Chris Reeve Umnumzaan Initial Review: Unexpected Excellence 

Thanks for watching, Ricky! Glad I was able to provide some insight. God bless you, brother!

I get you, Jenny, but one rather large point of this video is that the Umnum is not in competition with the Sebenza. They're different knives. I like them both... a lot! However, I think you've fallen victim to some objectively incorrect hype about the Umnumzaan, and by the way, that hype doesn't come from CRK -- it's forum group think. It's just not a stronger knife than a Sebenza. A slightly thicker blade and a larger diameter pivot (which is not a locked down structural part, since it's adjustable) simply don't overcome its weaker construction. I stick by my original contention that the Umnum is a slicker handling, better looking knife than a Sebbie -- not a stronger knife,but it doesn't have to be. It's still an awesome knife!

I got my information about the 2 knives frame lock from Chris reeve himself. I do not see why the sebenza will be stronger considering the lock bar is the same on both knives. Can you explain your statement. I'm going to shoot Chris reeve another email to see what he tells me about the strength of both knives compared. Thank you

Actually, the lock bar is larger top to bottom on the Sebenza, at least the 21, and they're the same thickness. But it's not the lock bar that leads me to my conclusion, it's construction. On a 21, there are 3 positive, locked-down points of contact -- pivot, stop pin and rear standoff. On an Umnum, there is only one -- the rear standoff. The pivot isn't locked down; it's adjustable. I'm not really talking about ultimate failure strength, but rather how much the knife will have to be adjusted, tightened and tweaked as one uses it. The Sebenza just doesn't ever move once the screw heads are seated into the frame chamfers. In carrying an Umnumzaan for a week or so before this review, the pivot moved a bit and needed to be adjusted a couple of times. This was mostly evident in blade centering, something that never changes in a Sebenza. I don't mean to trash the Umnum, not at all. I'm going to buy one this week. It's great for what it is -- it's just not a Sebenza.

TheApostleP My comments/data are all officially fromChris Reeve and, I do not gather information from opinions and hype. I emailed the CRK and asked them if the sebenza is stronger than the umnumzaan. I specifically asked them to see if could get a bias answer toward the sebenza. There response was no. Heather said "both locks have about the same engagement and strength." My comment earlier about the knives being the same strength was true because it is in fact the same lock system. So Both knives are equally strong.

