Wow - this was a GREAT video Dirk - what a great idea to do an actual side-by-side comparison. Well done and thank you! I have the War Junkie Citadel and I love it - I think mine is about as close to perfect as it could be regarding lines & seams. Considering the number of materials & components, and the sheer complexity of inlay geometry, I think this was a VERY ambitious collab undertaking by Artisan and they nailed it - at least with my knife. VERY happy with the one I got. Mine has very few inlay seam flaws which cannot be felt and I literally had to look for under lighted magnification to find (which I do with all new arrival pieces). Actually my blade is a beautiful near-mirror satin and the handles are also fine satin with much better refraction than the War Junkie example you showed. It is really nicer than I hoped it might be. I have also spoke with Todd several times on a full custom and will likely get one. At this time I believe the books may be still open for ordering a full custom Citadel. Regarding the comments wishing for Todd to provide some options - Here's the thing - a full custom is a full custom. What I mean by that is, your options are limited only by your imagination, the workability of selected materials and your bank account. If you're paying Todd to make you a custom knife, he will make you a custom knife to your specification. You want a Damascus blade, he'll make it. Mirror blade, hand satin, cracked ice, whatever. Timascus handles, Zircuti, whatever. Green micarta inlays, G10, MOP, marbled CF, heck probably actual marble, whatever. Mirror Ti handle, satin, DLC, Ti anodized whatever color. You're paying for it and once you agree on a specification and a price, it's just the waiting period - which may sting a bit. I believe right now we're looking at a year or slightly longer for a full custom. Anyway, there it is.
No questions. Just letting you know my production Citadel version is a grail-type knife for me. My other grail (who said you can only have one) is the large Sebenza 31. Totally different, yet totally beautiful.
Thanks for chiming Sir. Always a pleasure my friend. I actually think I might have another custom Citadel heading my way, so there will likely be more Begg knife videos coming shortly.
@@DirkWerning I wouldn't call it a custom knife to be frank, looks like a pimped version of production model. I mean, it has better materials, has slighly better finish, but really doesn't justify the 4 grand price, I'd say 2000-2500 is more appropriate. Also just the issue with lockbar is enough to warrant a free repair if you ask me. I am actually close to buying a regular citadel. I mean damn, 4grand thats half a kyle royer knife or a custom marfione, sure it looks cool but...I respect Todd, he's made some great knifes, shaped the industry in a way, but thats just overpriced. If it had engraved scales like some bodegas, hell yes, take my money. this? nah. 450$ is the way to go.
@@DirkWerning Seeing that you have replied to my comment and I have your attention, hopefully you won't mind me asking an unrelated question. I own Wingman Jett with damasteel and zircuti. Considering the fact that they sold out a long time ago and there's only like 60 of them in the world (possibly 80, not exactly sure) and that it's in mint condition, what kind of price would be a good selling point ?
Dirk, Great Video! I just purchased a War Junkie and cannot wait to receive it. To answer you question, Yes in my opinion the "replica" production should closely resemble the original. It makes me feel like I got something just as good as the original at a much better price point. As far as the recurve, I for one am glad they didnt bring that to the production. Sharpening if and when necessary will be easier. I have a question... I happen to like the polished look....is it possible to polish the production myself to bring out the shine? and if so how does one go about dpoing the work? Thank you again
Yes I agree the production should be similar to the custom, but should it be equal or rival the custom??? Yes you can polish the production version, but no I’m not sure how to go about that so I won’t give any false direction but I’ve seen it done by another friend on IG.
@@DirkWerning LOL Well now that depends on who you ask.. If you ask me the guy with the Repro Hell yes, if you ask the guy who paid 4 grand Hell No!! but I understand the question.. I think its a great tribute when you can mimmick the original but there shoukd be things that make the orig stand out and abouve and I believe there are... the Jeweling is amazing... the Blade steel, the polishing, the CF the Dots on the inlay etc.. but good question
How are the body screws in terms of their proudness? It looks like the custom body screws are counter-sunk to a greater degree, whereas the ones on my production one are a little proud. I really like and am impressed with mine as a production iteration, but it is a small thing I noticed.
I had kinda forgotten about Bodegas. Now I really really want one. I completely agree that the production is WAY to similar to the custom. How is the grind between the two? Like is the custom a better performer?
Appreciate the longer video! Definitely an interesting discussion topic given how similar they are. Both are outside of my price range, but if given the option, I'd go for the production version. Disregarding price, I'd be more likely to carry and use it due to the finishing work and lock-bar insert, not to mention the functional and reliability issues with the custom. Almost seems like Begg is shooting himself in the foot with this one...
