A friend of mine showed me his Lightning OTF knife. Not spectacular, but I thought I might "dip my toe" into the OTF knives without too much cash outlay.

Is it trustworthy?

https://www.directknifesales.c...knives.html?page=all

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Rolan_Kraps, March 25, 2019 09:26 AM

I know nothing about that line, but I thought OTF knives were just gimmicky toys until I got my first automatic with a large, heavy blade. I immediately discovered that it was hard to hold and control properly when opening because of how it must be held to avoid interfering with the blade movement. The Benchmade (I know: Boo, hiss!) Infidel I have now is so much better in that regard.

Lightnings are clones of Microtech Scarabs which sell for up to $800+. The blade steel is not the best and it might not retain an edge as well as high-quality steel, but they are good in regards to reliability. I have an inexpensive OTF I bought before I was familiar with the Microtech Brand. It has never failed to deploy or retract and it has held up well to use, but it needs constant sharpening. I consider them a Gateway OTF and will leed to bigger and better.

I love my Lightning OTF knife. I carry it virtually every day.

The fact that it was only like $39 only sweetens the deal! I wouldn’t hesitate to buy another.

I have a lot of OTF’s from Microtech to Benchmade though I carry my $40 lightning almost every day. It’s a little more crude, but I love it as it’s been totally reliable and does what I ask it to, plus I don’t mind thrashing on it some.

I have several of these and carry daily.

Primarily at work I use them to pick my way into apartment buildings.

So where does everyone locate these lightnings at? I'm not sure about dealing with DHGate. I like the idea of a $39 gateway OTF and would like to give one a try. I like the microtech knives for looks but the price doesn't work for an unemployed college student/intern.

Got mine from Bladeplay.com. It’s a BladeHQ affiliate I believe. It’s coming up grindworx.com though now when I type in blade play.
https://www.grindworx.com/cat--Lightning-OTF--170

quote:

I consider them a Gateway OTF and will lead to bigger and better.

That's what I'm afraid of!

I saw a H&K branded one which was $175.00. It worked very well.

I ordered my knife on Saturday evening 3/16/19 from Direct Knife Sales.
I received shipping confirmation and tracking on Monday, and the knife arrived here today (3/22/19). Knife was well packaged and works well.
I am pleased with this transaction.
Functions flawlessly.

I ordered the one below.

quote:

Originally posted by Rolan_Kraps:
I ordered my knife on Saturday evening 3/16/19 from Direct Knife Sales.
I received shipping confirmation and tracking on Monday, and the knife arrived here today (3/22/19). Knife was well packaged and works well.
I am pleased with this transaction.
Functions flawlessly.

I ordered the one below.

Rolan=Are the scales plastic? I didn't see anything in the description to indicate what they are made of. Thanks.

quote:

Originally posted by fvyellowbird:



Rolan=Are the scales plastic? I didn't see anything in the description to indicate what they are made of. Thanks.

They feel like they are Aluminum.

quote:

Originally posted by Rolan_Kraps:
I ordered my knife on Saturday evening 3/16/19 from Direct Knife Sales.
I received shipping confirmation and tracking on Monday, and the knife arrived here today (3/22/19). Knife was well packaged and works well.
I am pleased with this transaction.
Functions flawlessly.

I ordered the one below.

Thanks Rolan. It looks like I'm going to try a gateway knife.

OMCHamlin

Well you just cost me some cash. I will compare it against my lightning and give the one I like less to my son.

And Lord Vaalic, don't tell him.

Ok. You convinced me to spend my "allowance" for the 1st quarter. I also picked up one of these to try out. We'll see how it turns out.
Mini Protector Black D/A OTF Automatic Knife 5.25 Inch
$12.50 . I figure I can risk the 12.50. worst case scenario, I just eat PBJ instead of a ham sandwich for lunch for a few days.

So my order from direct knife sales arrived today.
The lightning is aluminum or pot-metal scales/handle. Mine came with lots of chipped paint but I'm ok with that. I might paint or coat it anyways. I was substituted something other than what I had ordered for the second knife. It's sort of like a mini knock off of a Benchmade but it's essentially just a toy or letter opener. It's blade is too light and loose for what I would consider for a box cutter. Both open and close solidly with the lightning having a resounding spring twang.








I've included my well worn Kershaw leek for comparison.

DanPatWork,

I'm sorry it wasn't all you hoped for.

I just got my shipping notification from these guys. http://www.lightningotfknives....errated_Blade_1.html

I'm thinking that there is a Microtech in my future.

Rolan, as to the lightning.... I'm very happy with it for what it is. I'm more appreciative of a utilitarian knife than a pretty and expensive knife that I don't want to put a scratch on. Edge retention is probably the only thing I might be disappointed in, but let's be honest, for 25 bucks I can hit it with the stones a lot of times before I have spent as much time and money as I might on another brand in the future.

My only disappointment was getting the wrong knife shipped to me in the smaller knife. I've contacted direct knife sales to see if this was just an accident in the warehouse selection process (I'm not really sure how big they), or was it considered a direct replacement for something out of stock. I haven't heard back yet. I knew the smaller knife was likely going to be just a toy or letter opener but I wanted the single edge of the one I ordered with the activation switch on the edge rather than in the face of the grip.