I am deciding to buy Emerson, please help

[marchy]

i am comparing between the Emerson Mini Commander plain edge and Combo edge (Serrations), which one do you think is better to get. I kind of like the look of knife with serration. Thanks for your reply

[awdeity]

I would get a plain edge. Sharpening serrations at home can be tedious. The blade has a recurve which makes cutting without serrations easy... look at it as one big giant tooth.

[Officer's Match]

EE Commanders are fantastic knives, my favorite at the moment.

[RogueClimber]

I cant find the article right now, but Ernest Emerson himself says you should have serrations on a fighting knife.

Cutting rope or cord a lot is another reason. Sharpening them can be a challenge as stated above...

[Officer's Match]

Originally Posted by RogueClimber

I cant find the article right now, but Ernest Emerson himself says you should have serrations on a fighting knife.

Cutting rope or cord a lot is another reason. Sharpening them can be a challenge as stated above...

Seems to me it wouldn't need to be as hard to do as it is. If manufacturer's would use a simple scalloped design, all that would be needed is the appropriately sized files and rods and it would be actually fairly simple.

[RogueClimber]

Found the article:

One last word on blades. Always, repeat always, get a serrated blade. They always cut, even when dull and they blow through a seat belt like something vulgar through a goose.

[internetguy]

I use serrations on a fairly frequent basis. Fastest way to cut a line, essential if you're going after webbing like a seatbelt.

Easy to sharpen and doesn't take that long; simply get a small round file, and get the angle right. A few smooth strokes on each side of the serration and it's good to go.

[saltydog452]

I have an Emerson Commander.

It was way overpriced, but could be put together for left hand carry/presentation. There was enough going on with the right side. For the left hand, Emerson was one of the few who marketed quality lefty friendly folders.

The blade opening isn't hampered, or helped by spring assist or restraint. You gotta 'flick' it open or use a pocket edge to catch and open the blade.

The Kershaw Blurr spring assist opening is way handier for right hand and doesn't need to be 'flicked' open.

salty

[tritiumfreak45]

Serrations are for people who are too lazy to keep a good edge on their knife. Even a well-sharpened vegetable knife will slice bread more effectively than a serrated "bread" knife.

That being said, yes serrations will cut even if your knife is dull, and I think on a rescue knife, they're a nice edition. As a utility-oriented knife for EDC, they rob you of a good portion of the plain area of the edge. 25-30% covered is good, but most serrated blades are 50% or higher, which is completely unnecessary.

For fighting knives, the blade type is much more important. For a knife that has a lot of convexity to the edge, serrations are good as they'll give it more bite since a lot of curve tends to push the blade out of the cutting area.

Personally, I think a sharp karambit makes the most effective fighting knife. It will pierce any type of clothing, and severe any tissue, muscle, tendons, ligaments, or arteries it comes into contact with. You don't have the stabbing potential of a dagger or pronounced clip point, but you can cripple someone with a single sweep, even from less than optimal positions with little to no windup. They're small size makes them wieldy regardless of who is what and where. If someone grabs you from behind, raking it across the back of their knee and cutting clear to the bone will put them in a wheelchair for life. A hard pull-through in the midsection will spill their intestines on the pavement, and a vertical pierce-and-hook in the rib cage can literally yank a rib out of their torso. If things really cut ugly, a simple flick of the wrist can slice someone from ear to ear and send them to the morgue with a frowny face above the chin and a smiley face below it.

Emerson makes the best folding karambit out there, especially for fighting. The wave feature allows you to deploy it immediately from forward or reverse grips. Even automatics require a forward grip to actuate the blade whereas you can carry an Emerson designed to be drawn in the reverse grip, which is the preferred grip for using a karambit.

I almost always carry two knives: one for general/EDC/utility use, and the other for fighting. Unfortunately I do not own a karambit at the present time, but I'll be getting another one very shortly.

But, regarding the original post, I would go with a non-serrated blade. The recurve gives you tremendous cutting power (like a tanto as the edge does not curve away from the cutting point), but gives you slicing ability with the convex area toward the tip. If you want a good fighting knife, get a second knife. You can't have the best of both worlds in a single piece.

[JayTee]

I think serrations are a matter of personal preference. Pros and cons to both styles.

My current EDC at work is a Super Commander in stonewash finish. I don't know what it is about Emersons though but they seem to get dull faster than any other knife I have. I'm thinking its the grind they use. Anyway, I have to touch up the edge pretty often. However, the serrations are still razor sharp and I haven't had to sharpened them yet!

Here's a pic...

[Officer's Match]

Nice knife. I love the way the Commanders feel like they grew out of your hand, and I see that trait in your picture.

[tritiumfreak45]

Originally Posted by JayTee

I think serrations are a matter of personal preference. Pros and cons to both styles.

I see little to no use for them. Sure, they give you that added traction on a pulling cut (a plain edge might slip off), but using a coarse grind gives you micro serrations that add traction without sacrificing a portion of the blade. Some people use a coarse grind in the area that would normally have serrations and a finer grind on the rest of the blade. Personally, I find that much more useful.

Originally Posted by JayTee

I don't know what it is about Emersons though but they seem to get dull faster than any other knife I have.

It's because you use it more than any other knife.

[tritiumfreak45]

In case anyone is interested, I contacted Emerson regarding the availability of the combat karambits. They estimate approximately six weeks until they're back in stock. For now, I bought a Mantis MK-3 Encore and I'm doing a few things to it to make it more effective as a fighter. I'll post pics soon.

[clearblue]

Originally Posted by RogueClimber

I cant find the article right now, but Ernest Emerson himself says you should have serrations on a fighting knife.

Cutting rope or cord a lot is another reason. Sharpening them can be a challenge as stated above...

Rob is right on.

I like to have serrations on some of my blades but not all of them. It really depends on what you want to use the knife for. If this will be a dedicated defensive blade I would get the serrations for sure. If this is going to be a EDC blade that will be used for cutting and slicing a lot of media I would go with a plain edge so that you are able to utilize the entire blade for nice clean cuts.

Originally Posted by JayTee

I don't know what it is about Emersons though but they seem to get dull faster than any other knife I have. I'm thinking its the grind they use.IMG]

I use to think the same thing. It turns out that it only happens to the knives I like using the most…because I use them more.


Best of luck!

[tritiumfreak45]

I would want serrations on a dedicated rescue blade, but not a dedicated fighting blade. Serrations give you some cutting power, but having a stupidly deep edge with a coarse grind still bites through flesh and cartilage better than a semi-sharp serrated blade as well as keeps the edge from hanging up on a bone or joint. The problem with serrations is that although you can keep them sharp, you can't deepen them the way you can a plain edge. My karambit has such a deep grind on it now that there is almost no way I could do the same angles with serrations. If I could, however, I wouldn't hesitate to fully serrate the blade with directional serrations (like the CRKT M16 series). I'm talking BIG serrations, too.