Do any of you junkies have Surefire knives?

[tundratrader]

I am mainly looking at the EW-04 but cant find any decent reviews. It seems like it would be hard for surefire to make a bad product but you never know. I like that the knife has the glass breaker and seatbelt cutter built in. The wrench is probably just about useless. If anyone has any pics or any info about the Surefire knives I would really appreciate it.
Thanks
Zach

 

[cbxer55]

NO!

Way too expensive! Possibly way too over-rated as well.

Buy a Benchmade, Cold Steel, Spyderco, etc. Leave the Surefires on the shelf.

I do not hate Surefire, have several of their lights. But to me, it is like buying a Harley. You are paying a premium for a name.

 

[Morelite]

NO!

Way too expensive! Possibly way too over-rated as well.

Buy a Benchmade, Cold Steel, Spyderco, etc. Leave the Surefires on the shelf.

I do not hate Surefire, have several of their lights. But to me, it is like buying a Harley. You are paying a premium for a name.

+1, I'm into the Bob Terzuola knives at the moment.

 

[jp2515]

IMO Surefire makes nice lights. Their knives are great too but I have no practical use for them (not to mention the prices). Even if I had a SF knife, still day after day, the Spyderco/Benchmade/Kershaw/Boker would probably see more use

 

[Patriot]

IMO Surefire makes nice lights. Their knives are great too but I have no practical use for them (not to mention the prices). Even if I had a SF knife, still day after day, the Spyderco/Benchmade/Kershaw/Boker would probably see more use

+1 to everything jp2515 said.

 

[Search]

I really wanted the "Edge" (EW-09) after seeing it in their catalog. It's only 199 which is better than some of the others. However, I still think I'll get a ZT 0350.

 

[Kiessling]

I have the "Delta". It was the first expensive knife I bought and I still don't really know how to tell why it is inferior to the others in this price range.

I buy some knives for the gadget-factor and use them mostly for ...

... so my opinion doesn't really count that much.

Some more pics:

Next to a Frad Carter GIGAND


I was attracted because I never touched a good knife before and because of the window breaker and seat belt cutter.

The wrench is dangerous IMHO because upon closing the knife, my fingertips tend to slip inside and get cut :sick2:
The opening is super smooth and it has a single satisfying "clack", lockup is stable, blade is centered.

bernie

 

[TKC]

No, I can't stand the looks of SF knives!! :sick2:And for the price, I would rather have a nice custom knife.

 

[kwkarth]

In the knife kingdom there are far better values to be had IMHO. In fact, Bernie, I think that's a pretty cheesy use you've put the SF to. :laughing:

Look at that god awful pivot screw on the SF! Not the best of design choices, likewise with the mid handle multi-wrench. At least CPM S30V is pretty good steel. But a better knife could be had for 100 bux.

 

[Kiessling]

It did cut the cheese very well indeed, we had a satisfying meal thanx to SF

But now that we have the experts here ... what exactly makes rthe SF knife less good or too expensive compared to other knives?

Let's say compared to a Strider or an XM-18, which all cost about the same?

I am new to the knife world and I wanna know everything

I have an XM18 and a PT ...

... and while I am awed by the look and feel of the Hinderer, I can't really say why the SF is inferior.

The blade is thinner, ok, and you cut your fingers in the hex whole :sick2: ... but otherwise? :thinking:

The movement of the Strider is way grittier than the smooth SF and the opening and closing sound and feel of the SF is at least as nice as the others.
Please educate a noob! :bow:

bernie

 

[jzmtl]

Buy flashlights from a flashlight company, knives from a knife company, pens from a pen company. When one company ventures into another field they may (but most of the time does not) make something comparable to what another company who specialized in that field can do, but you will pay much more for it.

 

[kwkarth]

Buy flashlights from a flashlight company, knives from a knife company, pens from a pen company. When one company ventures into another field they may (but most of the time does not) make something comparable to what another company who specialized in that field can do, but you will pay much more for it.

This is generally sage advice. US knife manufacturers that I would consider are Lone Wolf, SOG, Benchmade, Leatherman, William Henry, Spyderco, . There are many more, but these are the ones I am most familiar with.

My personal favorites are Lone Wolf, Benchmade, and William Henry.

Lone Wolf and William Henry are two are Oregon companies who make ALL of their products here in Oregon, so they support the local economy and provide US jobs.

Benchmade and Leatherman are also Oregon companies and make most of their knives and tools here in Oregon, and therefore support the local economy and provide jobs.

CRKT and Gerber are also Oregon companies but they outsource/offshore most of their products. CRKT quality is usually pretty good, but Gerber has fallen waaaaay down in quality since Fiskars bought them out.

 

[tundratrader]

I fully understand that surefire is a flashlight company but I really feel like they can do no wrong. I have never seen one of these in person so I wouldnt buy one until then anyways. It is not like I need another knife but I am very intrigued. I mean do any of us really need anything more that a G2? I think in no way could this knife compare to my xm-18 though. My strider I really like but I have never seen the equal to the xm-18.

 

[Kiessling]

I have both an XM-18 and a SF Delta, but unfortunately I have no clue about knives.
My uneducated purely instinctive response would be that the XM-18 is in another league. It is the most bad-*** knife I have ever held.

bernie

 

[Patriot]

It's difficult sometimes Bernie to place a finger on what exactly makes one knife better than another or at least a better value, if nothing else. One of the "problems" with SF selling knives, in the eyes of a lot of enthusiasts, is that there is a lot of pre-existing competition. These aren't "complicated" devices and so there's really no way of hiding intrinsic value under the skin somehow. Knives are easier to directly compare, because they all use a measurable blade steel, handle material and lock system. Beyond that is mostly style and ergonomics so if they fall a bit short in that area it's considered a large deficit. When you compare the features, styling, and material of a $80 Kershaw for example to a Delta, there's really nothing about the Delta that I'd rather have over the Kershaw. Surefire uses some fairly exotic styles which sometimes compromise usability, whether it be a handle feature or a characteristic of the blade shape or a combination of each.

