Condor Knife & Tool owners: Give an honest opinion

Jonny1280

Jonny1280

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I've been seeing and hearing an awful lot about these knives lately.
There are a lot of blades in the Condor line up. And the price points seem fair enough.
Would any Condor owners care to elaborate on the quality of their knife?
Would you recommend them?
All honest opinions are welcome.
 
I'm a big fan, I got several of them. I mostly got the bigger blade lineups, Golok, Hudsonbay, Barong, Bolo, Enep, and Dao. I can only speak for the ones i have, all came sharp and solidly built, . I've seen mixed reviews but never had any problems with the ones i have. For the price they have pretty good value for their lineup. The one thing i always see commented on is the sheaths that come with the blades are excellent, which adds to the value. Another reason i like their lineup are the designs that have a SE Asian feel to them.

You can see a lot of the tools in action on youtube along with a lot of other reviews.

Here's a pic of my lineup.

SDC10915.JPG
 
I agree with daKine:thumbup: You really can't go wrong with a Condor. Can't recommend them more.
 
I have only bought 2.

Hudson bay. I bought one for my self. Loved it, so I bought another for my dad.

I stripped mine, and use it in the kitchen constantly.


The newer version comes with a "rustic" forge finish that is much cooler than the original I have.

I would recommend them for a solid value, and just plain cool designs on a lot of them.


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I stripped the black finish off mine, and used vinegar to force a patina on mine, and get that cool pattern.
 
I may seem biased because I sell them, but I only carry stuff in the shop I'd be willing to use personally, and I've been a Condor fan for years before starting up the business. Condor, hands down, gives you some of the most bang for your buck imaginable. Great designs, materials, and their warranty and customer service are fantastic. They also listen carefully to their customers and try to improve their products to better suit customer wishes. Their one downfall over the years has been their quality control, but not only has it been steadily improving, if you ever get a lemon Condor will take care of getting a new one to you on their own dime, including return shipping. I got in a shipment of replacement items for ones I had sent back to Condor because they didn't pass inspection, and the replacements were from after Joe Flowers' (Joezilla) recent trip to El Salvador to work on further improvements. The pieces I got in look pretty much like custom knives in terms of the fit and finish. I was absolutely stunned by how wonderful they look, and have no idea how they manage to turn out work like that for so little money.

Are they $300 knives? No. But they look, feel, and perform like they're easily 3x what they cost. If you're looking for a bargain in a fixed blade, machete, or axe they're one of the best brands to look at in my opinion.
 
Every Condor knife I have just plain works, they may not be the fanciest looking around, but I've not ran into anything yet they won't handle.

My favorite is the 5" "Basic Bushcraft"

FB-Bushcraft-4.jpg


FB-Bushcraft-6.jpg


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And with a little work, they can even look pretty decent! :)

Before:
FB-2011-Facelift-Before.jpg


After:
FB-2011-Facelift-After.jpg
 
Oh--BearClaw! Just so you know they're now bringing the edge all the way to the base of the blade from the factory. I take it you extended the edge on yours, or it's two different ones in your photos as it has a ricasso in the top pictures and not in the bottom. :)
 
I love 'em!

I would watch out though if you are large of hand. I wear XXL gloves and I've had some problems with handles being too small for me (the Hudson Bay especially).
You know, because knife companies should design toward handles fitting frying pans and not the average hand. ;)

Anywho, they're a great deal - and quite importantly, their customer service is wonderful.
I picked up a slightly chipped golok in a trade and let Condor know about it, expecting and fully willing to pay a bit to have it repaired or replaced.
Nope! They offered to send a brand new one to me completely free, no questions. Had it the next week.

I haven't tried out any of their stainless stuff yet, but I can tell you that their carbon steel (1075) heat treatment is great!
Very tough stuff and holds an edge pretty well to boot.


Toodles, y'all!
Joe
 
I'm a fan and I use them. I own and use; Golok (14") machete, Parang machete, Puerto Rican machete, Bushlore knife, Hudson Bay, and Pack Golok. I love the 14" Golok machete and it gets used frequently and my first choice if I need a machete for mostly brush or woody plants/trees.

