Folding Knives

Zero Tolerance 0452CF Review

When it comes to folding knives, I am extremely selective in what I choose to carry, especially if it is a blade that I am going to carry for self-protection. It has to be light, reliable, sharp, and geometrically efficient. These are just a few of the qualities I look for in a folder. After all, a folding knife is already at a disadvantage over a fixed blade, due to the fact that it has to rely on mechanical functions.

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I had been a fan of Zero Tolerance’s quality and construction ever since they came on the market a few years ago, but I wasn’t crazy about their designs. They built tanks, but I wanted something that was as tough as a tank, but as sleek as a Ferrari at the same time. Finally, I discovered the 0452CF.

The 0452CF is a streamlined, mass production version of the award-winning 0454, designed by Dimitry Sinkevich, who is an artist in the realms of both beauty and function. I was instantly drawn to this knife because of its long, narrow blade and slender profile. I had finally found a Zero Tolerance that would suit my personal needs. It was destined to become one of my favorite EDC knives.

General Dimensions and Blade Details

The 0452CF has a blade length of 4.10”, a handle length of 5.17”, an overall length of 9.27”, and is made in the USA. The knife weighs in at 4.64 ounces, which is extremely light considering the size of the knife. In fact, if it were any lighter, it would probably be too light. This knife has just the right amount of weight to it. Plus, it is perfectly balanced right at the first finger grove.

The blade of the 0452CF is a flat-ground, drop point design with a satin finish. The blade is constructed of 0.16” CPM-S35VN. This is an excellent steel made by Crucible and designed specifically for knife making. This steel has excellent properties in the areas of edge retention, toughness, and corrosion resistance, which make it an excellent choice in for an EDC blade.

One of the primary reasons I chose this particular knife as an EDC defensive blade is the blade geometry. The long, narrow drop point with the ¾+ false edge is an excellent thrusting blade. Of course, it does a fine job cutting as well and came razor sharp right out of the box. The 0452CF is just a great all around defensive blade.

The first thing I did when I took the knife out of the box is do some cutting tests. First, I did a paper test and the blade sliced off slips of paper with laser precision. Then I set up a couple of full 12-ounce water bottles and slashed away at them one at a time. The knife cut almost completely through each water bottle. Very impressive for a 4.1” folding knife!

Handle, Ergonomics, and Pocket Clip

The handle of the 0452CF is carbon fiber on one side and titanium on the other side, which is the reason this knife is so light. It has a slender profile with very subtle finger groves where the index and pinky fingers rest. The curvature at the back causes the handle to sit comfortably in the hand, giving it a subtle forward cant for perfect wrist alignment. When closed, the blade sits so deeply inside the handle that it adds very little to the handle’s profile, resulting in a slender package that tucks nicely along the seam of the pocket.

One of the things I love about Zero Tolerance is their deep pocket clips. This knife is no exception. The deep pocket clip mounted low on the handle allows this knife to sit almost completely concealed inside the pocket. The clip on this knife has a very small signature as well, causing the knife virtually to disappear in the pocket.

Deployment and Lockup

The 0452CF has a flipper mechanism for quick, one-handed opening. Unlike its 0454 predecessor, the flipper mechanism on this model has some nice jimping to ensure positive finger contact with the flipper. A strong detent system not only locks the blade in place when it is in the closed position, but also adds counter resistance so that the blade launches open when the pressure on the flipper breaks free of the detent.

When I first got the knife, the detent was pretty stiff. I had to use a hard wrist flick to open the knife. During the 2016 SHOT Show, a product rep stopped me and asked if he could demo some of his micro-particle oil on my knife. He put a small drop on the detent pin using a needlepoint dropper, and that was all it took to make the blade deploy with a simple flip of the index finger. It has been silky smooth ever since.

The 0452CF employs the KVT (Kershaw Velocity Technology) ball bearing system, which rotates around a large, beautiful five-spoke pivot pin. The titanium side of the handle provides a durable frame lock. Combined with a hardened steel locking bar, the titanium frame lock ensures a solid lock up. I feel very confident with this knife’s locking system.

Zero Tolerance 0452CF Review – Final Thoughts

I am not at all displeased with my Zero Tolerance 0452CF. This knife is everything I expected it would be and more. It has become a regular part of my Every-Day Carry kit. I typically carry multiple knives, but this is the one knife that always goes with me. I have been carrying this knife every day for about 4 months now. It has held its edge like a champ, and the opening has only gotten smoother over time.

I cannot say enough good things about this knife. If you are looking for a high-quality, tactical folder, then you would be doing yourself a favor by purchasing the ZT0452CF. I’m very glad that Zero Tolerance decided to run this production run of the Dimitry Sinkevich collaboration. In fact, not to diminish the artistic beauty of the 0454 in any way, but I would even go so far as to say that some of the features of this production run (i.e. the jimping on the flipper) are upgrades over the original. I have no doubt that others will enjoy this knife as much as I have.

Zero Tolerance 0452CF; Pocket Knife with 4.1” Dual-Finished S35VN Steel Blade, Carbon Fiber Front and Titanium Back Handle Scales, KVT Ball-Bearing Opening, Frame Lock, Deep-Carry Pocketclip; 4.6 OZ.,Large

4.1-inch S35VN steel blade shows amazing toughness and resistance to edge chipping, with improved edge retention
Handle features carbon fiber front and titanium stonewashed back for comfortable in-hand feel, increased strength and excellent size/weight proportion
Handsome, dual blade finish with a non-reflective satin finish on the grind and stonewashed finish on the flats and blade thickness is 0.156 inches
Great companion for hunters, business professionals, wilderness guides, survival experts, first responders, military, law-enforcement and more
Ideal gift for any special occasion such as birthdays, holidays, graduations, anniversaries, promotions, weddings and more

I recommend purchasing the ZT 0452CF at Amazon or BladeHQ. Please consider that purchasing anything through any of the links on this website helps support BladeReviews.com, and keeps the site going. As always, any and all support is greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.

