Early days thoughts on the Brouwer

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SG89
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Re: Early days thoughts on the Brouwer

#21

Post by SG89 »

I liked the Brouwer but I also think it should've been a linerlock for cost savings.
Spydergirl88
3 Nats, 1 Chap, 1 Sham, 1 Urb
Marulaghost
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Re: Early days thoughts on the Brouwer

#22

Post by Marulaghost »

Maybe a brouwer 2 should be in the works,
And some steel variants of the original!
Marko
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Re: Early days thoughts on the Brouwer

#23

Post by Marko »

Funny to see this much maligned model finally discussed again. I ordered one as soon as they were available through Campsaver last spring. I had not become so enamoured with a Spyderco model since the intro of the Para I or LiL’ Temp. For what ever reason it just looked like a neat knife, to me. So I think having no expectations I ended up loving the knife a lot more than I thought I would. I carried it almost non-stop for six months. It saw a lot of use in the field, survived muddy, wet and sweaty conditions. The edge was easy to maintain. Disassembly was a snap. No issues with lock-up or centering. I personally liked the clip, however, I agree with some that a wire clip would probably be better suited for the Brouwer.

In Dec, I attending a military driving school and lost the knife somewhere on the track... that knife fit my needs perfectly. I’m hoping to pick up a replacement this summer after I get a Drunken...
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Maximumsmoochy
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Re: Early days thoughts on the Brouwer

#24

Post by Maximumsmoochy »

OP with ~6 week update. Points in no particular order:
1) Brouwer has really grown on me. It's tougher than I expected, and can go toe-to-toe with anything else in my collection as a general purpose carry
2) I took the pocket clip right off, and that has made the handling/ergos even better, certainly keeps the butt-end hidden in pocket now
3) The smoothness and contours are classy and subtle, makes this knife pleasingly neutral in use around non-knife people (NKPs)
4) S30V blade turns out to be just fine, a little boring maybe considering the $ tag and intended pedigree, but it's a great default
Past: Dragonfly, Air, Rhino, Lil' Native, Techno 2, Caly Jr., Brouwer, Chap LW, Para3, N5, Watu, ‘Chef, Mantra 2, SSStretch, PM2, Smock, Shaman, Advocate, GB2, Kapara, Military, Bradley Bowie, Province

Present: P4 K390 FRN

Future: Para3 Cruwear (someday)

Regrets: Most of them
PSquared
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Re: Early days thoughts on the Brouwer

#25

Post by PSquared »

Rather than start a new thread, I've added my early thoughts on the Jerry Brouwer that I received last week here. Firstly a bit of context - I live in an urban environment with very little daily requirement for a knife other than opening post, trimming threads, occasionally cutting cardboard and some food prep, not because I need to but because it gives me something to cut with my pocket knives. Generally I carry knives in the 3" to 3.25" blade length range. I'm more than happy with S30V and it, and VG10, are my most carried steels.

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A Strider PT is one of my preferred sub-3" knives and the similarities between it and the Brouwer were the initial attraction for me and what eventually got me to order a Brouwer.

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So out the box impressions were good. I knew the clip was an issue so an aftermarket clip went on immediately. I like that the cut out in the lock bar is on the inside face (in true CRK style) rather than on the outside as I have had issues with fabric bunching in around the cutout and clip when the cutout is on the outside (Southard, PT as examples). I'm over knives chewing up my pants so the smooth Ti face works really well for me and the knife slides easily in and out of the pocket without snagging. The smooth back is also nice as my knives ride in my right front pocket with other stuff so my hand slides past the knife easily when reaching for something else in my pocket. Retention in the pocket is fine and the third screw from the original clip that I installed on the G10 face gives a nice extra bit of traction when withdrawing the knife from the pocket.

The blade is pretty much as I expected. Probably slightly less cutting edge than anticipated but it's fine for it's intended use. As has been my experience with Taichung knives, the factory edge wasn't as good as the Seki or Golden models and it felt like it had a wire edge out of the box. A bit of time with the Sharpmaker and a cork sorted that out and put "my" edge on. Opening the blade as a "righty" is no problem. "Lefties" will have a problem as will those that Spyderflick. Detent is perfect as is the blade centering. I really like not having jimping in the choil. I also like that the peak at the back of the choil is slightly radiused rather than a sharp point (note in the comparison photo with the N5 I have rounded the carbon fibre to make it more comfortable for me).

Looking at a few of the knives in this category I like carrying, I think it has a fighting chance of getting pocket time. Below a few regulars that it is up against for pocket time :

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I was surprised that closed, the package is very similar in size to the Sebenza and Centofante Memory.

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Overall length is not that much shorter than a Native 5 with not much less cutting edge in a smaller overall package.

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So what does it actually cut like? I find it very comfortable in hand and have, over the last five days of carry, not experienced any hotspots. Cutting up cardboard boxes was a pleasure thanks to the full flat grind.

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So today is a public holiday (and a beautiful day) and I decided to use the Brouwer to prep the chicken that went on the Weber for lunch. Cleaning up the chicken was no problem and whilst the blade is too short to cut a lemon without circling around, it works. I'm not going to dice onions with it though.

