Guardian Tactical RECON-035 OTF Automatic Knife Blue 3.3" Drop Point Black Tactical 94111

I was in the market for a decent OTF for EDC duty, have a few other competitor brands, but really wanted to try out a Guardian tactical. The company is based in my state of PA, founded by former Microtech employees. First off the good, the blade is in Elmax, a decent tough steel, the handle and blade finishes are well done and look great, the mechanism is basically Microtech, but has leaf springs on the open/close locks. The blade is a great shape for most uses with decent edge geometry, appropriate blade thickness, and a hollow ground swedge, flat ground edge bevel. The milled texture on the flats is well done and works to give a nice grip when holding a "pinch" grip. The clip works well and carries deep. The great, this has probably the best blade and handle size of any OTF for practical use, near perfect for edc with a blade just under 3.5" and a handle just under 4.5". The handle and blade are "Troodon" width, and very comfortable in the hand, the blade tang and track are strong, and it should hold up to a lifetime of use. The action is very smooth with ceramic balls under the switch riding on a polished plate. The action is relatively light, and easy to actuate, there is acceptably minor play. The knife overall is classy and more conservative than most "tacticool" OTFs. Minor gripes, while I see it as a positive that this lacks the uncomfortable glassbreaker that sticks out of pockets, and that knife makers seem to put on everything, this has a pointless lanyard hole too small for 550 cord. The blade with swedge and fuller looks nice, but has a thick edge and a flat grind starting from the middle of the blade's width. I would have loved to see a higher grind and thinner edge that would be more useful in a knife this size. The bad, It's a slippery knife, there is 0 texture on the handle outside of the milling on the flats and switch itself, and very subtle finger grooves that don't really help. The switch sucks IMO, the rounded texture doesn't add much grip, the ledge on the back is all that really helps grip the switch to fire the blade. The front of the switch is rounded, so it is really slippery when retracting. The polished plate under the switch is bright and shiny, out of place. Heretic's solution of using bearings in the handle riding on the polished underside of a steel button is far better. All in all it's well made for the price, a great size, and looks nice, if it wasn't so slippery, and maybe had a little thinner edge and higher grind it would be a great knife instead of just a good one.