Nick I was recently lost in the woods and starving luckily I had a cold steel which I was able to pound into a tree then stand on to reach the food stash that I had previously put there
Kevin cleary you couldn't have carried over a rock or two? And don't say you were too weak to do so, if that were the case, you wouldn't have been able hammer the damn thing in. Plus, like he said, in every day Life is unnecessary, every day Life doesn't involve starving in the woods.
What a time to be alive. I've seen black and white TV give way to color give way to cable give way to HD cable, the birth and mass proliferation of the internet, mobile/smart phones being fucking everywhere, and china making excellent knives.
I'm a mechanical watch guy myself, with a small (5 piece) collection. However, I have bought and recommended quartz for members of my family who care more about accuracy, reliability and cost. If they don't love the idea of a little mechanical machine on their wrist, then it doesn't make sense for them to have it because I think it's cool.
cryptocognomen I'm still laughin at this. Tomorrow Nick will be quoted at church. (I gotta figure out how to make that happen... but yeah. It's gonna happen.)
So you're saying the Tri-Ad lock is as necessary for normal knife functioning as bronze-phosphor washers? *ducking and running for cover while wearing pre-distressed jeans*
I think this was prior to the Conor McGregor vs. Khalid Khabib (or whatever his name is) fight. I could be wrong. I don't watch MMA but I know Conor is Irish.
@@SeemsLogical This was actually right before the boxing match between Floyd Mayweather Jr. (serial domestic abuser) and Conor McGregor (trash talking Irishman).
Great video as always. The only one I disagree on is the dislike of a Stonewash. To me, it's not that ugly, improves rust resistance noticeably, and is great at hiding wear. Realistically, nobody is gonna abuse a knife to enough of an extent that the finish on it goes from a satin to a Stonewash like you suggested. I break down a lot of cardboard, and that finish is great for disguising the times I've hit a staple or dropped it. Living in a humid area by the coast, I've had plenty of stainless knives develop rust spots, but not the acid stonewashed ones. Sometimes they get them on the edge itself, which is how I know it's the finish that's protecting it, not a different steel to some of the others. Interestingly, I think that blades with a higher polish are more 'scary' looking than black stonewashing is. Might be because I live in the UK, where just about any knife is considered a weapon, but I'd rather have something matte black like a stonewash just because it doesn't catch the eye as much due to the lack of shine. To me that seems kinda important when doing cutting tasks in a crowd of sheeple. That said, I love a shiny knife on anything that isn't a beater. A lot of my favourite knives are shiny because, as you said, the sheen of steel is beautiful. It also shows up grinds a lot better, which is great on a higher end knife with lovely, sharp grind lines. But that's just my two cents on the issue. Stonewash is functional, satin is beautiful.
You make me miss my best friend’s mother, an Italian Jewish lady from the Bronx. She was a great cook and we played hundreds of games of Backgammon together. So whatever I’m doin’ I can put any of your videos on while I’m doing something else, and have some good memories. Thanks for being you, Nick!☝🏼😬
My opinion on price. Put the Delica, PM2, and the shelischeich Bowie against each other. Are you going to notice one going dull faster? Is one going to break? Is one more or less comfortable? The delica is probably going to dull faster than the others, but besides that, what are you buying for $100+? You're buying the fun of owning a cool knife. And there's nothing wrong with that, I like cool stuff. But it's silly to pretend that a $300 knife made of S35VN is better than a $150 knife made of the same stuff. 50% of the stuff I do with my pocket knife would be done just as well with a disposable razor blade. But I use a 150 benchmade 940 knife because I like it and using it is something that brings me joy. But I'm not going to BS myself that I couldn't do everything with a Rat-2 instead.
That's a pretty silly argument, imo. The Slysz Bowie honestly has some pretty amazing F&F, and I love it far more than almost every other Spydie. I rarely have to sharpen it as well. Heat treatment is almost always perfect, and it's endured some pretty brutal labor. I used it to pry an old rusted over window open, which snapped my PM2 the night before.
