Entrek USA Survivor

[xxo]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w408x8t37eE


First review I have seen of an Entrek knife...looks interesting.

[kurodrago]

Damn you xxo:p
Now I want one:D

[kurodrago]

I bought one:mad::D

[QuietBearr]

Well, nice to see the video posted here! I am sure you will be very happy with it.

I made a video today testing out the Survivor on some hard knotted Aspen, batoning with both wood and a claw hammer.

Needless to say it ROCKED! :rockon:

I am uploading the video now, third go around now because of the youtube copyright nazis muting my music....

When it gets up finally I will post it here.

I was shocked that after 45 minutes of going through wood, it still had a hair shaving, paper curly-q slicing edge!

And I have been talking to the company about their heat and quench treatment, this is what Ray Ennis has to say about why the edge performs so well:

The reason our 440C performs so well is that we spend the money to have them sub-zero stabilized (quenched) This process actually costs more than the heat treat itself. You will find that most companies only are concerned with making the knife as cheap as possible so the owners and if they have any the investors make more money. That is why so many knives are made overseas. In other words money is the reason they make knives. I on the other hand I make knives because i am a knife maker, thats what i do. My focus is to make the best knife i can and make it affordable enough that when someone wants to buy a premium knife they can. It sounds a bit corny but I am kind of old fashioned about certain things.

The more I learn, the more I love!

I would highly recommend it, but for all you knife testers, wait and see the video!

[xxo]

Glad to see you here QuietBearr!

Great job on your vid.

[QuietBearr]

Here is the test video! :rockon::rockon::rockon:

8EcvlHAVBws

[wildjim]

Looks like a nice knife but a bit pricey at $75 up wholesale but a bit less than Fallkniven.

I know the Cheaper Than Dirt Rough Use Knife for $10 retail or $5 wholesale will do the same job. I can't bring myself to spend 15 times the price even at wholesale for a USA made knife or the Fallkniven which is more.

I wish US knife manufacturers would come down out of the clouds and sell some knives at under $50 as I do not personally see the value of 15 times the price of the comparable China made knives.

[jankerson]

Looks like a nice knife but a bit pricey at $75 up wholesale but a bit less than Fallkniven.

I know the Cheaper Than Dirt Rough Use Knife for $10 retail or $5 wholesale will do the same job. I can't bring myself to spend 15 times the price even at wholesale for a USA made knife or the Fallkniven which is more.

I wish US knife manufacturers would come down out of the clouds and sell some knives at under $50 as I do not personally see the value of 15 times the price of the comparable China made knives.

That will never happen because even at min wage they couldn't afford to stay in business selling them that cheap.

In China they make just a few dollars a day working very long hours.

In other words not likely.

That is unless you want to work 15 hour days for $2 a day. ;)

[QuietBearr]

I have never had a 10-15 dollar knife that could perform this way, especially the later tests of hitting it against a steel bar and the flex test.

Not saying they dont exist, just saying that I have never had one.

As for the USA part, there is a reason that the knife is as much as it is, when you think he prolly pays $12-15 for the quench, maybe $7-9 for the heat treat, the steel, the shaping, doesnt advertise to keep costs down as well, each one is hand made. I mean this are not factory churned out knives, all are handmade custom knives....

[Madnumforce]

In my opinion, the grind is not made manually. I do grind, and i have friends that do grind also, and no one could sell a hand shaped, hand hollow ground with tanto point, cryogenic quenched, micarta handle knifes for 165$ and live from it. Or he would spend day and night at it to make enough profit. Maybe the more expensive knives are his liveboat, and he "advertise" with these cheaper knives to attract clients. Maybe the blades are laser cut and roughly machine grinded, and the slabs are machine cut and drilled, operations that take lot of time, and only left the pleasant part: polishing and finishing the blade, shaping the handle, etc... Then you can product 300 knives a month without effort with all the custom knifemaker quality and attention where it matters, and thus reduct the cost; while all hand made it would be hard to reach more than 50 a month. Well... 50 a month, you allready have to sell them! This is the hardest part of the business.

[QuietBearr]

They are CNC cut from steel, and then finished by hand. All of them even the cheaper ones...

Also, he is not the only one working at the company I believe, I am pretty sure he has other people also working for him, thus increasing production.

But yea I agree with you, and I dont think that he has a large markup on the knives either, as he doesnt pay for advertising or whatnot, just sells them at bladeshows and through a couple of retailers.

He is getting more popular though, I only hope I can help, because I strongly endorse his products now!

Will be getting the Badger and reviewing it as well soon!

[Madnumforce]

Will be getting the Badger and reviewing it as well soon!

Nice to read that! We'll see if it hold up as well! He seems a serious and honnest knife maker, that's sure.

[QuietBearr]

Sure does. I dont know how much destruction testing I will do on it, I think I have proven how their steel does, but I will certainly put it through its paces, and there might be some steel hitting in its future, but cant promise that! I do actually want to keep and use the knife, so it may just be some real life testing situations with that one!

I dont know, I have a tendancy once I start testing it to not stop lol.

[QuietBearr]

In my opinion, the grind is not made manually. I do grind, and i have friends that do grind also, and no one could sell a hand shaped, hand hollow ground with tanto point, cryogenic quenched, micarta handle knifes for 165$ and live from it. Or he would spend day and night at it to make enough profit. Maybe the more expensive knives are his liveboat, and he "advertise" with these cheaper knives to attract clients. Maybe the blades are laser cut and roughly machine grinded, and the slabs are machine cut and drilled, operations that take lot of time, and only left the pleasant part: polishing and finishing the blade, shaping the handle, etc... Then you can product 300 knives a month without effort with all the custom knifemaker quality and attention where it matters, and thus reduct the cost; while all hand made it would be hard to reach more than 50 a month. Well... 50 a month, you allready have to sell them! This is the hardest part of the business.

Well, doing recent research for a non related subject, I discovered that it is very easy to make and sell a knife for 165 with the features listed above.

Heat treating (including sub zero quench) from PAUL BOS is only 3.50 a knife if you do it in batches of 20 or more. That isnt much.

That much 440C from Admiral if you dont buy in bulk would be .88 cents an inch, and that is not buying in bulk.

Two micarta handle scales would be like $8-9. The hardware per knife would be about $4 or less, not buying in bulk.

What he does (I asked him lol) is have blanks water jet cut out, then he sends them off for heat treating at a place in Salt Lake I think, I cant remember exactly, then he finishes the knife by hand the traditional way with a belt sander and drill press etc.

Doing it that way he actually can pump out quite a few per day, although since I have been retailing them, he has been having to make each one after the order comes in, he has the blanks heat treated already, but has to finish them as the order comes in.

Anyway, just saying that it is possible.

Oh yea, and changed my mind, since a couple of people on youtube have got the badger, I decided to get the Lynx instead. I wish I had enough for the Destroyer though, but possibly in a couple of months I will be getting that one and I can really test that one out!

Maybe Noss can get something and do a real test on it though, I would looooooove to see that!