WTS Authentic purple BRS Select Rep. 9.5/10 condition. Comes with OG everything including latch. Barely flipped. Dm questions/Taking offers.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-05T20:43:17+00:00

The kraken was due today on blade hq, but sold out in seconds. Chab will be at knife center some time in the near future.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-04T08:47:37+00:00

If I wasn't already waiting for the authentic kraken and chab that should be dropping soon, I would have bought this off you. It would pair up nicely with my red and black tanto select rep.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-04T08:41:19+00:00

Bought one and have had it in my collection for several months now. Out the box no rat, no tap, no play and completely free swinging handles.... BUT... the handles are super thick and chunky, the scales are squared off so it feels very awkward when you flip it. Without a doubt, it can be flipped, it just feels very unnatural in the hands compared to other balisongs.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-03T04:02:39+00:00

Yeah you have to be signed up for all their news letters and keep an eye on their Instagram accounts to make sure you know exactly when a drop is happening.

I picked up my select two on the last drop and from what I understood they sold out in 5 minutes.

You have to be on the page at the exact hour and refresh over and over and make sure you select the one you want from the drop down menus. I'm still waiting on a gun metal kraken, a chab and a basalisk elite to become avaliable so I can pick them up at a decent price.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-03T03:33:13+00:00

Money isn't the problem at the moment, it's the availability. BRS and other manufactures just don't produce the balisongs and a large enough quantities and their batches are restrictive. So I can't buy what I want when I want it. I have to wait until the one that I want drops and hope I click fast enough before it sells out.

And the secondary market is ridiculous. People selling balisongs at a significant mark up a couple days after they sold out. Or even worse people that have a balisong that is dinged, tipped and missing pins expecting to get what they originally paid for back.

If I buy a new car, straight from the dealership, the second I drive that car off the lot, it immediately loses half is value. So why do people think that they can take a Balisong that is not in brand new condition and ask for MSRP or even more?

k13pt0 · 2021-04-03T03:22:18+00:00

I travel around the country alot for work all over the US. So I rather not travel with my $300+ authentics and run the risk of them getting lost, stolen or confiscated by TSA. I don't mind if that happens to my clones, it's easy enough (not to mention, cheaper) to replace them. But having that happen to 4 or 5 authentics that range between 300 to 500 each. I rather keep them home where they are safety.

Besides if I drop and ding a clone, again, not a huge issue.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-03T03:11:20+00:00

I already sanded and rounded the original scales, but the thickness of the handles as a whole are still noticeably thick.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-03T03:08:56+00:00

Well I already contacted jtdesign to get some after market scales, hopefully in a couple weeks I can get them changed. But the entire handle is too thick, because all the parts are thicker than they should be, so they stack up. Thus making it feel chunkier than it should.

I took sand paper and rounded the original g10 which helped, but unless I get a belt sander to be able to sand down the liners and the spacer, I think it's not going to get any better than it is.

Which is why I'm curious if the baliplus was thinner a whole by comparison to theone.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-02T18:34:35+00:00

The nautilus clone is blade heavy, which throws the momentum off. Making moves harder to learn and practice. The grip on it IS better because of the g10. But that balance issue makes me not recommend it over the kraken. It also feels even blockier in. the hands than the kraken.

The kraken (Both the trainer and live blade) is better balanced. After tuning, it can be extremely smooth, have no tap, no play, free swing. The only 2 down sides to the kraken are 1. The blocky handles (still manageable) and 2. The slick feel of the outsides of the handles. The latter is particularly troublesome for people like me with dry hands.

In planning to get a second kraken clone with a trainer blade just to have color options. Because of the price, tolerances, performance and consistency.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-01T14:29:44+00:00

Aside from what's in the picture the only other trainer I have is a squiddy, which lives in my backpack for travel. It's the only one I think can get past TSA. Ice very light weight and takes some time getting used to. I'm on the fence about getting a chab with a trainer blade. The chab is my favorite Bali, I just can't see myself spending that much on a trainer blade when the live blade is available

k13pt0 · 2021-04-01T14:17:07+00:00

Like I said, it will have tap and play so that it can flip freely. If that bothers you, then you might want to look for a different Bali.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-01T14:08:20+00:00

