Folding Knives

Victorinox Hiker Review

The Swiss Army Knife is likely to the most well-known knife in the world. Something about its name, distinctive red handle, and the fact it was one of the first successful multi-tools has cemented its place into our cultural collective. Swiss Army Knife is even a misnomer because American GI’s couldn’t properly pronounce the German phrase for Officer’s Knife. However, the new name stuck. The Swiss Army knife became an icon that went to the moon, gave MacGyver a favorite tool, and became a Boy Scout’s best friend.

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The Swiss Army knife is more than a knife, as I mentioned above it’s a multi-tool. It contains anywhere from three to a dozen or so different tools. The Swiss Army Knife I have from Victorinox is called the Hiker and packs 9 tools in a pocket-sized package. The Hiker’s size, price, and tools make it one of my favorite Swiss Army knives. The Victorinox brand is the only real Swiss Army Knife and the Hiker is a great representative of the brand.

General Dimensions and Blade Details

The Hiker is a mid-size Swiss Army Knife with a long and short blade. The long blades is roughly 2.5 inches long and the short blade is 1.5 inches long. The handle is 3.5 inches long if you just measure the handle, with the lanyard attachment ring it’s about 4 inches total. The blade is a drop point that’s not exceptionally pointy.

Pointy enough to poke things and to open up cardboard, paper, and plastics. There is no lock on this model and this is a traditional slipjoint style knife. The blade has a nice fat belly to it for cutting deep with a short blade. Perfect for cutting up oranges nice and clean during a picnic, or cutting through thin rope and cordage. It’s a blade well suited for 99% of the tasks I put knives through. 95% when hunting season is in play.

Victorinox doesn’t advertise its steel type, but it’s nothing fancy. On a sub 30 dollar multi-tool, you can’t expect 154CM. The blade can get pretty darn sharp and it’s also really easy to sharpen. You can get it licked up in about 3 swipes per side on a wet stone. The downside is that it gets dull fast.

Not like after a day of work, but like an hour’s worth or even less. It dulls quick, one day while stocking the office printers I dulled it cutting through the plastic wrap around the paper boxes and the plastic straps holding their lids on. If you carry a pocket sharpener you can quickly get your edge back though. You can also swap to the smaller blade and keep going should the larger get dull.

Corrosion wise the knife holds up. Summers in Florida are no joke and they make me sweat a ton. Anything in my jeans pockets is going to be exposed to sweat, and this knife has never rusted. Living in a coastal air the salt is in the air and still it’s never seen a lick of the red death.

Handle and Ergonomics

The Hiker is a small, but a somewhat fat knife. The total length of the handle is 3.5 inches, but it’s also a little over half an inch thick. It’s thick because have to contain 7 folding tools, a tweezer, and a toothpick.

Five tools fold in the front and two in the rear. In total, you get three different drivers, a can opener, a bottle opener, a saw, a reamer, and the aforementioned tweezers and toothpick. While thick, the iconic, red plastic grip scales round it out for a comfortable overall grip.

The grip allows you to employ every tool comfortably. It’s thick and supportive nature does make it easy to work with and avoid pain and fatigue when doing something that takes time, like opening a can. As a side note, I’ve only used it once to open a can of Hormel chili and it works, just slowly. That thick handle is a must-have for opening cans or using any other leverage-based actions. It’s thick and isn’t going to bend, break, or slip.

The grip is texture free and doesn’t necessarily grip your hand. If your hands are wet you may not be able to keep a great grip when doing heavy work. While the tools all stick out just a hair from the handle I don’t find their presence uncomfortable when gripping the Hiker. My only discomfort is that key chain attachment piece hitting my pinky and annoying me when I use the blade.

The Hiker is a very light tool and only weighs 2.7 ounces. I often forget which pocket I put it in because I can hardly feel it. The smooth handles certainly make a comfortable to carry knife since nothing pokes or rubs your leg throughout the day.

Deployment and Lockup

The slipjoint system makes sure the tools and blades all stay in the handle until you force them out. There is never a worry of a tool or blade deploying in your pocket. The tools are all relatively easy to pull out, but you will need both hands to do so.

Once a tool or blade is out it takes a fair bit of force to put it back. However, you can close the tool with a single hand. Many of the tools are combination types and the lock-up and deployment work just as well when you are opening a can as it does when driving a screw.

Victorinox Hiker Review – Final Thoughts

The Victorinox Hiker is a handy little knife for everyday carry or the occasional trip to the woods. This little Swiss Army knife packs a ton of capable tools in it’s small and easy to use package. The Hiker is also a great choice for keeping a knife in a bug out bag, or in a car in case of emergency. It covers all your basics whilst still being relatively cheap and affordable.

It could also be a great choice for a young boy or girl responsible enough to own a knife. The Hiker is the absolute last knife many would compare to a weapon, and it’s short blades and lack of a lock ensures it’s legal across the board. Additionally, the somewhat dull point and easily dulled blade limits a young person’s ability to hurt themselves. The need for a good fresh sharpening will also hone their skills with a whetstone.

