Demko AD-20.5 CPM-3V Knifecenter Exclusive

[Boss Hogg]

I’ve been wanting to see what all the hype was about with the shark lock, but I couldn’t afford a secondary market AD-20, and the regular 20.5 in Aus10A (or D2) wasn’t doing it for me. But I’m a big fan of CPM-3V from several of my bushcraft knives, so I couldn’t pass this one up:

https://www.knifecenter.com/item/ADKAD2 ... -exclusive

I’ve got to say…this knife is just really **** cool. It seems very well built, has great ergos, and the fidget factor is among the best that I’ve ever handled (as expected). The blade is sharp enough and the edge is profiled well enough that I don’t need to do a thing. I believe these are made by Cold Steel, and whatever Taiwanese factory that they’re using is doing an excellent job, at least based on this one example. No - it’s not quite as nice as some of my Taiwan Spydecos that cost a lot more, but I’d say that it’s built just bit better than the Seki City Spydies that I have that cost about the same.

So, is it worth basically $200? After having it for the past 48 hours, I’d say a resounding yes, and I’m considering getting a second one in red with their “shark foot” blade.

I don’t venture outside of Spyderco for folders very often, but I think that these are very much worth a try to anyone on the fence…and now I really want to get my hands on the larger American version.

[mikey177]

Nice score. Does the shark lock feel uncomfortable when you choke up on the handle? I've been thinking about this model but I haven't gotten one yet.

[Boss Hogg]

Nice score. Does the shark lock feel uncomfortable when you choke up on the handle? I've been thinking about this model but I haven't gotten one yet.

For me at least, my thumb misses the lock bar area and is more forward on the blade jimping when I’m holding it in a choked position. My index finger is pressed against the bottom grivory “horn” protrusion behind the sharpening choil.

In a standard grip, there is jimping on the lock bar ramp itself, so I’m not feeling any hot spots from the lock either way.

Here are two pictures, but they are a bit slanted from normal as I had to angle the knife to get the shots taken with my other hand.

[mikey177]

Thank you for the photos, they are very helpful. I'll probably try a sharks foot variant when funds permit.

[Boss Hogg]

Thank you for the photos, they are very helpful. I'll probably try a sharks foot variant when funds permit.

Glad that the pics were helpful…

I just ordered the red Sharks Foot in 3V from Knifecenter. I’ll update this post with some comparison pics and my impressions of the two knives when it arrives.

[Boss Hogg]

UPDATE:

I got the red Shark Foot variant yesterday, and I’ve had a day to carry it around. As far as fit and finish, both knives are very close to the same. The stonewash pattern looks more similar in person than it does in the pictures below. The centering is better on the Shark Foot. Obviously, the blade is longer on the drop point, but that length won’t be a factor in use. It’ll just matter what task one is doing to determine which blade shape works better for that task.

Action wise, both knives perform almost identically, with the same detent and open/close performance. Ergonomically, I like both equally with a full grip, but I ever so slightly prefer the drop point when choked up. If you look at the third picture, you can see that the Shark Foot has a metal lateral bump-out after the choil but before the Grivory starts (ricasso area), whereas the drop point’s respective area is flush to the Grivory. It doesn’t really make a hot spot on the Shark Foot, but it is noticiable.

Cutting wise, the 3V seems excellent so far. I’ve been carrying the drop point since I got it a week ago, and I have used it a fair amount. I don’t need to strop it yet, and I’ve cut through a decent amount of rope and cardboard doing tree work and breaking down boxes.

[Bemo]

Arghh! I've been looking at these for awhile but the standard steel dissuaded me. This is very tempting but I'm not sold on the lock in the chocked up position yet. Thanks for sharing.

[Boss Hogg]

Arghh! I've been looking at these for awhile but the standard steel dissuaded me. This is very tempting but I'm not sold on the lock in the chocked up position yet. Thanks for sharing.

No problem…hope my input is helpful.

I find them both comfortable overall in the choked position, but I’m not sure if every hand shape and size would avoid touching the lock like mine does.

[JSumm]

Titanium handles in 3V just came back in stock. $315

https://www.knifecenter.com/item/ADKAD2 ... um-handles

[mikey177]

The D2 variants are on sale this weekend, less one shark foot in orange grivory.

[Boss Hogg]

Titanium handles in 3V just came back in stock. $315

https://www.knifecenter.com/item/ADKAD2 ... um-handles

The D2 variants are on sale this weekend, less one shark foot in orange grivory.