I don't care much for their original blades that had the blue and grey plastic handles and won't buy one. Are they a good value, probably. I have the old Bushlore knife and the current version is more to my liking with the edge grind coming all the way to the handle. That knife is my least favorite because it is heavy and over built as far as I'm concerned for general woods use (not chopping). I have other blades that I like better that fill the general woods camping niche which includes the Hudson Bay. I intend to buy the Viking machete as I am not crazy about the handle on the Puerto Rican.

My impression is that Condor stands behind their products if they fail under normal use. I have not had the need to contact them.

The carbon steel blades (1075) are easy to sharpen and maintain. The leather sheaths are great overall for the price.

I would not chop that tree above with the Hudson Bay unless I had no other choice.
 
I'm a big fan. I have several Condors and each one of them is a great tool. I would definitely recommend them. They come sharp usually, and they have a great sheath, too. I plan on getting several more this year. :thumbup: :thumbup:
 
I actually liked the old blue handles. Doesn't burn the eyes like orange does, but is even easier to find if you set it down someplace. It's a "friendly" color as well. But I can understand why folks like the black better. ;)

Their stainless holds an edge about as well as their 1075, and holds up nicely. My most-used machetes by them (Viking machete and Bush Knife billhook) are both stainless and have given me years of excellent service, even with very hard use in the middle of winter.
 
I purchased a Bushlore to add to the belt knife comparison test I was doing between the Kabar MK1 and Becker BK17. After the test I gifted the bushlore to my father.

Here is my review.
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...-review-(photo-heavy)?p=10723542#post10723542

Short answer: My first experience with condor was pretty decent. The knife is really designed pretty well, but my particular one wasn't quite up to the quality that I would have wanted initially (just a really obtuse edge, it wasn't worth sending back), and oddly enough the handle gave me blisters for some reason (again, thats probably more of a "personal" thing due to hand shape and size). The sheath really was pretty awesome (nice thick leather, and the fit was perfect) as well.

In the end, I was impressed with what I got for the money, and still really liked the knife. However, for me personally I think I'll be picking up a BK16 for this particular style of knife, but I'll gladly try out another condor in the future (probably ordered from 42blades so I don't have weird QC issues this time).

Good luck :).
 
ocnLogan said:
(probably ordered from 42blades so I don't have weird QC issues this time).
Click to expand...

That's why i don't have any of the new lineup yet. Waiting for him to get his shipment. I order all my condor stuff from 42blades, among other stuff:)
 
I appreciate it, brother! :D Man am I itching to get my paws on that shipment--especially after seeing what some of the most recently produced stuff looks like! You wouldn't believe how nice they're doing them now. I hope they can keep 'em that way! I'd snap some pics but my webcam wouldn't do them justice and my REAL camera's sensor died a couple months ago. I keep telling myself to get a new one, but end up putting the capital towards expanding our line instead. :o
 
I own a few Condors. I started purchasing more of their machetes and belt knives the last few months. This last year alone, I have purchased about 7 knives/machetes. I dont think anyone can match their quality and vaule.
 
Okay, looks like I may be the odd man out here but although I have two knives and two machetes I am not really in love with the brand. Not one that I have ever received was actually sharp when I got it. As a matter of fact, they were down right dull and took a lot of work to sharpen. Although I haven't totally written them off, they haven't offered anything since then that has tempted me enough, well maybe the Boar Dagger, to spend the money and expect to sharpen the knife before I use it. In all fairness I feel the same way about Cold Steel machetes. If a manufacturer can't offer a sharp blade, why bother?
 
Tonie Nichols said:
Okay, looks like I may be the odd man out here but although I have two knives and two machetes I am not really in love with the brand. Not one that I have ever received was actually sharp when I got it. As a matter of fact, they were down right dull and took a lot of work to sharpen. Although I haven't totally written them off, they haven't offered anything since then that has tempted me enough, well maybe the Boar Dagger, to spend the money and expect to sharpen the knife before I use it. In all fairness I feel the same way about Cold Steel machetes. If a manufacturer can't offer a sharp blade, why bother?
Click to expand...

