reate, Reate stands behind their product and if you order from BHQ or Knife enter you should have no issues with returns. Liong mah will stand behind his products and answers questions personally, I got an email from Reate and liong mah in less than 5 minutes when I sent them both a question about the clip on my Warrior 2 V2! That was on a Sunday afternoon no less. I haven't gotten a response from Beretta and tis been 3 days on my shotgun. That says a lot about a company.

If you want a big blade that is sturdy the field duty looks nice but the Jack is a 3.9" integral with lots of customizability options from flame Ti to colored ti to carbon fiber or brass. The K2 is one I've had my eye on for a while but I went with the warrior 2 instead since I prefer 3.4-3.6" blades. Do you want a flipper or a thumb flicker is the real question.
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I'm a non-flipper guy.
 
falar said:
Neither will I since you said they are cloning, which I had never heard of until just now. I didn't know Rike was cloning either.
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Rike just cloned the spyderco tropin. And was fairly rude about it. Along with a Lanico model and they also work with ch with cloning.

Stedemon... Hears Just one example .. Among others.

 
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evilgreg said:
At the risk of summoning the cult with their torches and pitchforks I'd that that if anything I think the quality of my Reate-made Mini Bodega is higher than the quality of the CREWK knives I've owned (a handful of Sebenzas).
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Hi. Can I ask you a question? What is 'CREWK knives' in your text? What does it mean? I am a newbie. Hope you can answer me. Thanks.
 
Im keeping the few China made knives but im not buying any more.Their designs are getting too outlandish,and they are making more and more models w triangular and elongated holes in the blades,weird shaped blades and handles,even their models without all this do nothing for me.
 
fwiw, I put my spydy gayle bradley 2 (taichung) right up there with reate and frankly higher

... all with a price under $200 win/win imho


(admittedly, I don't own any crk since I've not breached the $500 mental mark)
 
I've been in this game awhile too now and owned all the original CRK models at some point back before and when IDAHO MADE was a knew shocking term and when Hinderer, Strider, and CRK were pretty much the only serious folders available. To anyone who wants to put any folding knife to the test of whether or not they are on par with quality of a Chris Reeve they need to A) spend some time browsing the CRK forum and learn the ins and outs of what makes a CRK special and unique and what gives it its value and B) try one in person (not just hold but spend over a month's time cutting and using the knife).

IMO there's no company that can match Chris Reeve's all things being considered. I also wouldn't have said this 2-3yrs ago either as for many years I sold off all my Chris Reeves. I owned versions of models like the Ti-lock that would have made me hella $$$ had I held onto them. That said this topic is about "quality" and a knife's monetary value isn't always equal to its "quality" value. Only when I tried so many other knife brands including Reate (owned a Horizon and Hills) did I eventually make the leap and turn back to Chris Reeves and truly appreciate their "quality" and everything they bring to the table. High end SS Protech models come close but still not near on the same page as Chris Reeve. The trick is finding the CRK model and version of that model that speaks to you and fits your needs/preferences most.

The Hills for example is a highly underrated Reate knife but great value at its price and still would recommend to this day. I even miss mine from time to time but when you carry it for awhile you quickly realize it is no CRK. The design is fantastic, ergonomic, the gripping texturing on the handle, the internal mechanism, the blade length/shape usefulness, the pocket clip works etc. However the finer details is where you see the difference like there would be parts on the 2 ones I owned where the stone washing wasn't even and uniform. Often the mechanics would stick and make the blade either hard to fire or lock stick and not easy to disengage. This didn't happen all the time but it was a thing. The action is quick and enjoyable but mechanical and rough unlike say a glass smooth McGinnis Proline (on bearings as well). Its the real small finer details when looking the knife over micro-style do you uncover these knives aren't in the same league. Some people mentioned the grinds and and actually cutting ability and again another separation between the two however the big thing is someone said when you open a CRK you feel it like a fixed blade in hand. Everything is just so tight and confidence inspiring. If you can't get a fixed blade, why not get a folder that feels like one?

It's up to the curious of heart to seek out what makes a CRK so great but on the surface anyone can deduce that if a company makes a high quality piece over 30 years and known for its "quality" it has to be doing something right and something no other company can do unless they start doing the same. You can't just start a company and bust out some designs and refine them over a couple years time and fine tune them again and expect to be on a level of what CRK has done since the beginning and for years upon years upon years with the research and equipment and experience, etc. I would be thrilled to have a $450 WE or Reate in the collection but could I say they are on the same level as CRK? "No way man." - Louis LFD2
 
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