Thanks for the shout-out man! Good takes all around on CRK. The one thing I would mention like 781 more times is that the 21 is vastly superior to the 31.
It took me awhile to jump on the CRK train, but I'm on it now and going wide open!! Just recently received a boomerang damascus pj 31 and it's a banger!! I'm all the way impressed. Thanks for this video dude.
Lot of great points! I’ve been carrying a crk basically as my primary edc since 2010. 6 total with 4 currently in my possession. There are loads more options today but I always keep 1-2 crk in my edc rotation. My go to’s are still my large insingo 21 I picked up in 2016 and a mnandi with bocote inlays I picked up in 2013 as my office knife. I’m glad the 31 thinned out the tip on the drop point. It’s why I finally picked up another large drop point. Looking forward to putting some miles on it.
Excellent CRK video. Very knowledgeable! I’ve only been into the knife hobby for 5 years now. I started with a Sebenza 21 then tried all the other high end brands. Today, I’m full circle back to believing they are still the best all around EDC knife. I now own a couple dozen in all varieties. Just love CRK’s. My favorite changes over time. Currently, it’s the Zaan Tanto, Large Sebenza 21 KnifeArt Exclusive and Large Inkosi DP in black canvas micarta. I like the 31’s too and love the Blade HQ Mnandi in CF and Damascus blade as my gentleman’s carry. I have 25 other high end knives but I always come back to the CRK’s as my daily EDC carry knives! All my kids and grandkids will have an heirloom knife from grandpa!
Bought my first pj small drop point 31 sebenza magnacut a few months back. Last week got a carbon fiber large magnacut inkosi. Absolutely love them. Great video!!
I got a Sebenza 31 Magnacut green G-carta Knife Center exclusive last month. It took me a minute to adjust to the slow action. I am now using it as a my primary EDC work knife. I was using fixed blade neck knives before. Now they're my backups and my Sebenza is my primary.
Great vid, I agree with the design pros and cons - they’re no-nonsense minimalistic cutting tools that are elegantly simple. I’ve been wanting to add an Insingo Inkosi to my Sebenza and Umnumzaan, but I’m thinking I may wait for Magnacut to drop. 🤔
Enjoyed this one. Nice presentation style. Just got my first CRK (Sebenza)... so far it is hard work to open and close, but hoping it just needs to break in. Subbed, so hope to see more soon. 👍
Excellent video! Here’s my take as my EDC since 2018 is a Large Inkosi and I carry a traditional or modern traditional as secondary. I own 17 Chris Reeve knives. They are elegant, simple, clean, unbelievably robust with large washers and blade stability like no other. S35 and S45 is 10 times more steel than is needed by most people (definitely me), higher edge retention steels are fine but S35/S45 is corrosion resistant, incredibly strong, holds a decent edge and sharpens quickly and easily to hair popping. The company and people are great, USA made, lifetime warranty, spa services that restore the bead or glass blasting, sharpen, clean and lubricate for a lifetime for a little more than the cost of shipping. I do agree that Magnacut would be an upgrade but none of the other super steels like M390/20CV are really an upgrade as they are harder to sharpen and are not as durable for more edge retention. Other knives look great and fidget but bearings are not as durable or stable - even Shirogorov bearings…. Also many other “cool” knives get fat reallynfaat behind the edge - very few knives can be sharpened for years - maybe decades like CRK’s - built to last and work for a lifetime when some high end Reate and similar knives are only good for a couple years of sharpening be for the edge gets too fat… For me, literally every aspect of a knife is advantage Chris Reeve!
I got me first 21 in 2006 and it was back to the the streets a week later because I didn’t understand. Now I have a join or die and it’s my favorite of all time.
I still think they’re great. It was a major leap for me to spend that much on folding knives. I’ve been pleased and I’m never disappointed with them. Not a fidget knife, but I don’t care about that anyway. Being American made means a lot to me, so I feel good about owning them. Thanks for the video👍🏻🇺🇸
I've got an Inkosi Tanto with micarta inlays and an Umnumzaan Harpoon. As cool as the Umnumzaan looks, the Inkosi is definitely the one knife in my collection that I'll never get rid of. It just does it for me. I definitely feel the Inkosi Tanto is the most robust folder that CRK produces. The 'Zaan comes in a close second.
Have four crk's. Large 21 with unique graphics and tiger eye inlay. Large inkosi with natural micarta inlays, tanto blade. Stock umnumzaan. Large 31 in s45vn, macassar wood inlays. Imo, the best production knives for the price. Before I got my 21, I wondered if the hype was real. Well, after disassembling and reassembling, I realized the hype was real. Amazing tolerances, highest quality hardware, a knife you just tighten everything up and it's back to perfect center, zero play. Not a fidget toy, but a tool that will last generations. Best warranty in the business. Looking forward to getting more.