Amazing F&F. Pocket Jewelry. And congrats on breaking a $130 knife on a job better suited for a $10 prybar. Using any knife to pry has to be regarded as abuse, and unless you broke the handle (in which case, we come back to don't use a folding knife), you would be better served with a cheaper knife with a less hard, and therefore brittle, blade.
Barney The Dinosaur They have this new thing, now- they call them "prybars" Just busting ur balls- I've done similar dumb crap with many of mine- necessity is a mother!
Even if you are batoning with a folder it wouldn't matter how strong the lock is if you're doing it right. That's because you're supposed to release the lock on the folder to baton with it.
Lock strength doesn't matter all that much....but having an extremely strong lock still just makes me feel good every time I use my knife so I'm just gonna keep using cold steel. Also CTS XHP is a great steel so win win
In my opinion acid washed blades are a good compromise between black "tactical" blades and shiny polished one I dont realy want a blade thats realy dark and "scary" looking but i dont want one that has more bling to it than the weird lovechild between Mr.T and a Discoball
I see this whole thing as a diy project, as in for the most part (I'm looking at you cold steel), you can put a nice acid wash or a stone wash or a wishy washy wash on your knife so you can make it your own. Of course, this would void warranty 99.9% of the time. Also, don't come crying to me about messing up your chris reeve with a failed acid wash, opinels are cheap enough for any of us to stupidly experiment on
Totally agree on the acid etch thing. People ask me to do that to SAK parts and I just say no I don't do that. Why make the part ugly and have worse action and open up the surface to potential rust.
I agree with what you said, except if I have folder that's longer than 3", I like knowing the hinge and lock are stronger. The big blade is more apt to be used hard to cut and pry.
1. Never. I've never had a lock of any kind fail, and I work my knives. 2.Unfortunately domestic made knives cost more, we're paying inflated prices for prestige. 3.Here I disagree, Black Knives Matter! 4. Agreed, Ganzo Firebird knives are superior at the cost. 5. Batteries wear out=no time. Get a nice self winding watch from Accutron.
I've had a lock sort-of fail on me in the past and get this--it was a Cold Steel lock-back Voyager. To be fair, it was an older pre-triad lock-back. What caused it was a tiny amount of pocket lint (about the size of a grain of rice) that somehow got between the lock-bar and blade causing it to fail to lock when opened--the lock bar wouldn't drop down into place as the lint acted as a blocking wedge. My own controversial views: Lanyard beads -especially skull beads are for man-children that never grew out of their 13-year old mall ninja phase; Forced homemade patina's look terrible--every bit as fake as your acid wash example; Sharpening is a basic life skill everyone should know; Japanese "high-end" kitchen knives are for the most part, overly fragile, "artsy" trash that will chip when used on anything harder than a refrigerated carrot. IMO they have little place in Western cooking. Also, plain carbon steel kitchen knives belong in the bad old days of the past.
I had an extremely scary sharp SOG trident lock fail on me while making holes into plastic that cut into the bone of my finger. Lock strength is very important to me now.
I have had two lock failures in my life and they were on cheaply built crap. One was a liner lock and the other was a frame lock. I won't buy a CRKT to this day because of the failure on a K.I.S.S. frame lock. However, I agree that lock strength has been overplayed. Fixed blades should be used in "hard use" situations.
I wear mechanical watches exclusively. I put up with having to reset it every so often because it’s fast. I do this because I like having a little fully mechanical machine on my wrist. That being said, he’s totally right. Performance and accuracy wise, quartz kills it every time, unless you’re using an Omega with a master chronometer moment or a Grand Seiko with a spring drive movement.
The lock strength is just nice to have. When camping, your fixed blade is usually with your stuff in the backpack, and it's nice to be able to cut some wood or whatever without digging through your belongings and not worry about the knife. And these Tri-Ads handle batoning very well indeed.
Lock strength on stuff like Tri-Ads and AXIS locks are more about piece of mind and confidence while using. I've had frame locks and liner locks fail. They're close to your $20 exemption, but from big name makers. In the spirit of naming names it was a Gerber Remix and a CRKT Squid and CRKT Swindle. Swindle was twisting through a hard block of cheese, the Squid and Remix only locked up about 70% of the time they were deployed.
