Gerber Paraframe I Stainless Steel Folding Knife (Fine Edge) EXPIRED

Only knife I own that I really hate. I hate the feel, the look, the function... I really hate this knife.
FWIW

I have I think the paraframe 2 but not even sure what the difference is... I actually really like the way the feel is and the lockup/release also. Main thing though is it's just a big for EDC and it taught me to hate shallow carry clips

Gerber has a bad habit of listing their blade steel as "high carbon stainless" or "surgical stainless" or simply "stainless steel," all of which tells you nothing. The are up front about the steel use in their more expensive models, which makes you wonder what they are trying to hide on their lowest end budget knives. Some folks won't even buy a Gerber knife due to this practice.

Word is this particular model's 3" blade is made out of 7cr17Mov stainless steel and hardened to 55-57 HRC. That's budget Chinese steel and Gerber doesn't have great reputation for the heat treatment on this particular model. There is also a lot of hate for the design and some users have complained about failure of the frame lock. My copy locked up solidly, until the incident below happened.

I had one that served me well back before I knew much about knives. It resists corrosion well, but I had to sharpening it regularly due to the softer steal. The same is true of all knives that use budget steel. Manual opening via thumb studs works well one handed. You will eventually get a small coin or key stuck in the frame as it rides around in your pocket, but the cut out design does save weight.

My visiting mother-in-law helped us out with some laundry and didn't check my pocket, so my paraframe got a ride through the washing machine and spent about an hour, half open, bouncing around inside my jeans pocket in a dryer set on high. It came out too hot to hold and the frame lock would no longer engage fully. I probably could have taken it apart and filed off a bit to make it work again, but never bothered. Prior to the overheating, which was probably just enough to soften the temper, the knife always performed satisfactorily. That was probably 20 years ago, so not sure how recent models will compare.

It's a decent little knife and at this price it's a decent deal. Gerber makes some darn fine knives but most folks don't consider this one of their better models. I'd only jump on this deal if you love the look of the paraframe. There aren't a ton of knives in this price range to recommend as better than the paraframe, unless you are willing to go with a fixed blade sheath knife and then your money would be much better spent on a Morakniv. Or add on another $10 and have a bunch of better folding knives to choose from like the many Kershaws in 8cr13mov or an OKC Rat.

Quote from Paladin3 : Gerber has a bad habit of listing their blade steel as "high carbon stainless" or "surgical stainless" or simply "stainless steel," all of which tells you nothing. The are up front about the steel use in their more expensive models, which makes you wonder what they are trying to hide on their lowest end budget knives. Some folks won't even buy a Gerber knife due to this practice. Word is this particular model's 3" blade is made out of 7cr17Mov stainless steel and hardened to 55-57 HRC. That's budget Chinese steel and Gerber doesn't have great reputation for the heat treatment on this particular model. There is also a lot of hate for the design and some users have complained about failure of the frame lock. My copy locked up solidly, until the incident below happened. I had one that served me well back before I knew much about knives. It resists corrosion well, but I had to sharpening it regularly due to the softer steal. The same is true of all knives that use budget steel. Manual opening via thumb studs works well one handed. You will eventually get a small coin or key stuck in the frame as it rides around in your pocket, but the cut out design does save weight. My visiting mother-in-law helped us out with some laundry and didn't check my pocket, so my paraframe got a ride through the washing machine and spent about an hour, half open, bouncing around inside my jeans pocket in a dryer set on high. It came out too hot to hold and the frame lock would no longer engage fully. I probably could have taken it apart and filed off a bit to make it work again, but never bothered. Prior to the overheating, which was probably just enough to soften the temper, the knife always performed satisfactorily. That was probably 20 years ago, so not sure how recent models will compare. It's a decent little knife and at this price it's a decent deal. Gerber makes some darn fine knives but most folks don't consider this one of their better models. I'd only jump on this deal if you love the look of the paraframe. There aren't a ton of knives in this price range to recommend as better than the paraframe, unless you are willing to go with a fixed blade sheath knife and then your money would be much better spent on a Morakniv. Or add on another $10 and have a bunch of better folding knives to choose from like the many Kershaws in 8cr13mov or an OKC Rat.

Im looking for a good budget EDC. Any recommendations?

Quote from NateH20 : Im looking for a good budget EDC. Any recommendations?

Price range? Do you know how to sharpen blades? Are you going to take care of it or carry it around until it's dull and get a new one? Too many variables. Does the steel matter to you? Does the weight matter to you? Are you going to use it camping or just at work to open boxes?

I would search SlickDeals for Newest deals with the word Knife in it and brush up on the last 20-30 comment sections on knife deals. You'll learn a lot about weight, grips, flipping types, thumb deploys, steel types, price ranges, etc.

Quote from NateH20 : Im looking for a good budget EDC. Any recommendations?

Can't go wrong with the Kershaw leek. I think there's some on sale on this forum for around $30.

Quote from J.HA : Can't go wrong with the Kershaw leek. I think there's some on sale on this forum for around $30.

Love my Kershaw Leek for over a year now. $30 is a deal for it.

I have this knife. It is VERY SHARP out of the box and good quality. My only gripe is that the design allows finger access to the blade when it is closed. You may not want to carry in your pocket, as you can easily cut yourself reaching for it.

I can 2nd that is knife has a weak lock design, and the open sides of handle is not a good design. I had the blade fold on my finger while using the tip of blade. Encourage others to stay away from this POS. I threw mine away

Gerber has been junk for years. Waste of money.

Quote from NateH20 : Im looking for a good budget EDC. Any recommendations?

Check out bladeforums. You'll get much better info there.

absolute junk.

Quote from crayboi : I can 2nd that is knife has a weak lock design, and the open sides of handle is not a good design. I had the blade fold on my finger while using the tip of blade. Encourage others to stay away from this POS. I threw mine away

yep. i see trolls are td'ing comments from those with a clue...