Chronovore
Gold Member
- Joined
- Aug 29, 2019
- Messages
- 11,232
Alright. Despite my reluctance to pay $45 for a knife in 8Cr13Mov in 2022, I wanted to see what the fuss is about. So I picked up the new large Honey Badger with the tanto blade shape. Was it awesome? Not really...
The first thing I noticed is that this knife stinks, literally. It smelled a bit like burnt oil. Of course, it came drenched in oil and that smell was easily transferable to anything it touched. I come across this unpleasant issue from time to time. Some of the CH knives smell like this and come similarly drenched in oil. Given that Honey Badger doesn't disclose which Chinese company is making it, CH might be a good guess.
The action from the box was good. After I thoroughly cleaned it and got some quality lubrication in there, the action was surprisingly good. It drops shut beautifully. The detent is strong enough to prevent it from being shaken open. Lock-up is okay. There is some flex but that just seems to be a feature of the FRN scales.
While the hexagonal scale texture is nice, the inner edges are horribly crisp. It isn't uncommon for budget knives with nested liners to have crisp inner edges. It just really stands out here. The ergonomic impact is significant. Of course, it wouldn't be hard to go around with an emery board and smooth those up during disassembly. I just didn't feel motivated to do it. Another thing I don't like here is that the scales are jimped where the flipper tab protrudes. Effectively, it creates a rough "landing pad" for your finger upon deployment.
The flipper tab itself has jimping but the placement is almost totally useless. Most of the time, I found my finger sliding against the smooth and rounded end of the tab. On the other end of the spectrum, the lock bar has sharp jimping that dovetails uncomfortably with the crisp scale edges against my pointer finger during use.
The factory edge was surprisingly good. I whittled on some birch and a couple of random branches from the yard. The blade shape was fun to use while my gloved hand was free from the ergonomic complaints. I had it out for a few hours without a proper wipe. You can't see it in the picture but that plant goo did manage to cause minor staining. While 8Cr13Mov is stainless, the corrosion resistance isn't great.
That said, a major factor here is materials versus cost. This is a $45 knife running 8Cr13Mov, FRN, and steel bearings. This might have been a win five years ago. Today, too many companies are offering better steels, better handle materials, and ceramic bearings at this price or less. The Civivi and Sencut knives in 9Cr18Mov are just so much better for about the same money. The Harnds Talisman is similar in size and has similarly impressive action but wears G10, runs 14C28N, and is cheaper by the cost of a cup of coffee.
The first thing I noticed is that this knife stinks, literally. It smelled a bit like burnt oil. Of course, it came drenched in oil and that smell was easily transferable to anything it touched. I come across this unpleasant issue from time to time. Some of the CH knives smell like this and come similarly drenched in oil. Given that Honey Badger doesn't disclose which Chinese company is making it, CH might be a good guess.
The action from the box was good. After I thoroughly cleaned it and got some quality lubrication in there, the action was surprisingly good. It drops shut beautifully. The detent is strong enough to prevent it from being shaken open. Lock-up is okay. There is some flex but that just seems to be a feature of the FRN scales.
While the hexagonal scale texture is nice, the inner edges are horribly crisp. It isn't uncommon for budget knives with nested liners to have crisp inner edges. It just really stands out here. The ergonomic impact is significant. Of course, it wouldn't be hard to go around with an emery board and smooth those up during disassembly. I just didn't feel motivated to do it. Another thing I don't like here is that the scales are jimped where the flipper tab protrudes. Effectively, it creates a rough "landing pad" for your finger upon deployment.
The flipper tab itself has jimping but the placement is almost totally useless. Most of the time, I found my finger sliding against the smooth and rounded end of the tab. On the other end of the spectrum, the lock bar has sharp jimping that dovetails uncomfortably with the crisp scale edges against my pointer finger during use.
The factory edge was surprisingly good. I whittled on some birch and a couple of random branches from the yard. The blade shape was fun to use while my gloved hand was free from the ergonomic complaints. I had it out for a few hours without a proper wipe. You can't see it in the picture but that plant goo did manage to cause minor staining. While 8Cr13Mov is stainless, the corrosion resistance isn't great.
That said, a major factor here is materials versus cost. This is a $45 knife running 8Cr13Mov, FRN, and steel bearings. This might have been a win five years ago. Today, too many companies are offering better steels, better handle materials, and ceramic bearings at this price or less. The Civivi and Sencut knives in 9Cr18Mov are just so much better for about the same money. The Harnds Talisman is similar in size and has similarly impressive action but wears G10, runs 14C28N, and is cheaper by the cost of a cup of coffee.
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