The Bears' Den--Shirogorov Showcase

anvil_den said:
Anyone does this?
Shelf a knife away for months and then take it out later to see if you still like it? ...The RDD
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I do that after a fashion with my drawer queens, a_d. I'll get one or some out after some time unhandled just to see if maybe the luster has worn off and if it might be time to move on. I found I had some more mid-line knives that I kept new that really didn't make any sense to hold on to. Of the 3 or 4 higher end "held" pieces, I only had one that I tried to sell, but found myself pleased at the lack of offers and gladly withdrew it from the Exchange.

Gorgeous RDD, brother. One of my few regrets is passing on a LNIB CF RDD offered to me at a favorable price. I doubt I'll see another close to that and will likely just have to admire from afar. :(
 
ChazzyP said:
I do that after a fashion with my drawer queens, a_d. I'll get one or some out after some time unhandled just to see if maybe the luster has worn off and if it might be time to move on. I found I had some more mid-line knives that I kept new that really didn't make any sense to hold on to. Of the 3 or 4 higher end "held" pieces, I only had one that I tried to sell, but found myself pleased at the lack of offers and gladly withdrew it from the Exchange.

Gorgeous RDD, brother. One of my few regrets is passing on a LNIB CF RDD offered to me at a favorable price. I doubt I'll see another close to that and will likely just have to admire from afar. :(
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Ah we share some similarity again. I know by now what's not wanted in my collection but its hard to move a couple of those. Was looking through to downsize recently. Managed to sell a couple. By now, there is no urge to roll those funds in PP straight away into other knives like before. Guess I am really slowing down. It's just when it comes to Shiro... I probably will weaken and cave in again ;)

In some strange twist of events-- 3 of these Ti Rdd passed through my hand... this is a keeper. Would love to keep one more as a real user/ carry but I'm glad sanity prevailed :)
 
anvil_den said:
Ah we share some similarity again. I know by now what's not wanted in my collection but its hard to move a couple of those. Was looking through to downsize recently. Managed to sell a couple. By now, there is no urge to roll those funds in PP straight away into other knives like before. Guess I am really slowing down. It's just when it comes to Shiro... I probably will weaken and cave in again ;)

In some strange twist of events-- 3 of these Ti Rdd passed through my hand... this is a keeper. Would love to keep one more as a real user/ carry but I'm glad sanity prevailed :)
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That was the thing with that RDD I passed on. It would have sent me into another price range--which would have been ok on its own--but I needed to figure out if I could make myself carry and use it. I've been trying to avoid drawer queens and in the end didn't want to tie up that much in a knife just for fondling. Looking back, I probably should have grabbed it, made the the carry decision, and proceeded accordingly. Oh well... :rolleyes:
 
Hey guys! Blade forum virgin here but I was told that this is the go-to thread for all things Shiro. Anyways, I just picked up a HatiOn in Vanax 37 and plain black CF. The knife is really impressive in a lot of ways but it has a major issue... lock stick. It makes an audible click when releasing the lock bar. The lock also tends to walk a bit on the tang when gripping the knife tightly. Maybe the two issues are related? I'm wondering if this is at all a common experience with Shirogorov's or even with the Vanax steels since this is my first encounter with both. If it's uncommon do you have any recommendations to correct it? I'd appreciate any advice!
 
thedupuisner said:
Hey guys! Blade forum virgin here but I was told that this is the go-to thread for all things Shiro. Anyways, I just picked up a HatiOn in Vanax 37 and plain black CF. The knife is really impressive in a lot of ways but it has a major issue... lock stick. It makes an audible click when releasing the lock bar. The lock also tends to walk a bit on the tang when gripping the knife tightly. Maybe the two issues are related? I'm wondering if this is at all a common experience with Shirogorov's or even with the Vanax steels since this is my first encounter with both. If it's uncommon do you have any recommendations to correct it? I'd appreciate any advice!
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One of my Shiros developed a bit of lock-stick somewhat later in life that I spent considerable effort in successfully curing. That was my F3 Python Micarta in S30V. I won't go through the steps of my fixes here as your case strikes me as a simple break-in issue. While I'm unfamiliar with Vanax 37, I've run into a number of knives over the years with issues similar to yours.

So often owners of new knives don't give them the chance to break in, whether it be smoothness, action, locking, deployment, or whatever. So often one hears a litany of complaint and the assertion that the knife should be perfect right out of the box as the buyer paid a lot of $ for it. Next thing you know there's a new thread about "this knife sucks" and a return to the dealer. Certainly this is not the attitude you've expressed.

Anyway, if it were me, I'd put a bit of graphite (pencil lead) on the lock ramp, replenishing it as needed, use the knife normally for a while, and see if the tang, lockbar interface breaks in with use. My guess is it will. Perhaps a polite note to the seller now would be advisable as a hedge. If the problem persists there are things one can do to alleviate the issue, but of course should you disassemble and work on the knife, any claim for return or warranty repair is compromised.