Thank you for saying something I have not heard anyone else say about Chris Reeves Knives- they don’t come very sharp. I have about 7 CRK and only one came sharp. I sharpen almost every knife I buy before use because they are not sharp enough for me. White River knives, MT knives and Murray Carter knives are the ones I didn’t have to sharpen as soon as I unboxed them.
Excellent video! I have been edc the Sebenza 25 for over 10 years now. Just a fantastic knife and it was one of the last knives Chris made before he turned over his company to his ex wife.
@@chucknunface the Sebenza 25 has been a great knife for me and it is the only pocket knife I own, but I am tempted to replace it with a Shirogorov f95 or f3 which have been a "Bucket List" knife for me.
@@chucknunface thanks for the quick response. I’ve owned an inkosi and now a sebenza 31. Love them both but screwed up my bevel on the inkosi due to the fattening at the tip. Been scared to do the 31 till now thanks👍👍
I'm like your friend. I have about 25 lefty 21's in all flavors. There is still no 31 in my collection and I'm not looking. Damn I want more damascus, but not in a 31.
Magical would describe the person who could afford 3 or 4 dozen. I have 2 dozen and that's enough! It was a great decade of collecting nothing but lefty 21's of all types. The modern knife game sucks for this 42 year old timer.
@@ToxicityAssured I'm a wizard lol. I'm trying to slow it down but lots of Holts and CRKs. A little bit of skiff, grimsmo, bull and a few others but it is easy to go off the deep end
It’s the Rolex of the Knife world. High resale value you can always sell it very good quality but not as good as some of the upper end rivals like Koenig and shirogorov But in all fairness Chris Reeve is a $475 instead of 800 so there you go.
Are Chris Reeve Knives still the gold standard for pocket knives? How do Rockstead, and Shirogorov’s, and Koenig’s compare? Collector’s are paying way more for other knife brands. What more are you getting for your money? I don’t think Chris Reeve knives need bearings. But I do wish Chris Reeve offered more high end features like offering mirror polished blades as an option , and using exotic materials like timascus, mokuti and Damasteel. Reate uses these materials at affordable prices. Benchmade has its gold class. People are into having knives modded. I think Chris Reeve Knives could do more to keep up with what is going on in the knife community
I think that with the most recent price hike, they've priced people out of the market even more. They're definitely "a" standard, if not "the" standard anymore. I'd still take a crk over any reate.
CRK are great all around. The only gripe I have is on their pricing these days. To be paying over $400 for a S35VN knife (now S45) with basic Ti scales & no innovation is a little outrageous. Sure, the fit and finish are nice but ive owned hundreds of knives that are just as nice and not hard to take apart etc. Yes CRK was innovative 20 years ago but has changed nothing in 20 years in a growing market of super steels and materials. There will always be a fanclub for the knives and rightly so, but they need to do some R&D on some new concepts to keep people interested. I have a 21,31 & a zaan but wont buy another until I see something really interesting.
I still don't get why they are that expensive. So... standard materials, simple construction, meh design. I really don't get it??? What is the expensive part?
Excellent design, tolerances and execution. You really need to have one for a little bit to appreciate them. With the recent price increase, they're starting to price out imo.
@@chucknunface : There's not much chance in Europe to handle one, but to just buy an 800 euro ($+- 900) knife unseen is a bit much. Looking at pictures it just isn't very impressive. Maybe I should just order one to see for myself, can't imagine everyone is wrong about them.
@@keesketsers5866 that's a big price tag. I'd try to find someone local that owns one to try it out. Maybe a friend that lives in the EU is on IG or FB and can loan you one for a bit?
It seems to me you don't work your knives at all. You know, whittle wood, cut inner tube car tire rubber, clean a fresh kill fish, cut plywood edge, fiberglass sheets.
@@chucknunface Reate Knives. CRK has a strange culture in reference to running a business. In my humble opinion, they are not effectively created a world class knife. I feel that there is room for improvement in the production process. They do not need to be a small batch company. They don’t need to make their customers wait and have long leadtimes. Most of the people that I met at CRK we’re very nice, but most were missing direction. Chris has been gone for several years. His ex-wife runs the business . His son runs the creative side of the business. I just feel they could do a lot better. They build a very average Knife and there are so many knife makers out there doing much better with better materials and can bring their product to market quicker. I believe the Reate has the best recipe to make one of the finest knives in the world. Ask yourself. Why do so many famous knife makers use Reate to produce their knives? Quality quality quality. World class production facilities. World-class administrative procedures. I have several of their knives and their quality is second to none. Anyways, in my humble opinion, CRK is not a great company it does not produce a knife like Reate or Rockstead.
@@dr.stevenpennym.d.3241 I agree with some of what your saying. Bear in mind, the models I showed in the vid were all pre- Tim production with the exception of the inkosi.
