edc [everyday carry] shaved my wife

[tylerdurden]

What's wrong with Taiwan? As long as they build it right, which they do, I don't see why so many see it as a turn off. I've handled three of their Taiwan-made blades and all three were excellent in fit and finish, free of any noticeable flaws.

MURRRICA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[f50fan]

Buy Seki City blades, support Japan?

[TokenIndianKid]

What's wrong with Taiwan? As long as they build it right, which they do, I don't see why so many see it as a turn off. I've handled three of their Taiwan-made blades and all three were excellent in fit and finish, free of any noticeable flaws. Just wanna know from the perspective of those that are keen about where their knives are from, no hate intended. Different strokes for different folks.

to answer your question...absolutely nothing is wrong with the knives from Taiwan. When I received my gayle bradley, the fit and finish (as i mentioned in my OP) was top notch, and I had absolutely nothing to complain about. As a matter of fact, if i had not known better, I would have assumed that it came out of the Golden, CO factory.

With that being said, I guess i just prefer the "Golden, CO, USA" stamp over the "Taichung-Taiwan" one. At this point it has nothing to do with construction or quality, just my hangup about aesthetics i guess.

I do take pride in buying american, and I am happy to say that ALL my knives are American made...i dont understand why they dont switch models like the native to the taiwan plant and bring the vallotton, szabo etc to golden...

From what i understood, no one else could accurately create the "racheting" sound of the Navaja except the Taichung factory...so they must be doing something right...

[kenthenoob]

i prefer to carry USA-made knives as well... even though my sage 1 had great fit and finish, i couldn't carry it because it was taiwan-made.

USA USA

[denimdestroyedmylife]

my favorite knives are US made

and at this point, i have narrowed my choices to USA made knives only

though i have had seki city, japan knives, i haven't been completely satisfied with fit/finish

when americans fuck up fit and finish, i find it charming, evoking the rugged individualism this fine country is known for

i guess i am biased towards my own countrymen

USA! USA! USA!

edit: actually, i have been into buying Pennsylvania made knives and goods

CASE

Great Eastern Cutlery

Queen

Zippo

vintage Hamilton

Pendleton

PA! PA! PA! PA!

[Solix]

As much as I love my country and prefer domestic-made goods, I wouldn't toss aside a well-made knife just because of its origin.

[willy cheesesteak]

My e3s came in last week, finally got around to taking some pics:

The package(forgot to include warranty card in the pic):

Bezel/head/emitter closeup:

Matching metal tail switch:

Front/Back:

Comparison shot with my NDI which is a little bit wider:

Side by side:

Specs:

- LED source: CREE XP-G R4 with lifespan of up to 50,000 hours

- Two brightness levels - High (155 lumens, 1 hour) and Low (23 lumens, 15 hours)

- Constructed of high grade 304 stainless steel

- Powered by a single AA battery

- Highly efficient digital constant current direct drive circuit that gives stable and constant brightness

- Simple interface (loosen head for low, tighten for high)

- Toughened ultra-clear mineral glass with anti-reflective coating

- Premium aluminum reflector system

- Waterproof according to IPX-8 standard

- Can tailstand on a flat surface

- Dimensions: 18mm x 92mm

- Weight: 75g

I've been searching for a more "classicool" light, and after Bern's recommendation, this model peaked my interest. I was a bit hesitant to buy it at first because of the completely smooth finish(even though it looked beautiful), I was afraid it would have no grip/be too slippery...I was wrong. The brushed stainless steel is perfect, it's not like a knurled torch, but when you first hold it, you can immediately tell it won't slip out of your hand. One thing that surprised me was how substantial the light felt, like an actual tool and almost double the weight of my NDI, lol. I forget where I read this comment but someone said the E3S "feels like a roll of dimes" and it couldn't be more true. Luckily, its not too heavy as I still don't feel it when its in my pocket.

Comparison with the NDI:

I tested them both out and I'd say the E3S(xpg-r4) is a little more floodier than the NDI(xpe-r2) whereas the NDI would be a sliiiightly better thrower. The E3S can still throw though as I shined it and the NDI across a big two way street, and they both did their jobs well, it's just that the NDI had a more concentrated hotspot. Its nice to know though that if I needed to light up everything in front of me, the E3S would get the job done. Also, the metal reverse clicky feels great and is very responsive. It feels more like an on/off power button than a switch like on other torches.

Overall, very satisfied with this light. The only complaint I have is, as you can see, there are little holes for a pocket clip but no pocket clip included. This doesn't bother me that much since I'd barely use it, but it would be nice to have included one instead of having the customer source one themselves if they do decide they would use one. Still, I am very happy with this light and glad I made the purchase as I now have something that won't look out of place with more "dressed up" clothes.

EDIT: Tested this out some more and it threw up to 2.5-3 city blocks.