Congrats on your new knife and I hope things work out for you.
 
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Work day for the Turtle. I got the first couple light blade scratches after about a year and a half to go with a few light ones I've had on the Ti for a while. All good, though. Being a work user just means I get to carry it more. :cool:

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I haven't had the chance to really put this knife to proper use as the F3R has become my go-to work knife. The perfectly inlaid Micarta more than makes up for the lack of higher-end features such as jimping and a backspacer. The single-row bearings are almost indistinguishable from the multi-row. Before yesterday I had never tried cleaning unpolished fibery Micarta but did so on a Fantoni and they came out much cleaner than they had been but not as clean as they were new. One less excuse to not put this knife to use.
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Greetings all. Just received my first Shiro F3, and hoping you knowledgeable Bear owners might help me in deciphering some markings inside the Ti liner.

On one side only is a small circle surrounded by seven dots. Then there is a “6 D” stamped on both Ti sides.

Thanks in advance for your thoughtful replies. And really like this Shiro. There maybe another model from this company in my future.
 
tuica said:
Greetings all. Just received my first Shiro F3, and hoping you knowledgeable Bear owners might help me in deciphering some markings inside the Ti liner.

On one side only is a small circle surrounded by seven dots. Then there is a “6 D” stamped on both Ti sides.

Thanks in advance for your thoughtful replies. And really like this Shiro. There maybe another model from this company in my future.
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Congrats on your new knife. The circle and dots indicate the knife pivots on a Single Row Bearing System (SRBS). The mark for the Multi-Row Bearing System is MRBS. I have an older F3 and haven't noticed a "6D" stamp. I'll have to get mine out and check for it.

Edit: You do realize you owe us pictures of your new Bear? :)
 
does anyone know roughly how many knives Shirogorov put on the market per year? I'm curios to know how many knives they produce compared to big brands like Spyderco or Benchmade.
Thanks!
 
Thanks Chazzy. Really had to look, with a flashlight shining from the opposite side, for these markings. Not 100% sure it’s 6D but looks like it. Also know that a figure close to our D is present in the Cyrillic alphabet. Photo to arrive soon.
 
tuica said:
Thanks Chazzy. Really had to look, with a flashlight shining from the opposite side, for these markings. Not 100% sure it’s 6D but looks like it. Also know that a figure close to our D is present in the Cyrillic alphabet. Photo to arrive soon.
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I just checked out my F3 Python. It took a bit of a de-linting and a while to find, but I did see what looks like "1E" stamped inside both liners. Referring back to my previous most about pivot markings, Shirogorov uses Western characters and abbreviates English words for their MRBS stamp, so I doubt that Cyrillic is in play.

We could be looking at a date stamp, with the number representing the year--1 for 2011, 6 for 2016, maybe. The letter could represent the English translation of the month--E for Eeyoon (June) or Eeyool (July) and D for Dikabr (December). Chris Reeve knives have coded date stamps inside their Ti slabs.
 
Love looking at these beautiful high end knives. will never be able to afford one but like to see you guys have so much fun with them and I can enjoy some of it though this thread :)
 
Thanks again, Chazzy. I was thinking along the same lines that the 6 indicated 2006 or 2016. Just getting into Shiro's, but doubt they would have been imported here, or even existed(?), back in 2006. Am familiar with the CRK date stamp system. Appreciate your assistance and looking forward to learning much more about these interesting knives.
 
tuica said:
Greetings all. Just received my first Shiro F3, and hoping you knowledgeable Bear owners might help me in deciphering some markings inside the Ti liner.

On one side only is a small circle surrounded by seven dots. Then there is a “6 D” stamped on both Ti sides.

Thanks in advance for your thoughtful replies. And really like this Shiro. There maybe another model from this company in my future.
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On serials, The 2-3 character alphanumeric are the CNC id stamped onto the insides of the handles to mark which one goes with the other as a pair.

Bearing indication is stamped usually on the top of one side as a symbol. Except MRBS which are printed in these letters "MRBS" and depending on which model-- some are stamped on the lower side of the handle on the lockside, like the 111.

Other markings on the insides are usually the CDs and Collaborations. But not always inside as was with the earlier models in these tiers. Especially these days with all the internal hollow milling or due to use of CF.. can't have all that much engraving inside or on the material to still be aesthetically pleasing.. For these they usually go on the outside or the blade itself.
 
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tuica said:
Thanks again, Chazzy. I was thinking along the same lines that the 6 indicated 2006 or 2016. Just getting into Shiro's, but doubt they would have been imported here, or even existed(?), back in 2006. Am familiar with the CRK date stamp system. Appreciate your assistance and looking forward to learning much more about these interesting knives.
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The earliest "garage" Shirogorovs would be from 2005. But most of those we see nowadays would probably be around 2008-2009 onwards. In the shiro website, if you click on the "news" and go all the way back to page 1 and start from there-- you will be able to trace quite a number of knives and when they first appeared. :)
 
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