Pointy sticks
Got my Knifecenter knives today. That's a Linder Pathfinder, SOG Gummint Agent, CS Kobun, and CS SRK. Yay. The Opinels didn't show up, though, sadly enough.
I'm disappointed somewhat in the Linder; it's a nice enough knife, I suppose, but the sheath design is annoying. It's also designed for people with smaller meat hooks, obviously. Anyway, about the sheath: it IS metal, but it uses a leaf spring and two metal strips to secure the blade by friction... and scratches the blade on both sides all the way along the length. Argh. The spine is also a little rougher than I'm used to. Good value, though, and since I wasn't planning on using it for serious use anyway, I don't mind much. Usually I'm pleasantly surprised in my purchases, and maybe my disappointment is stemming from the fact that it didn't wow me. It bears mentioning that you (or I, at least) can't put the knife in the sheath ambidextrously, although the sheath appears to be
The SOG is really nice. I love the grip; it's Kraton, just like all of my Cold Steel blades, but somehow it feels better in my hand. Perhaps it is the grip's design alone without any influence by the material, but it feels like the SOG Kraton is a little softer and more tacky. Actually, my Cold Steel Safe Keeper II push dagger feels this soft, but the other fixed blades have harder handles. QC or manufacturing tolerances maybe. But anyway. The Gummint Agent is very well balanced and light; it hardly feels like I'm holding a knife and just slips right into my hand, where gripping many of my other knives requires a bit of adjustment before it feels just right. The blade is powder-coated AUS-6A steel, if you're curious, with a gorgeous grey powder coated finish. My only gripe is the guard gets in the way of putting my thumb on the spine of the blade right at the ricasso (where the blade meets the handle). All in all, VERY pleased with this knife.
As for the sheath; it is Kydex, with an interesting clip for the belt. I'd describe it, but I'm not feeling too good with words right now so I'll just take pictures later. I like the fact that it's a bit softer and more pliable (and probably less prone to extreme temperature breakage) than Secure-ex. So far my favorite synthetic sheath in my collection.
The SRK is great. It feels good in my hand as a tool, though I find it a little too heavy for my taste as a defensive knife. The blade is very thick: looks like a quarter inch or maybe a little less. It is Carbon V, which is a proprietary name for Cold Steel's chosen steel of the day, which is unknown to me as of the moment. Carbon steel, not stainless, obviously, and it has the typical black powder coat. I took it out back to chop on some softish wood and it performed well enough for me with no noticeable blade damage or dulling.
I've lost my train of thought here... damn Stargate. Anyway, the SRK will be first on my belt for tool use because of the heavy, tough blade and my ability to brace the blade with my thumb on the spine. For finer work, the Kobun or a folder will suffice, and for defensive and light utility use I would choose my SOG. I would choose none of them for serious combat; I have several more appropriate blades, such as my CRKT Hissatsu, push dagger, etc. Though the Kobun
does make a great backup blade. The stock sheath is way too big, but with a thin leather or nylon sheath it would be right at home in a boot.
So... all in all I'm happy with my knives. They bring honor to my collection. I'm getting kind of sick of eeeevil black knives, though. I crave leather or wood handles, polished steel, and leather sheaths. Now that I figure I have enough fixed blades to handle anything I need to do, maybe I'll start buying prettier pointed sticks. And folders.
