New Gear July 2015

I'd like to start doing these monthly wrap-ups where I talk about all the new gear I've received that month. I won't film unboxings like I used to, so this seems like a good way to show everything I've gotten. Here is everything I've gotten in the month of July.

As you can see in the photo, I got 4 things: a knife, pen, pry tool, and storage box. 

The Pelican 1120 is the storage box I got. I never really got the hype behind these Pelican cases before, but I am most definitely happy I picked this one up. I've shown it in a few videos and on here, so check those out if you want to see how I'm using it. It holds all my gear and keeps it all safe and protected. These Pelican cases are super strong and durable, so you know they'll last forever.

The knife I got is the Zero Tolerance 0566. One of my good friends got me this as a birthday present, and I couldn't be happier. It's had some work done to it, like the edge has been touched up and a green G10 Allen Putman scale was put on it. I like it a lot, which really surprised me. I'm normally not a fan of any of these big blades, but this one kinda makes me want to get a couple more bigger ones. I deassisted it, and the action is great now. Love this blade for sure! Expect a review on it before the end of the summer.

The pen is a Hinder Investigator Pen and is also from my friend as a gift. I've wanted one of these for so long after I was given a chance to try one. It's a great pen for sure. I still need to go pick up some o-rings to put in the grooves. It writes well and is pretty compact for what it is. I'm also hoping to get a review of it up by the end of the summer.

Lastly, I picked up an EOS Ti Shark pry tool. It was on sale during Shark Week, and I'm not one to pass up a good deal. Shipping took forever, but I'm happy I've finally got it in my hands. It feels pretty solid and looks extremely cool too. I don't know if I'll end up carrying it much, but we'll see as time goes on.

That's everything I've picked up this month. I was supposed to get one more thing in, but shipping got messed so that will probably be in the August post.  These posts will be a good way to remind myself how long I've had certain pieces of gear too. Thanks for looking!

Esee Izula Thoughts

The Esee Izula is one of the more well-known EDC fixed blade options and that's for good reason. It's a simple blade that just does what you need it to do.

Specifications

Overall length: 6.25”

Blade length: 2.875”

Handle length: 3.375”

Weight: 1.9 oz.

Blade steel: 1095

Likes

• Great quality. I’ve had no issues with mine.
• Esee has an awesome warranty. If you have a problem they replace your knife, no questions asked.
• Affordable. $50 is a good price for what you’re getting. This blade will easily last you a life time.
• Design wise, it looks cool and functions well
• Comes in tons of different colors. I love the purple!
• Coating holds up well. It has a tendency to chip, but that hasn’t happened to mine yet.
• Sheath has great retention and hold the knife well. It’s an injection molded sheath and is surprisingly good. There are tons of ways to carry it too, which is very handy. You can mount it on your belt, wear it as a neck knife, etc. The possibilities are pretty endless.
• 1095 is super sharp and easy to sharpen.
• Ergonomics are awesome. It fits my hand well. I don’t have any paracord or scales on it, but it is still very comfortable. There are no hotspots at all.
• Jimping on the spine is nice and grippy
• Pretty lightweight for what it is
• Perfect size for EDC. It’s not too big or small.
• Super durable and solid. I know this blade could handle anything I need it to cut. 

Dislikes

• None

This is the perfect EDC fixed blade in my opinion. It certainly is the best one for the price. It’s a great quality blade that is meant to last forever. I highly recommend you pick one of these up! It’s just that awesome! Thanks for looking!

Knife Talk: Handle Materials

I’d like to make this knife talk post to talk about my favorite and least favorite handle materials.

My absolute favorite material is FRN. That comes as a big surprise to me, because I used to really hate FRN. It has grown on me quite a bit, mostly because I love my Ladybug so much. I think Spyderco does the best FRN. I like FRN, because it can come in tons of different colors, it’s grippy, lightweight, and holds up pretty well to everyday use. FRN or anything similar is done poorly by some companies though, which is why I always try to stick to Spyderco's FRN.

G10 is my second favorite material. Most of the time, companies will only make knives with black G10 which really sucks. G10 does come in different colors and is pretty grippy too. Sometimes I almost think it’s too tactical looking and a little boring. It does exactly what it should, and you always know what you’re getting with it for the most part.

Those are really the only materials that I can actually tolerate. I hate any kind of metal handles whether it’s stainless steel or titanium. Seriously, I don’t get the whole titanium craze but whatever. These metal handles have bad hotspots, are very slick, can get cold, are heavy, and look pretty boring in my opinion. I’m also not a fan of any kind of wood or carbon fiber. Sometimes they look cool, but other times I just think they look awful. Anyways, that pretty much wraps it up. What are your favorite handle materials? Thanks for looking!

Benchmade Blue Lube Thoughts

put a little on this blade so you all could get a better idea of what it looks like out of the bottle

This Benchmade Blue Lube is the one and only knife lubricant I've ever tried. I don't think I'll try a different one for the sole reason that this one has been absolutely awesome. If it ain't broke don't fix it, right? I don't know much about all the lubricants out there. I didn't even know that they were that necessary until I was a year or two into collecting knives. Everyone needs some kind of lubricant for their knives. It helps keep them in tip top order and improves the blade's action as well. 