Whatever reason you choose the Hiker you can know that it’s a great knife at a low price.

VICTORINOX SWISS ARMY Hiker Pocket Knife

Editor: I recommend buying the Victorinox Hiker at BladeHQ or Amazon. Thank you for reading.

Kizer Vanguard Mini Sheepdog Review

by Grayson Parker 1 Comment

Howdy knife nuts. It’s been awhile. Long story short, I’m working two jobs right now, so I haven’t really had time to focus on gear. Hopefully this review is a sign of more to come.

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I’ll be the first person to admit that I don’t “get” cleaver-style pocket knives. When they started to appear in catalogs and Instagram feeds, I couldn’t shake the feeling that they’d be a pain to carry and an easy way to spook people. From the oversized blades to the chunky grinds, there just didn’t seem to be a case for them. So when Dan asked if I’d be interested in reviewing the Kizer Mini Sheepdog, I was a bit reluctant, but ended up saying yes, in part to challenge my own prejudices. Fortunately, I ended up being pleasantly surprised. Read on to learn more.

Full disclosure: this knife was provided cost-free by Kizer. While the company’s reputation for quality is high enough that I feel comfortable claiming that my sample is representative of the line at large, some of you might feel differently.

General Dimensions and Blade Details

The Kizer Mini Sheepdog weighs 3.15 ounces, has a 2.63” blade, and measures 3.6” long while closed. It’s neither a featherweight nor a brick. The blade is short enough to be legal to carry in most US cities, and I’ve yet to encounter someone put off by it, despite the distinctive blade shape. On the whole, the quality of construction is excellent, and I was pretty impressed when it slid out of the box.

Depending on your point of view, the Mini Sheepdog’s blade is either the draw, or the drawback. If you like cleaver-style blades, then this should be right up your alley. The lines are bold, the modified wharncliffe reinforces the tip quite well, and the shallow belly of the blade makes it a fine utility cutter.

The blade steel is VG10, a Japanese steel whose reputation has suffered quite a bit over the years. When I first got into this hobby, VG10 was lauded for its rust resistance, ability to take a keen edge, and easy maintenance. Those haven’t changed. Nowadays, however, you are more likely to hear about how quickly VG10 loses an edge, and part of that is because of the rapid pace of technology. Amazing steels are available at hitherto unheard-of prices. Still, if you regularly touch up the edge on a strop, you won’t be disappointed. Just don’t try to break down a pile of cardboard boxes: the edge will disappear long before you’re done.

Despite the slightly outdated blade steel, the Mini Sheepdog is still a lean cutter. The combination of a tall blade, .125” stock, and keen flat grind make for a very effective slicer, especially during food prep. Don’t mistake my meaning: this isn’t a replacement for a Swiss Army Knife, let alone a kitchen knife. However, if you need a utility knife that can also slice an apple on your lunch break, this is a fine option.

Handle, Ergonomics, and Pocket Clip

Like most of the Vanguard line, the Mini Sheepdog’s handle is comprised of G10 scales over stainless steel liners. Both materials are excellent choices for working tools, provided that the manufacturer puts the time and effort into properly finishing them. G10 is lightweight, durable, and isn’t damaged by moisture, but if it isn’t sanded down or contoured it can be rough and uncomfortable in the hand. Stainless steel, depending on the treatment, isn’t necessarily rustproof.

Fortunately, Kizer knocked it out of the park here. The G10 scales are smooth enough that they won’t wear out your pockets (or hands, for that matter), yet have enough texture to remain grippy in adverse conditions. Likewise, the stainless steel liners are polished enough to ward off most incidental rust (though, full disclosure, I live in what is technically a desert).

The ergonomics on the Mini Sheepdog are perfectly serviceable. There’s little to complain about, but not much to write home about, either. I can get three and a half fingers onto the handle of the Mini Sheepdog, but most of the time it’s a three-finger knife. The hump-backed handle coaxes your fingers into a slight pistol grip, which might be annoying if that wasn’t how I used most of my work knives already.

As I mentioned in the introduction, one of my concerns regarding cleaver-style blades was that they’d be a pain to carry. Luckily those fears weren’t justified. Yes, the Mini Sheepdog is a bit wide, but it’s not so wide that you can’t reach past it to grab the keys at the bottom of your pocket (which is the real test, in my experience). The pocket clip is perfectly functional. It doesn’t damage pants, it’s not difficult to remove or stow, and it doesn’t generate hotspots. In a world filled with terrible pocket clips, “perfectly functional” is high praise.

Deployment and Lock-Up

The blade of the Mini Sheepdog is deployed with the quintessential modern flipper tab, and rides on a ball-bearing pivot. This combination is fairly common these days, and the Mini Sheepdog is a fine example of the breed. It has a crisp detent, a smooth pivot, and an intuitive flipper tab, making deployment reliable and effortless.

