Is the Grimsmo Norseman still relevant? (Deep dive review) 

My Norseman is from November 2021. Zero blade play horizontal or vertical from the maker and it has the signature drop shut action. No double bounce either.

I have a Norseman and mine doesn’t do that. The flipper tab could be a little larger. I like the design.

I just got my first Norseman, #546, so it's an older one, but mine has none the issues you mentioned. No double bounce, no play either direction. That said I didn't pay retail but I am happy with it and plan on carrying it to put it through my usual testing.

Now I don’t feel so bad I can’t afford a Norseman.

You keep saying “it’s made by a machine” like it doesn’t take hundreds of machining processes and months of development to get the CNC programmed. I’d rather have a CNC machined knife over a hand machined knife personally. 🤷🏻‍♂️

Most of these knife prices is just getting stupid ridiculous. That full custom piece is awesome! Thanks for the review!

I really appreciate this honest review brother. I think it’s fair for all of us who love knives to get an honest review like this. Earned a sub here good sir!

Almost every person that's buying a thousand dollar knife is going to adjust the pivot. I don't think there's a single person buying $1000 knives, that you have to get picked in a lotto to buy, and aren't adjusting the pivot at the very least; while most are taking it apart.

Mine has 0 play when tight and still drops shut. I appreciate the fact that it’s your opinion, I don’t agree but it’s your opinion. I do like my artisan knives, enough that I designed for them.

I've never seen a norseman with play, the drop shut has nothing to do with a loose pivot. Not sure where that one came from. I would say this is the first time I've seen anyone claim the drop shut is because of a loose pivot and a bunch of play. Do you honestly think they would have the amount of fans if poor QC was a hallmark of their brand regardless of their marketing? Its not logical.. Those guys are obsessive perfectionists who have constantly tweaked the norseman as well as the rask. I use my shit and definitely check blade play lock up etc.

Always appreciate someone taking the time to review a product, however this sounds more like a personal rant. Furthermore, taking the time to edit shots of JG's face in your video in such a crafty manner also makes this seem personal. I have a variety of makers in my collection which includes a 2021 Norseman that has none of the issues you have pointed out. Perhaps you should take advantage of the warranty and send the knife back to Grimsmo for inspection of the issues you speak of... It's the practical thing to do vs continuing to buy their knives and complain about it. From looking at their channel, I see nothing but transparency in their knife making process.

Grimsmo's manufacturing methodology seems pretty bizarre to me. He's completely over done his equipment purchases, with the Kern mill being the height of absurdity. It's like buying a cruise missile to deal with the rats in your barn.

This is kinda what I expected regarding these & some other high dollar folders. Full disclosure, I have never paid more than a quarter of that for a knife. So I just lost most of the audience & anyone left feels bad for me. If I pay $4-500 dollars for a knife I would expect perfection. Thanks for this video.

I've had 2 and the only real problem for me, is that it needs more material. Just too light for me. I would only buy another if the color combo was and handle grinding was EXACTLY how I want it. $900+ is just too much for what you get. Too many little problems.

own around 10 norseman now (just really dig the design and different color pattern combinations), and yes the bounce can be annoying (i think it's due to the blade itself being too heavy, maybe), but no any other issus, and what I did to all my norseman is to simply tighten the pivot, I don't like the drop shut anyway, I find it works perfectly, the action of both deployment and shutting is still smooth as silk, love it even more then the drop shut. The price is definitely high, but for me, as long as I like it, as long as I want it, and as long as I can afford it, I really don't care about the price

"What it's worth" is a ridiculous idea. John makes a product and charges what he does. If he can charge a lot and people still want it, good for him. It doesn't matter what these other knives feel like or cost because they're completely different products sold at different scales with different brands, different meaning etc etc etc. I feel like you're trying to slam JG for succeeding with a product that you don't particularly like, and it doesn't really matter how you feel about it. His success is a measure of what other people think about it.

This will probably ruffle some feathers but it’s great to see a difference of opinion. A lot of other reviewers just co-sign to what the higher up reviewers say. It’s good to see a giant ginger come through and wreck shop! Love and respect the honesty, as always.

I think you need to tighten the pivot screw. Thats why you get a torx driver with it.

Thanks for your honesty. You don't see this very often.

$960? Wow! That double-tap would drive me crazy.

