Knife Snobs

[Adaminak]

Alright guys...time to come clean.

Who in here has a craving for high-end knives? Someone who likes a knife for no other reason than the way it fits and feels in your hand? I ask this to see if we need a support group.

I've used knives from just about all the manufacturers, and time and time again, I purge my collection and end up with only Benchmade, Camillus, MOD and Paragon. There's a few oddballs here and there; a Boker-made Fairbairn fixed blade that deploys with me, an original-run Spyderco I've sworn to use until it breaks (13 years now and still going), a cheap multi-folder with wood handles I got from my Dad with my first BB gun 30 years ago.

I've looked at a bunch of knives, and I know that the tooling marks on the blade of a Gerber don't make it cut any slower. I know the gap where the handle meets the shaft on a Case won't make it break or slip. The cheap plastic handle on a Buck doesn't mean it won't gut a moose. I know these things, but for some reason, they still bother me.

Anybody else out there feel the same way?

[tightgroup]

I really like Benchmade knives. I have a Stryker and an older Emerson CQC7 but my favorite is the Mini-Griptilian. Love the axis lock.

Does that make me a knife snob?

[Adaminak]

The older Emerson is a really nice design. I had one but traded it for a Lee turret press many years ago. I agree with the axis lock; so simple it should have been thought of decades ago. Most of my non-auto knifes are Benchmade Axis.

As far as being a knife snob...if you find yourself bypassing the other knifes in your collection to carry the Emerson, or you change jeans so the Stryker doesn't wear a hole in your dress slacks...then yes, you might be a knife snob

[tightgroup]

I hear what you are saying. The fit and finish on a Benchmade is very nice for a production knife. My son has a Gerber that he got from Walmart that fits his needs and budget but the blade has not been made with the best steel and the fit is lacking. He has to sharpen it quite a bit to keep an edge on it.

[CMoore]

Love my Benchmade. And the axis lock is a really cool feature that I just had to have. I lost my last knife (kersha), and wouldn't settle for anything less than a Benchmade for my next one. I have the griptilian, maybe the mini but not sure, with a D2 tool steel blade. I wanted a hard steel.
Sorry fellas I don't even look at knives in wal-mart or any other department type store. I guess that would make me a knife snob.
Cory

[madhat]

I love my benchmade. It will probably be the last type knife I ever own. I've had all the common makes, this one takes the cake...

I love the auto open feature, too...

[Adaminak]

Hat,

If you like the Benchmades, you should take a look at Masters of Defense and Paragon as well. MOD is a bit pricier, but they're really nice knives. Paragon makes a few no BS knives as well, and they're in line with Benchmade for pricing. Of course, GSA pricing is a bit nicer than retail, but most companies offer a pretty nice discount (especially on autos) for active duty folks.

[CMoore]

I went to the smoky mountain knife works in tennessee and they wouldn't let me look at a lot of the auto open knives because I wasn't in the service. I thought that was a crock. I seen some benchmade, and some other knives I really wanted to look at, but couldn't.

Adaminak, could you take some pics of a your knives? I would like to see what they look like. I have never heard of Paragon, or Master of Defense, and would like to see a couple. Or are you not able to do that right now?

Cory

[Adaminak]

Apperently Paragon went out of business, but I managed to find a picture of my X-O Lite. The OTF is my MOD Triton, and the folder is the Paragon.

[CMoore]

Pretty sweet looking.
Thanks
Cory