One could argue that increased points of contact, while providing upside in stability, creates more opportunity for failure. To continue your car analogy, it's like a fancy German sedan compared to a simpler Japanese economy car. Sure, you have 3 points of contact, but each point is an opportunity for failure (logically speaking). The Umnum may have a lower theoretical stability but it also possesses a lower theoretical likelihood of failure. Of course, in reality, both designs are executed very well. So often in engineering there are trade-offs to whatever you do. A "simpler" design may be less stable and a more stable design may be less "reliable." Of course, I noticed that you're using very particular definitions of "stable" and "reliable," so maybe I've misunderstood you or missed something you said. But you're also incorrect on the pivot point. The genius of the Umnum pivot is that you can adjust it without affecting centering. Any blade, as the original poster pointed out, can be off center, as there are a variety of issues which affect centering. Even the 21. But in terms of centering advantages, the bushing pivot on the 21 is at best equal to rather than superior to the Umnum. From a logical point of view, adjustability is not the same as "bad for centering." In theory, the Umnum pivot can be adjusted WITHOUT affecting centering. So it's not strictly speaking fair to count that as an advantage for the 21. Second, the pivot is structurally stronger. It's larger and, therefore, structurally tougher. That's just physics. Ultimately, I don't see a lot of explanation for your claims that the Umnum is not a simpler/tougher Sebenza. Chris Reeve himself has stated that the Umnum is the culmination of everything he's learned in his knifemaking career. I find it hard to believe that he would then produce a knife that is not as strong/reliable as a Sebenza. The same goes for the 25. I do understand that the 21 has 3 points of contact whereas the Umnum has 1 (it actually has 2 but whatever). However, there are more factors than points of contact in determining "beefiness" or "toughness." Strength of pivot, blade thickness, handle thickness and construction, all play a role in a knife's overall ability to withstand abuse. Is the Umnum theoretically less stable than the 21? In the sense that it has fewer points of contact, yes. But in no engineering textbook does it say more=better. One COULD achieve equivalent stability with fewer points of contact provided the design is smart and/or well executed. In my view, Reeve found that that 3rd stop pin added minimal stability, i.e. theoretical stability rather than practical stability, and so he eliminated it in favor of the blade-mounted stop pin. This created a simpler (i.e. fewer parts), more elegant design. But even accepting that the Umnum is less "tough" in this sense when compared to a 21, you can't discount the thicker blade stock, lock bar overtravel, and generally thicker construction as points in the Umnum's toughness favor. It makes no sense. In all these regards, the Umnum is unequivocally "tougher." To wrap up this ridiculously long comment, a lot of what I'm seeing in these Umnum reviews is current Sebenza owners being a little thrown by a different design. It reminds me of how Porsche 911 owners responded to the knew water cooled engines (or the change in steering from hydraulic to electric). Change is always difficult to accept and fans of the previous technology routinely focus on the trade offs as opposed to the benefits. But every engineering decision carries with it some kind of trade off. The best engineered designs minimize these trade offs...and that's what I think the Umnum has done. You get an adjustable pivot that does not affect blade centering, an integrated thumb stud/stop pin, a thicker (yet somehow faster/more explosive action) blade, and a more open knife design (meaning easier to clean and maintain). TL;DR I agree with a lot of your observations but I think you're missing the forest for the trees a bit.

Thanks, buddy! Your support is invaluable :)

It makes me feel a little dirty putting Loctite on a CRK knife... LOL!

Have both. It’s a personal style issue for me, but I love the appearance of the Tanto blade on the Zaan better than the harpoon drop point blade!

I definitely would not write it off for that, Max. My Umnumzaan is now just about a year old. Since my first sharpen and spa when new, I've never had to take it apart for cleaning or adjustment since. The adjustable pivot has never seen an allen wrench (Loctite applied) since then either. The action hasn't changed a bit, nor has the centering. It's the Chris Reeve of adjustable pivots. It's a great knife.

I’m going with that same look along with a custom red lanyard! 😁 To each…

Matt H It is.

Sebenza 21

Thats the entire point of the stop... to keep you from changing lock bar pressure.

nathaniel wren I believe the plain Large Sebenza is $410, while the Umnum is $425. Given the extra machining on the blade and handle, I'd say that makes the Unmum a bargain.

Tell Burt he knows where to find me if he has a problem with my content :)

Chris Reeve doesn't like his knives to be flicked open and close. I don't think he ever said that. But the knife can be flicked open because it it the owners choice to do what he want and the knife is strong.

jenny Cruz he had a thread on blade forums where he not only flicked open a small sebenza 21 but slammed it open over 10,000 times with no lock movement. he said himself that you can flick open his knives. not to mention there is no way in hell he could ever tell if a knife was flicked open.

Can you please post the link here. I searched the forums and can't find anything about him saying it was meant to be flicked open.

Wrong

Absolutely

Ultimately in time and with some extra $$$ you’ll want both. I thoroughly enjoy both knives! Sold my Strider SnG for a Rockstead Tei. Absolutely love that knife too. It’s in a different class.

I have both and i assure confirm you that you want both😜 i should even say that you will have both

Don't you mean the umnumzaan now has the larger sebenza 25 pivot. The sebenza 25 had it first. The sebenza and umnumzaan both borrowed the larger standard pivot from the ti-lock.

Best in the business, brother :)

And in 2022! Rob’s opinion matters. I consider him an important independent authority on the subject of CRK’s. I wouldn’t buy one unless he approves! Now I own a dozen. Crazy!!!

Perfect!