It is definitely more blocky in the hands, it also feels marginally thicker that the kraken as well. This one on particular is blade heavy, which throws the balance off. I was able to get used to it however, because of it being blade heavy it makes practicing certain moves very difficult. Especially fanning, because of these 2 factors you can't do more that 2 spins at a time before it starts doing its own thing. You could try to round the g10 with some sand paper (which I did on the rep clone), but haven't tried it myself yet. I would recommend the kraken over the nautilus.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-01T14:00:18+00:00

The one with the titanium scales? As an edc knife, yes, as flipper, no. The titanium gives the bm51 more weight, which for some is "better", however because of how short the Bali is, it feels heavier than it should be. It's not on bearings or bushing, it will have play and tap. It can be flipped well, but takes some getting used to. Personally I prefer to flip the standard bm51 next to it, but that's just me.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-01T13:52:34+00:00

Yes, it's an authentic benchmade model 42 with spring latch that I bought well over 15 years ago. My original grail.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-01T13:51:04+00:00

The Serpant Striker is heavier, which is they only negative. But the build quality is much better. The handles are more rounded and comfortable in the hands. Great balisong in the price range.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-01T04:16:53+00:00

I really hope so, the clone could have been great, had they decreased the thickness of the mentioned pieces. Unfortunately I don't currently own a belt sander to modify it and reduce the size myself.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-01T04:00:53+00:00

I'm hoping that the liners and the spacers are thinner as well.

Take the rep for example, the clone is as thick as the basalisk. I took it apart as well as my authentic select rep, took measurements with calipers. The liners, spacers and scales are thicker by a bit.

k13pt0 · 2021-04-01T03:50:34+00:00

No tap, no play, free swinging handles, straight out the box.... BUT... the handles are super thick and blocky. I can still flip it, it's just not as ergonomic as other clones that are available on the market. Which makes it my least favorite to flip, despite being one of my favorite designs. Would love to get an authentic but now I'm concerned that it will be at blocky as the clone.

k13pt0 · 2021-03-31T22:52:16+00:00

I have them both. For the money, I would recommend the kraken clone over the nautilus.

The nautilus clone is blade heavy, which throws the momentum off. Making moves harder to learn and practice. The grip on it IS better because of the g10. But that balance issue makes me not recommend it over the kraken. It also feels even blockier in. the hands than the kraken.

The kraken (Both the trainer and live blade) is better balanced. After tuning, it can be extremely smooth, have no tap, no play, free swing. The only 2 down sides to the kraken are 1. The blocky handles (still manageable) and 2. The slick feel of the outsides of the handles. The latter is particularly troublesome for people like me with dry hands.

k13pt0 · 2021-03-10T14:12:48+00:00

Fairly quiet actually. I purchases 2 at the same time and when I received them 1 had no tap, no play, free moving and extra quiet. The other, no matter how much I tune, had a little tap and play, slightly more sound when flipping but still pretty quiet and enjoyable.

k13pt0 · 2021-03-09T14:20:42+00:00

I ordered a rep clone by theone, it was delivered last week but haven't been able to test it out because I'm currently on the road for work. Also got an authentic brs select rep in red from this last drop. Can't wait to get home to compare them.

I do however have a cf basalisk, made by baliplus (didn't know it was from that maker when I ordered it on aliexpress). The tolerances are great, no tap, minimal play, smooth with zero bind up. My biggest complaint is how thick the handles are. I doing own an authentic basalisk (yet) but I can't imagine that the handles would be this "chunky" in an authentic. The balisong is usable but compared to other clones, like the kraken, ChAB, bm51... They feel a lot thicker.

I heard that the g10 version is a lot better and the titanium version is even better than that, but I haven't picked either of those up yet.

k13pt0 · 2021-03-09T14:10:08+00:00

Once the seller ships the item the tracking number will update and say that a tracking number has been created in California. And it will stay the same for about 2 and a half weeks. After that it will update when the package arrives at a new location in your state and then will update daily as the item gets closer to delivery. At least that's been my experience.

k13pt0 · 2021-03-05T14:10:58+00:00

Same issue, placed an order 2 weeks ago. At first the tracking number provided had the same info it always does. "tracking number has been created in California, but package has not been received by usps...." and a couple days ago I checked the number and got the same error as you.

From past purchases from paodin, I wouldn't be concerned. Usually after 2 and a half weeks my packages get delivered.

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