the 22 junkie
Member
[Mods, if this is off topic, please move it.]
Today I am reviewing the new Leatherman e301 assisted folding knife. It caught my eye a week back at Berings while looking at Swiss Army knives, but I didn't have any money then, so I came back for it. $27.95 without tax, so I handed over two twenty's, and with a 15% coupon only paid $25.72. So after stopping at a garage sale to buy a California Highway Patrol trucker hat (to get that whole JBT image down), I raced home on my bike and rushed to my room. There, I took the shiny tin case from my backpack and got the camera. It's reviewing time.
I took of the lid, and lo and behold, there was my prize.
My first impressions: wow, very tacticool looking, not very shiny (flash just makes it look that way), and, um, hard to get out of the case. Getting it out of the case was an excersise [sp?] in itself.
And back:
So finnally it was out, and I took a minute to scrutinize it. To fold it, there is a little piece of metal that you push to the side and fold it back, which is a little sharp on the edges of the fingers, but works pretty well. And next, a little farther down the knife, there's a little appendage that at first glance looks to be an allen wrench or screwdriver of some sort. So I pulled it out, and it is actually a carabeiner/bottle opener. To close the carabinier, you push on it while it is fully extended, and then push it down into its place.
Locking Mechanism:
And carabiener:
This is my first complaint with the knife. While doing this, its kinda hard to keep control of the knife while pushing it down, and I pinched my hand a couple of times doing this. Other than that, the carabiener works pretty well when hooked to a belt loop, but isn't very low profile.
If you don't want to clip it onto something and just keep it concealed, there is a clip on one side of the knife, but it is VERY stiff and a tad bit small. Opening the knife: You can open the knife in one of two ways, either by a little knob on the right side of the blade using your thumb, or a small appendage on the top of the knife over the main spring housing that Leatherman calls the BladeLaunch(tm). Opening with the knob is stiff, and needs to be broken in, but in the meantime its a bit sharp and hurts to open with the thumb, so I use the my nail. If would reccommend flicking your wrist at the same time you open the knife, the forward momentum really helps. I find using the BladeLaunch(tm) is easier, and takes less time, an important consideration if you're using it for SD. To open it with the BladeLaunch(tm), you just flick your wrist and, at the same time, press the lever with your index finger.
Opening Sequence:
The knife is a little stiff all over, but I think it just needs to be broken in. Okay, now for the blade. The overall length of the blade is 2.75 in. (closer to three if you count the non cutting edge), and is partially serrated. It is pretty sharp out of the box, and I'll just let the pictures speak for themselves.
The overall length open is 6.65 inches, and closed is 4 inches. Closed with the carabiener out is 5 inches. Ergonomics: Now this is where the knife really shines. It fits very comfortably in the hand, and the grip material is non-slip and comfortable. Now, for some technical mumbo jumbo and pros and cons.
Stats:
Blade opening: One-hand Blade Launcher, thumb stud
Blade material: 420 stainless steel
Lock mechanism: Locking liner
Closed length: 3.875"
Open length: 6.7"
Blade length: 2.8"
Weight: 3.0 oz., 86 grams
Blade grind: Hollow
Blade style: Combination straight and serrated (e301)
Blade finish: Bead-blasted
Handle material: Glass-filled nylon with rubber inserts
Pros: Fits well in hand, sharp, tough, carabiener, one handed opening, bottle opener
Cons: Stiff, stud opening is hard to use (maybe needs to be broken in
), heavy, expensive,
Final say: I would recommend this knife if you could find a deal on it, for $25 or so. The stiffness and opening problems maybe just typical of a new knife. This would make a nice truck knife, or if you live somewhere where people won't flip if they see someone with a knife on their belt, a good everyday carry knife. Thanks for reading my review.
Today I am reviewing the new Leatherman e301 assisted folding knife. It caught my eye a week back at Berings while looking at Swiss Army knives, but I didn't have any money then, so I came back for it. $27.95 without tax, so I handed over two twenty's, and with a 15% coupon only paid $25.72. So after stopping at a garage sale to buy a California Highway Patrol trucker hat (to get that whole JBT image down), I raced home on my bike and rushed to my room. There, I took the shiny tin case from my backpack and got the camera. It's reviewing time.
I took of the lid, and lo and behold, there was my prize.
My first impressions: wow, very tacticool looking, not very shiny (flash just makes it look that way), and, um, hard to get out of the case. Getting it out of the case was an excersise [sp?] in itself.
And back:
So finnally it was out, and I took a minute to scrutinize it. To fold it, there is a little piece of metal that you push to the side and fold it back, which is a little sharp on the edges of the fingers, but works pretty well. And next, a little farther down the knife, there's a little appendage that at first glance looks to be an allen wrench or screwdriver of some sort. So I pulled it out, and it is actually a carabeiner/bottle opener. To close the carabinier, you push on it while it is fully extended, and then push it down into its place.
Locking Mechanism:
And carabiener:
This is my first complaint with the knife. While doing this, its kinda hard to keep control of the knife while pushing it down, and I pinched my hand a couple of times doing this. Other than that, the carabiener works pretty well when hooked to a belt loop, but isn't very low profile.
If you don't want to clip it onto something and just keep it concealed, there is a clip on one side of the knife, but it is VERY stiff and a tad bit small. Opening the knife: You can open the knife in one of two ways, either by a little knob on the right side of the blade using your thumb, or a small appendage on the top of the knife over the main spring housing that Leatherman calls the BladeLaunch(tm). Opening with the knob is stiff, and needs to be broken in, but in the meantime its a bit sharp and hurts to open with the thumb, so I use the my nail. If would reccommend flicking your wrist at the same time you open the knife, the forward momentum really helps. I find using the BladeLaunch(tm) is easier, and takes less time, an important consideration if you're using it for SD. To open it with the BladeLaunch(tm), you just flick your wrist and, at the same time, press the lever with your index finger.
Opening Sequence:
The knife is a little stiff all over, but I think it just needs to be broken in. Okay, now for the blade. The overall length of the blade is 2.75 in. (closer to three if you count the non cutting edge), and is partially serrated. It is pretty sharp out of the box, and I'll just let the pictures speak for themselves.
The overall length open is 6.65 inches, and closed is 4 inches. Closed with the carabiener out is 5 inches. Ergonomics: Now this is where the knife really shines. It fits very comfortably in the hand, and the grip material is non-slip and comfortable. Now, for some technical mumbo jumbo and pros and cons.
Stats:
Blade opening: One-hand Blade Launcher, thumb stud
Blade material: 420 stainless steel
Lock mechanism: Locking liner
Closed length: 3.875"
Open length: 6.7"
Blade length: 2.8"
Weight: 3.0 oz., 86 grams
Blade grind: Hollow
Blade style: Combination straight and serrated (e301)
Blade finish: Bead-blasted
Handle material: Glass-filled nylon with rubber inserts
Pros: Fits well in hand, sharp, tough, carabiener, one handed opening, bottle opener
Cons: Stiff, stud opening is hard to use (maybe needs to be broken in
), heavy, expensive,Final say: I would recommend this knife if you could find a deal on it, for $25 or so. The stiffness and opening problems maybe just typical of a new knife. This would make a nice truck knife, or if you live somewhere where people won't flip if they see someone with a knife on their belt, a good everyday carry knife. Thanks for reading my review.
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