Picking the Best OTF Knife | Benchmade, Microtech, or Kershaw?
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- Опубликовано: 2 авг 2024
- Trying to decide between which OTF should be your first? Take a few minutes to check out the differences between some popular American made automatic knives. Featuring the Benchmade Shootout, Microtech Ultratech and Kershaw Livewire.
Please feel free to leave your thoughts and questions below!
Thanks for watching!
#madeinusa #usa #benchmade #kershaw #microtechknives #spydercoknives #knife #edc #everydaycarry #blade #knifeskills
I have all three of these knives. The Livewire is overall the best for the price, steel and function.
Agreed! Thanks for watching!
This is the comparison I needed.
Glad to hear it! Let me know if there is anything else you would like to see and I'm happy to try to make it work in a video. Thanks for watching!
I have the livewire and the Microtech glykon and the livewire is a dream to use the Glykon is just beautiful to look at.
The glykon is an awesome knife, just seems a little impractical to use! I love the one with the green inlay and would love to get it if it ever goes on sale but I think there are others higher on my list. Thanks for watching!
Nice review, thanks.
Thanks for watching and for the comment!
I’d say for EDC; the Shootout. For JOAT; Livewire. For customization; Microtech.
Overall I think the Livewire is the best in most cases. Great action, good steel, decent design, pretty comfy, well-priced, the tanto one looks better than the others IMO, good materials, and is just sexy. The clip kinda sucks though.
Great points, the Livewire is certainly hard to beat especially with all the improvements that have already been made with the steel update and new designs coming out. Thanks for watching!
I've got a microtech that's my EDC for 3 yrs and I've put it thru blue hell. Good edge retention, i did have the glass breaker come loose just tightened it up with pair of pliers and piece of leather. To me the stiff switch is a benefit. I have oiled it a couple of times.
Glad to hear you're enjoying it! I don't mind the stiff switch either but I think you should definitely check out the newer generation models and feel their new technology that's inside the combat troodon and cypher now, it really is incredible how they make it so much easier to open yet still feel very sturdy.
Thanks for watching!
Ive used all those and kershaw was best for me.
I'm loving the Livewire, glad to see that it's so popular and getting the credit it deserves. Thanks for watching!
Kershaw. Price.
Functional.. Quality and reliability.. love me pretty much every model of the live wire
Totally agree with you. Even if it isn't quite as nice as a Microtech, the value is certainly there. Thanks for watching!
Glad to hear it!
Don’t usually drop comments… great video man. If you get another shootout, a review would be cool. The options for the blade styles and all behind the micro tech seem really attractive compared to the live wire. If you could go back and do it again, would you change your blade type on either of those two?
I appreciate the comment, thanks for watching! I really like the drop point blade on the Microtech, I have thought about a tanto but I think I prefer the drop point to actually use. I had a cheaper double edged dagger style otf and it was incredibly difficult to sharpen without messing up the point so I've tried to stay away from those for now, but I hope to get another in the future sometime. I'm not a huge fan of the livewire tanto blade for some reason and I don't love the new Dagger ones that have come out, I am really pleased with the blade shape I have on the basic model that comes to a very fine point.
I will definitely put together another video on the shootout after I get it fixed, however it might be a few weeks.
Thank you again for watching, let me know if there's anything else you'd like to see!
Ive had all these i kept the ultratech for how solid it feels. Best otf for edc is the bm autocrat
Never had the chance to hold an autocrat, also never heard it recommended before honestly. I might have to check it out at a store. Thanks for watching!
I'll tell one of the toughest ones I've seen recently looks to be the new Maxace OTF
Not as familiar with Maxace to be honest, but I will take a look at it. Thanks for watching!
i own and love all three of these. my biggest issue with the microtech and kershaw are that if your hands are wet they dont have the grip to keep you hand in place and deploy the blade safely. That being said depending on your life they are all great edc choices. with work my personal choice is the benchmade.
Great points, thanks for watching and for the comment!