[branespload]

good to hear the switch is nice and the grip is sufficient. was wondering about that…

the little holes might be for a lanyard or split ring, not necessarily a pocket clip… who knows @_@

stay classicool~

[wild style]

Great post by a great poster. Light looks excellent.

[MikeS]

anyone ever taken apart there quark? I need to get this thing disassembled but have never taken a torch apart...

[branespload]

^ what are you trying to do?

[MikeS]

red tiger stripe CeraKote

[ubiquitous]

damn mini split ring fail

checked my key chain and was like oh fck where's my light?...luckily it had just dropped to the floor a few feet behind me but damn what a close call. anyone have suggestions to make sure this doesn't happen again aside from not keeping it on my keys where it can get snagged?

[f50fan]

Tuck your keychain into a pocket.

[TokenIndianKid]

get the aircraft mechanic wire keyholders from country comm and thick steel split ring not that cheap shit

that look like a paperclip

[branespload]

mechanic wire shiet isnt reliable enough for me, shiet always unscrews itself or starts to fray/splinter

just get a good split ring, mine is about to bite the dust too. thats one of my biggest complaints about 4sevens..

[35percent]

Use loctite for the mechanic wire?

Or just get a non shitty split ring as brane and tik said. I lost my nitecore in a backyard in a party, even though I usually tuck into my backpocket. I later miraculously found it, but the weird thing was that the spit ring was still in tact, must have opened on my keychain and slid off because it was a crappy one and the tension sucked.

Work in 5 hours fuuuuu.....

Night EDCers!

[Osmosis Jones]

yeah, i think you're takling about the 755mpr.

that is beautiful. must get... looks a little on the small side.

the knife shop in japantown, sf had one at 40% off (~130). should have copped..

about to cop the surefire g2x but if anybody else has any suggestions for a really tough light, please let me know.

[vince.s]

I once fell hard off my bike when wearing jeans with my keys tucked into back pocket. Mini split ring was fine but the larger ring..

[White Teeth]

Anyone have any feedback on keychain pens like the Pico Pen, the inka Pen, and the Zebra Pen Pod? Does the stainless steel stuff make it through airport security nowadays?

Also, do flashlights still make it through airport security? Trying to travel light with zero checked baggage. Thanks.

[Arsenal!]

I just went through security with my Surefire 6P in my pocket, and my Telepen on my keychain with no problems. Sometimes my lights puzzle the x-ray machine monitor, but never any conflict.

As for keychain pens, I opted for the Telepen because it was the cheapest option, and its held up surprisingly well. Still attached to my keys after 4 months of bike commuting. Writes decently in emergencies...mostly for signing things when I've forgotten to pocket another pen.

http://www.amazon.com/True-Utility-Telepen-Telescopic-Pen/dp/B002K9J26W

[branespload]

http://www.selfedge.com/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=75&products_id=683

hmm

[kenthenoob]

the knife shop in japantown, sf had one at 40% off (~130). should have copped..

about to cop the surefire g2x but if anybody else has any suggestions for a really tough light, please let me know.

the 755mpr? fuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu

[TokenIndianKid]

damnit my new paramilitary 2 in cf and s90v is really making me tempted to sell my strider smf and buy some more spydercos

....so conflicted right now...so conflicted

[denimdestroyedmylife]

^ right? thing is so fun to use and carry

[MikeS]

selling a strider, for a spyderco? wow.

[35percent]

selling a strider, for a spyderco? wow.

I have been unimpressed with Striders in comparison to how much hype they get.

[kenthenoob]

damnit my new paramilitary 2 in cf and s90v is really making me tempted to sell my strider smf and buy some more spydercos

....so conflicted right now...so conflicted

ain't nothing wrong there. go ferrrrit!

[TokenIndianKid]

selling a strider, for a spyderco? wow.

haha these were the exact same thoughts going through my head

but man when i pick up my spyderco's...they are just so slim and sleek...its almost like comparing a humvee (strider) to an M3 (spyderco)

the strider is good for anything, breaking windows, cutting, prying...anything

but the spyderco is meant for one or two purposes...cutting and stabbing in a SD if need be

i just feel like the amount spent on a strider could be spent on 2-3 other spydercos (carbon fiber military etc) which would get just as much done, in a more effecient manner

if i needed to pry or dig, i already have a breacher bar in my bag so that would do the job just fine

i just find myself wondering where i would be if there was a major disaster and i had my spyderco on me...compared to if i had a strider...i feel like the strider would be able to handle a much larger variety of tasks than the spyderco...

how do you guys feel about this

[MikeS]

I mean, to each there own. Do whatever floats ur boat. But even if you really do love spyderco's. I would still keep the work horse and save ur pennies for the spyderco's. I wouldn't trade one for the other.

Im a little more drawn to the heavy dutyness of the striders, Hinderers, etc. I guess thats why I dont get the CR stuff. Nice knifes but would I spend 400plus on one? Hell no. If your collecting, maybe but as you user, no...

.02