First things first, this may not be the case with yours but there's a clear coating applied to the edges and other "exposed" surfaces for shipment to prevent rusting. This can cause them to feel artificially dull when you take them out of the box. Run it through a piece of cardboard once or twice and the sharp edge is exposed. Like I said, though, it's entirely possible that you got truly dull ones and I don't doubt you at all. It's one of the things that they used to be more inconsistent on, but it's pretty rare for me to see at this point in time. In fact, the micarta handled Bushlore that I just got in (2012 production) is so sharp that one section of the edge was "tree-topping" arm hairs out of the box! :eek:

Obtuse grinds were also a problem with a couple of specific models. That was adressed several months ago, though, and shouldn't be a problem. If you ever do get a lemon don't hesitate to contact the company. Rick Jones is a gentleman and a scholar, and he'll take very good care of you.
 
FortyTwoBlades said:
I may seem biased because I sell them, but I only carry stuff in the shop I'd be willing to use personally, and I've been a Condor fan for years before starting up the business. Condor, hands down, gives you some of the most bang for your buck imaginable. Great designs, materials, and their warranty and customer service are fantastic. They also listen carefully to their customers and try to improve their products to better suit customer wishes. Their one downfall over the years has been their quality control, but not only has it been steadily improving, if you ever get a lemon Condor will take care of getting a new one to you on their own dime, including return shipping. I got in a shipment of replacement items for ones I had sent back to Condor because they didn't pass inspection, and the replacements were from after Joe Flowers' (Joezilla) recent trip to El Salvador to work on further improvements. The pieces I got in look pretty much like custom knives in terms of the fit and finish. I was absolutely stunned by how wonderful they look, and have no idea how they manage to turn out work like that for so little money.

Are they $300 knives? No. But they look, feel, and perform like they're easily 3x what they cost. If you're looking for a bargain in a fixed blade, machete, or axe they're one of the best brands to look at in my opinion.
Click to expand...

Yup, this. ^ ^ ^ I don't sell them yet. I may sell them one day, maybe. I only have one currently & i friggin LOVE it. I want to place an order for 3 or so more, but availability on the brand new ones is a little scarce right now. I will have a Lochnessmuk, Nessmuk, Pack Golock, & Warlock by the end of the year i hope. They are truly a "customizable blade". Meaning, that for what they cost, you can feel confident making any modification you want, to make it work better for you or just to customize it for looks (if thats your thing) & if you make a mistake, you are not out an arm & a leg (no pun intended). Condor, Becker, Ka-Bar, Ontario all excell in that area. If they weren't great blades, i would not have one. I would have sold it or gifted it away. I certainly would not be buying more.

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I batoned it through this particularly hard, knotted & twisted piece of black walnut with no issues, it didn't even deflect at all. Thats the Boomslang. If you look close, you can see that i reprofiled the edge & added some jimping along the spine. Just a short 1.5 yrs ago, i never would have guessed that i would be modding my own blades & reprofiling them. Amazing what this forum can do for ya. It also seems to suck the money right out of my wallet for some reason ! LOL
 
Ive owned 3 so far

The Standard Golok: Quite possibly the best chopper per pound ive ever run across. The steel is fantastic on mine and can hold a much finer edge than i normally cut with a chopper and still hold up to the beastly tasks i ask of it. The handle while it looks odd is actually very comfortable.

Parang: Chopped better than the Golok but i couldnt get along with the handle so i sold it

Warlock: Fantastic handle on this, literally one of the best ive held. Chopping wise im disapointed despite being heavier and more built for chopping vs. the Golok it doesnt outchop it. The sheath is a big disapointment to me, after reading about how good they were i was suprised by what i got. Its made of some very good leather but im not impressed with the swivel loop in the least bit, drawing and sheathing the knife is troublesome as its far too form cut towards the top, and the throat of the sheath isnt cut anywhere near the profile of the knife. I would have much rather seen a draw up sort of sheath rather than a draw thru. Its a good knife all around, just not a great one.

I hope to buy the Dadao, Pack Golok, Hudson Bay and Engineer Bolo soon as well though.
 
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