I went to the Despot looking for a better quick-change retracting utility knife, as the Stanley 10-499 I have has always been loose, and the blades have the annoying habit of pulling out under the pressure of a cut. I got a newer Stanley quick-change model with a sexy rubber insert on the blade magazine. I also bought a pack of 50 Lenox bimetal blades.
Getting home, I unwrapped the knife and, to my chagrin, it was even sloppier than my other one. The blades, however, were great. When I returned the bad knife I saw that they now have the Lenox retractable quick change knife, so I bought one to see how it compares.
The positives are that the blade is held very firmly in the sliding carrier, it has very little play in actual use, and the innards of the knife are very well made. A pair of spring-loaded ball bearings clamp the left side of the blade as it sets in the carrier, so it doesn’t rattle. There is a polyethylene “cartridge” in the handle to hold the spare blades, and it has a steel spring so they do not rattle around. The knife is engineered to be tight and quiet, which is confidence-inspiring. To change blades one pushes a slide which releases the two handle halves, which hinge open on a steel hinge pin at the butt end. Everything is accessible.
The negatives are that the unit is very large – about 2″ longer and fatter than the Stanley. It is curved, and very comfortable to use, despite the size. The unlocking button is too easy to activate, and I used a Dremel tool to grind down the high end of the button so it is more recessed in its slot. In two days of use it has not come open by accident, and is still easy to open when needed.
The blades are fantastic! I looked at them under 100x magnification, and they are much sharper/straighter than the current Stanley blades. I think that Stanley has slipped on their quality in blades, much as they did with their hand planes many years ago. The edge is very durable. I was using mine to clean up drywall edges down the centers of studs, and was still able to easily sharpen a pencil afterwards. Lenox claims 3x the life, and I think that may be conservative. They cost twice as much as the Stanley blades, and are easily worth it. There is a photo on the package of a cut being made with a severely bent blade, one that would already have snapped if it were traditional. I remember when bimetal Sawzall blades first came out and how astonished we all were at how they could survive abuse. Just as bimetal now owns the pro market for recip blades, so also they will own the razor knife pro market in a few years. They are that good.
End of rant. Just had to share the good news.
Peace, Bugle
Replies
they also cut fingers 3x as well...but it's a nice clean cut!!!!!larry
After messing around with various utility knives I have settled on the 'Stanley model 199' as the best. OK, your going to think I'm nuts.
The 199 is a fixed blade unit. Without disassembling the handle the blade cannot be retracted. The handle splits down the middle, the blade is positioned on one of the two stops allowing some selection as to how much blade is exposed, and the handle is reassembled by tightening the single large screw.
I have bought a dozen of these knives not because they wear out but because they are so very useful, I still have a few that are about twenty years old. No big surprise as these knives have no moving parts, even the screw is a common sort easily replaced at any hardware store. Short of beating one with a hammer in a determined effort to do harm you can't harm one.
Don't I get cut on the constantly exposed blade? No. Possibly less than I have been cut with retractable blade knives. A bit counter intuitive but on a fixed blade knife you always know that the blade is exposed. I have been cut reaching into a tool pouch by retractable blade knives when the blade had accidentally exposed. Thinking I was safe I boldly reached in. With a fixed blade you know to be careful. The blade is entirely predictable and so avoidable.
The other thing I like is the increased control. There is no blade wobble or unplanned retraction to deal with. The angle and penetration depth is entirely predictable and controllable. I usually keep mine in a separate slot on my pouch so I know, without feeling around, exactly where the blade is. Those times when I throw the knife into a sack, like when I go under a house, I use the handy stainless blade guard that comes with this model. This stores within the handle.
The other thing I like was that this rig is rugged. Cutting interior paneling I have been known to get the blade through the paneling and to hammer the blade through the stuff by beating on it with my Kleins, large pliers known as the electricians hammer. Try that with a retractable blade version and it falls apart. Other than loosing some paint, it always wears off in time and is unneeded as the pot metal doesn't rust or corrode if given a little care, the 199 is unharmed by being firmly driven.
fixzed blade is all i ever use. Never been cut reaching for it in thirty some years. Additionally, the movement slot for retractables puts a pain on my guide finger. I like the smooth handle of the fixed units.
