Pros: Blade Sharpness, Handle Feel, Handle Material, Overall Quality
Cons: Ease of Opening, Lock Ease of Use
There's a hole in it.
Curiosity satisfied. Whatever the design intent was for that big finger ring, it flopped on execution. Gerber made at least four versions of this setup over the years, each with variants. All of them seemed like novel operators, yet every one that I've handled is far tighter than anything else that was sold as one-handed. It is possible to open with a sturdy thumb, but the detent is a bear and the friction makes you work the whole way around. I've been working at this thing for five months trying to improve the action, but it'll never be a smooth flick. I bought the Shrade Torsion at the same time for the same reason. It, too, has a glaring problem, but it opens much more smoothly at half the price. On the plus side, the blade is fine. I'm not big on tantos, but this works, and I love me some partial serrations. Whatever is supposed to be "tactical" here must've gone over my head, unless the opening is meant to give your assailant the advantage. But for my tasks, which are by no means tactical, once I have it open it does a good job and fits right in my hand. I thought that the ring part might make it a pocket hog, but it has not been intrusive to carry. For the price, I think it would have been fine as a lockback folder. I don't think the design or engineering is to blame for its poor accessibility - it definitely feels like Gerber has gone cheap on every iteration of this concept. I'd love to handle something with open bearings around the ring and a smoother liner or frame lock.
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