Benchmade 300-1 Axis Flipper Review

by Dan Jackson 6 Comments

Last Updated: August 2, 2019
The Benchmade 300 is a knife that I originally passed on reviewing. This wasn’t an easy decision. As Benchmade’s first flipper, this is an important knife. But initial reports said that the flipping action was weak, and the knife seemed chunky. I was turned off for those reasons. Rather than going through the motions of reviewing a knife that I did not want to review, I decided to focus my efforts elsewhere.

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I think it was a mistake to ignore the 300. In a sea of somewhat boring and predictable Benchmade offerings, this knife offered a glimpse of something different for the company; even if it’s simply hitching on to the flipper wagon.

As I review some of Benchmade’s 2016 models, I see a few more flippers in the mix. I can’t help but wonder how the 300 has informed these new flippers, and future knives for Benchmade. That is what really drew me to examine the 300.

General Dimensions and Blade Details

The 300 has an overall length of 7.36″, a 3.18″ blade, weighs 4.85 ounces, and is made in the U.S.A. Technically, my knife with the black and blue G-10 handle scales is referred to as the 300-1. The original 300 comes with sand colored peel-ply G-10 handle scales and satin hardware. Beyond the scales and hardware you have the same knife. I am going to refer to my 300-1 as simply a “300” throughout this review.

The 300 knife is designed by Butch Ball, a nice man that I had the pleasure of meeting at the 2015 Blade Show. The 300 is aimed at the Every Day Carry (EDC) market. It is on the large side for my style of daily carry, although it makes for a nice “nights and weekends” knife when I can dress a little more casually. I have used it in an EDC capacity, and can see how others might do the same.

The 300 features a wide clip point blade. This is a dramatic blade that juts from the handle with a pronounced thumb ramp, deep belly, and large flipper. The high flat grind and bright satin finish contrast sharply with the dark handle and black hardware. There is a thin swedge that terminates with a fine tip.

In practice the 300 proved itself to be a capable slicer. Although the blade stock is relatively thick, this is a wide blade, and the high flat grind gets thin behind the edge. Standard fare like cardboard, rope, and apples are easily cleaved by the 300. A deep belly and strong tip are hallmarks of clip point blades, and these features aid the 300 in food prep and penetrating cuts. This versatile blade shape is well rounded and the 300 should handle most EDC chores without complaint.

Benchmade decided on 154CM for the blade steel. Knife fans will already know that this is a proven stainless steel, although it is now considered a mid range steel. Personally, I remain a big fan of 154CM. It takes a beautiful edge, holds it well, and is easy to sharpen. Like all steels (even stainless steels) you will need to keep the knife clean to avoid corrosion, but if adequately maintained this is an excellent working steel ideally suited for daily use.

Handle, Ergonomics, and Pocket Clip

My 300 came with 3-d machined layered blue and black G10 handle scales over blackened stainless steel liners (again, technically this is considered the 300-1 in Benchmade’s catalog). The knife is held together with torx-head fasteners and 2 blackened stand offs. The 300 originally is offered in sand colored peel ply G10 with odd grooves cut into it. It was different, and I appreciate that, but it did not appeal to me. The blue/black G10 is a little more toned down, but it still offers the end user something besides a plain black handle. The steel liners have been skeletonized extensively. The fit and finish is excellent on my knife.

The entire knife looks wide and unwieldy, but it all makes sense in hand. There are a series of finger grooves, that I typically am not a huge fan of, but I was pleasantly surprised with how natural the 300 fit my fingers (I take a “large” glove for reference). The thumb ramp features 3 shallow notches (jimping) that more index your thumb than hold it in place. This is a stark contrast from the toothy jimping on the Griptilian.

The machined G10 handle scales offer traction, but the texture is not aggressive like peel ply G-10. The texture is similar to the handles of the Volli or the Bedlam. If you prefer the traction and feel of a peel ply G-10 handle, then check out the tan colored version of this knife.

In practice this is a comfortable work knife. It stayed in my hand and did not irritate me in use. The finger grooves actually worked here for my hand.

Benchmade chose a black parkerized deep carry pocket clip, and situated the 300 for ambidextrous tip up carry. I like the deep carry clip and clip placement. The 300 buries deep into the pocket and carries well considering this is a larger knife. And I do consider the 300 to be a larger knife. Despite having a sub 3.5″ blade it is still a wide and thick knife. For what it is, I think the 300 carries pretty well.

Deployment and Lockup

The big draw to the 300 is that it is Benchmade’s first flipper, and that this is an axis lock flipper. In a perfect world we would get exceptional flipping action combined with the safety and convenience of the axis lock.

I am here to report that this knife does not flip like a traditional liner lock or frame lock flipper. The axis lock simply does not provide enough resistance (or “detent strength” if you were to compare it to a traditional detent driven flipper) to provide snappy flipping action. However, my knife was not a total flipper fail. If you use a strong lightswitch flick it is possible to flip the knife completely open without using your wrist. It takes some practice, and doesn’t compare to a ball detent driven flipper, but the knife does flip open this way. On a “1 to 10” scale, I’d say this is a 3. It still flips better than my 3” XM-18 did, but this isn’t a Shirogorov by any means.

Benchmade wisely chose to include ambidextrous thumb studs on the 300. This is a more reliable means of opening the blade, and provides the user some options in how they want to manipulate their 300. The thumb studs deploy the blade as easily as a Griptilian or any other axis lock knife with thumb studs. And of course you can use the axis lock to flick the knife open as well.