I regularly carry my $200+ knives. It really is just a matter of perspective. When I started collecting knives about four years ago, I was afraid to carry even my Paramilitary 2, as it was the most expensive knife I had ever purchased (at the time). Nowadays I consider it one of my beater knives. There are also lots of $200+ knives that are very much not art pieces. My Benchmade Crooked River cost about that much, and I put it in the same beater knife category as my PM2...Though I feel I over payed for the Crooked River by at least $50
Christopher Backus problem with European police (outside the UK where effectively it's an even bigger problem). They can confiscate your knife without the requirement to give you a reason. Should you want it back you have to go through criminal court to do so. Should you lose this, you risk a criminal record for carrying a deadly weapon. So I only carry my budget knives as I know police will take any chance to score a free premium blade through this law.
I've been saying the same thing for years in forums-The return on knives over $250ish really decreases.. I still like having a strong lock even though I use my knives to cut..
I may be the only person in the world that didn't find the Triad lock hard to use, even one handed. I don't get all the hate, but hey, everyone's entitled to their own opinions.
Nick Shabazz I didn't even know the Triad lock system had fanboys, though given that this is the internet, I probably should have guessed. The more inane a subject, the more furor it seemingly ignites. Thanks for the reply, appreciate your work. Keep the videos rolling, haven't seen one yet I didn't enjoy.
I've had boker kwaikens fail under regular piercing use in soft material. My buddy had his zt0562 fail opening a package. Both errors with production which made us buy more expensive knives that are cared for more during production
Do you think there's a big difference between acid washing the blade and the handle? I mean the slysz bowie you have on the table there could be polished titanium. I guess it depends on the grade but you get the idea.
My (American) ZT 0808 was $200. I used it to cut into some cheapo plastic packaging. The blade chipped and the tip broke. My (Chinese) Schrade 501 was $15. I used it to cut through a heavy truck strap (the industrial ones, not the nylon ones you get at Wal-Mart). Slight blade wiggle. adjusted it with my Torx screw. Wiggle's gone and lock's tight.
My Contego lock failed on me, saw the bone. Benchmade paid for it but I don't trust axis locks anymore. So I bought a 4 max. And I'm 12 and a half thank you very much!
I don't disagree with you about the quartz watches.., but I don't put much value in splitting nanoseconds or whatever. For my purposes (and, I think most peoples) a watch that loses a minute a week is fine. I'm not a pilot or computer tech. Adjusting the watch a couple times a month is simply not a huge bother. As long as it runs, and keeps relatively good time, I'm happy.
Distressed lol i once bought ab aluminum canera case at half off. Because it had a big scratch on the front. A year later i couldn't figure out which one was the original scratch
Buying a factory distressed knife to 'hide the wear' is possibly the strangest excuse I've ever heard. I bought a broken, out-of-warranty washing machine because I knew that if I bought a new one it would be out of warranty and break one day in the future.
Nick, I just recently ordered a Spyderco Delica and a Spyderco Dragonfly. I'm looking forward to getting them and trying them out. I agree with most of your points in this video. Particularly that paying over $300 for a knife is somewhat ridiculous. My edc is still the Kershaw Oso Sweet, but I want to check out the Spyderco knives and some others. Happy collecting.
I am not a big watch guy, the only ones I've owned are the cheap casios and recently, a seiko 5. I have to say I really expected to break it while playing basket ball, climbing a mountain, or skateboarding, but it has survived all of those so far. That said I've only had it for a few months, so who knows how long until it breaks. Anyways, to me there are only 4 things I care about in a watch, 1: it tells the time. 2: It looks nice. 3: Its fairly durable. 4: Its fairly comfortable. For a watch that cost me 50 bucks to meet all of those completely, and be mechanical automatic movement which is pretty neat, I don't really see any reason (for a guy like me who isn't super into watches) to care at all weather a watch is quarts or automatic.