I owned Norseman, carried it for a bit and eventually sold it. I've had an itch to try it again becauseI did like the knife. However, for the money there are dozens of knives that I would rather carry, many of which can't be had ;( Thank you for reminding me that the Norseman isn't the best EDC knife and just in time because I was seriously contemplating buying another.

Well I must have got a good one,because mine has no blade play up or down or side to side ,also it has no bounce back when it closes,it actually has really good drop shot action. 💎

The bounce is easily fixed by adjusting the pivot.

I love the look of the rask. Thanks for the review and for your take on the knife

My pivot is tight. The knife deploys and drops shut on it's own, no double bounce. I like mine and carry it a couple of times a week.

The double bounce is actually from the lock bar being very accurately tuned, the lock bar tension among all Norseman is very very light and consistent, this can be done because the detent is a flat detent and allows better launching of the blade with very light lock bar tension. Having such a light tension on the lock bar and perfect tolerances for the detent will make it bounce before the light lock bar can engage to the closed position.

I freaking love these videos brother. Thank you you and more of these❗👍😊

Don’t have those issues with my Norseman from 2021. I believe my Norseman I previously had in 2018 had those issues though.

I wanted one so bad. I live half an hour from where they’re made. So wanted to support a local maker. I had the opportunity to handle a friend’s and totally changed my mind. I could not believe how sloppy it was! The double tap on close is straight-up disgusting in my opinion. Thanks for the honest thoughts on this overrated POS. You have done a service to those is the knife community to counter the Shabazz effect 🖖

Weird my 2019 model didn't have these issue.

I always wanted one of these and had so many opportunities to get one and now I'm glad I didn't thanks for the video

I bought a cold steel Rajah 2 , put a wicked edge and reworked the inside. Polished everything and smooth out anything that slowed it .Now drops shut smooth and fast with no bounce, the lock releases without much effort but the down side is that bastard bit me. Took off tip of little finger and finger nail.😘😘😘😘🤗

Great Vid Bro! I love your perspective on it. Did you make this in lumafusion? there are some great cuts in there!

I'm not sure it was ever worth it as a user, but it still has its place as a collector's item. I own a ton of knives ranging in value from $20 to $5000, and really I find the most utility from knives in the $50-$200 range. Above that you're just buying the joy you experience from adding it to your collection. Don't get me wrong, the quality is very clear at the high end of that range. But that doesn't make it any more useful as a tool.

I bought a rep version of it for around 150. Thats what that knife is really worth. You can't tell the difference between the two other than the knife steel used (rep uses m390) . Same titanium and same everything else. IF I put them sided by side you wouldn't be able to tell which is which. I feel anything over 200 for a knife is ridiculous unless its made of some sort of precious metal. I sold the original and use the rep without the worry of damaging it. Im very happy with it. I would not recommend anyone spending 1000 for a norseman. He started making these at 450- then 500 then 900 now over 1K. Sorry production costs are supposed to go down not up. Yes he bought some impressive equipment that he probably didn't have to. I find it hard to believe that all his business is strictly knives. He must be manufacturing other parts / contract work to sustain the business .

I feel like maybe you havent heard of a torque wrench or how they are intended to be used. They are used specifically to prevent that mis-judgement you had in "tight" that causes the knife not to operate correctly. Having a torque window for that type of bearing is perfectly normal. Too much pressure and you begin to limit the fluid motion, requiring a stronger input force. And too loose, obviously you can have a loose assembly. Sure yours might have been too loose from factory. Stuff happens. Where the community appreciates Grimsmo, is not in the flashiness of the product. Its because they appreciate all the time and energy that is shown in that product. People like to buy things where they can see how their made. Which is YES, marketing. Guitar players are more likely to pay top dollar to watch the luthier make their guitar online. Its special. Its unique. Its something people are willing to pay for. I dont think people think Grimsmo knives are the most well engineered knife in existence. But I think people like to see what they get for their money by watching the process, knowing they are always looking for ways to improve their products, and knowing who their money is going to. You dont need the best product if you feel good about the transaction you made. Some people will just never be happy with what they purchase, or fight back against community hype. People like the underdog, and when that underdog becomes the popular or mainstream guy... people who dont want to be part of the crowd walk away. If you want the best knife for your money, maybe dont buy a Grimsmo knife. But if youre happy with your transaction, and you want to support the man making the product. Then give him your money. You dont have to be the best to be on top. Sometimes, you can suck ass and still sell a lot of product (Cough, FORD). Anyway, I sense a distain for the knife prior to your true assessment of the knife. So it makes it hard to trust this as a unbiased review. With that said, you have some good points that you were able to illustrate. This is a product for a process enthusiast, and not a knife enthusiast. Good luck.