Speaking of axis locks, the axis lock on my 300 is excellent. My knife is rock solid and devoid of any horizontal or vertical blade play. I remain a big fan of the axis lock because it is strong, easy to use, is fully ambidextrous, and you do not need to put your fingers in the path of the blade to close the knife.

Blade centering is near perfect on my 300.

Benchmade 300 Review – Final Thoughts

I am glad I finally bought a 300. This is an interesting and important knife for Benchmade, and I was pleasantly surprised by it. The big question is “How well does it flip?” I am here to confirm that the flipping action is nothing to write home about. It works, but requires practice and a strong index finger.

If we examine the other aspects of the 300 it reveals a thoughtful and well made knife. The fit and finish is good, the knife cuts well, the steel is good, the handle is comfortable, and the 300 carries decently given its size.

It’s a thick and larger knife, so don’t expect this to carry like a Valet, but for a sturdy working knife this fits the bill. If you are a fan of knives like the Rift, then I think you would appreciate the 300.

This is an interesting first attempt at an axis lock flipper from BM. I wouldn’t call it a home run, but I am glad I picked one up. I am curious to see how Benchmade’s new 2016 flippers stack up against the 300, and plan to review at least one of them in the not so distant future.

In closing, don’t buy the 300 if you are expecting a Zero Tolerance grade flipper with an axis lock. The flipping action is simply not up to par with a ZT. Buy the 300 if you are a Benchmade fan that likes larger EDC knives, and wants to try something a little different.

Benchmade - AXIS Flipper 300 Knife, Plain Drop-Point, Satin Finish, Sand Handle

HIGH-QUALITY: The 154CM stainless steel blade is tough, rust resistant, and holds an edge well. The G10 handle is durable, impervious to moisture, and stable under extreme temperatures, making it great for outdoor use.
WELL-DESIGNED: The AXIS Flipper 300 offers the speed and function of AXIS Assist, with the convenience of a flipper. The 300 can be opened and closed quickly and single-handedly.
COMFORTABLE: The 300's contoured handle is attractive and comfortable to use and hold. The reversible pocket clip offers ultimate accessibility.
VERSATILE: The AXIS Flipper 300's drop-point, utility blade style and all-around functionality make it ideal for everyday carry.

I recommend purchasing the Benchmade 300 at Amazon or BladeHQ. Please consider that purchasing anything through any of the links on this website helps support BladeReviews.com, and keeps the site going. As always, any and all support is greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.

Spyderco Clipitool C175 Review

by Benjamin Schwartz 10 Comments

Recently, in a comment on an article on Everyday Commentary, the always-astute R.D. gave a summary of each major knife company’s chief weakness. For Spyderco, he said that they were “diluting their core identity (cerebral, highly engineered, function-based knives) to chase trends.”

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I couldn’t have put my current feelings about Spyderco any better. Although the Positron or the Nirvana are beautiful, immaculately-finished, and eminently useable and enjoyable knives, I feel like they lack the spark that the best Spyderco designs have. I feel like Spyderco has the Bethesda problem: they’ve become complacent and the products they’ve been putting out recently reflect that – and even if those products aren’t bad, they’re unimaginative, and unrepresentative of what makes Spyderco special.

The last brand new Spyderco design that excited me was the Clipitool line. In particular, I had my eye on the Clipitool Driver; a tool that echoes the immortal Cadet in terms of its verb set (cut, screw, pop, pry), but with the Spyderco cerebreality that R.D. mentioned in his appraisal of the company. In short, it seemed like something special, and I was excited when Dan sent me one to review a month or so ago.

General Dimensions and Blade Details

The Clipitool has a blade length of 2”, a handle length of 2 ¾”, and an overall length of about 4 ½”. It’s made almost entirely out of stainless steel, and weighs 1.9 oz. – a really dense 1.9 oz., which is to be expected given its tiny overall footprint what all is crammed into it.

It’s a small knife: the Dragonfly is up a size class from this thing. And as much as I prefer smaller knives this is almost too far – almost. A knife like the Dragonfly can do about 95% of what you could expect to use a knife for in normal, day-to-day life; the Clipitool’s micro blade can do about 90%. Food prep is out of the question, so if that’s something you use a pocket knife for (I don’t, generally) you may find the Clipitool’s utility more restricted than that.

The blade steel is 8Cr13MoV, the standard for entry level-priced knives and probably one of the most written-about steels on the internet. Its primary characteristic is the ease with which it can be sharpened; everything else about it is just enough: just tough enough, just rust-resistant enough, holds an edge for just long enough. I’d take just about any other modern AUS-8-and-up steel over 8Cr13MoV, but that speaks less to its inadequacies than to the embarrassment of riches we have when it comes to good, affordable steels.

The other implement you can fold out of your Clipitool is the distinctly Spyderco bottle opener/screwdriver. It has that distinctly Spyderco pseudo-fugliness to it, but it works really well in both its intended roles as well as in its unofficial capacity as a miniature pry bar. I was worried that the length of the driver arm would make it too fragile to really beat on, but I used it in a pretty careless fashion taking an old computer apart, and it held up well: there was a bit more side-to –side play afterwards, but nothing that tightening the pivot screw wouldn’t fix.

In general, the fit and finish on the Clipitool is what I would describe as pleasingly sloppy. There was a little wiggle in both the blade and the driver arm to begin with, there are some gaps at the butt end of the knife where the springs meet, and most of the edges, with the exception of the outer edge of the handle scales, are sharp, albeit not troublingly so. I find that there’s something reassuring in a knife with some small-scale, non-performance-affecting issues; I’m less afraid to beat on it because that feeling of hallowedness I get from, say, a Taichung, Taiwan Spyderco isn’t present.