I have got to give an update here. About two days after watching this my shootout broke in the same place. I figured since mine was the second generation it may have been fixed as I have put it through intense use. Sadly that is not the case. It’s a wonderful knife when it works, but I wouldn’t recommend buying one until that issue is resolved by Benchmade
@veryhasty5283 really sorry to hear it, I hope that Benchmade customer service will help you out! Let me know if you end up getting it fixed!
my favorite knife is my Chris Reeve Large Inkosi with S35 at 58 - I can sharpen it in 5 minutes and my knife is hair whittling sharp (I don’t cut enough on my EDC to need a steel any harder). Some guys and gals cut a lot and edge retention is important but my Inkosi will slice a paper towel and it’s still sharp after 4 years. Same with my Ultratech - I carry a second knife - it’s razor sharp after 2 years (I sharpened it just to see how well I could get the edge to cut and even though it’s thick, it can slice a paper towel and whittle a hair). I prefer a premium steel like S35VN or above but for my cutting needs, Rockwell is meaningless (I am like an every day commuter - don’t need a Bugatti when my M5 is way more than enough). That’s what Rockwell and latest greatest is r an issue for me - the extent of my cutting is a tag from an umbrella or a stubborn cigar band here and there lol - softer M390 or S35 will last me 20 years before it’s needs a sharpening
I appreciate the comment, would love to get my hands on a Chris Reeve at some point but it might be a few months/years down the road. I think a lot of people probably wouldn't notice a huge difference in steels but would notice a better heat treat, but I could be totally wrong. Thanks for watching!
I've owned 7 CRK. . . let's get real, they're overrated. They did no harden their blades like they should have because they were having issues with blades cracking from the thumbstud to the spine. You can try to argue all yo want, but I have my 12 years experience with them. Overrated.
@@staticfrequency2250 100% incorrect, 100% underrated.
Just because the spring holder thingy broke doesn't mean the shooutout is junk. I have an ultratech that the spring broke in the first month but I wouldn't call the knife junk. Conversely, my shooutout I have had for a year and a half and it has only ever failed once at work while cutting boxes. There was probably tape gunk that got stuck somewhere for that one cycle. There has to be thousands of cycles on the mechanism from me playing with it and from use, and everyone at work that likes to "use" it (realistically they just want to cut the box open then play with it lol). My Benchmade Phaeton had constant failures from the day I bought it. I sent it back 3 times, with the 3rd time because the springs broke. My Dad has had it for 3 months now with the new springs and so far so good. The shootout is hands down my favorite knife overall, great ergos, great steel that's easy to sharpen, great slicey thin blade. A distant 2nd is the Microtech Combat Troodon Gen3, but I suspect the M390MK steel is garbage, it doesn't hold an edge very well. With that said, I need to pick up a livewire.
Fair enough, I think I'm just sick of the springs breaking in Benchmade's along with the poor grinds and other problems right out of the box. I really did like the shootout until this happened, and if it was a one time thing with Benchmade I would totally understand but it seems to be a consistent problem across almost all of their models. I hope the new 710 spring designs coming out fix a lot of their problems going forward because I really like the designs/colors of almost all their knives. Thanks for watching!
Iv had mine for 8 months works perfect and why not send it in ? They have lifetime warranty iv used they would 100% fix thay for you within a week or 2 @DXSharpening
@@danelhernandez4875 I am in the process of sending it in right now, nothing but good experiences with Benchmade warranty... jist frustrating that I feel like I am constantly sending knives back to them and waiting when I'm not dealing with that with any other company. Thanks for watching!
I don't have any of these 3 but the Livewire is much higher on my wishlist than the others. Ultem and Magnacut version still less than the others.
I think if you wait it out they'll have a lot more than Ultem/Carbon Fiber/ whatever else there is out there. This seems to be an incredibly popular model for them and I'm betting they plan to capitalize on it. Thanks for watching!
@@DXSharpening yeah but the Ultem bug has caught hold of me, at least for now lol!
@EDCwDBD I don't have any ultem but I'm sure some is coming soon. Thanks for the comments!
I picked up a brand new Livewire on BHQ on sale for 190 dollars and that alone makes it unbeatable. The ultra tech is cool but 300 for baby food soft m390 vs a great heat treat on magnacut is asinine.
The Ultratech is probably just as good a knife in terms of quality, just not $100+ more in quality. Thanks for watching!
@@DXSharpening oh I agree. Great knife action is solid. Button kinda sucks to use and the blade play is arguably better than the livewire. Just hate that they refuse to use a decent steel. Hell id take m390 if they could guarantee a low of 60hrc.
@dat_boi3372 I am definitely excited for the new Ultratech with 0 blade play and the easy action, should totally shake up the market
@@DXSharpening That knife is definitely on the list especially if they do it in Magnacut like the sprint run ultratechs with the green switch. Magnacut isn’t even a necessity. Something with a good heat treat would suffice. They’ll never do it but Cruwear would be an awesome sight to see on it.
