Ordered my first Sebenza

[murphjd25]

So get me hyped about it! This is my grail knife and I am very excited for it to get here!! Is it really like nothing else?? :)

[Sharp Guy]

Good for you Josh! I've wanted a small Seb for awhile now. Small Inkosi Insingo would be nice too. I haven't gone there (yet) because I can see that it'll just be a shorter path to my being broke!

[Sjucaveman]

They do have one I like but I have a slysz bowie being delivered tomorrow that cost about that much. Gonna wait a bit.

[murphjd25]

Good for you Josh! I've wanted a small Seb for awhile now. Small Inkosi Insingo would be nice too. I haven't gone there (yet) because I can see that it'll just be a shorter path to my being broke!

Thanks Pat! I’m pretty stoked. I had to sale off some Spydies that never got carried to afford it and a kidney haha

[kwakster]

CRK's are very well made knives with (since about mid 2013 ) excellently hardened S35VN steel, but from experience i can tell you that there is quite a bit of room for improvement regarding the consistency & sharpness of their factory edges.
I've seen their edge angles range from +/ 35 degrees inclusive up to well over 50 degrees inclusive, and quite a few buyers also find the initial sharpness quite underwhelming.
If you find the edge angle on your knife to be outside of the range that the Sharpmaker can handle i would recommend to have the edge professionally reprofiled to about 30 degrees inclusive (the steel can handle it), and from then on touching your knife up on the Sharpmaker will be the proverbial piece of cake.

[shunsui]

Never pulled the trigger on one, but they have a little magic in them.

I eventually picked up a Hinderer because I liked the ergos more.

[murphjd25]

CRK's are very well made knives with (since about mid 2013 ) excellently hardened S35VN steel, but from experience i can tell you that there is quite a bit of room for improvement regarding the consistency & sharpness of their factory edges.
I've seen their edge angles range from +/ 35 degrees inclusive up to well over 50 degrees inclusive, and quite a few buyers also find the initial sharpness quite underwhelming.
If you find the edge angle on your knife to be outside of the range that the Sharpmaker can handle i would recommend to have the edge professionally reprofiled to about 30 degrees inclusive (the steel can handle it), and from then on touching your knife up on the Sharpmaker will be the proverbial piece of cake.

Thanks for the tip! I had been reading about the convex edge from the factory and was already planning on having my buddy reprofile it to 30 or 40 so I can touch it up with the sharpmaker.

[ross8425]

I have a large inkosi with the insingo blade and a large sebenza with the drop point. From the factory the insingo blade was almost dull. Took 5 minutes to fix that. As for the sebenza, it was probably the sharpest knife I have ever unwrapped.

Seems like it's a guessing game, but they aren't hard to sharpen.

[Evil D]

I just really wish they'd use a thumb hole. At this price range I can't live with a thumb stud, too expensive to compromise.

[ross8425]

I just really wish they'd use a thumb hole. At this price range I can't live with a thumb stud, too expensive to compromise.

It probably wouldn't work. The CRK I have would only have about 1/3 of the hole sticking up. I don't think they are made to be rapid deployers. I do like the thumb hole as well since it sees to work better with gloves. They would have to totally redo the design to make a thumb hole work.

[Evil D]

I just really wish they'd use a thumb hole. At this price range I can't live with a thumb stud, too expensive to compromise.

It probably wouldn't work. The CRK I have would only have about 1/3 of the hole sticking up. I don't think they are made to be rapid deployers. I do like the thumb hole as well since it sees to work better with gloves. They would have to totally redo the design to make a thumb hole work.

Just needs a cutout in the handle scale. Lots of Spyderco's don't have thumb ramps. Regardless I don't think an Insingo would look bad with a thumb ramp.

[Sjucaveman]

I just really wish they'd use a thumb hole. At this price range I can't live with a thumb stud, too expensive to compromise.

It probably wouldn't work. The CRK I have would only have about 1/3 of the hole sticking up. I don't think they are made to be rapid deployers. I do like the thumb hole as well since it sees to work better with gloves. They would have to totally redo the design to make a thumb hole work.

Just needs a cutout in the handle scale. Lots of Spyderco's don't have thumb ramps. Regardless I don't think an Insingo would look bad with a thumb ramp.

Yes much like a spydiechef or slysz bowie. Would make a great knife even better.

[xceptnl]

I loved my older small classic Sebenza, loved the fact it was BG-42 steel, but eventually it had to go while demand was high. I hadn't carried it as often as I could have. It always seemed to get passed over in favor of the Jess Horn, Walker, Ti UKPK or Bolstered Caly 3. I still have my Zaan and have carried it in the last few months, but that Seb was never for me.

[Ric]

I also do not like thumbstuds.
Too 1990s for me.

A flipper would be cool.

[SpyderEdgeForever]

I also do not like thumbstuds.
Too 1990s for me.

A flipper would be cool.

