Reviews > Knives > Folding > Gerber Paraframe II > Owner Review by Andrew Buskov

Tester Biography:

Name:	Andrew Buskov
Age:	30
Gender:	Male
Height:	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight:	212 lb (96 kg)
Email:	Rescue9@yahoo.com
Location:	Madisonville, Kentucky USA

Backpacking Background:
I started backpacking when I was about 8 and quickly became hooked on the outdoors. My initial experience was with short weekend trips, mostly during the summer months. I began taking longer trips and realized that I enjoy being out in the winter more. I have hiked a variety of environments ranging from Mt. Katahdin in late fall to Mount Charleston, outside Las Vegas. As an Emergency Medical Technician, I have been trained to be prepared at all times so my pack tends to be on the heavy side, and I prefer hiking moderately difficult terrain.

Product Information:

Manufacturer:	Gerber
Manufacture Date:	2003
URL:	http://www.gerbergear.com
Specified Weight:	4.2 oz (119 g)
Actual Weight:	4.1 oz (116 g)
Length Closed:	4.8 in (12.2 cm)
Length Open:	8.3 in (20.9 cm)
Blade Length:	3.5 in (8.9cm)

Description:
For the purpose of this review I will base all information herein on the serrated edge version of the Paraframe. The Gerber Paraframe II is a folding clip style knife. A clip style knife is one in which the blade slants toward the tip rather than the back edge of the blade being flat its entire length. It has a high carbon stainless steel blade for increased strength, and a stainless steel handle body. The knife is built around the framelock design which uses a portion of the handle, or frame, to act as the locking mechanism when the blade is open.

Inspection:
The Paraframe came packaged in a small grey and orange box and wrapped in plastic. Included within was information on the knife and the Gerber warranty policy. The knife felt quite light in my hand due to the construction of the handle. There are numerous cutouts in the handle to eliminate weight while still providing durability. The serrated edge is composed of both wide and narrow serrations, and the blade has a thumb stud to assist in single handed opening.

Testing Environments:
I.ve carried this knife with me on almost every outing I.ve been since I received it. Testing environments ranged from rocky, mountainous conditions in the Smokies, to flat level ground in southern Illinois. Temperature variations were from 20 F (-7 C) to 100 F (38 C), and weather conditions ranged from no rain and completely dry, to nothing but rain and completely wet.

Field Use:
I have this knife to cut everything from web strapping to hemp rope, to punch holes in cans, and to pick away at ice during my various outings. I was especially pleased with how easily and quickly I was able to cut thick kernmantle ropes without having frayed ends everywhere. I did find that, because of the blade length, using this knife with thick braided hemp ropes was difficult. In order to cut the ropes I needed to use a sawing motion that tended to fray the rope more when it snagged on the serrations.

I thought the knife did a fair job of cutting down a walking stick, although it was a longer process due to the serrations on the blade. I think a non-serrated blade would have been better to use for this process. I was surprised at how well the edge held up under extreme conditions. The knife was even dropped more than a few times on gravel or large rocks, but the blade held its shape and didn.t dull easily. I was also extremely surprised to find the tip held up when I attempted to use it as an ice pick. I.ve broken the tips off a few other blades during this process before. The tip was not bent or deformed in any way when I used the knife to punch holes in aluminum or steel cans. I.ve also used this knife at work to break glass in emergency situations without damaging the knife in any way.

Opening the knife is a simple one handed operation, though I did need to loosen the tensioning screw a bit to make it as easy as I wanted. Once the blade is fully extended, the framelock engages. This keeps the blade extended for protection during cutting work. I found that even though the handle is the primary locking mechanism, I was unable to accidentally close the blade through various hand movements and handling situations. I needed to have my hands in just the right placement and have the intent of closing the blade to actually work the mechanism.

Closing the blade is also a one handed operation. When you disengage the framelock using your thumb, the blade can be easily closed using your index finger. Even though I loosened the tensioning screw, the blade does not flop out on its own due to a notch and pin design. On the blade itself is a drilled out notch that allows a tiny pin on the framelock handle to seat when the blade is closed. This is just enough tension to keep the blade closed while not being too much tension to hinder single handed operation.

I.ve found that even though the knife is made of stainless steel, there does appear to be some surface rust on both the blade and handle. I have cleaned this knife many times, and the surface rust comes off easily. The only problem that I have is surface rust that is developing on the inside of the frame, and between the frame and blade at the pivot point. I have taken the knife apart completely to clean it, but have noticed that this is becoming increasingly hard as the hex heads appear to be made out of a softer metal and are easily stripped.

I have noticed that the dull coating has worn completely away on parts of the blade from use. The coating has also been scratched away from areas on the pocket clip from being bumped into trees, rocks, and during various activities at work.

I also noticed that the blade is hard to sharpen with a simple stone. This could be due to the hardness of the blade, but I found this to be acceptable in relation to how well the blade held up under normal circumstances. It.s my experience that a professional with a grinder, and all the necessary attachments designed to sharpen blades, is the best route.

Summary:
I initially bought this knife as an all purpose knife that I could easily conceal, but have since found it an invaluable tool on both the trails and at work. I was well pleased with the construction design, as well as the quality of materials used. I do however think that the quality of the screws needs to be upgraded to allow the user to disassemble the knife for cleaning without worrying about stripping the heads out when reassembling. I liked the easy one handed operation, and found the pin and notch design to be invaluable for keeping the blade secured when closed. I wasn.t too happy about the fact that there is surface rust developing on this knife, but found that cleaning was easy on exposed areas.

Items I was pleased with:

1. Easy one handed operation during both opening and closing.
2. Hardened steel blade withstood multiple drops and incorrect uses without breaking.
3. Pin and notch design to keep the blade closed.

1. Disassembly needs to be easier to properly clean.
2. Hex screws need to be stronger.
3. Hard to sharpen.


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Reviews > Knives > Folding > Gerber Paraframe II > Owner Review by Andrew Buskov