The stainless steel scales do attract scratches, though, as you can see in the pictures, so if that bugs you be warned.

Handle, Ergonomics, and Carry

I hate finger grooves and ‘ergonomic’ scalloping; the weird curves on the Delica’s handle are the primary reason why I dislike that knife as much as I do. And yet here we are looking at the Clipitool, a knife whose handle is entirely finger grooves, and I really like it.

I think the reason why I like the Clipitool’s handle is that it is designed with the overall size of the knife in mind. The Clipitool is so small that, when you’re using it, there’s only one way to hold it, unlike the Delica, which could theoretically be held a few different ways. The grooves keep your hand where it should be to use the knife most effectively, and prevent it from slipping around on the slick steel scales.

When you’re using the caplifter/driver, the ergonomics are different, although equally good. The folded-in blade is what your fingers wrap around, not the grooves, and the neck of the driver arm sort of extends the handle, meaning you can actually fit all five fingers on the Clipitool for lifting caps or driving screws, making both tasks easy to perform:

The Clipitool comes with a micro version of what I feel is probably my favorite clip on the market, the standard Spyderco spoon clip. I’ve mentioned before that I’m hard on my knives’ pocket clips, which is why I prefer the spoon clip to the wire clip on my Spydercos. This miniature one is so good: just-right tension and the smoothness of the steel scales makes stowing it away and retrieving it thoughtless, and it is very durable. I don’t know how popular the Clipitool has been overall, but if Spyderco takes anything away from this design I hope it’s the clip: I would love to see it on the Dragonfly 3.

Deployment and Lockup

The Clipitool, despite having Clipit in the name, is a Slipit knife – Spyderco parlance for a slipjoint knife (I assume they called it a ClipiTool and not a SlipiTool both to advertise the fact that it has a clip and because Slipitool sounds vaguely dirty). In the official Clipitool literature Spyderco says that the opening hole is meant to function as a nail mark would on a traditional slipjoint knife, facilitating easier two-handed opening, but, as with the Pingo, you can open the Clipitool with one hand, albeit somewhat awkwardly. The driver arm however will always need to be opened with two hands.

It feels silly to be talking about the walk and talk of this emphatically non-traditional knife, but since it’s a slipjoint I feel obligated to bring it up (and indeed, the overall shape and two-pivot design remind me a lot of the Case Peanut): it’s decent, probably a half-step up from what I was expecting given the price. The driver arm in particular has a really pleasing snap to it. The pull would probably be about a 4 on the blade, and a 2 or 3 on the driver arm.

Lockup, or maybe slipup in this case, is good. The Clipitool feels a little harder to close than my Peanut or my UKPK, and about on par with the Cadet. The choil precludes virtually any chance of accidental closure. There isn’t a lot to talk about on this point, so suffice it to say that the Clipitool is adequately secure, as you would expect from a Spyderco-designed slipjoint.

Spyderco Clipitool Review – Final Thoughts

Some people remain optimistic about Spyderco, but I find it harder and harder to do so. Knives like the Nirvana or the Mike Draper or the divisive Rubicon strike me as empty displays of virtuosity, undoubtedly good, but overpriced and fundamentally unimaginative; knives from a company at the height of its manufacturing powers but at the nadir of its creativity. The best non-collaboration knives Spyderco released this year were upgrades of existing designs. Because it was a totally new design, and because it seemed so in tune with what drew me to the company in the first place, the Clipitool would be memorable to me even if it were only an interesting failure.

But of course it isn’t a failure: it’s a wonderful tool – I would call it almost genuinely great. I do wish the blade was a bit longer, but I’m not sure how that could be accomplished without making the overall footprint a little too big. I would also like to see it in FRN or G-10, if the price could be kept where it is. The best thing I can say about it is that I’m going to keep it in my pocket for a bit even though I’m done reviewing it. It’s just a pleasing thing to own and use, and I recommend it without hesitation to anybody.

Spyderco ClipiTool Multi-Functional Stainless Steel Utility Pocket Knife with 2" Steel Blade and Screwdriver/Bottle Opener - PlainEdge - C175P

Clipitool: A special family of tools that combine a high-performance cutting edge with the added convenience and functionality of other tools. They feature pocket clips for convenient carry and easy access.
Multifunctional: Features a convenient folding bottle opener that also doubles as a flat-blade screwdriver.
PlainEdge Blade: This knife has a sharpened blade with no serrations or teeth sometimes referred to as a smooth blade.
Slip Joint: A non-locking mechanism in which the blade is held open by spring pressure on a flat section on the back of the blades tang.
Specification: Closed Length (Inches): 2.57, Overall Length (Inches): 4.59, Blade Length (Inches):2.02, Blade Steel: 8Cr13MoV, Grind: Full-Flat

If you would like to buy a Spyderco Clipitool, I recommend purchasing it at Amazon.com or BladeHQ. Thanks for reading.

Kershaw Strobe 1086 Review

by Grayson Parker 3 Comments

I’ll be honest: budget knives are rarely on my radar. Not because I’m sitting on wads and wads of cash, but because most of the time budget knives are compromised in some way that triggers my snob reflex. There are exceptions, but those tend to stand so far above the rest of the field that it’s easy to write off the entire category. Not every budget offering is a Kershaw Skyline or an Alox Cadet, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t good knives. Oftentimes, they’re just flawed in some way that makes the knife community shrink away before taking a deeper look. One such product is the Kershaw Strobe.