I know quartz is a lot more accurate, and it is better, and they are way cheaper, but there is something about how much goes into each movement for each mechanical watch, I really appreciate the movement, it really is impressive, luxury watches like omega are really impressive, a watch I really think is amazing is the Breitling Navitimer, you should look at it, its the first true pilots watch, the movement is really impressive.
I totally agree. I think it's better to have a lock that has better action and reasonable lock strength for edc. I sold off all my small cold steel knives because honestly it's not necessary. But but on knife like the Rajah 2 , a tri ad lock is a necessity and I am using it as it designed which is hacking through the jungle.
Mechanical watches these days are good for showing appreciation to the craft of watchsmiths/clockmakers and keeping it alive as a craft, as well as simply liking the idea of them. It's also fun sitting there and watching the little spinny things go around. But yeah, a £20 digital Casio watch or something will tell the time just as well - if not better - for a fraction of a fraction of the cost.
I basically agree about lock strength - any well-made knife should hold up to normal use, and the differing breaking points are abstract distinctions. That said, I have had a ZT framelock fail on me...I got an (apparently defective) 0450 that closed on my me minutes after unboxing. I was gleefully flipping my new knife when pressure on the back from my second finger closed the blade on my thumb.
In answer to your question, at 1 min 22 secs - the pathetically flimsy lock springs in my 940 failed for the second time in two years with very gentle fruit-peeling, pencil sharpening use. As you said, the Benchmade Anthem lock-spring system may be better if they were implemented for all Benchmades. But as this is financially and practically un-feasable, the entire Benchmade range of knives will have to make do with an inherently 'weak-by-design' by lock system.
I've never had any poor experiences with axis lock springs, but I only have one Benchmade knife. All of my other axis locks are inexpensive Chinese knock offs. Maybe it's because they use beefier springs than Benchmade
Agree 100% on diminishing returns. The most expensive folder I've bought is 595 but I did then drop another 300 in customizing it. I've done so fully aware that none of those 300-800 dollar knives give me anything my ZTs don't except for something different or exclusive. As far as your 4th point I disagree. Now, I have no issues with Taiwan, good to go there. But China? At work I buy a few million dollars a year worth of raw materials (steel) from China. Our other suppliers in Germany, Austria, and some limited US companies can't keep up so we're forced to use the Chinese mills. We have to perform independent destructive testing on every batch because the material certs they send you aren't worth the paper they are printed one. We're not even buying high-end steels all the time. Some of it is simple 41xx series and they still botch the heat treat. I doubt I would ever use a $300 Chinese knife hard enough to find out that the materials weren't as advertised and I just don't want to take that chance.
1. A lock has never failed on me. I come from slipjoints and I've NEVER cut myself from the blade closing on me. 2. Completely agree, mu cutoff is at $200 and for that price you get MORE than you'll even need. 3. To each their own. I Love the stonewash on Cold Steel knives but I know you're not a fan of the company's policy. 4. The Chinese are trying hard and it's obvious in their high end, USA manufacturing has gotten lazy and QC is loose. That goes for Taiwan too, Taichung Spyderco knives are leagues ahead of Golden Colorado. 5. Watches are not my thing. I enjoy your content dude, keep it up!
I've honestly come to a point with folding knives that I prefer less expensive ones. While people constantly trash Aus 8, 420 hc, ctsbd1, etc, I find knives in the 30-60 dollar range preform very well as long as heat treating is done correctly. Sure, I may have to sharpen my aus 8 a little more, but it is faster and eaiser to sharpen than d2, 154, etc. I spend less time getting the edge I want and notice only small amounts of different for my every day needs. Also, if I lose or sometimes even give away, a raven, tenacious, rat 1, etc, I don't have cry about it. I just order another and move on. Basically, if you're a collector, that is great, but I'm not sure your every day man is really going to notice any real difference.
