Sanrenmu Knives

It’s one of life’s facts that some of us, or should I say some of you, have a habit of losing knives. For some reason every knife I’ve ever owned I still have but a friend of mine misplaces them for fun! Now, whilst I don’t condone the liberal distribution of cutlery, it can at times prove expensive, especially if you tend to buy expensive models. The irony is, the less you or your nearest and dearest has paid for your knife, the less likely you are to lose it.

So, to ensure your longterm budget knife is a pocket tool you’ll cherish, Bear Arms have now started importing a range of stylish Chinese knives by Sanrenmu, that are as impressively priced as they are stylish and well made, none of them setting you back more than seventeen quid. But, believe me when I say, I don’t know how they do it for the price, the two knives seen here punching well above their weight.

Called the Panzer and the Tiger, both have a retail of £16.80 and, apart from small variations, are as equally practical as each other, the look and style being the main differences. Both are single blade, slip joint folders, which means apart from the positive detent, neither blade actually locks permanently into position. The downside is that you need to watch your fingers when pressing hard, the upside is that in conjunction with the thumb stud, both knives are quick to either open or close with one hand. Manufactured from polished Chinese stainless steel of which there’s nothing at all wrong with, the Panzer has a hollow ground three-inch Spear Point blade, the Tiger a three-inch hollow ground but slightly shallower Drop Point.

Cut To The Quick

Both come with a keen cutting and easy, quick to re-sharpen edge, and there’s a well-defined thumb serration just forward of the blade pivot. Folding precisely into a nicely engineered chassis frame, the hinge mechanism displays no detrimental play, even after strenuous and genuinely excessive lateral pressure was applied. Equally, both knives come complete with laminated and textured G10 contoured handles; the Panzer has contrasting striations of navy blue and black, the Tiger grey and black. Both 7½ inches in length when opened, the Panzer is 4¼ inches long when closed, the Tiger a fraction longer, yet marginally more-slender at 4 3/8 inches, the differing blade style causing the marginal differences.

Both knives also come complete with strong belt clips and neatly cut holes for a thong to be attached. One of the most notable characteristics of both of these Sanrenmu folding pocketknives is the quality. The construction far exceeds that of most budget orientated knives, as does the looks, feel, heft and balance. Both sit comfortably in the hand, are easy to manipulate and to date have never failed to complete the task set for them. As regards which one, it’s purely down to personal preference, since each one is as good as the other, the overall shape, blade style and handle colour literally the only difference. What I can say is that whether it’s the Panzer or the Tiger that takes your fancy, you won’t be disappointed.