so what are you doing so special with the $300 micro tech are you skinning a moose? I had one I didn't think there were so special. never planned on skinning a moose. and never did anything with it, but I can't do with my lightning elite!!
Turns out, I love my lightning elite, now that I've got it fixed. The main difference is the steel. The Microtech has a "super steel" and the Lightning has Chinese 440. However, for a work knife that only set me back $30, I can't recommend it enough. It holds an edge fine for that price point and is easy to get sharp again when it does dull. Whether a super steel is worth 10 times the price is subjective, but I'd say for most people, it isn't.
Lightning Elites are hard to beat in the budget otf world. The steel is ok. It's no m390 but 440 ain't that bad. My brother has been using his hard for over two years. Hit it with a shot of rem oil and it will work fine
It was a quality control issue. The spring behind the forward stop pin was not seated properly, so it wasn't able to lock the blade in the open position reliably.
Grindworx sells the heck out of this brand. I just ordered the Lightning Elite (china) and the Lightning (taiwan) . I want to compare the two. These will be my first OTF knives. I hope it goes well. Crossing fingers.
So I collect high end otf's, but even I have some lightning otf's! You really can't go wrong for the price. I've noticed if you keep a 20dps edge @ 600 grit it can actually cut for a little while, any lower than 20dps and the edge will roll
What was the color description for that lighting? I ordered a “blue” lightning before & it ended up more of a royal blue. I wanted that navy color you have. Have any links for it? Mine wasn’t “elite” but I’ve used it for years at work for cardboard, shrink wrap, etc & it’s a great beater! Didn’t fail very often. It happened from time to time but keep it clean & oiled. Mine still works great
It was just the lightning elite blue two tone. I haven't had any issues for months using it as a beater knife and getting all kinds of dirt all over it. It finally started failing to retract every time, so I took it apart and cleaned and oiled it. Now it is working great again. I have grown to love this thing. It is my favorite beater knife. I also reprofiled it into an aggressive clip point instead of a drop point.
My Wife has an original Taiwanese Lightning. She never had a failure to fire…never. FYI, flick your wrist to reset, don’t just pull it out. You’ll be back into service, don’t just pull it out.
I have a follow up video to this where I troubleshoot and fix the issue. It was a spring that wasn't properly seated from the factory. Since fixing that, I've only had it fail to fire once, and that was because I had gotten it really dirty. I took it apart and cleaned it, and I've not had a misfire since. I love this thing! Actually bought one for my Dad for Father's Day.
That would not have reset the spring that was improperly seated. Not every OTF problem can be solved with water/air and oil. Most of them, maybe, but not all.
I've heard that. However, after fixing this issue, I've been carrying this regularly and using it and I've not had another issue. In fact, I like it so much now that I bought one for my father as a gift for Father's Day.
so what are you doing so special with the $300 micro tech are you skinning a moose?
I had one I didn't think there were so special. never planned on skinning a moose. and never did anything with it, but I can't do with my lightning elite!!
Turns out, I love my lightning elite, now that I've got it fixed. The main difference is the steel. The Microtech has a "super steel" and the Lightning has Chinese 440. However, for a work knife that only set me back $30, I can't recommend it enough. It holds an edge fine for that price point and is easy to get sharp again when it does dull. Whether a super steel is worth 10 times the price is subjective, but I'd say for most people, it isn't.
Lightning Elites are hard to beat in the budget otf world. The steel is ok. It's no m390 but 440 ain't that bad. My brother has been using his hard for over two years. Hit it with a shot of rem oil and it will work fine
It was a quality control issue. The spring behind the forward stop pin was not seated properly, so it wasn't able to lock the blade in the open position reliably.
Grindworx sells the heck out of this brand. I just ordered the Lightning Elite (china) and the Lightning (taiwan) . I want to compare the two. These will be my first OTF knives. I hope it goes well. Crossing fingers.
Since working out the kinks on mine, I've been really impressed. I'm using it as a cheap OTF beater knife, and it's doing really well in that role.
Any update on how the two compare?
So I collect high end otf's, but even I have some lightning otf's! You really can't go wrong for the price. I've noticed if you keep a 20dps edge @ 600 grit it can actually cut for a little while, any lower than 20dps and the edge will roll
That's a pretty good rule of thumb for softer steels. They don't do so well with a thin edge.
What was the color description for that lighting? I ordered a “blue” lightning before & it ended up more of a royal blue. I wanted that navy color you have. Have any links for it? Mine wasn’t “elite” but I’ve used it for years at work for cardboard, shrink wrap, etc & it’s a great beater! Didn’t fail very often. It happened from time to time but keep it clean & oiled. Mine still works great
It was just the lightning elite blue two tone. I haven't had any issues for months using it as a beater knife and getting all kinds of dirt all over it. It finally started failing to retract every time, so I took it apart and cleaned and oiled it. Now it is working great again. I have grown to love this thing. It is my favorite beater knife. I also reprofiled it into an aggressive clip point instead of a drop point.
My Wife has an original Taiwanese Lightning. She never had a failure to fire…never.
FYI, flick your wrist to reset, don’t just pull it out. You’ll be back into service, don’t just pull it out.
I have a follow up video to this where I troubleshoot and fix the issue. It was a spring that wasn't properly seated from the factory. Since fixing that, I've only had it fail to fire once, and that was because I had gotten it really dirty. I took it apart and cleaned it, and I've not had a misfire since. I love this thing! Actually bought one for my Dad for Father's Day.
Hello brainiac. When you first get it. Run it through hot water. Let it air dry out. And put a few drops of oil in it. And you're good to go.
That would not have reset the spring that was improperly seated. Not every OTF problem can be solved with water/air and oil. Most of them, maybe, but not all.
well just got the Original Taiwanese Lightning and it's much better than the Elite. The original is just so much better and it's much cheaper.
Well, I guess I'm going to have to pick one up now.
Not the same as the original lightning. If you buy one get the original lightning. It has better internals.
I've heard that. However, after fixing this issue, I've been carrying this regularly and using it and I've not had another issue. In fact, I like it so much now that I bought one for my father as a gift for Father's Day.
viper tec is a well known scam.
This isn't a viper tec.
Guardian Tactical Recon…best value imo…USA made but Ultratech on my list @ blade hq also…
The guardian tacticals are a little outside what I'm personally willing to spend on a knife. But I've heard good things.