I've used this Blue Lube on several of my blades, and the results have been great. It smooths them right up, way smoother than they came from the factory. I can't really describe the difference it's made to my blades, but it has definitely made them much better. I was really impressed by how it worked on my Ladybug and ZT 0566. Both are so so smooth right now.

This stuff is blue and not that thick. The tip of the bottle isn't that precise like some lubricants I've seen, but it is still easy to get the lube in the pivot area of your blade. The cap stays on pretty well, and it takes a little bit of effort to get the lube out, so you know it won't come out unless you want it to. It smells perfectly fine too, which is always a plus. I don't know all the technical ways to explain this stuff, but take my word, this stuff is awesome.

I don't know whether it's the best on the market or not. However, it has blown me away, and I will continue to use it. I've had this 1.25 fluid ounce bottle for a year or two now, and I still have pretty much the whole bottle left. You don't even have to use that much or use it that frequently, so it can last you quite a while. It is a little pricey at $8 for the bottle, but I highly recommend it. It's well worth that. Never thought I'd write a post on a knife lube, but this stuff is too great to not talk about. Thanks for looking!

Knife Talk: Opening Mechanisms

Today I’d like to talk about my favorite knife opening mechanisms. When I need to use my knife, I like to have the option to open it quickly without having it fiddle around. I like to keep it simple, so I can easily open blades one handed. Two handed opening is alright but not preferred.

My favorite would have to be thumb holes. Obviously, Spyderco does the best ones. Thumb holes are easy to use and very straight forward. They do add a considerable amount of width to a blade, but are totally worth it in my mind.

My next favorite would have to be thumb nicks. I don’t like how you can only open them two handed, but they’re just so classic and traditional. I wasn’t originally a fan of them until I got more into Victorinoxs. They work as they should and are relatively easy to use.

Thumb dics/plates are also right near the top of my favorites. They look really cool and are better than thumb studs in my opinion. I really want to try an Emerson just to test out the thumb disc. I tried the one on the Kershaw-Emerson CQC-2K and liked it a lot.

Flippers are super fun to use. Sometimes they aren’t the greatest on lower quality blades, but on the few higher end flippers I’ve tried, they’ve been great. The Kershaw Groove was one of the best flippers I’ve ever tried.

And lastly, the ones I absolutely hate and try to avoid at all costs are thumb studs, the wave, and anything spring assisted. Thumb studs take too much concentration, because I’ve found that you have to hit it just right to get the blade to open properly. I don’t carry knives in my pockets, so the wave feature just isn’t an option for me, and I don’t think it’s that necessary. Spring assisted knives are just plain obnoxious. It’s a completely worthless feature. I can open a knife with a thumb hole just as fast as a spring assisted one. They bring too much attention to yourself and freak most people out. Anyways, those are my favorite and least favorite opening mechanisms. What are some of yours? Thanks for looking!

Cold Steel Mini Tuff Lite Thoughts

The Cold Steel Mini Tuff Lite is one of Cold Steel's smaller knife offerings. I didn't expect it to be that great, but boy was I wrong. This is an awesome knife for everyday carry and one that I love a lot. I highly recommend it to anyone looking for a small knife.

Specifications

Overall length: 5”

Blade length: 2” but cutting edge is only 1.3”

Handle length: 3”

Weight: 1.7 oz.

Blade steel: AUS-8A

Likes

• Small. It would be a great secondary or people-friendly knife.
• Great quality. I've experienced no problems with mine.
• Very affordable. $25 is a perfect price for this blade.
• Comes in different colors. The green is very bright and vibrant. If green isn't your thing, you can get it in orange, pink, or black. I do believe they recently discontinued the colored versions, which is a real shame.
• Ergonomics are fantastic. The choil is a great design choice. I can fit a full 4 finger grip.
• Jimping is pretty good. It’s a little too far apart, but it still provides added grip.
• Design looks cool and functions extremely well for EDC. I love the wharncliffe blade.
• Handles are just an FRN type material, but they feel very nice. They have some texturing to them.
• Clip carries well. I wasn’t a fan of the tip-down only at first, but I’ve gotten used to it now.
• Thumb hole is easy to use
• Tri-ad lock is great. It’s super strong and durable.

Dislikes

• Tip-down only is a minor annoyance. It’s something that you just have to get used to.
• Tri-ad lock was very difficult to disengage when I first got it. It has broken in now though.

This is a great knife for the money. I didn’t expect much from it, but it has easily become one of my favorites. I definitely recommend you go pick one up. Thanks for looking!

Updated Gear Storage

I recently picked up a Pelican 1120 case and decided to use it to store the majority of my EDC gear. I like it a lot so far. It's a very solid case, and I definitely think I'll be purchasing some more Pelican products in the future. I got the version that had the Pick and Pluck foam, but decided to take it out and just store all my gear loose. I saw TheRoxyStarr make a video with a similar setup a while ago and thought I'd give it a try. When I go to college, I'll probably fill it with all the gear I'd like to bring with me. I'll keep you all updated on how I like it. Here are some pictures of it. Thanks for looking!