Hi. ER is a reputable Italian company which manufactures quality products in our country (i.e. truly made in Italy goods). Overall, it targets customers with interests and preferences towards tactical/military styles and designs. Generally, its my impression, they tend to produce overbuilt knives, where e.g. the thickness of the blades and cutting edges definitely privilege robustness and somehow penalize cutting/slicing capabilities. There are anyway exceptions to this general rule (e.g. the resolza, the dark talon, etc. are examples of this). E.R. also seems to have a distinctive and almost exclusive choice of materials (e.g. forprene polymer and Al used as handle materials and N690 steel for most of their blades), though with some exceptions (wood, SanMai CoS steel, etc.) and this seems to be a hit or miss for many. Fit and finish on their product, in my opinion and experience, is good but not excellent (like I would define Lionsteel product instead), Id say anyway fine, for their intended use. I find their sheaths and carry accessories very good both from a design and execution point of view. E.R. price policy its very much discussed in Italian knives forums and the mainstream opinion is the products are not having a good money for value ratio (considering materials, workmanship and engineering solutions) but this is as usual a rather subjective issue
. Another issue which is often discussed and rather controversial is the E.R. claim to supply military units with their knives. As usual, people quarrel about evidences, proofs, facts, etc., nothing new under the sun
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Personally I find most of E.R. products not very suitable for my type of EDC use and for my hiking/camping activities (as said, mainly due to their geometry and ergos). Anyway, I like their design and unique style. Among folders, I find the BF2 series an apt, well built and solid one. I own a BF2 CT which normally has a place in my rotation. The other folders series are just too overbuilt for my needs and not suitable for my EDC/camping or hiking tasks. Among their fixed blades I like the Venom (which I dont own) and the Shrapnel (which I still own). The Shrapnel its a solid little knife, I have used it sometimes out on the trails but has been soon replaced by the F1, which I find more suitable and practical for my own needs.
If one likes their styles/designs and the materials used, E.R. its definitely a good and reputable manufacturer to buy goods from and, from what I hear, they also offer a good customer service. I am happy with their products I currently own and never had any issue in all these years.
My Shrapnel and the BF2CT
An interesting video of the factory floor:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9U1D0mll8Ok
Good luck with your choice and have fun
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