Liner locks tend to get a bad rap these days. Ever since framelocks started to dominate the market, liner locks have seemingly been relegated to the realm of budget knives, and that doesn’t seem quite fair. More often than not, a liner lock is actually more effective. They don’t change the geometry of the handle when the blade is deployed, they’re just as strong, and they’re much easier to replace in the event of catastrophic failure, so I’m more than happy to see a liner lock on the Mini Sheepdog. As the locking liner is made of steel, there’s no break-in period or galling issues. More importantly, there is neither horizontal nor vertical play in the lock, and lock-up is stable at around 50%.

Kizer Vanguard Mini Sheepdog Review – Final Thoughts

I didn’t expect to like the Mini Sheepdog at first, but it’s since won me over. The cleaver-style blade was neither off-putting to strangers nor did it make the knife a pain to carry. It’s a fine cutter, perfectly sized for everyday needs, and falls at a great price point, especially considering the materials and quality of construction.

Honestly, I’ve been out of the loop for too long to comment on what slice of the market the Mini Sheepdog is competing with. If I might borrow from fellow BladeReviews writer Ben Schwartz, the Mini Sheepdog, much like the Begleiter, “sails perilous close” to waters dominated by the sub-$100 Spyderco offerings, but these are old and well-established stalwarts. In my opinion, the Mini Sheepdog has enough charm to stand on its own, and its materials and quality of construction are at least as compelling.

If you like cleaver-style blades, but don’t need to perform ad hoc butchery, the Mini Sheepdog is right for you. It’s inexpensive enough to test the waters, innocuous enough to fly under the radar, and handy enough to keep around alongside much more expensive knives.

KIZER Knives Pocket Knife with Clip G10 Handles Material EDC Folding knife Mini Sheepdog V3488 (Black)

Blade material:154CM
Overall Length:5.77 inch(14.66cm)
Weight:3. 17oz (0.20 pounds)
154CM stainless steel takes a razor sharp edge.Textured G-10 handle ensures excellent grip security.
Caged ceramic ball bearing pivot for swift, responsive blade deployment

Editor: I recommend buying the Kizer Vanguard Mini Sheepdog at BladeHQ or Amazon. Thank you for reading.

Doug Ritter RSK® MK1-G2 Review

by Dan Jackson 5 Comments

Everyone who has been around the knife industry for a while knows Doug Ritter. Doug is the founder and chairman of Knife Rights, an advocacy organization that promotes pro-knife legislation and opposes anti-knife legislation, and they also work to pursue knife owner civil rights. It’s a hugely important organization for knife owners and the industry. Doug is truly one of the pillars of the knife community.

And one of the ways Doug has been able to serve as that pillar is through the sale of his RSK MK1, which was commonly referred to as a Ritter Griptilian. The revenue from selling that knife gave Doug the financial freedom to pursue Knife Rights. Many folks preferred the high flat grind on the MK1 over the standard Griptilian. I had a MK1 with a set of Wilkins Grips. That was a super cool knife.

Somewhat shockingly, in 2016 Benchmade told Doug they would no longer make the MK1. So he had to turn to other manufacturers. He ended up partnering with Hogue, and the result is the RSK MK1-G2. You can read more about this on the KnifeWorks listing. I wasn’t aware of this background info and thought it was interesting.

When Doug approached me about reviewing the knife I jumped at it. I have been getting picky about what knives I review, as I haven’t had as much time to write recenetly, but as a fan of Hogue, Doug, and the original Ritter Grip, this is one I had to check out.

This review sample was provided free of charge. I’ll do my best to keep this review as objective as I can. After the review, I will keep this knife for long term testing and evaluation.

General Dimensions and Blade Details

The MK1-G2 has an overall length of 8.15″, a 3.44″ blade, weighs 4.5 ounces, and is made in the USA. This is about the same dimensions of the original MK1. The MK1-G2 is approximately .7 ounces heavier, thanks in part to full G10 handle scales. The knife feels substantial. Not a boat anchor, but not an ultra-lightweight knife like the recently reviewed Para 3 LW. Doug has designed this with outdoor use / survival in mind, but I have carried the knife as an EDC piece. That’s the lens I’ll be examining it from.

The blade features the same wide drop point profile of the original MK1. The 2.92mm thick blade comes with a high flat grind, and a sweeping belly. The finish is a heavy stonewash. The edge bevel is wide and perfectly even.

Doug and Hogue selected Crucible CPM-20CV, a high end powered steel which is chemically similar to Boeller M390. Here is a link to the datasheet on CPM-20CV if you want to do some further reading. I’ve owned a number of knives in CPM-20CV at this point, and have been pleased with the blend of stain resistance, edge retention, ease of sharpening, and toughness. CPM-20CV is simply one of the best blade steels on the market currently, so it’s great to see it on this knife.

Here is a size comparison with a Delica and Endura:

Hogue is known for sending blades out of their factory with mirror polished edges. Mine came with a highly polished edge, and the blade was surprisingly sharp, even for someone like me who regularly handles sharp knives. That edge combined with the thin flat grind makes the MK1-G2 a beast to cut with. It slipped through cardboard, and cleanly sliced apples. I’ve used it on a few projects inside and outside of the house. I did a little carving with the knife for grins, and the blade zipped long peels of wood off a 2×4.