There are also new DLC variants out in 3V. I just ordered the clip point in black Grivory:

https://www.knifecenter.com/item/ADKAD2 ... -exclusive

…as well as a Shark Foot full Ti 3V:

https://www.knifecenter.com/item/ADKAD2 ... um-handles

At the time of this post, they are already all out of clip point Ti’s, and they only have 20 Shark Foots (Feet?) remaining.

[Manifestgtr]

3v and micarta answered every issue I had with this knife. I didn’t wanna feel like I was buying it just for the lock. A good steel, the right scales and blammo…

[Boss Hogg]

3v and micarta answered every issue I had with this knife. I didn’t wanna feel like I was buying it just for the lock. A good steel, the right scales and blammo…

712E7F2C-D8AE-4648-9907-DBD7BEABDD49.jpeg

Where did you get the micarta scales? I dig that with the 3V a lot.

[Manifestgtr]

3v and micarta answered every issue I had with this knife. I didn’t wanna feel like I was buying it just for the lock. A good steel, the right scales and blammo…

712E7F2C-D8AE-4648-9907-DBD7BEABDD49.jpeg

Where did you get the micarta scales? I dig that with the 3V a lot.

For sure, 3v and micarta feel more inline with the design philosophy of this model. I got the scales from DLT trading. They’re really nice…didn’t mess with the tolerances at all, which is always a consideration when swapping scales.

[Boss Hogg]

For sure, 3v and micarta feel more inline with the design philosophy of this model. I got the scales from DLT trading. They’re really nice…didn’t mess with the tolerances at all, which is always a consideration when swapping scales.

I agree. Andrew Demko himself says that his favorite steel is 3V, and this model (especially the clip point) always seemed like an outdoor/camping folder to me. I didn’t really get that same feeling from the AD20 or the Cold Steel variants.

Thanks - I had no idea that DLT had such a large selection of scales for this knife. I think I’ll pick some micarta up to replace the Grivory on my clip point.

[Manifestgtr]

For sure, 3v and micarta feel more inline with the design philosophy of this model. I got the scales from DLT trading. They’re really nice…didn’t mess with the tolerances at all, which is always a consideration when swapping scales.

Thanks - I had no idea that DLT had such a large selection of scales for this knife. I think I’ll pick some micarta up to replace the Grivory on my clip point.

Absolutely

[Boss Hogg]

I got the black Grivory/black DLC coated 3V clip point today, as well as the Shark Foot Ti 3V. Here are some comparative pics (I’m sure anyone looking at this is already aware of the differences):

The only thing that I want to point out that I haven’t seen mentioned elsewhere is that the knives have a different shape near the top/front of the scales. The Ti is slanted, and the Grivory is more straight (look at the 3rd and 4th pics). It doesn’t really make any difference, but I didn’t expect that.

Here are my initial thoughts after owning a few of these, and just getting the Ti:

The Ti is better, hands down. Is it worth that much more than the Grivory? Maybe…

The Grivory knives are very good. To a non-knife person, these might be the best knives that they’ve ever used, and they’d never question the materials.

I’m planning on replacing the DLC version with Micarta (thanks again @Manifestgtr), but that’s because I’m a knife nut. It is totally great the way it is, and I’m sure that I’d never worry about upgrading it if I didn’t know that I could.

Now, the Ti knife is just excellent, and it immediately feels like how this knife is meant to be. I think that for a knife enthusiast, it’s the one to get for sure…but again, for the average Joe, it’s just overkill and unnecessary. But if you can get your hands on one, this is definitely the AD20.5 to experience.

[Manixguy@1994]

I had an opportunity to handle one this morning , I think this design for me would have to be in pocket for a while to decide if it would be a good fit for me . I’m just not sure about the thumb placement, but others may not have an issue with the design . MG2

[Boss Hogg]

There is a new variant out as a Knifecenter exclusive…this time with textured ti scales and 3V (both blade shapes)…Looks like there are plenty in stock for the moment:

https://www.knifecenter.com/listing/and ... 4&kcno=123

[Evil D]

I had an opportunity to handle one this morning , I think this design for me would have to be in pocket for a while to decide if it would be a good fit for me . I’m just not sure about the thumb placement, but others may not have an issue with the design . MG2

This is where I'm at with it, plus I hate thumb studs but I've been intrigued enough by the lock that I was really tempted by the textured titanium one they just released but that shark fin deal seems like an ergonomic mistake to me. Cold Steel has a new lock that looks suspiciously similar in operation but the trigger to unlock it is flush on the spine and that makes far more sense to me.