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The Strobe is a Chinese-made knife, designed by Matt Diskin and produced by Kershaw. Although Matt’s designs aren’t the trendiest, I prefer his design cues to other, more marketable names. Prior to the release of the Strobe, the only production with Matt’s name on it was another Kershaw release, the Diskin Hunter.

I’ll come out right now and say it: had Kershaw used the same materials on the Strobe that they did on the Hunter, this knife could have been the next Skyline. The combination of G10 and Sandvik 14c28n is one of the reasons I love Kershaw’s stateside offerings, and to see them miss this opportunity is disheartening. Still, the Strobe is no slouch. Apart from one obvious design flaw (hopefully one Kershaw will address in a future release), the strengths of the Strobe carry it past the lackluster materials.

General Dimensions and Blade Details

Perfectly sized for a “do-anything” work knife, the Strobe boasts a 3.3” blade, an overall length of 7.55”, weighs in at 4.37 oz, and is made in China. It’s a bit on the heavy side when compared to all stars like the Skyline, Mini-Grip, and some of the lightweight options from Spyderco, but in my two months of on-and-off carry the Strobe’s weight hasn’t been a real detriment. The blade is long enough to actually be justified, as opposed to knives with blade lengths that are just over the common limit of 3”.

The blade itself is plain, but better for it. A narrow drop point profile is complemented by a funky angular swedge that sits at the middle of the spine, and the full flat grind matches the technical aesthetics behind the knife. It’s quite impressive how wide of a blade Diskin managed to fit onto a (relatively) slim knife. There’s a nearly perfect amount of belly to the blade, and it slices nearly as well as my Paramilitary 2.

8Cr13MoV is a pretty common choice for budget Chinese knives, and in this iteration I can’t complain. Bead-blasted 8Cr is very susceptible to rust, but fortunately the Strobe comes with a nice stonewash. There’s not a whole lot to say about this steel. It sharpens easily and holds a decent edge, but needs frequent touch-ups. While I don’t have any complaints, I’m not impressed either. It’s a solid choice given the country of origin.

Handle, Ergonomics, and Carry

However, it’s harder for me to warm up to the handles. The plastic isn’t even the problem – on the contrary, I think it’s a great way for companies to produce contoured handles on budget knives. What really bugs me is the “K-Texture” pattern they used on the scales. It’s not pronounced enough to improve the grip, so all it does is turn your pocketknife into an ad for Kai. From a distance the “K-Texture” looks like a simple geometric pattern, but in your hand it’s pretty garish. To their credit, Kershaw and Zero Tolerance have been toning down the logos and branding on their products, but they clearly took a step backwards here. I can’t advocate removing the scales (some have done so) as the scales help the grip, but it’s the shape and thickness of the scales that help, not the texture.

Despite the disappointing handle scales, the Strobe is great in the hand. The shape of the handle locks the user’s hand in place without generating any hotspots. Even the clip (which I thought would poke me right in the palm) fails to negatively impact the grip, but I will say that it could be problematic in someone else’s hands. There is no jimping on the Strobe, which is definitely a welcome omission. I haven’t once found myself wishing otherwise.

The Strobe carries fairly well. It doesn’t need to be wrestled into or out of the pocket, but the clip is a bit tight on thicker pants. My feelings on the pocket clip are pretty polarized: on the one hand, the over-the-top clip is great. On the other, it lifts up pretty significantly to allow the clip room to slide over pockets, which makes it something of a paint scraper. It also snags on my jacket far too frequently. Is it a big issue? No, but I’d be lying if I said that it didn’t rub me the wrong way.

Deployment and Lock-up

Kershaw has been really dialing in their flippers across their product line, and the Strobe is no exception. The combination of a strong detent and the bearing pivot results in a flipper that fires almost every time. While the pull is a bit strong for my tastes, most of the knife community seems to prefer their flippers that way. And as much as I love the Skyline…the Strobe does deploy faster and more consistently.

Although some have billed the lock on the Strobe as a liner lock, it’s really a framelock in disguise. I haven’t noticed any blade play or lock rock, and the knife feels pretty stout. I do wish there was a larger cutout for disengaging the lock; as it stands, it’s pretty easy for your thumb to slip off the lock when attempting to close the knife. Other than that I can’t complain.

Kershaw Strobe Review – Final Thoughts

Viewed in a vacuum, the Strobe is a great value knife. It’s readily available at big box stores, costs less than $30.00, and can take a beating. I’ve got major issues with the “K-Texture” on the handle scales (I’m not alone in that either) and a minor complaint concerning the clip, but in the grand scheme of things neither are mortal sins. When you compare it to other options around this price point, I don’t think it’s quite as competitive. Personally, I still think the Skyline blows it out of the water, with better steel, G10, and less weight. But the Skyline also costs around ten dollars more. If I had to choose between the Strobe and one of the Hinderer/Onion/Emerson collaborations at the same price point, I’d go with the Strobe most of the time.

If you’re on a budget or enjoy budget knives, the Kershaw Strobe should definitely be on your radar. The lines of the design are pretty beautiful, and if it weren’t for the K-Texture it’d be a great looking blade. It’s probably out of the question for Kershaw to re-release the Strobe with better materials, but hopefully it sells well enough to merit future Diskin/Kershaw collaborations. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to sand the “K’s” off of my Strobe.