If you are looking for a solid performing folding knife, it’s going to be tough to beat the geometry of the MK1-G2. Combine that with CPM-20CV and you have a potent package.

Handle, Ergonomics, and Pocket Clip

The handle of the MK1-G2 is made of 3-D machined G-10. Gone is the old “cheap plastic” handle of the Griptilian. In it’s place is black G-10, fully machined. They really went all out, with a sunburst pattern around the pivot, blending into a patch of checkering, and then the sunburst picks back up again and radiates down the handle.

The handle itself is contoured. Inside, partial steel liners have been flush mounted into the G-10 handles. Everything is held together with torx bolts and 3 metal standoffs. All the machining is top notch and the fit and finish is excellent.

The MK1-G2 benefits from a practical handle design, and the knife has good ergonomics. The edges of the handle are square, so the knife doesn’t quite melt into the hand like a Griptilian, but it’s still comfortable thanks in part to the simple design and contoured handles.

There is also plenty of traction. The handle is obviously heavily textured, and there is jimping on the spine and pommel. There is a large thumb ramp, and the jimping isn’t overly aggressive. All in all, this is a handle designed for extended use. It’s practical and comfortable.

The MK1-G2 utilizes a deep carry spoon style clip. The clip has been given a tumbled finish. It’s not polished, but it’s not a matte finish either. The result is a fairly discreet pocket flip.

Spring strength and clip retention are pretty good. This is probably my biggest gripe with the knife. I’d prefer a little more spring retention on the clip. Living in Florida, I tend to wear lightweight shorts. This knife has slid around on me a little while in the pocket. The fact that this is a heavier knife doesn’t help. The knife hasn’t fallen out of my pocket, but I would be extra careful with this piece.

One interesting observation is that while the deep carry clip only uses 2 screws, the handle is drilled and tapped for 3 screws, so you may be able to pop a Benchmade clip on there, or an aftermarket clip.

Here is your shot of the knife in the pocket:

Deployment and Lockup

The MK1-G2 utilizes ambidextrous thumb studs. The thumb studs are large and easy to get to, and the blade pops out smoothly wish a brush of the thumb. Inside I can see thick phosphor bronze washers. Bearings are great for titanium framelock flippers, but I prefer the practicality of bronze washers for a true user piece like this MK1-G2. No complaints when it comes to getting this blade open, or the action.

For lockup we have have the ABLE Lock. This is described as an enhanced Axis Lock and the acronym stands for “Ambidextrous Bar Lock Enhanced”. That doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue, but “ABLE Lock” works. For those wondering, Benchmade’s patent on the Axis lock expired in 2016, so that’s why this lock is able to be used. The lock’s finish and geometry is a little different from the Axis lock, but it looks and feels like an Axis Lock.

In practice this has been a convenient and reliable lock. It’s fully ambidextrous, and locks up tight. There is zero blade play in any direction. Fans of the Axis lock will find a lot here. Practically speaking I haven’t noticed much of a difference between this and the Axis lock. If anything the lock bar on the ABLE Lock feels slightly smoother.

Doug Ritter RSK® MK1-G2 Review – Final Thoughts

Dubbing this knife the “Generation 2” of the RSK MK1 is a fitting title. I think the G2 a worthy successor to the original, and is a true next generation piece. The knife has been re-considered from the ground up and it shows, but at the end of the day it still features the robust cutting geometry, good ergonomics, and easy operation that the original MK1 was known for.

Upgrading to G10 handle scales is bound to appeal to most folks. It makes the knife feel more solid and expensive, and the side to side blade play that is common in a lot of the FRN handled Griptilians is nowhere to be found. The flip side is that you have a heavier knife. The 20CV blade steel was another nice upgrade, especially for a piece like this that will get a lot of use. The rest of the knife has been thoughtfully reworked. From the deep carry pocket clip, to the 3-D sculpted handle scales, to the improved ABLE lock, no stone was left unturned with this build. I am sure Hogue and Doug spent countless hours engineering this knife.

My only criticism is that I’d like to see a stronger pocket clip. This new G-10 version is heavier than the old FRN Ritter Grip, and the clip could use some extra spring. Especially with the thin shorts I wear here in Florida.

Pocket clip quibble aside, the end result is a knife that just works. Regular readers know I have a soft spot for largish work knives like this. I view this as an enhanced version of something like a Para 2 or Griptilian, but it’s not such a nice knife that you will feel bad using it. This knife lacks the jewel like quality of the G-10 Griptilian, but I don’t think that’s a bad thing. The MK1-G2 was not designed to sit on a shelf, and I appreciate the practicality of it.

I can easily recommend this knife to fans of the original, or those looking for a premium folding work knife. It’s an excellent knife.

Doug Ritter RSK® MK1-G2 Review – From $159.95
From: KnifeWorks

The RSK MK1-G2 is available exclusively at KnifeWorks. Please consider that buying anything through any of the links on this website, including Amazon and BladeHQ helps support BladeReviews.com, and keeps the site going. Thank you very much.

