Like the title said it does what it needs to do my only kind of nitpick is the fact that u can use weights to customize it but blade bias is not really popular and ive seen weighted blade inserts less and less

I know it may seem kinda fake when every review is 5 stars but theres really nothing to complain about here they just work i personally enjoy handle bias but 3 weights was too heavy for me because it would spin out of control but im not an experienced flipper so kinda on me

Okay so this is going to be a fairly lengthy review because I do absolutely love this thing but do feel like there are some caveats and things the consumer should know. Also keep in mind the price point as I’m giving all of these details.

—-Firstly, I’m not 100% sure who this is for, other than me. It feels like you’d get off better with having more experience with a balisong so you know what your preferences are, rather than getting this for a new balisong flipper. That said, tolerances aren’t good. If you’ve ever had the experience of flipping a bali with pressed pins, expect roughly the same experience. It’s not a great beginner flipper because of the tolerances… but I do feel like giving this to a kid has very few downsides.

—-Next, this is probably going to be the most experimental zippy product you get. By that I mean that…There isn’t an exact formula to make it feel “good” yet. It isn’t water tight but water can fill the gap for some time if you need it to. The space in the handles is fairly small but not so much so that you can’t think of some things to weigh it down.

——I ended up finding some smaller sized rocks and filling the handles with them. I think in hindsight I’d probably recommend something like metal bb’s for more uniformity; I had to stick a paper clip to poke the rocks down the handle as they would get stuck. I don’t think my handles are perfectly balanced, but I’d say they’re probably within about 3-5% of eachother which feels good enough for me. You could theoretically balance the pen portion on a table and let the handles dangle and see which one goes down first if you’re concerned that the weight is off between the two handles. I also subbed out the provided bic capped pen for a sharpie s-gel (this is a factor later) that has a metal body for more weight. At this point I was feeling like the handles were a bit too light compared to the blade, so I added some tungsten balls to the inside of the handles but they ended up traveling up the handles as I flipped.

—my current final form BaliQuill is rocks in handles, zippy weight caps with 2 tungsten beads (one on the side that holds one and one on the side that holds two) on each handle and sharpie s-gel with a metal body… and this thing is a surprisingly competent flipper.

——it’s also important to consider what pen you’ll be using. I used a sharpie s gel with metal body for weight and love the overall feel of the BaliQuill… however, the sharpie s gel is a clicker pen, not a pen with a lid. For some reason the sharpie s gel versus G-forces associated with flipping causes massive leakage. My work shirt is allllll inked up from flipping. My hands and arms are even worse. This is obviously my problem, but since I can’t access the clicker to click the pen when it’s in the baliquill, it had to stay open all the time and therefore was ready to mark me up at a moments notice. Add in that the ink kinda pools to the tip when you’re flipping and you could feasibly end up whipping ink everywhere. Be careful.

—- It’s not competitive, it’s not “good” by modern qualifications… but it is a bali, it is something that won’t scare the unaware, and it is something that will be hard to be taken away from you for any of the reasons a normal bali would be. This has already earned a spot in my pocket EDC just for the sole purpose of not wanting to freaking people out but wanting to flip. And again, it’s surprisingly competent. I can do chadders, choker fans, bt8bs, shortstops… fans feel like there’s a bit to be desired, but I think that’s more of a tolerance thing. I can get 2 rotations on a palm fan very regularly and 3 if I help it a bit… and that’s my idle/thinking trick. There are limitations, for sure, but it can also perform, for sure.

—-I also just bought a blade-less bali for the same reason a few months ago and have flipped it maybe twice. I really hate that thing. The quill fills the hole that bali was supposed to… and if I want the blade-less feel like that bali was supposed to offer, I can remove the pen and have the same experience.

—Oh and like another reviewer mentioned, this is a much better flipper than bali-yo and has much worse tolerances. The tolerances really aren’t that big of a thing though, I promise. This is a gap filler, not meant to be overly competitive.

—that said, I might be in the market for a premium Bali quill some day. Think I’m gonna edit this to try to add a video, but gonna post the text so I don’t lose it all. Feel free to reach out to me on Instagram with any questions.

Depending on how you fill the handles, this can feel and flip more like how you expect a balisong to flip, or not. You will probably need to use SOMETHING because empty, the handles are much too light. I used standard run of the mill copper BB's and those gave the handles enough weight to be flippable. Just be aware of a couple of shortcomings: One, the part that holds the pen is finicky. I got two and one does a much better job of holding the pen than the other. I solved this issue by simply wrapping a minimal piece of tape around it, half on the holder and half on the pen. This works fine. The second thing to be aware of is this does not have washers or bushings so don't expect it to be on par with more expensive plastic balisongs like the Pallet or the Frank-P. It is meant to just be a fun little novelty and NOT an alternative to those other (much more expensive) plastic balisongs. Also, fun fact, without a pen inserted, the BaliQuill functions much like a plastic Vulp 360. :-) This should work well as a "safe in public" flipper because there is NO WAY anyone is going to mistake this for a "knife". Unless you insert a pen-knife... hmmmm. 🤔

I gave it five stars because it is/does exactly what it claims - just don't expect MORE than that.

