I'm thinking about buying a waved Commander as a Christmas present but I've been unimpressed with the locks on Emersons. I've got a Mach-1 that fails the spine-wack test miserably. Is the lock-up on the Commander stronger? I don't want to give someone a knife that could take their own fingers off under any hard use. Thanks!
Emerson locks--Strong enough?
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It's a QA issue that is supposed to have been resolved. Look at any liner lock and make sure that there's good engagement between the tang and lock. Look for the lock to be angled to have lots of contact area between it and the angled face of the tang. Be sure that the lock is difficult to unlock because the engagement is so good and that there's no "bounce" to the blade.
Had a guy over the shop a few weeks ago , his new emerson wasnt locking up like he thought it should... he cursed it up and down. I dissasembled it and there was a slight ridge on the backspacer that wasnt letting the knife liners stay parallel. A few wisks with a small file and reassembly and it was spot on.
Any company that makes as many knives as they do are bound to have a few get thru , but they stand behind their product and WILL make it right.
That ergo's on the commander are excellent.
I keep hoping for a HD7 style in a Commander
Any company that makes as many knives as they do are bound to have a few get thru , but they stand behind their product and WILL make it right.
That ergo's on the commander are excellent.
I keep hoping for a HD7 style in a Commander
I carry Emerson knives almost exclusively. I have never had on fail even under borderline abusive use.
I have had a couple of knives where I thought that the liner lock was too close to the opposite edge during lock up (none of these failed btw). I sent them back to Emerson and they made them right.
They stand behind their products. But from them with confidence.
I have had a couple of knives where I thought that the liner lock was too close to the opposite edge during lock up (none of these failed btw). I sent them back to Emerson and they made them right.
They stand behind their products. But from them with confidence.
I agree with JTW. I have been a loyal follower of Ernie Emerson's knives since the early 90's and have owned many of his custom knives and most of the production pieces at one time or another.
I think liner thickness is important but not as important as most people believe. Sure it's nice to have a thick lock like on a Mayo, Carson or Strider knife. But I have been around the block with thinner liner locks and have used them hard. I have yet to have a single one fail on me. IMHO the spine test really isn't a good test but some people think it is the end all be all test to determine if a knife is good or not.
Hell if you are looking for a knife that will take the utmost abuse then I highly recommend you take a look at a Strider SMF, SNG, AR or GB. Those knives are a bit more but they will last you a lifetime and they have a kick ass warranty unmatched by anyone else in the industry.
I think liner thickness is important but not as important as most people believe. Sure it's nice to have a thick lock like on a Mayo, Carson or Strider knife. But I have been around the block with thinner liner locks and have used them hard. I have yet to have a single one fail on me. IMHO the spine test really isn't a good test but some people think it is the end all be all test to determine if a knife is good or not.
Hell if you are looking for a knife that will take the utmost abuse then I highly recommend you take a look at a Strider SMF, SNG, AR or GB. Those knives are a bit more but they will last you a lifetime and they have a kick ass warranty unmatched by anyone else in the industry.
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Agreed bud... for a cutting tool , I never put much weight in the results of a spine whack test. Can't recall ever having to cut with the spine before
Iv'e had 5 Emerson's over the past year and am waiting on my first
Strider(SnG). Emersons can be good but the thin liners aren't very
forgiving of bad fitting between the tang and liner. For example, I
traded for a Commander a while back and it came with thicker liner
than normal on the locking side but it would go all the way to the opposite
side liner when locked. I sent it back to Emerson and they replaced the locking side liner with a thinner piece of ti that seemed to lock better
on the first 1/4 of the tang. After playing with it for awhile, I noticed that
the liner would slip slightly towards unlocked when I put pressure on the
spine of the blade, making me loose confidence in it as the blade does not
have a choil on it that would hit your index finger instead of the sharp edge It never slipped but that thin piece of titanium you could see
obviously bend when pushing on the spine of the blade!
It is not all negative though as I did have a CQC-11 that had a perfect
lockup(but the same thin liners). I wish I still had that 11 as I believe it
was a great knife to have for back up. I also had a couple of Mini Commanders that had good locks. Also a Mini CQC-7 that was great.
Overall I really like Emersons but I think they are being left behind by
manufacturers such as Kershaw(Zero Tolerance)(I have a JYD II that has a better lock than any Emerson I have ever seen, and it's $50!). Maybe I'll try one of their frame locks but then you are getting into the range of a Strider.
Strider(SnG). Emersons can be good but the thin liners aren't very
forgiving of bad fitting between the tang and liner. For example, I
traded for a Commander a while back and it came with thicker liner
than normal on the locking side but it would go all the way to the opposite
side liner when locked. I sent it back to Emerson and they replaced the locking side liner with a thinner piece of ti that seemed to lock better
on the first 1/4 of the tang. After playing with it for awhile, I noticed that
the liner would slip slightly towards unlocked when I put pressure on the
spine of the blade, making me loose confidence in it as the blade does not
have a choil on it that would hit your index finger instead of the sharp edge
It never slipped but that thin piece of titanium you could seeobviously bend when pushing on the spine of the blade!
It is not all negative though as I did have a CQC-11 that had a perfect
lockup(but the same thin liners). I wish I still had that 11 as I believe it
was a great knife to have for back up. I also had a couple of Mini Commanders that had good locks. Also a Mini CQC-7 that was great.
Overall I really like Emersons but I think they are being left behind by
manufacturers such as Kershaw(Zero Tolerance)(I have a JYD II that has a better lock than any Emerson I have ever seen, and it's $50!). Maybe I'll try one of their frame locks but then you are getting into the range of a Strider.
I have been carrying Ernie's HD-7 for about a year. Nothing has gone wrong, it stays sharp, and the construction is a frame lock. Thicker, and I prefer that design.
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