$200-300 Trainer Comparison: NRB Ultralight VS NRB Konig V2 VS Squid Industries Nautilus V2

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Ultralight Update

I have notably changed my mind on the Ultralight since writing the original review. I did end up selling it (to make room for some other entries to my collection), but over time I grew to like it a lot more than the original review would suggest.

The Ultralight is delightfully balanced and flips very conventionally despite its ridiculously low weight. The aggressive rounding and slim handle geometry also remind me of the Tsunami, which is pretty impressive given that it punches in a much lower weight class w.r.t. price. It is truly a one-of-a-kind trainer, and I would recommend that every balisong enthusiast try it (if presented the opportunity).

It does still have issues with grip, just due to being a channel aluminum balisong, but that's not really an issue specific to the Ultralight itself. Whatever I said before about "surface tension" doesn't really seem to apply; I think I was just not used to how light the Ultralight is at the time. I also think I was unfairly biased against rounded handles back then, and have since come around to really appreciate them nowadays.

Disclaimer

This is my oldest review. As I'll say later, I wrote this when I was about a month into flipping. Take the opinions expressed below with a grain of salt. Enjoy!

I've been flipping for almost exactly a month now, and have had the opportunity to own/try a few trainers in the ~$200-300 price range. Thought I'd share some impressions/comparisons for anybody else who is relatively new and looking to buy their first "quality" trainer.

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Ultralight

Figured I'd start with this, as it's kind of in its own league and not really trying to compete with more "standard" trainers. The unit I own I purchased directly from NRB/Garrett and is prototype #35/35. Originally, Garrett told me that there would be no changes to the production version but it seems that he changed his mind between then and now as he recently announced that the production Ultralight would have a few (very minor) changes. I'll list them here just FYI (copied directly from Garrett's Instagram):

• Slightly increased weight (Estimated 2.70oz)
• Reduced rounding on edges of the handles (.1" fillet to .07" fillet)
• Increased handle gap (Open and closed)
• Changed zen pin screws from T8 to T7 (They're better, less prone to breaking, and stripping)

Anyways, the main draw of the Ultralight is that it's a fully metal trainer that weighs 2.7oz (mine actually weighs 2.67oz since it's the prototype), which is almost exactly the weight of a Squiddy. And pretty much on all counts, it delivers. It is hilariously effortless to flip and very quiet for a fully metal balisong due to the drastically reduced mass being thrown around.

Also of note is that the Ultralight features skinnier-than-usual handles that feel even skinnier than they are because they are aggressively rounded. This was originally one of the reasons I even bought an Ultralight, because I have very tiny hands and felt that the slimmer handles might be friendlier to me. In practice, I ultimately found the handles to be a bit too slim, to the point where my fingers would get in the way when trying to do certain tricks like Y2K/Zen thumb rollovers. Also, the slimness combined with aggressive rounding made it feel a bit more difficult to fan because I couldn't get enough leverage to generate enough torque with my fingers.

For me personally, I like this bali enough to keep it in my collection (mostly because I love how it looks + it's just an incredibly unique piece), but it's not one of my favorite flippers. The main reasons for such are as follows:

1. I have rather sweaty palms. I also have very dry/sensitive skin on the backs of my hands. This means that I often need to apply lotion to my hands. So 99% of the time, my palms are either slick with lotion, sweat, or both lol. This means that aluminum balisongs in general are slippier for me than most, and the Ultralight is only worse in this aspect due to the very skinny handles + aggressive rounding. I imagine that this is not an issue for most people, but I also imagine that I'm not the only one with this sort of problem, either.
2. The Ultralight is so light that at times I feel like surface tension is actually a factor. What I mean by this, is that especially when the Ultralight is freshly lubed, the added surface tension from the lubricant is enough to make it kind of difficult to generate enough initial torque for certain tricks. Maybe a candidate for medium/thin lubes instead of the thicker ones I normally prefer?

