Would You Tell Me What is So Special About Chris Reeves Knives?

shane45-1911 said:
I would remove it. No telling how many spammers will get your number and sell it to other spammers.

And I agree with most of the posts above regarding CRK - variety is the spice of life. They are special only to the people that think they are special. No different than any other brand/maker who have their followers. :)
Click to expand...
Thank you! Will do.
 
Peter Hartwig said:
Not for everyone, especially those looking for bells and whistles. A simple design, well made and easy to maintain.
Click to expand...
Yes sir, and I do like the simplicity for sure. Bells and whistles are not my thing. But I am really leaning these days toward liner locks, getting away from frame locks. Do you have any feedback on that subject? Would like to hear it.
 
Niall88 said:
Yes sir, and I do like the simplicity for sure. Bells and whistles are not my thing. But I am really leaning these days toward liner locks, getting away from frame locks. Do you have any feedback on that subject? Would like to hear it.
Click to expand...
I like liner locks too, but I can't think of any that are as easy to maintain as Sebenza. They go together, just as they came apart. I have some nice liner locks, but they are all customs( and not as simplistic). That doesn't mean there are no good production liner locks, just what I have.
On of my favorite knives is my bolster lock , is a bit of a hybrid between the liner lock and frame lock.
 
Last edited:
CRK is so reputable and well-known among knife people. I think everyone should try one out and judge for themselves.

I like Sebenzas. I want one with a nice wood inlay. And I’d like to try out an Inkosi.

And as much as I like CRK , there are other makers that interest me more (all things considered).
 
Gary W. Graley said:
Some light reading may help in this regard;

Did you like your Sebenza at first?

Hi, I've been reading about sebenza knives for a year or so and finally took the plunge. I got a large micarta insingo in the mail yesterday. I'm not trying to start a flame war here, but i really don't love it. I had bought a spyderco sage 2 a few years back and had always thought that...
www.bladeforums.com www.bladeforums.com

G2
Click to expand...
Thank you sir!
 
The Aflac Duck said:
CRK has sort of become the “Glock” of knives. They aren’t low-end, they aren’t high-end either (relatively speaking),
Click to expand...
Man I think your perspective is way off. I’d say 90%+ of the knife owners in the USA would consider a CRK upper echelon. Now there are others out there more prestigious, expensive and considered better but they get the attention of a very limited audience.
 
3fifty7 said:
Man I think your perspective is way off. I’d say 90%+ of the knife owners in the USA would consider a CRK upper echelon. Now there are others out there more prestigious, expensive and considered better but they get the attention of a very limited audience.
Click to expand...
First time I heard of a Sebenza, I pulled it up, and showed it to my woman like: "Hey, look at this - this is a $400 pocket knife! Ha!", but I had just accepted the idea of spending over $100 on a knife. All of these are definitely high-end.
 
VorpelSword said:
It is my understanding that special forces operators often choose a CRK folder . . .that's good enough for me.
Click to expand...
True true.. my Great Grandad, now a "black ops commander" fought in the Revolutionary War, War of 1812, the Civil War, WW1, WW2, Korea, Vietnam, the Gulf War, and has been in current active duty in Afghanistan since 2001. Tough old bastard...

Claims just between his Umnumzaan and his Green Beret he has over 469 confirmed kills..
Seagal-Weapons-Knife.jpg

Seriously tho,.. love my large Inkosi
 
Last edited:
3fifty7 said:
Man I think your perspective is way off. I’d say 90%+ of the knife owners in the USA would consider a CRK upper echelon. Now there are others out there more prestigious, expensive and considered better but they get the attention of a very limited audience.
Click to expand...

90% of knife owners aren’t here on a forum with a sales section that regularly has knives for sale that are $2,000+, which is why I said “relatively speaking”. So all things considered, many here would call a plain Jane Sebenza middle ground. I do, and I’m pretty sure I know a few people who would agree.
 
I think the overall technical way they are put together, solid construction and design.
 
I was kinda meh when I first picked up a CRK too. But my wife bought me a 25 with my birth date and it grew on me. Then I tried a 21, Insingo, Inkosi, Umnumzaan, etc. Though I favor better steels, CRK is a well built, and easy to maintain folder.
 
The Aflac Duck said:
90% of knife owners aren’t here on a forum with a sales section that regularly has knives for sale that are $2,000+, which is why I said “relatively speaking”. So all things considered, many here would call a plain Jane Sebenza middle ground. I do, and I’m pretty sure I know a few people who would agree.
Click to expand...
I agree. Mid grade knife. I only carry mine on special occasions, as the knife doesn’t hold an edge very well to be honest. I hear of a Magnacut version. That would be one CRK I would be inclined to try out.
 
The tolerances seem to have been the biggest selling point. Sometimes the simplicity is brought up, but I have never been able to reconcile the idea that the price is higher because fewer parts were needed. Particularly since there are billions of framelocks out there, so designing and putting them together with fewer parts obviously isn't a herculean task. So I think it's just the tolerances and how Reeve did it first. I personally have never gotten the appeal because I feel no wonder in a modern production knife of any sort, and these still feel like a titanium framelock.

That's still infinitely better than knives in the same price range or higher where a justification of the high price is how little finishing is done. Oh, I'm supposed to pay more because they saved on man hours by not removing mill scale, grind marks or the signs of heat affected zones? Ok, maybe I could also buy an unpainted truck next time with the tires not mounted on the rims and spend twice as much.
 
I haven't read the other comments because I'm packing for a trip but I'll just quickly give you my take. Personally I think that if you weren't impressed before, you probably still will be underwhelmed. I often times wish I still had knives I've sold years ago thinking that it would be so cool to have again, but I forget the reason why I sold it in the first place. There was just something, or multiple things that didn't mesh with me.

That said, I personally love Chris Reeve knives. To be 100% honest with you I think the mystique plays into my love for it a lot. When I first came to Bladeforums in 2007 the Sebenza was heralded just as much as it is now or more. For a knife to be that idolized for that long says something. In a realistic sense they're fit and finish is what impresses me the most. They have had consistently the best fit and finish of any production (and the customs that I've owned) knife that I have owned or handled. It's in the small things though that I didn't know existed when I got into knives. The blade and slabs are surface finished to 1/10th of a thousandth of an inch. This makes it so theoretically all parts should be almost the same and if the lockfaces were mated the same you could switch parts around between Sebenzas. The hollow grind on the Sebenza is done in such a way that the behind the edge thickness is actually THINNER a tiny ways behind the edge than it is where the edge is actually sharpened. This gives more sharpenings throughout the knife's life. I also like how Chris started just as a custom maker in South Africa and built his small business from the ground up. The inlays and unique graphics are amazingly beautiful to me. There's a lot that I like about them actually.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top