Response to the Exskelibur II Review
I got a lot of feedback on the previous review and one of the pieces was really outstanding. Here it is, unedited:
Hello Anthony,
Greetings from the island Continent.
Just thought I’d PM this instead of posting on your blog.
The Bog oak is not worth money over G10, granted but another Titanium liner most definitely is. That is the biggest difference between the Exskelimoor & Exskeliber. The only plus with the Bog oak is that it weighs next to nothing which means the Exskelimoor II & Exskeliber II, on my digital scale, weigh exactly the same at 57 grams or ~2 ounces.
The Exskelimoor II has a wider handle than the Exskeliber II, respectively 15mm vs 11.5mm which has pros and cons. For pocket or tight space carry thinness is good but for a more positive and powerful grip the girth is useful.
However, the two Titanium liners means the Exskelimoor II is more rigid and doesn't need a back spacer so it is a see through pillar design.
BTW I find the knife very easy to deploy:
I've never come close to issues with blade safety when opening. Different strokes I guess.
I’ve the Exskelimoor I & II and the Exskeliber II. My samples have excellent lock up and area mostly flush with the LH tang side looking at the lock reed. Maybe was just in with the knife Gods at the time of purchase. The locks can be a bit sticky so Sharpie or pencil graphite on the blade tang can be useful.
So in summary and respectfully the Exskelimoor II & Exskeliber II are not just the same knife with wood vs G10 scales described in your piece but significantly distinct siblings.
For mine, and based on your merit point system, the Exskeliber II score should be more like 13 out of 20.
Thanks for your entertaining and informative blog.
Kind regards,
Glenn
Glenn's points are almost all completely right. Here are a couple that aren't or are opinions I disagree with.
At least according to AG Russell, the Exskelibur has Ti liners as well. The only concern I would have is if the liners on the Exskelibur were aluminum, but they couldn't be and still have the massive weight savings Glenn points out. In all likelihood the liners are either Ti as well or they are stainless steel which is more rigid than titanium, though heavier.
There are a bunch of ways to deploy the knife, Glenn is correct. None of them however are ways I like. The fastest way, the jimping flip, is still an incredibly awkward motion. You can do it with one hand and it can be fast but it is not a very fluid or natural motion. It is certainly not as nice as the sweep used when opening a knife with a thumb hole or the tap push of a flipper. The custom version IS in the same league, but the greatly reduced tang in the Exskelibur II is the problem.
But again I can see how one could get use to this and how it wouldn't be any worse than a thumb stud. This is a place where reasonable people could disagree and I can see why he'd score it a 13 instead of a 9 out of 20.
I hope that I can give you a lot of different useful opinions and not just one voice. It is why I include and reference other reviews in every review I do and Glenn's comments as well as those in the comments section are all very good points.
Greetings from the island Continent.
Just thought I’d PM this instead of posting on your blog.
The Bog oak is not worth money over G10, granted but another Titanium liner most definitely is. That is the biggest difference between the Exskelimoor & Exskeliber. The only plus with the Bog oak is that it weighs next to nothing which means the Exskelimoor II & Exskeliber II, on my digital scale, weigh exactly the same at 57 grams or ~2 ounces.
The Exskelimoor II has a wider handle than the Exskeliber II, respectively 15mm vs 11.5mm which has pros and cons. For pocket or tight space carry thinness is good but for a more positive and powerful grip the girth is useful.
However, the two Titanium liners means the Exskelimoor II is more rigid and doesn't need a back spacer so it is a see through pillar design.
BTW I find the knife very easy to deploy:
I've never come close to issues with blade safety when opening. Different strokes I guess.
I’ve the Exskelimoor I & II and the Exskeliber II. My samples have excellent lock up and area mostly flush with the LH tang side looking at the lock reed. Maybe was just in with the knife Gods at the time of purchase. The locks can be a bit sticky so Sharpie or pencil graphite on the blade tang can be useful.
So in summary and respectfully the Exskelimoor II & Exskeliber II are not just the same knife with wood vs G10 scales described in your piece but significantly distinct siblings.
For mine, and based on your merit point system, the Exskeliber II score should be more like 13 out of 20.
Thanks for your entertaining and informative blog.
Kind regards,
Glenn
Glenn's points are almost all completely right. Here are a couple that aren't or are opinions I disagree with.
At least according to AG Russell, the Exskelibur has Ti liners as well. The only concern I would have is if the liners on the Exskelibur were aluminum, but they couldn't be and still have the massive weight savings Glenn points out. In all likelihood the liners are either Ti as well or they are stainless steel which is more rigid than titanium, though heavier.
There are a bunch of ways to deploy the knife, Glenn is correct. None of them however are ways I like. The fastest way, the jimping flip, is still an incredibly awkward motion. You can do it with one hand and it can be fast but it is not a very fluid or natural motion. It is certainly not as nice as the sweep used when opening a knife with a thumb hole or the tap push of a flipper. The custom version IS in the same league, but the greatly reduced tang in the Exskelibur II is the problem.
But again I can see how one could get use to this and how it wouldn't be any worse than a thumb stud. This is a place where reasonable people could disagree and I can see why he'd score it a 13 instead of a 9 out of 20.
I hope that I can give you a lot of different useful opinions and not just one voice. It is why I include and reference other reviews in every review I do and Glenn's comments as well as those in the comments section are all very good points.