I believe the bearings are ceramic on both. The detent on the custom is very light. Not so light you can shake the knife open but lighter than I prefer.
Great video 👍👌 Pros and Cons of customs vs production 🤦♂️🤷♂️ I have a beautiful handmade knife by Les George with meteorite bloster and mammoth ivory handle with Damascus blade BUT a hair width of lock 🤬🤬 can’t be f’ed sending it back 🤦♂️
I stole this Citadel production version. With rewards from Knife Center, this beauty was $400.-. IMO, a semi-custom, American-made knife like this would start at $750.- minimum. This is a near-perfect, flipper knife. This bad boy is bodacious. True, it's not equal to some of Dirk's custom knives with exotic materials but still, this knife is of great value and workmanship.
Not much about this knife speaks to me. Not saying it isn’t gorgeous, just not my cup of tea. Now if I could get those inlays out and get some purple fat carbon into the production one it may tickle me a bit. That lockup and pivot thing is a big red flag for 4k+. That needs to go back for a tang re-grind. If nothing else, file a rch worth of material off himself to get some lock-up. Send it here and i’ll do it for free just to make the content out of it. All that said and referencing back to my comment on the unboxing; This seems to be the complete opposite of what I was saying. I’d go for the Artisan production model any day of the week. A recurvr can be added if I so chose to do it and the more subdued look actually looks better on this. I need to talk to you. Gonna slide into your DMs 😮
Wow - this was a GREAT video Dirk - what a great idea to do an actual side-by-side comparison. Well done and thank you!
I have the War Junkie Citadel and I love it - I think mine is about as close to perfect as it could be regarding lines & seams. Considering the number of materials & components, and the sheer complexity of inlay geometry, I think this was a VERY ambitious collab undertaking by Artisan and they nailed it - at least with my knife. VERY happy with the one I got. Mine has very few inlay seam flaws which cannot be felt and I literally had to look for under lighted magnification to find (which I do with all new arrival pieces). Actually my blade is a beautiful near-mirror satin and the handles are also fine satin with much better refraction than the War Junkie example you showed. It is really nicer than I hoped it might be.
I have also spoke with Todd several times on a full custom and will likely get one. At this time I believe the books may be still open for ordering a full custom Citadel. Regarding the comments wishing for Todd to provide some options - Here's the thing - a full custom is a full custom. What I mean by that is, your options are limited only by your imagination, the workability of selected materials and your bank account.
If you're paying Todd to make you a custom knife, he will make you a custom knife to your specification. You want a Damascus blade, he'll make it. Mirror blade, hand satin, cracked ice, whatever. Timascus handles, Zircuti, whatever. Green micarta inlays, G10, MOP, marbled CF, heck probably actual marble, whatever. Mirror Ti handle, satin, DLC, Ti anodized whatever color.
You're paying for it and once you agree on a specification and a price, it's just the waiting period - which may sting a bit. I believe right now we're looking at a year or slightly longer for a full custom. Anyway, there it is.
Thank you for the video. I too am available to anyone who has questions about the difference in the 2 knives.
No questions. Just letting you know my production Citadel version is a grail-type knife for me. My other grail (who said you can only have one) is the large Sebenza 31. Totally different, yet totally beautiful.
Thanks for chiming Sir. Always a pleasure my friend. I actually think I might have another custom Citadel heading my way, so there will likely be more Begg knife videos coming shortly.
This was a great comparison. I wanted to see this done, and haven’t yet. Great video Dirk.
Thanks man. I aim to give the viewers what they want lol.
Great video!
@@DirkWerning I wouldn't call it a custom knife to be frank, looks like a pimped version of production model. I mean, it has better materials, has slighly better finish, but really doesn't justify the 4 grand price, I'd say 2000-2500 is more appropriate. Also just the issue with lockbar is enough to warrant a free repair if you ask me. I am actually close to buying a regular citadel. I mean damn, 4grand thats half a kyle royer knife or a custom marfione, sure it looks cool but...I respect Todd, he's made some great knifes, shaped the industry in a way, but thats just overpriced. If it had engraved scales like some bodegas, hell yes, take my money. this? nah. 450$ is the way to go.
@@96dragonhunter I agree with you. However it is a custom as the customs came first and then some time later the war Junkie version came out.
@@DirkWerning Seeing that you have replied to my comment and I have your attention, hopefully you won't mind me asking an unrelated question. I own Wingman Jett with damasteel and zircuti. Considering the fact that they sold out a long time ago and there's only like 60 of them in the world (possibly 80, not exactly sure) and that it's in mint condition, what kind of price would be a good selling point ?