Got to handle one in a shop the other day and the only thing that went through my head was "Why am I not impressed right now?" Lol 🤷

Information and absolutely honest review. Keep up great job! Subscribed.

It's a one hit wonder,but for me I am still wondering why.

What about the rask? Should I buy a rask or the Holt knife that is similar?

Well said. The Shabazz hype is part of the marketing machine. Secondary prices have been plummeting on these. They once charged $500 for these before they jacked up the price without improving the quality.

More like the Plymouth prowler, just not discontinued or rare..

I do have one and enjoy mine a lot, but it's not a grail because a grail should be something that's always out of your reach, I got mine from the second hand marked for a lot less than a new one, I don't have any blade play one mine, it flips and closes as it should, no double bounce eighter (the pivot is fully tightend too) , maybe i was lucky maybe you where unlucky I don't know about that and yea its not on the lvl of any of my customes i have

I have had three Norseman and never experienced any on this.

This was an excellent review! Thank you so much for being so straight forward. I really appreciate your delivery and all your comparisons. This is fantastic!

I hope my Chinese Hilberg $160 Norseman is better than this one, thanks for the review.

Always Loved the norseman, but wouldn't shell out the chedda for it. Thanks for showcasing it though, I still Love the looks. Be safe.

Great review! I really don't see all the hype about several knives.

Great video, as always. Fortunately, I do not have any of those issues with my Norseman, and the drop shut on mine is one of the best in my collection. Thanks for making such interesting videos.

Great and honest breakdown. I couldn't understand the price for it being a production knife. So many badass customs you can get for way less

What a great rewiew....we need to send you more items to review outside of knives just for a very well thought out and unbiased look at a product.

Very interesting I've never handled one. Is the cutting edge actually hitting the standoff when it closes? Looked like it when you took it apart. I don't really like the blade shape so I've never pursued one.

Wow ...stumbled onto your channel by chance, and frankly was so refreshing to see someone speak real truth about all the EDC overpriced hype that seems to be popularized these days ...especially on YT, thank you. subbed, liked and shared !

Very good conversation. I thought it was fair, honest, precise, funny and not overly negative. I got into modern knives and after a while started to wonder if people are buying $1000 knives just to open the boxes of new knives they got because they aren't really happy with the $1000 pocket knife they bought. So now I'm back to carrying a $50 American made Buck 112 in my back pocket, like I did as a kid. Built like a tank and cuts like a beast. Have you felt a 112 in your hand recently? Fills the hand with a perfect thumb rest and no concept of a hot spot. And a super cool patina to boot. If I get the urge to play with something, I take out my Slysz Bowie or PM2 and after I flick for awhile, they go back in the fancy knife case and the 112 goes in my back pocket and off I go.

Bro been watching a lot of your videos and I’m genuinely wonder in your opinion who are a few makers you would suggest for someone who is only expecting to ever buy one custom piece that I absolutely will be using and every day carrying.

I have one for a year now, it is really a joy to handle and play, but if you buy it for use, i don't recommend, you can buy cheaper stronger ones ..

I AIN'T shabazz enough to appreciate it, it's a pointless broken knife ;=[

Good review. Honest and fair opinions. I just picked up a Norseman of my own off the secondary market, and maybe I just got lucky because mine is in the sweet spot where it will drop shut without a bounce and there's no play in any direction. It did take a little tinkering with the pivot to get it there, though. I plan on carrying and using it a bunch to see how it breaks in and if there's any change in the action with the pivot tightened all the way down after it's had a while to break in. I paid about $150 less than retail and while I don't feel like I got ripped off, I do feel like I still slightly overpaid for the final product. Edit: I do agree about the flipper tab not being great. I tend to have pretty dry skin and I notice a tendency to slip off the tab.

Feeling before facts and logic is the New normal

Good to know.