Kershaw Strobe 1086 Plain Edge Folding Blade Hunting Knife, (Box Version) 3.3" grey

FOLDING POCKET KNIFE: Made of highest quality material, the Kershaw Strobe pocket knife is the perfect everyday carry. Experience stainless steel precision and durability.
STAINLESS STEEL 3.3" BLADE: Made from 8Cr13MoV stainless steel, the Strobe blade has great edge retention, strength and hardness. Rugged stonewashed blade helps hide scratches and fingerprints.
COMFORTABLE, ERGONOMIC HANDLE: Crafted from 410 stainless steel, the Strobe handle delivers a stylish look and smooth function. Offering a secure grip, the Strobe is ready for any cutting action.
MANUAL OPENING mechanism and KVT ball-bearing system provide secure knife opening and blade access. Frame lock secures the blade for extra security and safety.
ATTRACTIVE, INDUSTRIAL DESIGN: Grey, stonewashed blade and stainless steel handle present a stylish look. This EDC pocket knife is sure to turn heads wherever you go.

Editor: I recommend buying the Strobe at Amazon or BladeHQ. Thanks for reading.

Benchmade Small Summit Lake Review

by Dan Jackson 5 Comments

Last Updated: August 14, 2019
Benchmade’s Hunt series (or “Munt”, depending on how you interpret their packaging), is a series of outdoor inspired hunter focused knives. I have never been a hunter, so my first impulse was to ignore the Hunt series. But a deeper dive into the line left me curious about a couple of their knives.

Buy the Benchmade Small Summit Lake at BladeHQ

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The Small Summit Lake had me intrigued, especially given my somewhat newfound interest in traditional knives. And especially in the wake of the success of the Boker Urban Trapper, which masterfully blends old timey pocket knife charisma with titanium, bearings, and stainless steel.

The Small Summit Lake is less of a mashup, but it takes things people appreciate about knives like the Buck 110, classic lines, rugged build quality, and a practical, time-proven design, and mate those qualities to 21st century manufacturing methods, high end steel, synthetic materials, and creature comforts like pocket clips and torx bolts instead of pinned construction. That combined with an EDC friendly footprint and reasonable price drew me to the Small Summit Lake.

General Dimensions and Blade Details

The Small Summit Lake has an overall length of 6.89″, a 2.89″ blade, weighs 3.04 ounces, and is made in the USA. Blade thickness is almost 3mm and this knife has full stainless steel liners, so it’s not the absolute lightest knife on the market, but it’s still certainly small enough for daily carry. The Small Summit Lake has a substantial feel to it. That makes sense, given how the Small Summit Lake is marketed as a hunting knife.

The Small Summit Lake features a modified drop point blade with a high flat grind. The edge of the knife rides along a near continuous belly. The tip is fine and pointy, but it is not delicate. The blade has been given an attractive two-tone satin finish.

Benchmade decided in CPM-S30V for the blade steel. I have had great success with Benchmade’s S30V in the past. Most notably, I have enjoyed the S30V in my Benchmade Volli. That knife continues to impress me, even though it has flown under the radar for most. At any rate, while I would prefer to see Benchmade upgrade all of their CPM-S30V knives to S35VN, I found that the S30V on this knife performed well. It’s reasonable to sharpen, holds a nice edge, and is resistant to corrosion. In short, it’s good stuff.

The blade is ground from thick stock. The thick stock combined with a narrow blade, and high flat grind all lend to a stouter geometry. This results in a stronger blade that doesn’t slice as well as something like a traditional slip joint. But the Small Summit Lake still slices, and it cuts well considering. I am guessing that the blade will also hold up a little better under the rigors of hunting and camping than a thinner ground knife.

Handle, Ergonomics, and Pocket Clip

The Small Summit Lake’s handle scales are made of DymondWood. DymondWood is a resin-impregnated hardwood veneer designed to be used in place of real wood manufactured by Rutland Plywood Corporation. The pro to DymondWood is that you have a product that looks a lot like wood, so it should be tougher than natural wood. The con is that it’s not real wood, so you lose a little of that character and depth that only real wood provides. I like the DymondWood scales and think the material works nicely on this knife.

Underneath the DymondWood handle scales you have full steel liners. I suspect they did not skeletonize these liners to make cleaning easier. A wise choice if you are going to be using the knife to skin a deer. The backspacker and lock bar are all stainless steel and the handle is held together with 3 torx bolts and a pivot bolt. Fit and finish is excellent.

In hand the Small Summit Lake performs like an upgraded traditional slip joint. There is a generous amount of jimping on the spine and handle. The jimping runs a fine line between provided adequate traction without tearing up your hand. There is a further run of jimping on the spine of the blade towards the tip. This is supposed to aid hunters in skinning and breaking down carcasses – can’t say I have used this feature much. The handle itself is simple , inoffensive, and allows for a comfortable 4-finger grip. The DymondWood isn’t a high traction material, but it isn’t slippery either. For my purposes the Small Summit Lake has great ergonomics.

A nice surprise with the Small Summit Lake is that it comes with a deep carry pocket clip. This is something you don’t see on a traditional knife, and it’s a welcomed addition in my book. The handle has only been tapped for right side tip up carry. I would prefer an ambidextrous mounting option, making the entire knife (more or less) fully ambidextrous.

The knife carries deeply and discretely in your pocket. With a weight of 3.04 ounces and a closed length of 3.65″, I did not notice the Small Summit Lake as I carried it around. The clip all but completely buries the knife. And traditionalists could always take off the clip and let the knife ride free in the pocket or in a leather slip sheath if they wanted to.

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Deployment and Lockup

The Small Summit Lake comes equipped with a single (right side) nail nick. No thumb studs, flipper, or thumb hole on this knife. I don’t have a problem with this. The knife looks clean with the traditional nail nick, and the blade is easy to open with either hand. Inside Benchmade included phosphor bronze washes – another welcome modern touch. There is also an adjustable pivot which is great for on the fly tweaks, or a full take down. If you disengage the lock the blade swings freely, and there is even a little “half stop” milled into the tang of the blade. This is not something I have seen on a lock back before, but I like half stops, and I enjoy it here.

