Just picked this one up. TLDR: I highly recommend it.
I've been carrying a Realsteel H5 Gerfalcon for quite some time, and had no plans to switch. Unfortunately I caught the knife on on a seatbelt and bent the pocket clip beyone repair, which is how we got here.
There's been some questioning around if these are made by Realsteel. Technically, they're not. Remember, Realsteel is to Sanrenmu, what ZT is to Kershaw. So technically they're made by Sanrenmu. They share pivots, pocket clips, bearing systems, and hardware with Realsteel, so they're manufactured with Sanrenmu's quality parts bin.
First impression, this knife is beefier than I had expected. The blade is listed as 3.5 to 3.6 inches depending where you look. The handle is fairly thick, but is very ergonomic. The relief cuts into the blue and black layered G10 make it mighty comfy. Here's a picture of my beloved H5 its replacing for sizing comparison.
The blade is 14C28N. Back in the hey days of Kershaw, this was their blade steel of choice for their lower end knives. Its a great steel for general purposes. I would rate it above 8CR, 420HC, and AUS8. The blade shape seems Spyderco'esque, and it's an almost full flat grind. The only exception is the bevel at the top of the blade. It also came razor sharp, and is ground evenly. It has a jimping ramp which is far and away my favorite form of blade grip. I don't like the semi polish finish, as it shows every smudge and scratch. I'd have preferred DLC or stonewash, but it will do.
The handles are well done black and blue G10. China has really stepped their G10 game up, as the quality of this is better than even my H5. I'd prefer them a little slimmer. I might even sand them down as I'd also like more blue. I will say the dimples are not even side to side on both scales, so one side has more blue. Nothing you'd normally notice.
Lock up is spot on. The knife uses a liner lock, and external stop pin. My biggest complaint about the knife is the liners are also semi polished. That's just a personal gripe as I find shiny to be cheap and gaudy. The non lock liner is relieved for weight savings. The knife has a G10 back spacer that doesn't line up exactly perfect, but better than any other knife in this price range. I much prefer stand offs, and it looks like the liner spacing is the same as my H5, so I may swap them in later.
The knife is also perfectly centered, but the detent made a weird squeak as it slid across the blade while closing it. Nothing a drop of CLP didn't fix. The detent works well, and with the bearings this knife fires open with authority. Buttery smooth is an understatement.
The pocket clip carries nice and deep. The blue however is slightly off. I also don't like how shallow the clip is, since deep carry shallow clips are harder to get out of pocket. I plan on adding a lanyard to it and it's still perfectly usable, but I'd have preferred a different example. It sure is sexy though.
All in all, I really like this little pig sticker and highly recommend it. I'm sure I'll get good use out of it before buying another, but I couldn't find many non sponsored reviews. I'm fully confident in Ruike's products, just as I am Realsteel. For the price, there's not another company that can touch them. In a time when the big guys are switching to more and more inferior steels, from G10 to GFN, and from bronze bushings to polymer, you have to respect what these guys are doing.
I've been carrying a Realsteel H5 Gerfalcon for quite some time, and had no plans to switch. Unfortunately I caught the knife on on a seatbelt and bent the pocket clip beyone repair, which is how we got here.
There's been some questioning around if these are made by Realsteel. Technically, they're not. Remember, Realsteel is to Sanrenmu, what ZT is to Kershaw. So technically they're made by Sanrenmu. They share pivots, pocket clips, bearing systems, and hardware with Realsteel, so they're manufactured with Sanrenmu's quality parts bin.
First impression, this knife is beefier than I had expected. The blade is listed as 3.5 to 3.6 inches depending where you look. The handle is fairly thick, but is very ergonomic. The relief cuts into the blue and black layered G10 make it mighty comfy. Here's a picture of my beloved H5 its replacing for sizing comparison.
The blade is 14C28N. Back in the hey days of Kershaw, this was their blade steel of choice for their lower end knives. Its a great steel for general purposes. I would rate it above 8CR, 420HC, and AUS8. The blade shape seems Spyderco'esque, and it's an almost full flat grind. The only exception is the bevel at the top of the blade. It also came razor sharp, and is ground evenly. It has a jimping ramp which is far and away my favorite form of blade grip. I don't like the semi polish finish, as it shows every smudge and scratch. I'd have preferred DLC or stonewash, but it will do.
The handles are well done black and blue G10. China has really stepped their G10 game up, as the quality of this is better than even my H5. I'd prefer them a little slimmer. I might even sand them down as I'd also like more blue. I will say the dimples are not even side to side on both scales, so one side has more blue. Nothing you'd normally notice.
Lock up is spot on. The knife uses a liner lock, and external stop pin. My biggest complaint about the knife is the liners are also semi polished. That's just a personal gripe as I find shiny to be cheap and gaudy. The non lock liner is relieved for weight savings. The knife has a G10 back spacer that doesn't line up exactly perfect, but better than any other knife in this price range. I much prefer stand offs, and it looks like the liner spacing is the same as my H5, so I may swap them in later.
The knife is also perfectly centered, but the detent made a weird squeak as it slid across the blade while closing it. Nothing a drop of CLP didn't fix. The detent works well, and with the bearings this knife fires open with authority. Buttery smooth is an understatement.
The pocket clip carries nice and deep. The blue however is slightly off. I also don't like how shallow the clip is, since deep carry shallow clips are harder to get out of pocket. I plan on adding a lanyard to it and it's still perfectly usable, but I'd have preferred a different example. It sure is sexy though.
All in all, I really like this little pig sticker and highly recommend it. I'm sure I'll get good use out of it before buying another, but I couldn't find many non sponsored reviews. I'm fully confident in Ruike's products, just as I am Realsteel. For the price, there's not another company that can touch them. In a time when the big guys are switching to more and more inferior steels, from G10 to GFN, and from bronze bushings to polymer, you have to respect what these guys are doing.