I don’t even like the Norseman but you straight up weren’t being fair man. When you were ‘demonstrating’ the action and ‘double click’, you were purposely not applying enough pressure to make your point. Then you applied more pressure to make your other point.. jerking it shut to make the detent bounce. You did that on purpose. There is obviously a theme to this video. I make and mod knives and I’ve handled over 20 Norsemans. So there is absolutely no bias to my comments. I don’t like it. But it’s most certainly not as bad as you make it out to be for this video..

I can honestly say I didn’t like the Norseman and held out until 2 years ago. I thought to myself let me see what this ugly knife is all about and get one... easy to flip low risk! Ended up loving it despite what anyone says either way. Your display of the pivot adjustment was sloppy in display and not convincing. I can also drop the blade without bouncing it on the stop pin. The flipper tab is great to me! Fits my hand great! And think it’s worth the price although I agree it’s on the higher end... I think the lube and tool is great. Presentation means not only good marketing but an extra step towards custom care. I completely disagree with almost everything you said .. I could film all your demonstration and spin it positively... so I’m not at all convinced 🤷‍♂️ big claim .. nice click bate but this one is biased and wrong on my opinion... not like that really matter s but it’s another comment 😂 I’ve literally have had the exact opposite experience with grimsmo 🤷‍♂️

Honestly I've never had a custom that didn't have wonky edge grinds unless they're edge ground by a machine and not by hand. I'm actually at the point that I've gotten sick of wasting money on customs to just end up carrying a production knife so I don't screw up the expensive customs. But I also love my Norsemen but they never got used because there's no way in hell I'll ever be able to sharpen them. Mid tech and production knives are the way to go in my opinion especially if it's a Demko knife.

I’ve wanted one of these for a long time. I had several opportunities and I couldn’t justify the price.

I love the fact you use your knives and brutally honest makes me like the videos man. Keep it up. Ill keep watching .

Hey man! First of all thanks for the vids. I appreciate honest reviews and opinions. With that being i have few questions. #1. Why would you have bought 4 norseman if you feel scammed for that price? Why giving your money to a guy who’s falsely advertising the quality of his products when it’s "obviously" not the case at all? #2 how did you adjust the action? Because on every knife that i own i need to adjust the pivot with micro turns to find the sweet spot(only exception is my sebenza because of its bushing) it’s seems that you’re screwing it way to much at the time from what i’ve seen. I don’t have a norseman(and would never because I don’t like the look at all) but i had the chance to handle few and the action was perfect in every way. No blade play of any kind and drop shut with the rebound(which i like strangely lol) #3 why bashing on shabazz? The reason i like him is exactly because he is critical and is not afraid to say what he likes or not on a knife. Im just curious man there’s no harm in any ways. I’m just really surprised because it’s the first time i hear that kind of review about Grimsmo. I have a rask tho and it’s literally perfect in every way. I can’t find anything on it and i’m REALLY picky. Thanks again!

You can get a Norseman for about $500 right now on secondary if it makes you feel any better

What about people who don’t have it and don’t want it? Lol I don’t follow trends. I buy staples that been proven designs. I own a few XMs now but waited years to get one. Literally years and multiple generations to buy one. In fact when they came out and we’re all the hype and pulling insane secondary prices, I refused to even consider one. 6 months ago I got my first. Now I have 3. And they are on Teflon.

I don't really understand why a $1000 knife that prides itself on being drop shutty is not on a bushing pivot...

Thank you broski for being honest Watching your reviews Help me make better choices

I have my pivot dialed. Drop shut. No double bounce. Haters gonna hate

Interested to know if you've reached out to Grimsmo about the bounce and any blade play issues. I'd be curious to know if they would work on it to make it right or if they stand behind the fit and finish 100% and refuse to acknowledge any of the issues you're experiencing. I've seen other reviews of these without the bounce and blade play so I'm just wondering if Grimsmo would make this one perfect if given the option.

Hi , what is the name of the Front Flipper custom you are showing in the video please ?

You can get amazing knives for this price, I think it looks cool but I'd NEVER buy one at 960

The rask is pretty sweet.

The knife (Have 2) is extremely well made. Fit and finish are top notch. Seems like the pivot needs a small tweak. I edc one and keep one pristine. Love them both and both have some of the best actions I own.

