So I went back to the gun & knife show to pick up a few books, then went over to the guy with higher-end knives and found these:



On the left, we have the Bradley Kimura II Balisong. I'll tell ya man, this is an amazingly smooth flipper. The action is as smooth as any BM I've ever held...maybe smoother (ducks the flying rotten tomatoes and spare knife parts). The Ti components of the BM give it the edge in durability, but for under $100, the Bradley is worth a look. All of the machine work is even and balanced, and being SS, it feels quite substantial.

On the right, we have the Benchmade 32 Morpho Bali-Song. The relative history of this knife is short, but it is already becoming legendary. A 3" version of the 5" 51 Morpho, it's a lot like the 31 I got yesterday as far as size goes, but a tad lighter. It's a blast to flip open and closed...need I say more?

Nice bali-songs. I just wanted to point out that the blade length on the 51 is 4.25" inches.

Nice Bali's like the blade shape on that bradley..

quote:

Originally posted by Shadow864:
Nice Bali's like the blade shape on that bradley..

I wasn't sure about the shape in the ad photos when I first saw it. Here, and in person, it's kind of Lord of the Rings-ish.

And, no, that doesn't make it mall-ninja!

Kimura is made by Kershaw, very nice bali for the price, I still can't believe they made it and it's selling so (relatively) cheap. Now you owe it to yourself to find a Bradley Mayhem. The best EDC production bali ever made IMO. Try it, you'll thank me later
Oh yeah, and the fact that Mayhem is made by Benchmade doesn't hurt either

quote:

Originally posted by RxEnergy:
Kimura is made by Kershaw, very nice bali for the price, I still can't believe they made it and it's selling so (relatively) cheap. Now you owe it to yourself to find a Bradley Mayhem. The best EDC production bali ever made IMO. Try it, you'll thank me later
Oh yeah, and the fact that Mayhem is made by Benchmade doesn't hurt either

Interesting. So my Bradley Alias is made by Benchmade, and my Bradley Kimura II is made by Kershaw. Does Bradley ever make any of their own knives?

I did get to play with a Mayhem at this guys' show booth but, since I bought 3 other knives from him, the Mayhem will have to wait a bit.

Nope. But it's not uncommon in knife world. Cold Steel doesnt' make knives, most of Spyderco's are made to order in Japan and Taiwan, Al Mar doesn't have it's own factory (I'm pretty sure), and the list goes on... and on...

How did you like that Mayhem BTW?

quote:

Originally posted by RxEnergy:
How did you like that Mayhem BTW?

VERY much! It's as well-constructed a balisong as any. Very smooth action and quiet, too. That's what struck me about the Mayhem...super smooth and quiet - even quieter than the Morphos.

Another smooth, quiet bali I have is the MTech Twist. Laugh if you will, but at $24, it's an incredible bang for the buck. Of course, I doubt it will last as long in use as the other knives we've talked about here, but it really is a good, adjustable flipper.

I heard good things about Twist over at bladeforums. It's Darrel Ralph design (even licensed, which is surprising). Guys say that it's necessary to loctite all the screws upon arrival or they will go flying even after light flipping, so consider doing that if you haven't done it already.