I refuse to buy or carry liner/frame lock knives. I've had them fail and cut me. The way you grip the knife can easily compromise the holding power, especially during hard use(when lock failure is the most dangerous). Just two cents but I don't comment often; this is a deeply held opinion
I used to prefer mechanical watches, and chronographs in particular. Now, I prefer digital watches, set to the 24hr time, with solar charging and time set by the radio signal from the atomic clock. I also like to have the say of the week showing. I often have to log the time an event occurs or when a check was done and I am not permitted to use a smart watch or carry a mobile phone, since I work in secure facilities. I often work enough that I forget what day it is and I have gone to work too many times on weekends thinking it was a week day. As an old guy who once liked everything analog, I have adapted to digital.
Overall I agree with your watch opinion. The reason I prefer Mechanical watches is definitely the fun factor of wearing old technology that is still functional today. The second reason though is because I never replace the batteries in my quartz watches and end up losing them or throwing them out. This may be because I've never owned an expensive quartz watch but then I'd prefer to buy a mechanical at that price lol.
Rodrigo Teresa I'm with you on that. 5 or 6 ounces may be heavy for some, but I rarely if ever notice that kind of weight. Granted, that may just be because my knife is the only thing in my pocket, but still. If it's under like 7 or 8 ounces, it's just fine.
My cold steel purchase was more to do with steel and cool factor than lock strength but it's nice to know it's sturdy. With that said I agree wholeheartedly with your assessment of amount of lock strength needed. If I need strength I'll use a fixed blade and even then it's not full proof depending on the abuse. Well done Nick
I had a Spyderco Police model lockback fail on me while stabbing a tire I won't buy any lockback knives any more.......also if you keep a lockback knife in your pocket and lint gets into the locking pocket in the blade, it won't completely lock up cause the lint will be trapped in there this doesn't happen with liner locks or compression locks because there's somewhere for the lint to go instead of getting trapped in the locking pocket of the blade
As a country boy thst is in his mid 30s i mostly agree with you on these matters except the idea that a knife is only used to cut, to me a knife is a tool to be used to accomplish any mission if you need to climb a tree and the knife can take it pound it into the tree
Agree that there's a curve of diminishing returns, and also a step-off point where you move from a tool to art. I also _hate_ this Deadpool/Fallout left in the woods for a year look. But I think some makers such as Gavko or TK do a remarkable job of getting a non-distressed distressed look. That said, I'm stonewashed to death. I love me some satin blades, I just like the look of steel.
Another entertaining review, Nick! I agree with your view on mechanical watches--quartz are less expensive less needing of maintenance and ultimately--less fun. I rotate out my EDC watches like my knives, and split time between a yellow monster Seiko (kinetic). an eco-drive Citizen and a Valjoux caliber Deep Blue. Also agree with your take on acid wash..it feels grubby and is paying extra to make unattractive. Keep up the good work!
In all cases where I need a folding knife my victorinox does me just fine, so I totally agree with the lock strength thing. I have had a lock fail on me though, on a leatherman skeletool, and yes I was abusing it, used my victorinox cyber tool to fix it. As you say, when I need strength I use a fixed blade.
Had a ZT 300 very sharp, lock failed on me while cutting a regular cord (thinner then standard Rope) Lock strength Matters Nick. In the road on my Bike a lot, Fixed blade attracts too much Negative attention. I like to cook and Grill and at times at Friends houses or at Parks no one has anything to cut things with, sticks, Food etc. lock strength is peace of mind.
I completely agree except for the last one. Wrist watches are obsolete. If you want to make a fashion statement wear a pocket watch, otherwise use your phone.
I'd love to see industry figures, but my take is that fewer and fewer people wear a watch, especially younger folks...and if they do, it's a "smart" watch or a pedometer. I Wonder where the industry will be in a generation?
You must not have a job that requires intensive record keeping. I have to record times all damn day. Every time I do something at work, I have to write down the time. Reaching into my pocket for my phone 1,000 times a day is not ideal, especially when phones are not supposed to be out on the production floor. In short, they have their uses, not everyone has their phone in their hands at all times, and not everyone wants to have to pull out their phone every time they need to know what time it is.