Anyways, here's a more general pros/cons list:

Pros

• By far the lightest metal balisong in existence, and thus extremely effortless to flip
• Very nice sound (quieter than most but very satisfying)
• Extremely neutral balance and good weight distribution all around
• Excellent grip for an aluminum bali due to the amazing knurling texture + aggressive hole pattern
• Good for small-handed folks due to the slim handles
• Good to learn tricks on because it won't hurt your knuckles/hands as much (lol)
• Immaculately hand-tuned by NRB/Garrett (perfect swing, no tap, minimal play, and best of all: no loctite used or required!)
• Looks beautiful; excellent anodization, the knurling texture is both practical and aesthetically pleasing, and IMO the blade shape/design is godly

Cons

• Still an aluminum balisong, so it can be slippery, especially in certain conditions (see above)
• So light that thick lubes might generate an undesirable amount of surface tension (YMMV)
• Aggressively rounded + slim handles are (IMO) harder to hold onto and gain leverage for fanning, etc.

Overall a great trainer that will hopefully carve a niche into the market for "ultra" lightweight balisongs.

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Konig vs Naut

Nautilus V2

The Nautilus V2 was originally the trainer that I thought would be my personal "grail" after doing tons of research, and in some ways it actually was, but after some time I noticed some issues with the platform that ultimately led me to look elsewhere. Since I got the Nautilus first, I guess I'll start with what I really like about it:

• The G10 provides an insane amount of grip. Especially for a sweaty-palmed, lotion-using person like me, the G10 seems to just ensure solid grip no matter what conditions you're flipping under. The only thing I don't love about G10 is the chalky texture/residue it leaves on my hands, but it's something that gets better (and/or you get more used to) over time, and it's really not a big deal
• I still think the Naut design looks insanely good. The blade design is probably my favorite from Squid's trainers (infinitely better than the Kraken trainer...) and the colored aluminum shining thru the holes of the G10 just looks great
• The light weight (3.6oz) is very rare to find and IMO really nice overall. I think it's just a very nice weight for flipping, and I wish more balisongs were this light
• The tang pin design + G10 scales is a good combination that has a number of advantages:
  1. Incredibly quiet while still sounding extremely nice and satisfying (IMO). This was a big draw for me because sometimes I like to flip in the office, and don't want to disturb others
  2. No zen pin nipple to pinch you, which is awesome for learning new tricks

Now, if you've seen my previous post(s), you'll already know why I eventually fell out of love w/ the Naut, but for those who haven't, here's why:

• The Naut will sometimes just develop very noticeable tap after a drop, even on carpet. This tap is so bad that you can see the blade leaning to one side and rubbing against the channel on that side, and it even produces a loud and unpleasant noise when closing the balisong at certain angles. Then, after some amount of flipping and/or another drop, the tap will fix itself and the blade will be center-aligned again...
  • I have actually had this issue on two separate Naut V2's that I purchased (one from Blade HQ and the one pictured from Squid). Additionally, the issue is actually a lot worse on this Spooky Inked unit in that it seems like the tap is not easily going away anymore
  • Even further, I made a post on this sub polling other Naut V2 owners on whether they have this issue and 2 others responded that their Naut's also do this
  • Also, to clarify, this issue happens even when the balisong is freshly lubed

I just don't think this is an acceptable issue to deal with on such an expensive product (indeed, the Naut is literally currently Squid's most expensive trainer). And the fact that I had this issue (to varying degrees of severity) on two separate units + confirmed cases among multiple other owners here on Reddit leads me to believe that it's some kind of issue with the Naut V2 platform itself rather than solely a QC/tuning problem.

Regardless, discovering this issue led me down another research rabbit hole to find other, similar trainers roughly in the same price range that (hopefully) would not have the same issue, and ultimately I landed on...

NRB Konig V2

The Konig mostly gets compared to the Kraken for obvious reasons, and it's undoubtedly a much stronger analog to the Kraken as well. But I found it attractive as a Nautilus fan for a few reasons:

1. Sort of light-ish weight (3.84-3.9oz or so is noticeably more than 3.6 but also noticeably less than the Kraken's 4.20)
2. Features the same knurling texture used on the Ultralight which would probably provide even better grip w/ more surface area and help make up for the loss of the Naut's G10
3. Great implementation of adjustable weights to allow for adjusting balance to personal preference
4. Ever so slightly thinner handles than Squid's products which I thought might be good for my small hands

After spending some more time with the Konig (a bit less than a week as of this post), here are my overall impressions (wall of text warning, skip to the next section for a more condensed pros/cons list):