The pro review of the lennox blades is good to hear though. Their sawxall blades are pretty fantastic too.
Welcome to the Taunton University of Knowledge FHB Campus at Breaktime. where ... Excellence is its own reward!
fixed blade is all I use too ....
retractable seems like a diy tool ...
more dangerous under use to avoid a common sense "accident".
Just look at the damn thing before ya pick it up.
JeffBuck Construction, llc Pittsburgh,PA
Artistry in Carpentry
After massive amt of cuts on copper stock in my brake I realized that snipping the tip off the knife blade adds another life to it.My life is my passion!
http://CLIFFORDRENOVATIONS.COM
You can also touch up blades with a small carburundum stone. Takes little time to get a decent edge. I had a credit card sized diamond hone that worked even faster but it seems to have walked off. Guess someone needed it more than I did.
You could make this a bit easier by spraying on contact cement onto a unused flat portion of your break and mounting some sandpaper. I have seen this done by others on other machinery. Gives them a handy place to spot sharpen knives and chisels.
Edited to add last block.
Edited 5/7/2004 7:04 pm ET by 4Lorn1
I used to be a die hard 199 user. Then I got tired of cutting holes in my pouches all the time.
I switched (after much searching and testing) to the stanley 10-788
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/B000051WTG/002-2440025-1486463?v=glance
It has a solid grip on the blade, changes quickly without tools, and has on board storage for 5+ blades.
I still have 4 or 5 199's around in various toolboxes or convenient places in the house and garage.
Jon Blakemore
That's the one I have. I have a loop hanging on the end of the handle made out of parachute cord so I can retrive it easily.Who Dares Wins.
Yeah, The 10-788 is the "Cadillac" of the Stanley knives. Feels great in the hand, very little blade play, and extremly quick to change.
I just got some of the new lenox blades for mine.
The lennox blades are as good as they claim to be. very sharp and bendable, which adds to the versatility of the knife. The only gripe I have with them is that they came without sharp points. I know the points usually only last a few cuts, but sometimes they are just what you need. So now I carry a small pack of stanley blades just in case.
gk
Funny thing, Jon, but it was a Stanley 10-788 that I bought the night before the Lenox, at the same time I tried the Lenox blades. You must have gotten a good one. The one I got was SLOPPY. The blade wobbled in 3 mutually perpendicular directions! Maybe it is the curse of the orange box?
Bugle
Yesterday I worked with two new guys. Both had the 10-788 and both said they didn't like it. I must have a good one or I'm just not that picky.
I bought mine at HD, so that throws that theory out.
Jon Blakemore
I've got a 10-788, blade is good, doesn't wobble. About 5 years old.
I use it whenever one of my OLFA's aren't handy. Maybe once a year.
My OLFAs never turtle, I can extend the blade 2" or so to cut deep (like insulation, or hard-to-reach stuff), snap off a blade tip when it's dull, I can get heavy duty blades, different types of snap-off blades including hooks, and they now have an auto-load version.
Regards
Tim Ruttan
I have the Stanley 10-550 fixed blade. Last time I found them I bought 3 (at $14 ea.) For me they are hands down the best. Made in England, no tool blade change, big, curved, can really bear down on them.
Lowes had the Lennox blade 100 pak when they first came out for $10. I bought one...nice blades, but I have trouble getting around that squared off tip... I want a point.
Keith,
I know what you mean about the point. The truth be told, I did not notice the squared off end until I started using the new blades, and it has not been a hindrance on the work I've done so far. Pointy is best for digging out splinters from afflicted flesh.
Here is my theory why they make them squared off: They are promoting the bendability of the bimetal construction. If the blade came to a point, the point would be liable to break off, as it is not supported by the softer backing steel. On a bimetal Sawzall blade, you can hear the hard cobalt HSS teeth crack in the gullets when you bend it, but the back keeps everything together. They could make them pointy, but at the cost of the image they are promoting. This is just my personal theory.
Bugle
News Flash!
Not all the Lenox blades are pointless. It may only have been the preloaded ones in the new knife I bought. They continue to amaze me. They are the new standard of excellence.
Bugle
I use the super knife. It uses utility blades and folds and handles just like a reg pocket knife. about 5-10 bucks at the home dildo.
Darkworksite4:
El americano pasado hacia fuera ase la bandera