Reate T4000 Review

by John Burridge 3 Comments

Whenever there’s the thinnest excuse to use a pocket knife, I do so. Over the last month of carrying the Reate T4000 nearly every day, I’ve noticed that when I open it up in public to do any of the small innocuous things I use a knife for, I’ve seen people’s eyes light up with…not terror, but a distinct “What the hell is that?” look mixed with a tingle of atavistic fear.

Buy the Reate T4000 at BladeHQ or GPKnives

It looks like a large double edged dagger- which, to the subconscious mind of most people, looks like what the ruling classes have been using to kill people with for the last four thousand years, and/or what everybody gets stabbed with in Game Of Thrones. I have two friends who are into knives on almost the same nerdy level that I am, and even their first responses were “Whoa!”

The instant I saw the T4000, I knew I wanted it simply for the fear/thrill reaction it gave me. But when writing a knife review, I always try to determine the knife’s intended purpose. In this case, it’s easy: when Reate Knives began teasing the T4000 in July 2018, BladeReviews.com’s own Ben Schwartz wrote an article about it for KnifeNews.com. Here’s what the designer of the knife, Tashi Bharucha, had to say about it:

[It] does not pretend to be anything other than a stabbing pocket sword.

It’s intended purpose is to be a stabbing pocket sword? Sign me the fuck up!

General Dimensions and Blade Details

The Reate Knives T4000 is part of a four-knife series, all designed by French knife auteur Tashi Bharucha. At the time of writing, only the smallest of the four, the T2500 and the T4000 have been released. The naming convention reflects the length of the blades in inches- the T2500 is 2.5” long, the T4000 is 4”, etc. The T3000 and T3500 have yet to be released.

I find it curious that a French designer and a Chinese knife manufacturer are using the antiquated Imperial measurement system for the names of these knives- I’m going to assume their target market is ‘Merica. I don’t know if the pricing scheme is also related to the blade length, but the T4000 cost me $400 USD. I suppose that’s a bargain compared to Tashi Bharucha’s custom, handmade knives, which cost at least $1,000. Even though I’m a big fan of his work, I’m not going to spend over a thousand bucks on something I can’t drive, ride, or shoot.

It comes with a bunch of nice, unnecessary stuff like a Reate Knives Zipper pouch, a cleaning cloth, a microfiber knife bag, a velcro embroidered “Reate” patch, and extra handle screws, which are actually a really nice touch.

There are three handle choices: Titanium with inlaid carbon fiber, inlaid brown canvas Micarta, or inlaid green canvas Micarta, which is what I bought. It’s an unusually large and heavy folder, even bigger in every respect than my collection’s previous champion of unnecessary size and weight, the Microtech Sigil MK6.

The T4000 weighs 5.3 oz (150 g), is 8.86” (225 mm) long when open, 4.92” long (125 mm) closed, and 1.75” (44 mm) tall when open or closed. Some knives disappear into your pocket- this definitely doesn’t. It’s not particularly thick though, at .68” (17.2 mm) at it’s widest point, pocket clip included.

The blade steel is Bohler M390, which is considered a “super steel” due to it’s extreme hardness and corrosion resistance. I’ve been reading up on blade steel, and want to give a shout out to knifesteelnerds.com for a lot of in-depth articles that a non-scientist like myself can understand. What I’ve learned about M390 is that it’s high hardness resists edge deformation, which keeps it sharp. The trade-off for high hardness is a reduction in toughness, which is basically resistance to chipping. A lot of these hardness/toughness qualities seem to be imparted into the blade during the manufacturing process known as heat treating. My limited understanding of heat treating boils down to this: you heat up the unfinished steel blade to get the individual molecules to bond together in a very specific way, then remove the blade from the heat to lock in the molecular structure.

Most knife manufacturers guard their heat treating methods as proprietary secrets, but Reate Knives has made this little nugget known: after the heat treating is complete, they use a technique called “freeze edging skill.” This process cools the blade while the cutting edge is being ground, so that the friction-induced heat of grinding doesn’t undo the specific molecular structure from it’s heat treating. It may just be marketing hype, but it makes sense to me.

I was recently talking to a guy who is several orders of magnitude higher than me on the Blade Steel Nerdiness spectrum, and he gave me an earful about how modern super steels like M390 are too brittle, and he prefers softer, “tougher” steel like VG10 or 154CM which are easier to sharpen. I totally get it because he’s way into sharpness- he sharpens his daily carry Sebenza with a leather strop every day whether he’s used it or not. Personally, I have a bunch of nice pocket knives that I carry and use, and I wait until they’re good and dull before I sharpen them. I would rather have a knife with a crazy hard edge that I can use longer between sharpenings. In a month of light duty cutting, I’ve barely dulled the edge of my T4000, so Reate’s M390 is working great for me.

