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Kansept Accipiter Knife Review
- Pros: Reminiscent of classic high-end designs, particularly ZT knives from their glory days. Very nice, simple drop point blade with a slicey grind and satisfying action. Comfortable handle with well-designed curves, chamfering, and jimping. Attractive jungle camo carbon fiber inlay. Hidden lanyard hole keeps the design clean while still offering the option for lanyards. Solid frame lock with an overtravel stop and a lock bar insert. Perfect detent, allowing for fast and crisp blade deployment, even with the larger blade size. Premium materials, including S35VN steel, titanium, and carbon fiber. Excellent fit and finish.
- Cons: Lacks jimping on the flipper tab, though it doesn't seem to affect the knife's performance significantly. Slightly more expensive than some other Kansept models. Carbon fiber inlay doesn't glow, despite its appearance suggesting it might. Limited to right-hand, tip-up carry only. Might be too large for some users' preferences.
Greetings, knife enthusiasts, and welcome to an exciting Kansept Accipiter review. Today, we're taking a look at a new knife coming out of Kansept, and this one feels like it's kind of cut from another cloth. Let’s dig into the specifics!
Key Takeaways
- The Kansept Accipiter feels like it's cut from another cloth, channeling the spirit of classic high-end designs.
- It reminds me of the ZT glory days, particularly knives like the 0652.
- The blade is very nice, with a simple drop-point shape, a slicey 18-thousandths behind the edge, and a satisfying action.
- The handle is really comfortable, with all the right curves, chamfering, and jimping in the right spots.
- The carbon fiber inlay has a jungle camo look, and while it doesn't glow, it still looks good.
- The hidden lanyard hole in the backspacer is a nice touch, keeping the design clean while still offering the option for those who like lanyards.
- The frame lock is solid, with an overtravel stop and a lock bar insert, ensuring secure blade deployment and lockup.
- The detent is absolutely perfect, allowing the blade to fly out with incredible speed and a crisp feel, even with the bigger blade size.
- If you're missing those good old-day ZTs, I would definitely recommend the Kansept Accipiter.
- While it's a little more expensive than some other Kansepts, you get a lot of knife for the price, with premium materials and excellent fit and finish.
Specifications
As you can imagine, it’s that time in our Kansept Accipiter review when I show off the specs.
| Feature | Value |
|---|---|
| Overall Length | 8.16 inches |
| Blade Length | 3.5 inches |
| Weight | 4.6 ounces |
| Blade Thickness | 0.14 inches |
| Blade Material | S35VN |
| Blade Style | Drop point with flat grind |
| Handle Length | 4.66 inches |
| Handle Thickness | 0.51 inches |
| Handle Material | Titanium and carbon fiber |
| Locking Mechanism | Frame lock |
| Carry | Right-hand, tip-up |
| Designer | Kim Ning |
Comparisons
It's hard to knock anything on the Accipiter. If you're missing those good old ZTs, this is one I would definitely recommend. At its price point, it's a little more expensive than you're used to paying for some Kansepts, but you do get a lot of knife.
You get a great steel, and there's really no reason for me to say it's not worth it. I mean, you compare the titanium, carbon fiber, and S35VN—especially with this fit and finish—to a lot of other knives, and a lot of them are going to be more expensive. They're going to be right around the Accipiter's price range. So I think it's a very fair price and a very, very good knife.
Let’s look at a couple other knives up close.
CJRB Prado
Let's get the CJRB Prado out here. Much more of a budget knife, but in terms of size, it's a pretty good comparison. It's a hair longer, just a hair longer, but still, in terms of just overall size and length, if you're familiar with the Prado, you're going to have a pretty good idea of the size of this Accipiter here.
Kizer Escort
And here's the Kizer Escort as well. Also not a bad comparison, but this one here is just a little shorter. So there you go, there are your size comparisons, and I think that did just what they need to do for you.
Blade
Now let's take a deeper look at this knife, as I always do, from blade to handle to action. The blade here is just very nice. Very simple drop point blade, but it's a nice size at 3.5 inches. Slicey blade too, 18-thousandths behind the edge, so really nice edge on this guy.
And I'm going to say it right now, this knife in general, it reminds me of the ZT glory days. If you guys remember knives like the 0652 from ZT, in that era of knives, this feels like that. The action's like that. The size, you know, it's a bigger knife. If there are people that are missing those bigger, smooth, kind of bulkier ZTs, this is a pretty good option. It really truly is.
Handle and Ergonomics
The handle is really comfortable. Very, very comfy in hand. All the right curves, all the right chamfering, and all the right jimping in all the right spots. No real issue with it. The layout design is nice. You kind of have this carbon fiber here. It looks like it wants to glow, but it really doesn't. If it's supposed to glow, I don't really feel like it does. But it's kind of just more of that jungle camo carbon type look.
I believe this is camo carbon. I'm certain it's not fat carbon. Could be something else, though. But it looks all right, kind of a little more like a smeared paint type of carbon fiber, I guess. But the green always looks good.
You have a nice hidden lanyard back here, which is always good because if you don't like lanyards, you don't have to see it all the time. And if you like it, it's there and very nice and accessible. So nice job there on the backspacer and combining that lanyard tie-off there.
On the back here, you have a really nice solid frame lock. Everything you need: the overtravel stop, the lock bar insert, good to go there. Very nice, simple, but very effective, very basic clip. Really easy to go in and out of the pocket, and it feels really good in the hand as well.
Deployment and Lockup
There's really nothing to pick on with this knife. I like how the lines on the handle kind of work in and kind of go out to flow with the blade. Very smooth transition lines on the inlay. Very nice job there.
There's no jimping on this flipper tab, but I can't say it really affects the knife. As you can see, it has a very nice flipping action. It kind of reminds me of the 0562 from ZT because that one didn't have any jimping on it either, but that was a completely different shape. The flipper tab was kind of angled up a little, so it was even easier to flip that one. But again, this one? No issue.
If you just hear and watch how fast this blade rockets out, it's about as satisfying as it could be. While I would like some jimping back here, I can't say that I'm mad there's not because it doesn't really affect the action.
The detent is absolutely perfect on this guy. The blade flies out, even with the bigger blade. It's really hard to nail that combination of a big blade and a crisp detent because the bigger the blade is, the more the detent can feel non-existent.
But they did a really good job of putting a good-sized detent ball in there for a big blade, and they just knocked it out of the park. It's excellent action, very, very crisp and quick on the deployment and very smooth on the close.
Video Review
Conclusion
The Kansept Accipiter is a fantastic addition to any knife collection, particularly for those who miss the classic designs from the glory days of a certain high-end brand.
With its premium materials, excellent fit and finish, and smooth, snappy action, this knife is definitely worth considering if you're in the market for a high-quality, larger knife that delivers top-notch performance.
As ever, thanks for reading my Kansept Accipiter review.
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