For lockup you have a traditional lock back. This tried and true design has worked for decades, and it continues to work with great success here on the Small Summit Lake. The lock is sturdy, popping in the blade in place with a satisfying “snap”, and it disengages with relative ease. Lock up is secure and as you would expect from a lockback with full steel liners. There is no side to side or up and down play in my knife. While it probably isn’t on par with a Tri-Ad lock, this is still a strong lock.

Blade centering is good on my knife, and favors the show side by a hair.

Benchmade Small Summit Lake Review – Final Thoughts

This is a surprisingly good knife from Benchmade, and I think it would be a mistake to gloss over the Small Summit Lake, even if you aren’t a hunter. The knife does a great job blending traditional with technical, and is a modern twist on a classic folding knife. And the price is reasonable too – at a little over $100, the Small Summit Lake isn’t cheap, but it isn’t a bank buster either.

I enjoy the addition of jimping, CPM-S30V blade steel, phosphor bronze washers, and pocket clip. These modern conveniences elevate this classic pattern, and I find little to fault with the Small Summit Lake. It would be great if Benchmade made this one fully ambidextrous. That would be nice.

I also would be curious to see Benchmade take this concept, slim it down, and offer a full on gent’s folder. It may not belong on the game trail at that point, but a refined and updated traditional folder from Benchmade could give something like the Indian River Jack a run for its money.

I think the Small Summit Lake could be a great choice for someone wanting an updated traditional folder, or a modern lock back with some traditional charm. This knife straddles a couple genres with surprising grace. The Small Summit Lake is just as at home by a camp fire as it is at a pocket dump on Instagram. For that reason it has earned my recommendation.

Benchmade - Small Summit Lake 15056-2, Drop-Point

BLADE STYLE: 2.89" (7.34cm) Drop-point style blade, weighing only 3.04oz. (86.18g)
AMERICAN MADE STEEL: CPM-S30V (58-60 HRC) premium stainless steel with well-rounded characteristics, including excellent corrosion resistance and superb edge qualities. The well-balanced stainless steel makes it one of the best choice for daily tasks.
DURABLE MATERIALS: The stabilized wood handle offers much more resistance to environmental hardships than natural wood. Also, includes a standard tip-down clip.
TRADITIONAL MECHANISM: A lockback gets its name from a rocker partially visible on top of the knife. Opening the blade causes the "rocker" to lock against the blade to lock open. Pushing down on the rocker releases it; enabling to close the blade.

I recommend buying the Benchmade Small Summit Lake at Amazon or BladeHQ. Thanks for reading!

Cold Steel Large Espada Review

by Benjamin Schwartz 12 Comments

Last Updated: July 28, 2019
Although knife collecting, like any hobby, is a mild form of mania, I like to think that within this gentle madness I am a reasonable man. My uses for my tools are reasonable. My knife preferences are reasonable: I prefer simple handles, simple blades, and I generally like those blades at 3” or less. No one could look at my collection of knives and think me anything but a very reasonable individual – unless their eyes by chance fell on my Cold Steel Large Espada.

Buy the Cold Steel Espada at BladeHQ

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How did I end up with such a ludicrous knife? Well, even though most of my purchases come after much consideration, reading, and weighing of pros and cons, every so often I like to impulse-purchase a knife that is out of my comfort zone, just to counterbalance the homogeneity in my collection that my preferences tends to create. But when I ordered the Large Espada late one night, I wasn’t just stepping out of my comfort zone; I was taking a flight to a location on the other side of the planet.

No knife I can think of offhand (outside of some particularly egregious customs) so flamboyantly violates every edict of utility I’ve set for myself over the years like the Large Espada does. But, going beyond that, I don’t think that it’s a practical choice even for the applications for which it was ostensibly designed. The Large Espada is impractical. It is unreasonable.

So this is going to be an odd review: an unreasonable knife reviewed by a reasonable man. But I like to imagine that even the palest, milquetoastiest accountant likes to cut lose once in a while. Sometimes you want to listen to Electric Wizard, not Glenn Gould. Sometimes you want to carry a giant, unwieldy tactical blade instead of a reasonable and non-threatening tool. And when those sometimes strike you, there aren’t many knives I know of that can scratch that itch quite like the Large Espada.

General Dimensions and Blade Details

The Large Espada has a blade length of 5 ½”, a handle length of 7 1/8”, and an overall length of 12 1/2”. It weighs 9.8 oz. – almost as much as four Benchmade 940-1s. The Espada is made in Taiwan.

Of course, when you’re dealing with a knife of this size, it doesn’t make sense to get hung up on weight – after all, the 5 ½” blade folding knife isn’t exactly a crowded category, is it? Even very big knives like the Benchmade 710 or some of the Hogue knives aren’t really in the same size class. The only other reasonable competition for the Large Espada is the more affordable, all G-10 Large Espada, which weighs about 1 ½ oz. less.

The Large Espada’s blade is a dramatic, theatrical, aggressive clip point. The tip is somewhat strengthened by the swedge, and will pierce material, even thick material, quite easily, but it gives the impression of relative delicacy. The edge is all belly, dipping out right after the ricasso. This, coupled with the (excellent) hollow grind and the wide edge bevel, give the Large Espada considerable cutting ability, at least on the macro level: cardboard, wood, plastic, metal, all can be separated cleanly and easily by this monster.

Cleanly and effortlessly for a while, at least. The steel, AUS 8A, simply wasn’t the right choice here. If you want to use your Large Espada in roles other than self-defense, you’re going to use it for the macro cutting tasks I mentioned above, and when you do, you’ll find that AUS 8A dulls quickly. Editor’s note: in 2015 Cold Steel finally upgraded these to CTS-XHP steel, and then to S35VN. I have had some experience with Cold Steel’s CTS-XHP and their S35VN and both steels have been excellent. S35VN is a meaningful upgrade over AUS-8A. It holds an edge better and is tougher. It’s a better choice all around.