The blade is surprisingly slim for such a big knife. It has a thin hollow grind with a decorative fuller, which briefly flares the blade’s maximum width to 3.8 mm in the center. I looked up a ton of information about blade fullers for this review, but it’s far too boring to include here.

Suffice it to say that fullers are basically for structural reinforcement on long blades and are not “blood grooves.” The T4000’s standout feature is it’s aggressive symmetrical dagger shape, but the top of the blade, which is exposed when the knife is closed, has a 1.1 mm thick unsharpened edge.

This knife has excelled at my usual mundane tasks of box and bag opening and loose thread cutting, but I like trying new things, and I’ve never used a dagger for food prep before. I stabbed and slashed and hacked my way through tomatoes, onions, artichokes, sausages, etc. My experience using the T4000 in the kitchen was pretty much like with every other pocket knife I’ve used in this capacity- I couldn’t dice anything like with a chef’s knife because my knuckles would hit the cutting board before the blade would. It’s thin blade slices well, and the fuller seemed to keep food from sticking to the side of the blade. The false edge on the top of the blade is wide enough to push down on for some extra leverage.

Other uses for the T4000’s false edge are:

Opening mail- the false edge opens envelopes perfectly without dulling the sharpened side.
Removing staples- slip the tip of the blade under the staple and twist towards the unsharpened side.
Pretending to slash my wrist- I’ve absolutely horrified several people.

Handle, Ergonomics, and Pocket Clip

On the T4000, designer Tashi Bharucha used a variation of his signature handle shape. From an aesthetic standpoint I love it, but I find it’s ergonomics often make the knife difficult to use. The problem, in my opinion, is how far back my hand is from the blade’s tip. There’s no place on the handle to choke up and gain the mechanical advantage of having my hand closer to the tip of the blade.

That being said, I don’t really care, because I don’t buy his knives for the ergonomics. I would never classify myself as a “fanboy” because first of all I’m not a boy, I’m a goddamn man, but Tashi’s design style really speaks to me, and I now own five of his production knives.

The handle ergonomics on three of the others are similar to the T4000, with the exception being the Massdrop-produced Prism (far left in photo), which cleverly exchanges some sharpened blade length for the ability to choke up on the handle. The Tashi B./Reate Knives Baby Machine (not pictured) knife has a similar ergonomically friendly shape.

The T4000’s handle is made of two pieces of titanium and one piece of green canvas Micarta. This is my first knife utilizing Micarta, and I was dismayed that after a month of sweat and cooking oil and dirty hands, the Micarta’s color has permanently changed from light green to a darker olive drab. It’s somewhat grippy texture is unchanged. The mating of the Micarta into the handle is so precise I can see where the inlaid Micarta meets the titanium, but I can’t feel the seam.

Reate’s fit and finish on this knife are superb. Every angle machined into the handle looks sharp but feels smooth. The T4000’s shape is just so weirdly aggressive that I can’t stop looking at it- it’s the knife equivalent of an Italian sports car. Specifically, the Lamborghini Urus: a 641 horsepower all wheel drive SUV that, to my eye, shares many design cues with the T4000. Please forgive my crude Photoshop skills:

Both the car and the knife are fascinating combinations of severe lines and curves, and both come off as being large, lumpy and aggressive. I periodically see one of these big stealth tank-looking SUV’s rolling by, and my response is always “Whoa!” By the way, for an excellent review of the Lamborghini Urus, I suggest checking out the Amazon Prime TV show “The Grand Tour” season 3, episode 5 “An Itchy Urus.” Anyway, back to the knife…

The forward tip of the pocket clip is very sharp. Not cut yourself sharp, but certainly scratch the paint off your car door sharp.

Nonetheless, the clip looks great, and I think it’s pointy design is entirely appropriate for a stabbing pocket sword. The T4000’s titanium clip is milled into Bharucha’s signature stylish shape, and the clip’s shape and position mirror the titanium inlay inside the Micarta inlay on the show side. The amount of flex is great, it’s amount of offset from the body of the knife is great for thick denim jeans pockets, and it’s shape melts into the fold of my hand when I’m using it.

When carrying the T4000 while wearing reasonably tight pants (as I often do), the knife, though heavy, stays put due to it’s robust clip. But when wearing loose shorts, I feel that big hunk of titanium and steel rhythmically slapping my thigh as I walk.

Deployment and Lockup

The blade is heavy and the flipper detent is strong, so it takes a bit of finger muscle to open it. It swings smoothly on ceramic bearings, and has a nice strong magnet-like feel that snaps the blade closed when it’s open less than 6 mm. It’s a framelock, and locks up securely with about half of it’s 3 mm steel lock face in contact with the blade. It’s not a hard use knife like my DPX HEST F1, which has a 75% lockup on it’s 4 mm wide lockbar, but the T4000’s lock doesn’t seem to be likely to fail under reasonable use.