@dat_boi3372 that would be pretty cool, appreciate the comments!
Wow see now there was some reason why I avoided ever trying to purchase the shootout again I did once and it got lost in the mail so they returned my money and after that I lost interest in trying to get it again now see it has been more hype than high strength durability.
It's a shame because it is a very nice design, I've just had so many problems with Benchmade folders recently that it might be best to stay away from them for a little bit until they figure out quality control issues. Thanks for the comment!
The Ultratech is by far the Toughest . The Liveware is easy to open but the Ultratech .In a torture test the microtech will win easily. The Gen 3 Combat Troodon is as easy as The liveware to open .My gen 2 troodon is hard to open . I have been waiting sense November 8 2022 For a Strike Proof Medford OTF Hope to get it Before Christmas 2024 Here .The Microtech with the Double Spring is easy .
Absolutely agree with you, I think a big strength of the Livewire is the price point but Microtech will likely win 10/10 times in terms of strength and QC. I'm really excited to see the new generation of Microtechs that come out in the coming months.
Check out Cutting Board Reviews channel (@cbrx I think) he had a review of the Medford OTF and it seemed to have some problems if I recall, just FYI.
Thanks for watching and the comment!
My mini infidel is sticky after limited use. The blade doesn’t shoot out to locking position in certain angles …crazy for a $400 knife
Sorry to hear it! Outrageous pricing like most Benchmade's but I bet if you contact warranty department they'll help you out. Be careful mailing automatic knives in the mail as there are certain legal ramifications that come with it, I thjnk you have to ship it back to them through a dealer. Definitely look into it before you send it in the mail.
Thanks for watching and for the comment!
@@DXSharpeningthanks! Usually no issues in FL
@justin02239 just be careful with the laws, I'm not trying to give you legal advice or anything like that but I believe there are federal laws against mailing automatic knives if you aren't a police officer or govt employee etc.
Any one got a heritic hydra I been eying one yet to pull the trigger
Not super familiar with Heretic brand but I have only heard great things about them. Thanks for watching!
You could have sent the shootout to benchmade for free right.?
Yes I am planning to ship it through a dealer later this week for warranty repair, just a pain to have to wait 3 or 4 weeks to get it back. Thanks for watching!
Benchmade has a great Warranty they will get you right if you contact them
Initial quality matters… reliability matters… too many people are worried about status
If you got a good 1 then im happy for ya 😊
I agree with you. They have a great warranty and customer service I just wish I didn't have to ever deal with the warranty program. Thanks for watching!
Absolutely. Thanks for watching!
I’m quite certain by opening up the chassis had voided your warranty with Benchmade.
My Kershaw live wire jams up and comes off the track all the damn time that knife is not worth the damn money
Sorry to hear that, reach out to Kershaws warranty department I am almost certain they will be willing to help you. Thanks for watching!
I have one and this is the first time I've heard anything truly negative about it from anyone. I think you got a dud. Send it back for repairs. Tons of reviewers crow about how good that model is, so you had some bad luck there.
Can yall just IMAGINE that Kershaw with a double edge…?
You don't have to imagine it, they make a Dagger style version although it might be a little difficult to find somewhere in stock! Thanks for watching!
Not even close. Benchmade is plastic, live wire is good but I don’t trust Kershaw to keep making it. Microtech just seriously upgraded the Ultratech with dual fuel system, milled titanium pocket clip with a silicone carbide ball and something no one does for under $2,000, zero blade play (it’s coming soon)… Microtech is one of the only companies upgrading their knives with sometimes a lower cost, sometimes no change and sometimes a minimal increased cost. The new Ultratech that’s coming soon is vastly superior to the livewire (and I prefer M390 to Magnacut but 99.99% of people wouldn’t see and difference).
I would like to think Kershaw will continue to make the Livewire as I think it's been a huge hit from them but who knows... I am super excited for the new Ultratech, I really think it's going to change the entire market with those upgrades/new innovations. I have the Cypher II and it has everything but the 0 blade play and it is absolutely awesome, so really excited to see the Ultratech with a huge upgrade. Thanks for the comment!
I paid Less for my Gen 3 Combat Troodon than my First Troodon The Gen 3 is so much easier to open and has Dual springs .
Wow that is genuinely shocking from Benchmade.
Ha, thanks for watching!
@@DXSharpening no worries!