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reswright
3850
Aug 4, 2019
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Defcon Bladeworks Proelia TX020
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Drop tried this out and the drop didn't get enough buyers to go through. I was interested in finding out if it was any good, though, so I ordered one from a usual suspect. The first thing you should know is it comes in a big box, of the kind that is impressive the first time you get a knife in one, but after a while starts just to seem aspirational.
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Fabric covered card stock with a couple magnets. "Fight for what's yours." Watevr. "The best part of collecting knives is the marketing" said no one ever. But I'll be fair and say this, these boxes have reuse value for people who don't need them to hold the knife. The CNC milling on the handle is what gets everyone else's attention first, but i see a lot of that. Cool but it doesn't distinguish anyone these days.
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So this is the point that the knife gets interesting for me; that's a very well milled blade.
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The font mapping's a little iffy on that engraving but that's forgivable on an otherwise sweetly milled blade (those aren't grind lines, they're CNC marks). Their literature says the blade is 4 inches long. The way I measured, it was more like 3 1/2. The overall dimensions of the knife are just about 8 1/2 inches long when open, with a handle that's just a bit under 5 inches long. The thing this ships with says it's an 8 ounce knife, but it clocks in at 6.9 ounces, so lighter than its own literature by a considerable amount. Still, I like that. And when you see the blade you do not go 'I wish that were bigger, it just looks a little dinky'. It’s substantial when you flip it out.
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Whoever the OEM is knows their craft, I would LOVE to learn who did these. These are clean parts. And where you usually get the nylon caged bearings, this one actually has a proper brass bearing cage for the bearings, which appear to be ceramic.
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How'd it come back together?
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Weird, it got indigo highlights while it was apart. Black handles like this can't take much dye, but indigo reflects so close to UV that it gives some cool highlighting to the resin layers in the right light. I'm a fan of understated delivery, the whole 'speak softly and carry a very sharp knife' school of thought. So how good is this knife? I think Drop was around $50 and I think at that price it's a buy. I paid $60 and even though it comes with extra hardware and a fairly decently made nylon sheath and the Box of Fighting for What's Yours, I wouldn't buy it again at that price -- the all the extra stuff is cool for someone who is starting out, but for me it's clutter. But at $50 I might. IT occurs to me now that this is a fairly good knife to start out with if you want to start taking these knives apart and learning things about them as i have chosen to do. Verra easy to take apart and put back together. The extra hardware will be handy if you strip a fastener or lose one when it rolls off the table. Usually when I see all this extra hardware my assumption is that they had to include it because it's cheap and breaks so fast, but in this case I'm fairly happy to report that it looks like good kit. If Drop brings these back around and you like a nice heavy but not too heavy folder, this one gets my thumbs up. This is the TX020 - according to the spec sheet that shipped with this knife, i guess the TX010 Drop has also offered should be very similar, just with a differently molded handle, a thumb stud and a drop tip with a blood groove. The models Drop offered look like they might be a little bit heavier than what I have, so it might be made with a different grade of stainless in the liner, or this blade might just be a tiny bit shorter. Hard to say. Good knife either way. Nice balance on the index finger, but it masses enough in the palm that it stays in one spot when you're working. Nice ergos in general. Thumbs up.
(Edited)
Aug 4, 2019
reswright
3850
Aug 4, 2019
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reswrightIf I had to guess I'd say the OEM is the same company that makes WithArmour knives, but that is just a wild guess. They look to have a similar ethic going on, although WA is priced better. I really should take one apart and see.
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Aug 4, 2019
samsung6000
1
Feb 25, 2021
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reswrightThanks for your guess, but the PROELIA TX020 is not the same factory as WithArmour.
Feb 25, 2021
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