I owned one in 2019 for about two weeks and sold it for a slight loss. Once I had it in hand, it was a bit of hyped letdown. The impulse hit me again recently with an email from KnifeCenter until I saw the new price of $1349! Unbelievable!

Really appreciate this review, cheers from 🇨🇦.

I like the design and some of the colors but for 1k I feel like something should be hand made not all machine made.

The is what I was afraid of with the Norseman. Hard to find a knife with drop shut action yet no side to side blade play.

I don’t have any of those issues with my 225 dollar southern grind bad monkey :) thanks for the awesome content!

You actually see that exact issue with knives that run on the plastic washers and not bronze or bearings. I like that Knife it looks like a hard user. I just tried my Adamas and it has ZERO blade play any direction and butter smooth opening and drop. To be hand made and tested it shouldn’t have left with any issues I would think. I was reading on the RWL-34 and it apparently mimics cpm-154 and s30v is what owners of the Knife are saying. It just seems for the price it should be amazing and epic with every flip lol. I’ll stick with my Benchmade and cloth pouch mainly due to no way being able to afford a 1000 dollar knife. Stay safe my Friend

Thanks for your honesty Mr. Wolf! Brutal honesty is a quality that's getting harder to find anymore. I wanted a Grimsmo but got frustrated 'cause I couldn't find one for sale so I set my sites on knives that I could obtain. I often wonder how many people could sharpen a recurve blade.

Thank you so much! We love you too !!

Thanks, man. I have been considering one of these for the last few weeks. They have been running $1395 retail at knife center and blade hq.

very well put and informative!

Thanks for your honesty. I’d be pissed if I spent that much and it bounced on closing. Personally, I think it’s a rather ugly knife.

Do you know what #4000 and #4500 look like? They stopped posting them all in their archive.

Great review definitely wouldn't mind having one

I wish someone would make an affordable version of this blade shape

I seen a set of his pm2 scales on ebay auction about 2 years ago..they were at 1200$ or so with a few days left before the final bids..must be a cult of followers out there..they were honeycomb blue ano..looked nice but ..damn $1200+.??

This review is garbage. I’m not biased at all. I have $30 knives and $1500 knives. The Norseman is still amoung the best ever.

You may not feel the quality is worth the price, but make no mistake the process he uses definitely make is so he needs to charge that much. He’s not tricking people, he has over a million in equipment. 🙄

Thank you for your honesty. It's becoming harder to find these days.

I’ve got 2 norsemans that drop shut and dont bounce like that. You are the one thats being deceptive. You must find the sweet spot with the pivot.

Thanks for the honest review!

I totally disagree with some of the things mentioned in the video. I own a Norsman, I love it, no its not perfect, perhaps not even my favourite piece. The tightening on the Pivot u did early is just nonesense. U either overtightened it or left it too loose. For every knife there is a sweet spot where u don't have to compromise for action but still have no blade play. Comparing the QSP with the action of the Norseman is just kind of ridiculous tbh. There are "Budget knives" with a comparable action, such as the North Arm Skaha, but it doesn't surpass the action of the Norseman by any means. I have perfect fall shut action (which is not a QC issue considering they modified even the detent by flattening it so it doesn't have to overcome that extra detent when closing( which might make it easier for the blade to do the double tap)tighten it slightly then, action won't get any worse and it wont bounce) with absolutely no blade play whatsoever. Mentioning that the accessory's only cost pennies to make seems unnecessary and kind of just desperate to point out something negative. How many knives come with these accessories. Usually only the very high end ones do. (Also Nano oil is a GREAT knife oil, its not just fancy looking). I understand the sentiment that this knife is CNC made and not handmade. But, its all about tolerances and accuracy with knives such as the Grimsmos or the Koenigs. This doesn't make them "worth less". I also don't think John Grimsmo is so wrong about them being like the Rolex of the Knife world. The Grimsmos made the best action in 2016-2017. Nothing rlly compared. They innovated. Also: Rolex doesn't innovate much anymore, many of their products are reruns with slight changes. But people don't mind, because there products is nonetheless still great.

I use my Norseman everyday. I avoid the double tap by simply being careful closeting the knife. Mostly, I unlock the blade and manually close it. Problem solved.

Great video brother! I've had the same view on a few " grails" .....

Interesting to see some controversial opinions, could use some more of these.