I was recently looking at the LEO model and thought that the thumb stud was way too close to the pivot point and didn't provide much leverage when opening. The pocket clip uses a single screw which is a real turn off and the mechanical arm for chopping flex cuffs just seems oddly redundant since a sharp blade goes through them like butter anyhow. I say, just make it a recessed safety cutter and leave the mechanics out of it. Lastly, I just don't think a finger guard is necessary on a knife it's size and it just further uglifies an already unconventional blade style. The cut at the top edge seems odd and I'm trying to understand what if any advantage it provides. If they have to stick with that blade shape, why not do something useful like a full flat grind? And the Delta.....well, I'm wondering what person at SF made the decision to release it for sale with that phillips style pivot screw and round head, protruding, slotted handle screws.:green: I mean, don't they guys read the magazines, reviews, or accidentally stumble across the styling cues of other modern, tactical folders? Do they know what a torx is?

If their knives were half the price at least I could put them on a table together and start comparing them feature for feature but at the price point they carry now it's sort of become the standing giggle in that not many take them too seriously. I think many SF knives are purchased by name association alone thinking that because it's a SF, "it must be the best." The fact is, they're well behind the cool curve in an age where the image of a $100 "working" knife is favored by a larger percentage of buyers. For example, most people would rather be the proud owner of a RAT RC-4 than a Surefire Echo and where people want something more upscale, they can move to a BRKT, Fallkniven or any number of choices that will cost from 1/3 - 2/3rds the amount of the SF with no sacrifice performance.

I think SF would do well to collaborate with a big name custom maker and then license them under the custom makers name. I'm only guessing but I would think that a few makers would love to be associated with SF. The thing is, SF would have to take a back seat and let the knife guy do what they do best.

 

[Lightraven]

the mechanical arm for chopping flex cuffs just seems oddly redundant since a sharp blade goes through them like butter anyhow. I say, just make it a recessed safety cutter and leave the mechanics out of it.

The other night, I made contact with two 19 year olds. They ran from me and I chased them down. Once I had them on the ground, my coworkers arrived and flexcuffed them tight.

Back at the station, I asked someone to cut the cuffs. He used a Gerber multiplier for the first guy's cuff, but the second guy's was too tight for the jaw to slip under. My fellow pulled out his knife and the arrestee freaked out. I didn't want this guy's wrist getting opened, so I got my Monadnock flex cuff cutters. They work better than a Multiplier/Leatherman, but pinch your hands when they chop the cuff. That blows.

The guy pulled on his flex cuff to try to get it off, which just ratcheted it down tighter, then yowled at the pain. I tried using the cuff cutters, but he yelped. We considered calling paramedics to remove it. Finally, I told him the cuff was coming off, but he'd be in pain for a few seconds. I buried the jaws of the cutter into his wrist, made the cuts on the plastic and the cuff came off while he sucked his teeth in pain.

 

[RedLED]

They did have a relationship with knife maker, Steve Ryan. I am not sure that relationship is still intact.

I met Ryan at a knife show years ago, when SF announced the knife addition. He seemed to have an attitude.

He was the designer, and I think he licensed the designs to SF?

That's all I know.

 

[Kiessling]

I think many SF knives are purchased by name association alone thinking that because it's a SF, "it must be the best."

That's exactly what I did.
Not knowing anything about knives I handled the Delta on a show and was in awe, so I bought it.

Now that I have a XM-18 that puts things into perspective somewhat.

But ... are you basically saying that the problem with SF knives is a combination of ergonomics, coolness factor and strange features? Because comparing the Delta to my other knives I can't really find a flaw in the workmanship, the lockup or the movement.

bernie

 

[kwkarth]

That's exactly what I did.
Not knowing anything about knives I handled the Delta on a show and was in awe, so I bought it.

Now that I have a XM-18 that puts things into perspective somewhat.

But ... are you basically saying that the problem with SF knives is a combination of ergonomics, coolness factor and strange features? Because comparing the Delta to my other knives I can't really find a flaw in the workmanship, the lockup or the movement.

bernie

I would suspect that the workmanship is fairly good, but since knives are not Surefire's core business, the feature set and its implementation may not be what it could be if the knife were designed by a company whose core business was knives. So SF knives may look cool, but not be the best in terms of practical usability. They maybe should have worked with Leatherman or soG if they wanted a "multitool" which is what they have. It's just not a very effective or practical multitool.

Lightraven
Check out the rescue hooks from Benchmade for removing flex cuffs.
Benchmade "hooks"
BM hooks
#8blkw


Maybe they would work better than what you guys tried??

Also:

Properly remove the Flex Cuffs
Place the subject in a an unbalanced position
Explain to the subject that you are preparing to remove the Flex Cuffs
Use a pair of wire cutters to safely remove the Flex cuffs
Train all personnel

Officer safety related issues
It is strongly recommended to have a cover unit present when applying the Flex Cuffs
If a subject becomes combative, Officers should standard metal handcuffs instead of Flex Cuffs
If the subject becomes combative after the application of the Flex Cuffs, officers should require sufficient cover officers and place the subject in an unbalanced position, kneeling or prone if necessary, before they remove the Cuffs
KNIVES SHALL NOT BE USED TO REMOVE FLEX CUFFS

 

[Kiessling]

The multitool aspect actually attracted me, yes. Nowadays I would choose otherwise though.