Great video nick. Only reason I buy a cold steel is because i like the design, not because of gimmicky promo videos. totally agree on moving up in that price range, you don't get a whole lot more. Very good point on the taiwan vs usa made. Honestly my taiwanese made cold steel has better fit and finish than my 940-2. Would I rather support a usa made knife, yes. As for your last point on watches I don't know a whole lot on that. I've has a $200 Suunto Ambit 2 band snap and I can't find a replacement. I've had my $40 Casio G Shock Sport going on 7 years and its never failed. I do have a Seiko kinetic my dad passed on to me and its still going strong after over 15 years or so. That being said I'd still take that $40 watch over to $200 Suunto or $400 Seiko at least for now.
about 2 months ago i had a boker bonfire fail on me and it cut threw a lil bit of tendon on my flicking thumb so ive been trying to get my thumb strenght back but now once in a while my thumb actually gets locked up and then snaps pretty rough when it bends again ..... and it happend when i swung it at a hanging rope to see if it would cut threw it witch it did but it also swung shut on my thumb =[
I realize I'm late to the party, but in response to your query around the 1:25 mark the SOG Trident lock failed on me and I cut my index finger of my left hand down to the bone. Not to be a nay sayer, but naaayyy saaayyy! And no, I was not using it improperly.
Strongly disagree about lock strength. increased safety factors are a big deal even if a weaker lock shouldn't fail under "correct" use. When was the last time a strong lock hindered your use of a knife?
Fun video. I agree %100 w these points sans the distressed look of the acid washed knives. I dig that. And the watch thing too, i don't even own a watch.
Hey nick not new to your channel but the first time I will be commenting on it . I agree with everything you said and stated . I would like to only make a recommendation ; have you tired maybe solar powered watches. My brother gave me a solar powered G-shock as a gift some time ago . The neat thing about the watch he gave is it's not only solar but it is connected to the Atomic clock via radio signals. Making the watch very accurate all year round. Just a though and something you might be interested in .
Interesting opinion and I pretty much agree with you. I prefer to buy American made high end knives but that is only because I would rather keep our currency in the the good ol' U. S. of A. and that definitely has no bearing on the excellent quality of high end Chinese Cutlery Companies. 😊
Angry Guinea Pig I was cutting through a small green branch and when bringing the knife back up rather quickly the spine was hit by another branch and the blade folded on my fingers. It was my fault for not being careful but I will add that Victorinox's slipjoint springs are pretty weak. I have an old school Douk-Douk slipjoint and that thing takes a crazy amount of force to close in comparison.
I've got one and it is always a conversation starter. I tell people that I'm saving up to buy a watch that has 2 hands next time. It's quite accurate too!
On the topic of round 2. I believe that once you pass the $300 dollar mark, pocket knives evolve into something entirely different. Under $300 dollars, a pocket knife is simply a tool used to cut things and above $300 dollars a pocket knife becomes a piece of art, or a marvel of engineering. This is because sub-$300 knives are made in a entirely different way compared to above $300 knives. Sub $300 knives are mass produced and rarely handled by human hands. Above $300 knives are often hand made, by talented artisans and you pay for the craftsman's time, not the materials. I'm not saying either price bracket is inherently better. I think it depends on if you personally enjoy craftsmanship or value. Sure, the curve of diminishing returns for quality ends at $300, but the curve for craftsmanship and artistry BEGINS at $300
You leave the world of slight rip-off to enter the one of overpriced shit! Seriously price only correlates loosely with quality. Whether you're looking for a good cutting tool or for a piece of art, don't trust the price tag, it doesn't guaranty anything (sadly).
jojojaykay the lock bar tension and lock interface just didn't meet up right, I was using thumb pressure on the jimping while cutting cardboard, and when I was coming out at the end of the cut it folded right on my knuckles. I have to send it in to ZT to be repaired, because the lock is insanely weak, I can fold it with just light pressure from my hands, and as far as spine wacks its more like a gentle tap that closes it.
Nick I've never really thought about your first point, I guess I've bought into it highly because when I was a boy I rarely got higher quality knives. Good stuff Nick thanks buddy