I could deal with poor edge retention if it were the only problem, but, on this blade shape, with this grind, the steel is also fragile. When I first got my Large Espada a couple years ago, I took it out on the patio to cut up some water bottles, cardboard, and boxes of frozen peas (yup), both to test it and to participate in the time-honored tradition of goofing around with a knife (what are the Absolute Proof videos if not footage of people goofing around with knives?). During one cut I happened swing down and hit the balustrade – not hard enough to bite into the wood, even, but when I looked at the blade I saw that it had chipped, in multiple places and quite badly:

I’ve sharpened the Large Espada since then, and managed to reduce the chipping a bit, but it’s still visible, and I don’t think I was abusing the knife when it happened. I think it comes down to that wide edge bevel; AUS 8A isn’t tough enough to be run that thin at the edge. I understand that in the self-defense role, such issues are less likely to matter, but I still think that Cold Steel could, and should, have chosen a better blade steel than AUS 8A. Let us not forget that we’re talking about a $130 knife here.

Handle, Ergonomics, and Carry

The Large Espada’s handle is comfortable no matter which way you hold it: forward, with your index finger in the choil, or in a pistol grip with the lower scalloping between your middle and ring fingers, reverse grip: it’s all good.

The handle is composed of two parts, almost in the style of a traditional knife: the aluminum ‘bolsters,’ which are integrated with the liners and the sort of grommet at the end of the knife, and the polished G-10 scales or inserts. Everything is decently if not artfully contoured, and all the edges are chamfered. I feel like a good portion of that comfort would be lost on the pure G-10 models: Cold Steel’s traditional unpolished G-10 is famously aggressive, and I don’t like it at all. It ruins your pockets, makes the knife uncomfortable to hold, and, let’s face it, looks a hell of a lot less classy than the original Espada’s set-up. If you’re going to get the Large Espada, get the original set-up. It is very comfortable in hand.

In the pocket? Not so much. I can fit the Large Espada into the pocket of my jeans, but just barely, and even though it doesn’t feel as heavy as I was expecting, it sure doesn’t disappear. And this is where I take issue with the Large Espada in its intended role as a self-defense tool: issues of legality aside, it’s almost too big to carry around every day, even as a dedicated tactical blade, to use the Nutfancian term. I know a lot of smart guys who carry multiple blades, but I am a one-knife man, and I don’t have enough pocket space for a second knife of any size, let alone something as elephantine as the Large Espada.

Maybe I’m doing it wrong, though; Tool carries his in in a kydex boot sheath. Might be worth looking into.

Deployment and Lockup

More problems arise with the deployment methods on the Large Espada. There are two, although they both utilize the thumb plate on the spine of the blade. The first method is your traditional roll/flick open. Either is difficult to do reliably or quickly because of the size of the Large Espada. Rolling it out requires your thumb to stretch quite a bit, so it isn’t comfortable or fast. Flicking it takes a lot of wrist momentum, as well as careful placement of your thumb on the plate.

The disk is also designed to be wave deployed; that is, you can draw the Large Espada from your pocket in such a manner as to cause the plate to catch on the corner of your pocket, deploying the blade as you pull it out. Wave openers, to me, aren’t handy enough to compensate for the awkward stares and for the accidental half-openings that can occur, but this one is particularly finicky.

In my last review I wrote that every big blade I’ve had has some bladeplay. I guess I have to eat a little crow because that isn’t true: I had forgotten that my Large Espada has none, whatsoever, in any direction. It did when I first got it, but earlier this year I took it apart, cleaned everything, and put it back together a little tighter, and it was totally gone.

The Tri-Ad Lock truly deserves every accolade thrown its way. As ambidextrous as the Axis Lock, but with less moving parts, and tougher than a frame lock, it is a marvel. A weak lock on a knife this big would be an absolute disaster, but with the Tri-Ad Lock in place I have absolute confidence that my Large Espada will only close when I want it to.

Cold Steel Large Espada Review – Final Thoughts

So I’ve spent 1,500 hundred words enumerating all the ways in which the Large Espada is an impractical purchase. It’s huge, the steel is iffy, it’s huge, the design is aggressive and off-putting to those around you, the deployment methods are a bit of a pain, and it’s huge. I never carry blades for reasons of self-defense. I don’t think it’s a silly thing to do, but it’s just not something I’m interested in doing. However, even carried as a self-defense knife, I think there are better options out there than the Large Espada; even in that role it is impractical.

But, hey (and turn up the metal for this next bit), sometimes you just want a huge, badass knife. Something for the collection, something that looks rad, is made well, and never fails to make you smile (maybe a little self-consciously), when you take it out to show somebody, thwacking it open and watching their eyes go wide.

I bought the Large Espada on a impulse. It wasn’t cheap. I hardly carry it. I usually only take it out every couple of months, and even then just for a few minutes. I forget that I own it for months at a time. It’s ludicrous. It’s impractical. It’s unreasonable.

I’ve never regretted buying it.

Cold Steel Espada with Polished G10 Handle, Large

Blade Length: 5-1/2"
Handle: 6-3/4" Long, Polished G-10 with Polished 7075 Aluminum Bolster and Frame
Steel: Japanese AUS 8A stainless
Blade Thick: 4 MM
Overall Length: 12-1/4"

I recommend purchasing the Cold Steel Espada at Amazon or BladeHQ. Please consider that purchasing anything through any of the links on this website helps support BladeReviews.com, and keeps the site going. As always, any and all support is greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.