AKC OTF: good or bad?

[AKcollector]

hey guys, newbie here. I am thinking about getting a mini AKC OTF and I and was wondering if anyone on this forum has any experience with these knives that can tell me if they are good or not.
thanks.

[peter44]

Hello AKCOLLECTOR, all the italian otfs are made by Coltellerie Spadon Italy and sold by the various knifemakers . I have had the larger 2000 model and can tell you that they are great value for money and fun too

[jarvis]

they are great value for money and fun too

That's a good way to put it. They're not great knives, but they're great fun.

[horizonod]

They fulfill the "gadget factor" jones and are a good value for the money but they are not of very high quality. It's a basic "you get what you pay for" scenario although I think some of the high end OTFs are overpriced,...but they ARE very high quality throughout.

[AKcollector]

They fulfill the "gadget factor" jones and are a good value for the money but they are not of very high quality. It's a basic "you get what you pay for" scenario although I think some of the high end OTFs are overpriced,...but they ARE very high quality throughout.

Is there very much bladeplay on the italian OTFs?

[dark2023]

There is some, it's not like a crappy chinese otf, but it's definitely not a microtech either.
I would suggest the little 7'' one as I know that one of our forum members EDCd one of those for quite some time and I believe it served him quite well.

[Tom19176]

They are of higher quality then the China ones but as stated they are not as well made as the very over priced USA ones that stole the Italian design....If you can find them at a reasonable price then they are worth it!

[AKcollector]

thanks guys.

[horizonod]

They fulfill the "gadget factor" jones and are a good value for the money but they are not of very high quality. It's a basic "you get what you pay for" scenario although I think some of the high end OTFs are overpriced,...but they ARE very high quality throughout.

Is there very much bladeplay on the italian OTFs?

Yes. quite a bit in most instances.

[AKcollector]

They fulfill the "gadget factor" jones and are a good value for the money but they are not of very high quality. It's a basic "you get what you pay for" scenario although I think some of the high end OTFs are overpriced,...but they ARE very high quality throughout.

Is there very much bladeplay on the italian OTFs?

Yes. quite a bit in most instances.

.....well crap . I like the look of the italian ones but I need one that wont break easily. guess I need to keep looking.

[whippersnapper]

The Italian ones are pretty reliable, but aren't good for much more than letter opening imo. I still would rather have a Taiwan made cheap Lightning if I was to settle for a cheap otf.

[AKcollector]

i would choose the lightning ( ive heard good things about it) but im looking for one with the button on the side of the handle instead of the top.
i might try to find an old "super automatic" but that may take some doing.

[monstro]

IMO, the long term build quality is not there on most Italian DA OTFs. They're not high end knives, but at the price they cost in the US, i don't think they're great value.


Maybe buy one of the better (less bad?) Taiwanese OTFs, and if you decide you want something more durable, look at offerings from MT.

[FreeTheArmy]

Howdy,
$60 for a years worth of constant opening and closing; cutting open boxes, letters, packaging; cutting twine, light duty cord, and the like... They're a lot of fun, and score way high on the cool factor, PLUS you get an Italian made knife.
Because of this, they are worth the money.
I've owned several Piranhas over the past 4 or 5 years, and if you want something that will meet any type of usage and abuseage with ease, then save your dough for a year or so, and land yourself an Excalibur.
I'd pit a Piranha Excalibur against any other production OTF available, including Microtech, Protech, Dalton, Benchmade, ARS, and MOD.
The cracker up in Idaho that makes the Excals knows how to do it, and do it right!
But for $350 a piece, you'd have to throw me a couple thousand, before I'd be willing to de-mint the damn things!
IMO the Piranha Excalibur will go down in history as the highest quality production OTF of our day.
But, to keep to your question, the Italian (Spadon) OTF knives have a life to them, that is to say, that in treating them as an EDC, just like if you're to use a stiletto as an EDC, you've got to understand that your knife will die one day. So, if you can score one for around $60 shipped, you'll most certainly get your monies worth
IMO if you're going to trash a knife by using it, you should trash an inexpensive (under $100) switchblade. And the modern Italian OTFs (made by Spadon, and stamped by whichever producer is selling them; AKC, Frank B., AB, ect...) you will not be disappointed. Blade play on OTFs costing under $100 is quite normal. And honestly, some blade play doesn't bother me now, near as much as it did when I first got into OTF autos.
Buy one and use it till it dies, then buy another one
But, whatever you do, share it with the rest of us
all the best,
Free

[TRYKER]

that sounds like good FREE advice