Knives 'n Lights!

[smokinbasser]

Knives \'n Lights!

I just received my March? issue of Blade and right at the top was the teaser- Shining sharp. Then in the opening says that the Emerson Surefire collaboration was terminated at press time.I wonder who backed out? I suspect it was Surefire, Emerson knives has been getting raked over the coals recently for very lousy quality control and shoddy manufacturing practices, the general consensus being to never buy one of the Emerson knives again.I have never even handled an Emerson but from the threads in Knife Forum and Blade Forum I never will either. There are too many dissatisfied people out there for me to even consider one.Blade was saying this could be good news for those people that already have the combo as collectors. Perhaps. At least the Surefire can be used for its designed purpose.

 

[guncollector]

Re: Knives \'n Lights!

[ QUOTE ]
smokinbasser writes:
...Emerson knives has been getting raked over the coals recently for very lousy quality control and shoddy manufacturing practices...

[/ QUOTE ]
smokinbasser, I respect your right to an opinion and expressing your views.

But, I'm not exactly sure that's a fair assessment of EKI.

Truth be told, at Bladeforums or Knifeforums.com, one can pretty much find that filling the following blank with any manufacturer (custom or production) is easy:
"I think ________ company is having big QC problems" (or something to that effect).

[ QUOTE ]
the general consensus being to never buy one of the Emerson knives again.

[/ QUOTE ]
Saying a "general consensus" would be a very difficult statement to backup, as--with the number of member's opinions--there is not much of a "consensus" on anything in either BF of KF.

Look, I have no interest in protecting specifically the reputation of EKI. Sure, I own a few of Ernie's production knives, and have read only favorable review of the man himself, his company, and his commitment to his products.

I just think it is folly to come here to CPF (a non-knife enthusiast site), and make a quasi-inflammatory post, based on a few opinions or ongoing manufacturer-specific complaint threads in another Forum. Making the leap to a business parting between Surefire & Emerson, based on the same narrow input, would be difficult. It's taking things completely out of context.

Just my $0.02

 

[smokinbasser]

Re: Knives \'n Lights!

I was not trying to start any flame wars. Like many other people here I found cpf after being in the knife forums and I think that the two go somewhat hand in hand My point was that companys joining up on collaborations have to consider if the other half is a plus or are they going to denigrate your reputation. If you wish to buy and use Emerson knives thats is fine with me but I make my purchases by learning all that I can to prevent buyers remorse later. I have read all the negative posts on the recent Emerson offerings and have no desire to spend my money to see if the negative posts were accurate. There are many more knives to choose from that don't get the negative comments. Ernest emerson the man has made great knives but when he went to mass production his standards weren't continued.CNC machines wil pop out quality parts day in and out but they are just as happy popping out junk. Quality in quality out. Just look to Surefire or ARC to see quality in quality out.People have vastly different requirements they look for in products. Its how the manufacturer addresses what ever problems crop up that matters. Sorry If I stepped on an emerson knife fans toes. Have a happy holiday

 

[guncollector]

Re: Knives \'n Lights!

No worries, no toes stepped on. I'm not really an Emerson "fan". I was just nipping a potential hotspot in the bud.

[ QUOTE ]
smokinbasser writes:
Just look to Surefire or ARC to see quality in quality out.People have vastly different requirements they look for in products.

[/ QUOTE ]
I suggest you take another, deeper, look here in CPF.

The list of Surefire and Arc detractors (as well as fans) is long. Threads abound, mostly good, but some bad, about both companies.

As I said, no company is immune to QC/PR/Production problems--not even Surefire nor Arc. That was really my point.

 

[bigcozy]

Re: Knives \'n Lights!

BF and KF are starting to let the fringe run things anyway. I remember when KF was the only knife forum (after rec.knives.com) went under - all the talk was about how Benchmade was going under because of poor quality control and alienating the dealer base.

 

[TOB9595]

Re: Knives \'n Lights!

Whoa, I read smokinbasser's post and agreed with it. I also get the impression from the posts that the quality control has a problem. I also was staying away from Emerson's.
UNTIL I sat down with a fellow Knife Knut over a beer to do a passaround of an ANZA.
He brought a few geegaws with him. One was an Emerson Commander. WOW!!! It is a put together piece. I'm now lookin for one for myself. It was a 2001, I think. Anyway before they changed the backspacer. Gave me an appreciation of thumb discs also.