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Cutting up the bird for lunch, left overs and most importantly for the stock pot was a breeze. With a 40 degree micro bevel I could be a bit less careful around bones than I would be with my finer kitchen knives.

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Overall I like it ... Can I compare it directly with a Strider PT or a Sebenza - No, it's not a $350 knife but at the price (including the cost of the aftermarket clip), I think it works even with "just" S30V. The cutting edge is maybe a bit short and in an ideal world I'd have preferred a slightly smaller choil and more cutting edge but that is nit picking. When my diamonds are out again, I'll reprofile it more because I want to rather than because it needs it. I suspect this has enough going for it to stay in my rotation after the honeymoon is over.
RazorSharp86
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Re: Early days thoughts on the Brouwer

#26

Post by RazorSharp86 »

I also really love the Brouwer. It is perhaps Spyderco’s most underrated pocket knife.
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gull wing
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Re: Early days thoughts on the Brouwer

#27

Post by gull wing »

Just got one.
Despite having too many S30V knives and not fond of sharpening S30V, bought one anyway . This knife was just too cute to pass up.
The finish on the titanium is great, looks stonewashed but is near smooth. There no flaws in this knife.
Really like the blade shape and the closed position with no hump make this knife an easy carry. I'm a small person and this knife makes going IWB easy. I solved the "clip" location problem with a MXG short clip.

Happy!
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SCARAMOUCHE! :bug-red-white
Baron Mind
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Re: Early days thoughts on the Brouwer

#28

Post by Baron Mind »

My Brouwer has become my go to, most carried knife. Unless I have a specific reason to carry something else, the Brouwer is what's in my pocket. I agree with a poster above, easily Spyderco's most underrated knife.
koenigsegg
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Re: Early days thoughts on the Brouwer

#29

Post by koenigsegg »

As much as I love ti I'd like to see a lightweight of this model. It's so compact I think it would lend well. Also stainless handles would be really cool like the kopa
S30V, VG10, M4, XHP, BD1, Cruwear, Elmax, Maxamet, 204P, H1, K390, A11, Rex45, LC200N, M390, 20CV, BD1N, S45VN waiting to afford MagnaCut
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gull wing
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Re: Early days thoughts on the Brouwer

#30

Post by gull wing »

:) Lightweight is good, but this knife is quite lightweight on it's own. What else do I like about this knife, it's not back end heavy.
Stainless steel knives tend to be a bit heavy.
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BG-ThatsMe
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Re: Early days thoughts on the Brouwer

#31

Post by BG-ThatsMe »

The Brouwer hits on many of the things that I like...and I agree with much of what’s already been covered. I carry it un clipped in my pocket, so the stock clip works for me, although I wish it was titanium to better fit with the other materials on the knife.

I do have an issue with the lock bar on mine. The spring strength is either weak, or the thickness of the bar is undersized because my lock interface has so little pressure/friction on the tang that a small squeeze from my hand when bearing down on hard materials disengages the lock. If my thumb is on the spine, the blade moves toward closing. I wonder if the super-sized choil was an intentional safety mechanism especially when looking at the really large relief area in the handle exposing a lot of that lock bar.

People complain about the inaccessibility of the Gayle Bradley lock bars, but I now have a renewed appreciation for a folder that stays locked when in use.

I like everything else so much about this design that I’ll send it in to see if the pros at HQ can make an adjustment to tighten up the lock interface.

It’s so good otherwise, that I’m hoping that mine is just slightly out of spec.
soulspy
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Re: Early days thoughts on the Brouwer

#32

Post by soulspy »

BG-ThatsMe wrote:
Sat Dec 07, 2019 11:10 pm
The Brouwer hits on many of the things that I like...and I agree with much of what’s already been covered. I carry it un clipped in my pocket, so the stock clip works for me, although I wish it was titanium to better fit with the other materials on the knife.

I do have an issue with the lock bar on mine. The spring strength is either weak, or the thickness of the bar is undersized because my lock interface has so little pressure/friction on the tang that a small squeeze from my hand when bearing down on hard materials disengages the lock. If my thumb is on the spine, the blade moves toward closing. I wonder if the super-sized choil was an intentional safety mechanism especially when looking at the really large relief area in the handle exposing a lot of that lock bar.

People complain about the inaccessibility of the Gayle Bradley lock bars, but I now have a renewed appreciation for a folder that stays locked when in use.

I like everything else so much about this design that I’ll send it in to see if the pros at HQ can make an adjustment to tighten up the lock interface.

It’s so good otherwise, that I’m hoping that mine is just slightly out of spec.
My Brouwer has the same weak *** lock bar. Almost looks to have a double bend in the lock bar. Mine doesn't sound as touchy as yours, but it is very light tension.
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ChrisinHove
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Re: Early days thoughts on the Brouwer

#33

Post by ChrisinHove »

The lock bar on mine is also a very slight S - I guess it is to keep the lock bar insert component in alignment. Lock bar spring tension is decent.
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