Really cool looking and fit perfectly! Definitely will prevent my bali from getting beat up. I even got a paper zippy logo card with my name and a signature on it! Very personalized balisong experience

Background- I own two Diode prototypes, a zipper v2, a cycloid v2, a cycloid HD, a zippy lucha, and now a cycloid LC.

The glass filled nylon has become my second favorite handle material. (Titanium, gfn, alu, plastic) Maybe that sounds crazy to some, but aluminum doesn’t feel great to me anymore. The GFN has a much better feel than plastic. It’s obviously not weighted as well as aluminum, but it feels much better in the hand than plastic.

Zippy also rounded the handles more than in the HD version. I didn’t really think that the HD having more flat angles was an issue and it still performs well when I go back to it, but the rounded handles have a very nice aesthetic compared to the hd and other zippy models.

Less important to me but still nice- the pivots no longer protruding. The handles leading up to them look nice as well. I never had any issues with the pivots protruding from the handles at all, but it does aesthetically look better.

The lucha blade being compatible essentially makes this an upgradable to live blade option… which is really underrated and cool. I don’t have a ton of interest in doing this personally because I really like the cycloid weight as an edc trainer. That said, I don’t really flip the zippy lucha very often and am curious how much more id like it on the LC handles (but am not willing to sacrifice the edc trainer to mess with it)

Also, it claims to be a silent flipper and compared to other plastic and even the HD it is very quiet. Hell, even compared to any metal.

What you’re getting here is the best offering zippy has ever put out. It hasn’t left my pocket since I got it about a month ago, and it continues to perform as well as when I got it. Maybe you’re thinking $100 is steep for essentially a plastic bali… and I understand where you’re coming from. That said, it is incredibly cheap compared to the performance and durability you get. If you’re looking to get into the hobby or your kid is and you want to start them with plastic… they’ll likely want to move on to something better quickly. My competing plastic bali will never perform as well as my cycloid. I’d argue the cycloid is as competitive as almost all of my titanium balis because the weight distribution of the GFN is really nice.

Zippy doesn’t put out a product that isn’t better than the last. Buy with confidence.

I am a collector Balisong, Folding Knives & Fixed Blades. For many years, I have used another lubricant for all my blades, but recently tried Nano-Oil 85w for balisong only. I love what it does for all my balisong: provides hydraulic cushioning, while lubricating and enhancing audible character!
This lighter weight lubrication is VERY easy to apply, and it penetrates bearing surfaces QUICKLY! Superior to a heavy weight lube I used before…
Audible clack & rings are clearer and enhanced. This is important for Balisong enthusiasts because it’s an indicator of precision tight tolerances and quality fitment. This is highly recommended.
I have probably 30-40 balisong

I'm new to Balisongs so I grabbed a Squid Kraken Trainer. After spending time with it I fell in love with the stability which made it easy to learn tricks. I kept hearing about Zippy inserts so I gave them a try. I instantly liked the way the Kraken felt with the inserts! It somehow feels even more stable than before as well as it got rid of the really annoying ringing noise that Kraken trainers are k own for. A must buy if you grab a Kraken Trainer.

The amount of attention to detail Zippy puts into his creations is extraordinary. I'm very impressed with every purchase, especially my latest purchases for the EPS Wraith. It is perfection.

I often flip my knifes late at night when others are trying to sleep, these inlays helped make the canyon a lot quieter

Very nice all-rounder that acomodates most flippers needs, fair warning however, if you are very uptight about tolerances the material in the pivot area does flex a little causing tap and minimal play (this is just something to do with the material and not the pivots, those come perfectly tuned), other than that I carry it everywhere I go and I can't get enough of it, would recommend.

The textrure is dialed, and it feels smooth to flip with. The aplicator is the best I've seen for balisong oil, It's really easy to apply it directly to the bearings of my Cycloid LC. My only complaint is at how easy the cap comes off, coating everything in my pocket with oil.

I got these to match my handle spacers and oh my… absolutely beautiful

This is exactly what I’ve been looking for! It adds a little weight and brings the balance exactly where I want it! Not to mention the grip makes ladders easier than ever!

I got the inlays, and ring silencers. now my canyon fans wonderfully. It also did silence the ring, giving it a much fuller sound. Be warned, carpet will swallow the tungsten weights whole, so be very careful working with them. My carpet is currently 2 tungsten weights heavier than before.