Guncollector also has a point that with the very large membership in BFC and KFC there are bound to be issues with a number of sample products. AND sometimes guys post just to see themselves in print. Ya gotta remember that many of the folk are fanatics. Requiring the blade to be perfectly centered at all times and positions.

The Emerson I saw was 100% quality and cool, all the way.

My bud also had THE most beautiful knife I ever saw!
A large classic Sebenza. Damascus, blued blade. With a Star Sapphire at the end of the graphic. A true work of art.

The interesting point of this thread,I think, is that Surefire and Emerson are not partnering. That's interesting news.
I'm sorry now that I didn't get one. Alas neither Surefire(cept g2 and L4) nor Emerson (cept commander) are my favs. BUT.....sigh.
Tom
edit: don't want to slight USN, Where many of the Emerson Fan(atic)s are. Another great site.

 

[smokinbasser]

Re: Knives \'n Lights!

Actually the separation of the two tactical compamys was the intended observation of my original post. The ironic part is Blade magazine had it as the top article above the logo.Inside was the hastily written announcement as a preface to the article. I could easily see an ARC/Swiss Army Knife collaboration. There were several other join-ups mentioned. The Surefire one naturally was an attention getter. The sebbies are the Surefires of the knives IMHO

 

[Skyline]

Re: Knives \'n Lights!

Actually, it's a good point to mention USN in addition to KFC and BFC. Due to a lot of disagreements over EKI, most of the EKI fans moved to USN. As a result, you're more likely to find EKI detractors than fans on KFC and BFC.

It's interesting because I'm a big Benchmade fan, and I recently discovered my younger cousin is also a knife collector and a big EKI fan. We had some interesting discussions. We came to this consensus: the Wave is a great feature, and the Axis Lock is the best lock. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

I have to say that I don't own any EKI knives though. I'll probably check out my cousin's selection some time. The liner locks will keep me from owning one though. Too bad.

 

[smokinbasser]

Re: Knives \'n Lights!

That would explain why I have been seeing an inordinate amount of negative posts on the blade and knife forums.

 

[tkl]

Re: Knives \'n Lights!

I like the look and design of Emerson's knives but I've had QC issues with them. I've had 8 Emerson's over the last 2 years and 6 were poorly fitted and finished. Blade slop was a major problem and they are far from smoooth.

I have never handled a Benchmade that wasn't perfect.

 

[BGF]

Re: Knives \'n Lights!

Thank God for diversity!
Especially since these forums introduce us to Soooo,, many quality production and custom works.
I don't particularly care for either knife line mentioned ( I would like to have a commander, just to say I did), but I don't have a specific QC issue with either one, CR's knives are amoung the best around, just don't suit my tastes.
Point is, there are many makers around, and a product to suit everyone, what I like, you may not!!
Thank God for diversity!

B.G.

 

[tiktok 22]

Re: Knives \'n Lights!

Love my Benchmades. The fit and finish is excellent and the axis lock is the only way to go. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[DumboRAT]

Re: Knives \'n Lights!

I very recently joined the high-end knives community.

Being a scientist by schooling and profession, I am totally single-minded about research. Pre-purchase product research is something that I preach as well as practice.

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

When I got into the game, my research focused on the Benchmade 722 and the Emerson CQC-7....and believe it or not, more negatives were being said about Benchmade knives than Emerson at that point-in-time.

The truth of the situation is very much as guncollector cites -- look hard enough on-line, and you'll find plenty of naysayers for *_ANY_* product or service that's out there.

I challenge anyone to try to obtain a completely spotless set of reviews for Lexus, Mercedes, or even The Ritz Carlton and The Four Seasons.

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Dig deep enough, there's enough trash to make you want to shy away from any product.

Strider, EKI, CRK, Spyderco, Benchmade, CRKT, Microtech -- hell, even just about any of the true custom-mades -- they all have their devotees and their detractors.

Tread the waters carefully, try to sort through the information provided to see if there are any patterns to not only what's posted, but WHO posted WHAT.

It's the Internet, and as much as I hate to say it, you've got to have your BS filter on "high."

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Allen
aka DumboRAT

 

[Skyline]

Re: Knives \'n Lights!

Don't get me started about Mercedes Benz!!

www.lemonmb.com
www.troublebenz.com

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

 

[K-T]

Re: Knives \'n Lights!

Well said, Allen. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif