Appealing to my ego by asking me to post collection photos. This pleases me.
These are the ones that I carry most, and not all of them have all of the attributes I've described because it turns out that there is no production knife that exactly meets all of my criteria. I'm still fighting the idea of a bespoke custom. That and I think it's highly improbable that Rick Hinderer and Andrew Demko would collaborate.
I'm not going to run on about each of them. If you like the looks of one, tell me which and I'll say more.
shorttime, in your collection, I would say the silver one with the blue screws or fasteners is the most eye catching. Maybe you could talk about that. It's what is known as a flipper?
And also the black one, top most. Is that a thumb disk as well as a wave similar to kershaw/Emerson where the blade deploys upon pulling out of pant pocket?
I would also guess that both knives have blade length of at least 3 inches?
Interesting choices, because the two could hardly be more different. Both have 3" blades, but that's about it.
The black one is indeed, an Emerson. A Mini-CQC-7, with a tanto point, partial serrations, and the trademarked "Wave opening" feature, all things I don't need on a knife.
I bought it because I felt compelled to. That sounds odd, until it happens.
The gray one is a Kizer Gemini, a faithful reproduction of Ray Laconico's "Jasmine", one of the few knives that has ever made me say "oh my God!" the first time I saw it. I knew I would never be able to afford a full custom Jasmine, so when I saw the Gemini, $170 (as opposed to $500 and up) left my bank account as fast as I could type in the credit card number.
The CQC-7 is a chisel-ground blade, making it easier to sharpen. The primary and secondary bevels are flat, and the blade is 1/8" thick at the spine.
The Gemini blade also has flat ground bevels, but they extend right to the spine, which starts out 3/32" thick, and tapers towards the point.
It is a flipper, but there is no spring to assist the blade, because it doesn't need one: it rides on bearings, instead of washers, so there is very little friction to impede the momentum of the blade. There is also a ball detent to hold it closed.
While the Emerson has a ball bearing pressed into the liner to help hold the blade closed, it doesn't really need to. The blade rides on washers, and it opens and closes smoothly, but you have to move the blade the whole way with your thumb. Luckily, everything is well located, so that's an easy job, even for my small hands.
The Gemini is a titanium frame lock, with a steel insert to contact the blade tang. The CQC is a titanium liner-lock, with no insert. The steel/titanium contact is slightly "sticky", thanks to the mechanical properties of Ti.
The G10 handle slabs on the CQC are nicely textured, without being rough. The slabs of the Gemini may look smooth (the fit and finish are very good), but there is a subtle friction to them. I imagine if you were sweating hard, or your hands were wet for grimmer reasons, the Jasmine's production cousin would feel quite slick, but this is not a knife for Serious Business.
Emerson's pocket clip is a wonderful thing. It's easy to draw, easy to stow, doesn't snag on other clothing or nearby objects, and keeps the knife bolted to the side of my pocket. Other manufacturers should simply source their clips from Emerson, drill holes to match, and waste their time "improving" other things.
The Gemini's clip screams "Made in China!" It was, but that's not the point. They were so faithful to the execution of the Jasmine, but then they tried to save fifteen cents by putting on that boring pocket clip. No matter, the clip for the Ursa Minor fits the Gemini too.
The essential job of a knife is to cut things, and by that measure, they are both equal. It's the details of how they go about it that make them different.
The Gemini is kind of like what you would get if Ferrari designed and engineered a car to be mass-produced by Fiat-Chrysler America: it's damn good, and one of the best-looking things out there. It doesn't matter to me that it doesn't feel quite as special as a full custom, but I would still treat it carefully, and never use it even close to it's full capability.
The Mini-CQC-7 is a bit like the Ford Ranger, excepting of course for the fact that Emerson still builds them in America. Never mind that. The point is, it's a group of features that don't seem all that interesting, if you consider them by themselves. But, like the truck, it's more than the sum of it's parts, and everything works together to make a knife that isn't pretty, but feels far more capable than it's size or spec sheet.
If you're looking for a knife that incorporates some of the features of the CQC and the Gemini, I may have some ideas.
Look at "Zero Tolerance". They are Kershaw's high-end/hard-use division. Their designs tend toward the "tactical knife" end of things, closer to Emerson than Jasmine, but that may be something you're looking for.
Two other companies also deserve mention: Fox Knives, which actually incorporates about half a dozen different brands under it's umbrella. They're made in Italy, and they have a reputation for good quality.
The second company is "Lionsteel", which also manufactures their knives in Italy. Of particular interest is the SR-1 line.
With Titanium scales in various colors, it pretty well splits the difference between Emerson's chunky utility folder and the sleek art of the Kizer.
Just be aware that these knives aren't cheap. All of them are above the $100 mark, which took me a long time to work up to, too. At that price point, you get good warranties, quality materials, consistent fit and finish, and blades that are heat-treated properly. I understand if you're not quite ready to spend that much on a knife, but when you are, you will find it's worth it.
No sir I am not, but I like American conservative and libertarian culture and can sometimes relate to it more than any other culture so I join American gun forums and the like. Never been to the U.S. and probably never will, but I learn a lot from Americans and can communicate fairly well so I join your forums. America is a great country...that is if you have someone like Trump in charge. I am well aware of what's happening in America, more than the average liberal leftist American, sadly. I hope the libertarians and conservatives will once again dominate the U.S. . I want America to be great again. Sorry I don't mean to get political. But Hillary can go to hell. Hope to see her in orange soon!
I hope you guys don't feel like you've wasted your time on me. Because I can and will try your suggestions regardless of my location. Thanks to online shops!
Hey guys, it just occurred to me, I don't think anyone has suggested to me that I look around in eBay. Why is that? Is that not a good place to shop for knives?
Post by itshardtoknow on Dec 28, 2017 10:02:39 GMT -8
I dont think its a bad place to look, but in my experiences Ive been able to find most things for the same price, or less, on Amazon. And I trust Amazon more. Plus 2 day free shipping.