An excellent comparison. Both are great looking knives. I really appreciate their design language. Great video 👍
Thanks man much appreciated.
The problem is that the custom is 10 times more expensive but only about 1.5 times better at best.
Don't throw away money for nothing people.
This is a great comparison. Very surprised that the custom version had that lockbar issue.
Thanks. It was a fun video to make.
Dirk, Great Video! I just purchased a War Junkie and cannot wait to receive it. To answer you question, Yes in my opinion the "replica" production should closely resemble the original. It makes me feel like I got something just as good as the original at a much better price point. As far as the recurve, I for one am glad they didnt bring that to the production. Sharpening if and when necessary will be easier. I have a question... I happen to like the polished look....is it possible to polish the production myself to bring out the shine? and if so how does one go about dpoing the work? Thank you again
Yes I agree the production should be similar to the custom, but should it be equal or rival the custom???
Yes you can polish the production version, but no I’m not sure how to go about that so I won’t give any false direction but I’ve seen it done by another friend on IG.
@@DirkWerning LOL Well now that depends on who you ask.. If you ask me the guy with the Repro Hell yes, if you ask the guy who paid 4 grand Hell No!! but I understand the question.. I think its a great tribute when you can mimmick the original but there shoukd be things that make the orig stand out and abouve and I believe there are... the Jeweling is amazing... the Blade steel, the polishing, the CF the Dots on the inlay etc.. but good question
How are the body screws in terms of their proudness? It looks like the custom body screws are counter-sunk to a greater degree, whereas the ones on my production one are a little proud. I really like and am impressed with mine as a production iteration, but it is a small thing I noticed.
I had kinda forgotten about Bodegas. Now I really really want one.
I completely agree that the production is WAY to similar to the custom.
How is the grind between the two? Like is the custom a better performer?
Appreciate the longer video! Definitely an interesting discussion topic given how similar they are. Both are outside of my price range, but if given the option, I'd go for the production version. Disregarding price, I'd be more likely to carry and use it due to the finishing work and lock-bar insert, not to mention the functional and reliability issues with the custom. Almost seems like Begg is shooting himself in the foot with this one...
Not sure I would go that far but…
So nice 👍
I think in general a custom anything should be way different than a production product. You shouldn't have to wonder what the extra money went into.
Are the bearings on the custom steel or ceramic ? Also how’s the detent between the two ? Thanks
I believe the bearings are ceramic on both. The detent on the custom is very light. Not so light you can shake the knife open but lighter than I prefer.
Great video 👍👌
Pros and Cons of customs vs production 🤦♂️🤷♂️
I have a beautiful handmade knife by Les George with meteorite bloster and mammoth ivory handle with Damascus blade BUT a hair width of lock 🤬🤬 can’t be f’ed sending it back 🤦♂️
Agreed especially for folks out of the country from the maker it’s always concerning sending back in.
I stole this Citadel production version. With rewards from Knife Center, this beauty was $400.-. IMO, a semi-custom, American-made knife like this would start at $750.- minimum. This is a near-perfect, flipper knife. This bad boy is bodacious. True, it's not equal to some of Dirk's custom knives with exotic materials but still, this knife is of great value and workmanship.
I totally agree. I might be adding a production version to my collection.
Yes they should
Agree that the production is too similar to the custom, and the owner of the custom kind of got shafted! :(
Thanks.
I want a stonewashed recurve
Yes EXACTLY.
Not much about this knife speaks to me. Not saying it isn’t gorgeous, just not my cup of tea. Now if I could get those inlays out and get some purple fat carbon into the production one it may tickle me a bit.
That lockup and pivot thing is a big red flag for 4k+. That needs to go back for a tang re-grind. If nothing else, file a rch worth of material off himself to get some lock-up. Send it here and i’ll do it for free just to make the content out of it.
All that said and referencing back to my comment on the unboxing; This seems to be the complete opposite of what I was saying. I’d go for the Artisan production model any day of the week. A recurvr can be added if I so chose to do it and the more subdued look actually looks better on this.
I need to talk to you. Gonna slide into your DMs 😮
Lol okay
Recurve blades are a pain to sharpen.
So true.
Your next video should be about how crazy someone has to be to spend 4K on a knife.
Well then I’m really nuts as I’ve spent more than that 😱😱😱
The production is junk, wrong OEM. Artisan quality sucks.
That’s not been my experience at all. Care to elaborate?
@@DirkWerning Annnnnd no reply from hit & run commenter. Moving on... 😂🤣
@@UncleJDCarp lol