There is one weird thing about it though- it’s sound. When flipping it open, instead of the normal, satisfying “click” that I’ve come to expect from titanium knives, there’s a two-part sound like a metal soap bubble popping, followed by an unusually high-pitched snap. One of the nice things about having a lot pocket knives is that I have them on hand to compare and contrast with each other. At the moment, I have 16 reasonably good folding knives, and I sat down in a quiet room and flicked or thumbed open every single one. Through this highly scientific investigation I have determined that the sound the Reate T4000 makes when opening is utterly unique. The sound has nothing to do with it’s functionality at all, but it’s odd enough that I feel compelled to mention it.

Two last things: first, the T4000 has a party trick- it can stand on it’s head. Second, I was driving on US Interstate 5 on the East side of Los Angeles and noticed a 125 foot (38 meter) tall Tashi Bharucha pocket clip rising above the LA River. It’s the central spire of the North Atwater Bridge which is due to be completed in 2020. Say what you will about the evils of social media, but thanks to Facebook I was able to send the picture below to T4000 designer Tashi Bharucha. He responded that he hadn’t seen it before and, no, he did not design the bridge.

Reate T4000 Review – Final Thoughts

The T4000 is definitely a niche item. It’s not for everyone, it’s not perfect, and it’s relatively expensive at $400. But I dig the Reate T4000 stabbing pocket sword on a deep, visceral level – I don’t know if it’s an ancient, hardwired feeling of security or a Roman-Legionnaire-in-a-past-life kind of thing, but I sure do like it.

Reate T2500 – From $419.95
From: BladeHQ

I recommend purchasing the Reate T4000 at BladeHQ or GPKnives. Please consider that buying anything through any of the links on this website (including Amazon) helps support BladeReviews.com, and keeps the site going. Thank you very much.

Spyderco Centofante 3 Review

by Seth Vietti 1 Comment

The Centofante 3 is one of Spyderco’s most long-lived designs. Introduced in 2004 and unchanged to this day, it’s been around long enough to witness most of the rest of Spyderco’s lineup either evolve or go extinct. I think the reason why is simple: the Centofante still looks good.

Buy the Spyderco Centofante 3 at BladeHQ

Buy on Amazon

Even a diehard Spyderco fan will admit that the company’s design language can be… polarizing. The Centofante achieves broader appeal by standing apart from the typical Spyderco style: no bulging blade, no forward finger choil, no full-flat grind. It’s slim, simple, yet dramatic. If not for the round hole and the silver bug in the handle, it could easily pass as a knife from another brand.

I’ve long been tempted to pick one up for myself, but skepticism of its old-fashioned pinned construction always held me back. Until now. So, is the Spyderco Centofante 3 really as timeless as it looks?

General Dimensions & Blade Details

The blade on the Centofante is just shy of three and a quarter inches long. Thanks to a tiny ricasso and the absence of a finger choil, it has almost the same amount of usable edge as the significantly larger Paramilitary 2.

Despite all the edge, the blade still feels petite – no doubt due to its exceptionally thin blade stock. It’s the Centofante’s most noteworthy spec: at 1.95mm thick (according to my calipers), it’s easily the longest, thinnest folding blade in Spyderco’s entire catalog, if not the knife market at large. The only knives I own with thinner blades are either keychain-sized novelties or flexible kitchen knives. The Centofante makes the Delica’s blade stock look generous in comparison, and the Para 3’s, outrageous.

A hollow grind was definitely the right choice here. As much as I appreciate Spyderco’s full-flat grinds, they necessarily get quite thin towards the tip. The steady hollow grind on the Centofante has no such distal taper, preventing this sliver of a blade from being drawn too thin. There’s no flex, and the tip is narrow but not delicate. While I would never recommend prying with it, the blade seems better equipped for the task than, say, a full-flat ground Delica, since it’s supported by full thickness blade stock almost all the way to the tip.

My Centofante didn’t arrive as sticky sharp as I have come to expect from Seki City, Japan Spydercos. Thankfully, the neatly applied factory edge and sharpening choil made it easy enough to touch up. As you might expect with a knife this thin, it cuts quite well. It doesn’t have the shearing power of a broad, flat ground blade, but it’s much more agile – able to twist quickly mid-cut without much resistance. Whether it’s a drop point or a spearpoint, the blade shape just works: a stretch of flat edge, a gentle belly, and a focused tip.

The blade steel is VG-10, a time-tested alloy with excellent corrosion resistance and decent edge retention. While today’s best powder metallurgy concoctions outclass it in one way or another, I don’t really miss them here. The more knives I use, the more I appreciate well-balanced steels; especially ones that deliver good value like VG-10. Also, on a knife that can’t be taken apart for cleaning, VG-10’s stainlessness is a major asset.

Handle, Ergonomics, & Pocket Clip

At a glance, the handle of the Centofante looks like anodized aluminum. If it was cool to the touch, it would feel like it, too. It’s actually plastic (fiberglass reinforced nylon, to be specific) with a similarly smooth, light texture. The silver bug and “speed lines” molded into the handle seemed a bit odd at first, but they grew on me: they give an otherwise plain knife some personality without being ostentatious.