• The knurling and the grip are great. Much better than the Ultralight thanks to the extremely squared handles + overall increased handle surface area. It can still get slippery, but overall I think it has excellent grip. The G10 on the Naut is still overall better for grip, I'd say, but I'm very happy with the grip the Konig provides
• The weight is noticeably heavier than the Nautilus. Note that this is not really a bad or good thing, it's just that the Naut definitely still stands out for its light weight. This effect is exacerbated by the Konig having (just barely) skinnier and shorter handles than the Naut, making it not just heavier but also significantly denser. That said, I found that I prefer the Konig with no additional weights at all, for a few reasons:
  1. I think overall I like more neutrally balanced balisongs; I like to do a lot of fanning as a way of fidgeting and handle bias makes that harder
  2. Obviously the Konig's lightest config is with no weights, so this was a no-brainer for me
  3. Most importantly, the Konig has very aggressively tapered handles that get thicker towards the end. This results in more "ass weight" to the handles which results in a higher moment of inertia. In other words, it takes a bit more initial force to get the handles swinging but also they will carry more momentum once they are in motion. To me, the effect this has on the flipping experience means that the Konig doesn't need any additional handle bias to do rollovers/Chaplins/etc. comfortably
• I think the handle design is nearly perfect for my hands. Personally, I prefer the extreme squareness of the Konig to the more rounded Naut; I think the added surface area is significantly easier to hold onto and torque for fans, and I also find it easier to tell by feel what "side" of the handle I'm on (again, mostly relevant when fanning). Also, despite the aggressive tapering, the Konig handles are barely skinnier than the Naut's at just about every point and this actually does better accommodate my smaller hands
• I think the weight distribution is overall better than the Nautilus. The Naut's handle taper is extremely conservative and basically doesn't do anything relative to the Konig's. The Konig's noticeably increased moment of inertia (i.e. resistance to movement when stationary and resistance to deceleration when in motion) makes it more controllable overall and easier to flip slowly, which is something I really prefer as someone who's still pretty new. The Nautilus definitely makes it easier to go fast with its lighter + more evenly distributed weight, but for me it just feels harder to control and I often end up flipping too fast without meaning to
• I really wasn't crazy about the Konig aesthetically at first, but pictures don't do the handle anodization/color justice + it's really grown on me after owning and flipping one for a few days. The blue anodization is really stunning IMO, and the knurling texture only serves to make it look even better. I don't love the blade shape or hole pattern, but I can at least appreciate the consistency of Garrett's design language (and I'm a sucker for black blades/hardware)
• The sound. The sound is awesome. Note that it is very loud, but it sounds great. I find myself just fanning over and over because it produces such a nice, satisfying sound. After flipping the Konig for awhile, the Nautilus just sounds kind of neutered in comparison. I still like how the Naut sounds overall, and I think the uniqueness + quietness of the Naut's sound is still a big draw, but overall I think I like how the Konig sounds more

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OK that was very lengthy, here's a more concise pros/cons list of the Konig vs the Nautilus!

Pros

• Squared handles are IMO easier to hold onto and torque than the Naut's rounded handles (albeit arguably less comfy)
• Increased weight + aggressive handle taper results in significantly higher moment of inertia, which makes the Konig more controllable and easier to flip slowly than the Nautilus
• More neutral balance (especially without weights) makes fanning a lot easier without compromising rollover/Chaplin performance thanks to the tapered handles
• Very slightly skinnier handles are friendlier to smaller hands
• More satisfying (and louder) sound
• Doesn't have weird tap issues + overall easier to tune thanks to screwless sex bolts and the absence of loctite
• Probably more durable overall (aluminum vs G10)
• A good bit cheaper ($215 vs 230-270 depending on which Naut you're getting)

Cons

• Noticeably heavier than the Nautilus
• Aluminum is still slipperier than G10
• Big zen pin nipple might lead to more pinching
• Not a quiet/silent flipper, unlike the Naut
• Completely different design language than the Naut, so if you're in love with the Naut's looks you probably won't like the Konig as much. Also not as many color combinations available

And if anyone was curious, if you were to ask me right now my ranking of the 3 featured trainers, it would be

1. Konig
2. Ultralight
3. Nautilus

But all 3 are very good, and the Nautilus in particular is still awesome if you can get a unit without tap issues. I assume that's still very possible/common, given that there seem to be a lot of Nautilus diehards on this sub.

Anyways, hope this was helpful and/or entertaining :) Thanks for reading!