Ric, what do you find to be the main downside or downsides to thumb studs as opposed to the Opening Hole or other mechanisms to open the folder with one hand? Is it because the thumb stud will catch on clothing and material and can be abrasive to the thumb?

Regarding the Sebenza, and other Chris Reeve Knives, they look amazing and all reviews I have ever read reveal them to be excellent using knives and they are cosmetically very appealing, as well. That Sebenza folder looks so great.

There is a fixed blade Chris Reeve knife I was considering, I forget the name of it, it is more of a one-piece Neck Knife and I like the blade shape and grind.

I could not find it on the website.

[Ric]

@SpyderEdgeForever

Not easy to explain.
I never connected to thumbstuds.
Not so grippy, very hard to impossible to middlefinger flick.
No compression lock

Annoying while sharpening. Sometimes impossible to really sharpen the edge.
Also makes the knife bigger.

Thumbhole:
ambidextrous
Thumb or middle finger
Slow or fast
Not in the way
Can be "waved"

Do you like thumbstuds.
What are your PROs on it?

[Evil D]

The only time I'm sorta ok with thumb studs is if they also double as a blade stop, but even then they aren't as good for opening as a hole is. Studs get in the way of slicing and sharpening depending on how you sharpen and I don't think they look as good but that's subjective. It's an antiquated design on an otherwise great knife.

[ross8425]

My first "real" knife, so to speak, was a BM Mini Grip. Never had any issues with anything I cut where the thumb stud got in the way. I made a jack o lantern with a BM 615; thumb studs never got in the way. I can see where you are coming from though; but the half inch between the thumb stud and the handle never got in my way.

As for not being able to middle finger flick open a thumb studded knife, I cannot say I have tried that. The BMs I have will fall open, so it doesn't seem out of the realm of possibility.

The thing that was exciting to me is that the CRK knives I have are the first thing I have found in the last 10 years that actually compete with my PM2s, which I am pretty sure cannot be replaced as my favorite folding knife. One thing that I really love is how a CRK has to be deliberately opened, and once it is, it will not simply fall shut if closed to a certain point.

My number one favorite thing about these knives is the open and encouraged disassembly for cleaning purposes. For example, yesterday I opened several bags of mortar mix with my Inkosi. It was nasty and had sand and concrete all in the pivot. Afterwards, I took it apart, cleaned it up, re-greased it, and put it back together. If I was to get stuck, I can watch Tim Reeve taking it apart and putting it back together.

I am not a knife flicker, so rapid deployment, and flicking open knives to the resounding click is not really my thing.

One thing to keep in mind too, is that if you don't like it, you can probably still sell it for almost (if not) full price.

[Evil D]

My first "real" knife, so to speak, was a BM Mini Grip. Never had any issues with anything I cut where the thumb stud got in the way. I made a jack o lantern with a BM 615; thumb studs never got in the way. I can see where you are coming from though; but the half inch between the thumb stud and the handle never got in my way.

As for not being able to middle finger flick open a thumb studded knife, I cannot say I have tried that. The BMs I have will fall open, so it doesn't seem out of the realm of possibility.

The thing that was exciting to me is that the CRK knives I have are the first thing I have found in the last 10 years that actually compete with my PM2s, which I am pretty sure cannot be replaced as my favorite folding knife. One thing that I really love is how a CRK has to be deliberately opened, and once it is, it will not simply fall shut if closed to a certain point.

My number one favorite thing about these knives is the open and encouraged disassembly for cleaning purposes. For example, yesterday I opened several bags of mortar mix with my Inkosi. It was nasty and had sand and concrete all in the pivot. Afterwards, I took it apart, cleaned it up, re-greased it, and put it back together. If I was to get stuck, I can watch Tim Reeve taking it apart and putting it back together.

I am not a knife flicker, so rapid deployment, and flicking open knives to the resounding click is not really my thing.

One thing to keep in mind too, is that if you don't like it, you can probably still sell it for almost (if not) full price.

It's just a preference thing, and when I'm spending $400+ I get a lot more stubborn about those preferences. Even the slightest annoyance is a turn off. For that much money it has to check ALL the boxes, not just most. I'm not going to "learn to love" a $400 knife, it has to be love at first sight.

[ross8425]

It's just a preference thing, and when I'm spending $400+ I get a lot more stubborn about those preferences. Even the slightest annoyance is a turn off. For that much money it has to check ALL the boxes, not just most. I'm not going to "learn to love" a $400 knife, it has to be love at first sight.

Very well said!

I guess since I have no real preference of stud vs thumb hole, this was never a concern for me. :)

I was between a XM18 / MP1 or the CRK knives, and the Hinderers did not check off enough boxes for me, so I did not go that route. Plus I hear they are like a brick to carry. The flipper thing is something I can never like, which is another reason. The tab sticking out of the back of the handle is a complete turn off to me and seems like it would get hung up trying to take it out of my pocket. haha