incoming knife i totally forgot about...

[denn]

today i received a Byrd Firebyrd. it's a bottle-opener with a blade and has a slide-click section for disposable lighters...

http://spyderco.com/catalog/details.php?product=207

pro's:

-all-in-one fun-gadget
-tip down clip
-easy open-close (the 'Byrd-hole' works...)
-lightweight aluminum

con's:

-thick (1")
-bottle-opener is upside-down (annoying and unneccesary)
-notch-joint blade doesn't lock
-only lighters with specific dimensions will fit
(at least 3" long, and around 0.6" thick)
-sheepsfoot blade (not too big a fan of it)
-price a tad high

so far for this mini-review :)

denn

[Harry White]

i like the firebyrd. wound up taking off the clip and tying a short, simple paracord lanyard to it.

you get used to the upside-down bottle-opener pretty quickly (and it does work well).

i also took my 701s out and smoothed the sharp inner edges of the handle where the blade recesses when its closed.

its also a great gift idea!

[Piet.S]

Allright, someone please enlight me.
The link shows a price tag of $180?
Can't think of anything but a typo.

Looks a party knife to me Dennis.
I allways used to open bottles with the spine of the blade, never cut myself this way.

[myatt371]

Allright, someone please enlight me.
The link shows a price tag of $180?
Can't think of anything but a typo

That price is for a 12 pack!! :D

[denn]

That price is for a 12 pack!! :D

yeah, i made that 'mistake' myself as well. i even emailed Joyce and Kristi about "a perceived pricing-error in the catalog"............d'oh! :o

[denn]

.

Looks a party knife to me Dennis.
I allways used to open bottles with the spine of the blade, never cut myself this way.

impressive. never tried that before. how do you do it? just give it a hard whack with the blade-spine? or do you use a leverage-motion to pop the cap?

[Piet.S]

impressive. never tried that before. how do you do it? just give it a hard whack with the blade-spine? or do you use a leverage-motion to pop the cap?

Leverage basicly, the trick is to hold the neck of the bottle real high.
Then you slip the spine of your opened knife, close to the handle, under the cap.
The edge of the blade is now pointing up at about 45 degrees.
Hold the bottle firmly and make a twisting motion with your knifehand like you are shutting down a throttle fast.
If done right, the edge never reaches your hand.

Allright, never try this at home and all that, use your brains and don't let anyone come whining at my door if he did cut himself.
Try it with a dull blade first and a broader blade works better.
It is also hard on folders, but that won't be a surprise.

Now this really is not meant as a sort of macho behavior.
Some use a lighter to pop open a bottle, others use their knife.
You just don't carry a bottle opener around, do you?

[spydutch]

You just don't carry a bottle opener around, do you?

:o :o :o :o

Nice gadget Dennis :cool:

[Kaizen]

The Firebyrd looks like a great, er contraption Denn. I was actually planning on getting a 12 pack to give to friends, but I have a couple of friends who are "trying" to quit smoking and get in better shape and I think it might give the wrong impression. The Firebyrd really looks great to me, but it just screams "party" to me, which isn't a bad thing, just inappropriate for some of my friends right at this moment.

I've read about some using the wave on their D4s and E4s to open bottles. Anyone here actually do that?

[Jordan]

I use my police model to open bottles exclusively. What you do is take the knife in a closed position and place the back edge of the blade (pretty much right where the blade meets the handle, you know, on the thumb rest portion of the spine) between the thumb and the bottle cap. Make sure everything is pretty flush or you might end up with a sore thumb from putting unnecessary pressure on it, and then lever the bottle cap off. It takes a little practice, but the thumb rest is perfectly contoured to wrap around a bottle neck about a quarter of the way and maximize surface contact (and thereby, leverage). It works much better than a lighter or the .25 cent bottle opener I have on my keychain, and its a great deal more accessible.