The Centofante is exceedingly comfortable in hand. The four and a half inch handle is lightweight, nimble, and well-sized for the blade. Its ergonomic features are subtle. No finger grooves or jutting guards, just gentle curves that suggest – not demand – how to hold it. I especially like how it bows down into the palm: it helps the skinny handle feel more substantial, and keeps the angle of the blade better aligned with the arm. If you’ve ever used a Spyderco Military, the Centofante will feel weirdly similar. Despite the size difference, the knives share the same sloping ergonomic geometry.

The pocket clip is highly functional, doubly so because the handles are smooth. It comes from the factory configured for tip-down carry. I’m no tip-up evangelist, but after carrying it tip-down for a few days it was obvious the factory got it wrong. The exposed tang, pointy thumb ramp, and aggressive jimping on the blade snag everything in their path. Front pocket, back pocket; didn’t matter – retrieving a tip-down Centofante from any pocket was awkward and unpleasant, as was reaching past it. Luckily, flipping the clip to tip-up instantly and entirely solved the problem.

The real snag with the Centofante – well, the one you can’t fix with a screwdriver – is the handle’s pinned construction. I understand why it’s a deal-breaker for some people, especially the tinkerers who like to modify their knives and those who need something 100% rust proof. Given the choice, I’d take threaded fasteners over pins myself.

Nevertheless, my experience with the Centofante was completely undiminished by the way it was put together. Honestly, I was fishing for a problem and still couldn’t find one. We knife nerds can get swept up in hypotheticals. What if the pivot comes loose? What happens if the knife gets filled with sand? In reality, most of the projected problems with pinned construction have simple solutions – just not the same ones as a knife held together with screws. The pivot came perfectly set from the factory, and, being incapable of twisting itself loose, it has stayed that way. When I got sharpening stone slurry all over the knife, I cleaned it with soap and hot water, followed by a squirt of penetrating oil. Basically, I used the Centofante with impunity and it’s only gotten better. So, why worry?

Deployment & Lockup

A back lock secures the Centofante open. Like many old-school back locks, there’s a touch of vertical flex in the lockup – not enough to hear or see, just enough to feel when bearing down into a cut. Spyderco’s newer back locks have stamped out this endemic blade play with tight manufacturing tolerances and refinements to lock geometry. It would be nice to see those improvements carried over to older designs like the Centofante, but since it doesn’t affect the lock’s strength or security, I didn’t let it bother me.

The blade has a springy self-close, and once broken in it was easy to thumb or spydie-flick open. There’s enough ricasso to allow for one-handed closing, so long as you’re mindful of where your fingers are on the handle.

Spyderco Centofante 3 Review – Final Thoughts

This is a chimera of a knife. It’s almost as if it was built to satisfy a bunch of contradictory design objectives all at the same time. A strong grind on a delicate blade. An upper class look for a middle class price. Traditional construction on a modern folder. Somehow, the Centofante manages to hit those opposing targets simultaneously instead of splitting the difference and missing them altogether – if the late Frank Centofante was a bowler instead of a knifemaker, the Spyderco Centofante would be a 7-10 split conversion.

Ironically, the contradictions that make the Centofante unappealing to knife enthusiasts are probably the exact reasons for the Centofante’s long-term success. It’s not a niche knife. It’s a classy, charming, low-maintenance workhorse of a blade that belies its price point. For me, that makes the Spyderco Centofante 3 the consummate gift knife: handsome enough to appeal to anyone, and uncomplicated enough to work for someone who’s never even heard of a “torx bit.” No instructions necessary, no setup required (well, maybe you should go ahead and flip the pocket clip before wrapping it up). Give one to someone who appreciates nice things but knows nothing about knives, or someone who appreciates knives but knows nothing about nice things.

Spyderco CENTOFANTE 3 Prestige Folding Knife with 3.14" VG-10 Stainless Steel Hollow Ground Blade and Lightweight FRN Handle - PlainEdge - C66PBK3

ONE OF A KIND - Designed in collaboration with Frank Centofante, longtime custom knifemaker and past President of the Knifemaker's Guild, the Centofante 3 captures the spirit of his custom designs.
ULTRA-LIGHTWEIGHT - The Centofante 3 has a thin-profiled, lightweight FRN handle. Two channels are furrowed out of the handle for better grip and a Palladium silver Spyderco bug is inlayed into its surface.
EASY-TO-USE LOCK - For added security and convenience the back-lock is positioned midway on the spine and David Boye Dent is cut from the locking lever
POCKET-FRIENDLY - To ensure discreet carry the Centrofante 3 has a black steel pocket clip positions for tip-up/down, right-hand carry.
VERSATILE - The VG-10 blade has both a hollow-grind and swedge-grind with non-sharpened spine serrations (jimping) to hold the thumb steady when cutting.

I recommend purchasing the Spyderco Centofante 3 at Amazon or BladeHQ. Thanks for checking out my review.

Benchmade Bailout Review

by Aaron Shapiro 2 Comments

There has been something interesting going on at Benchmade Knife Co. I’ve said it a few times in recent reviews, but it’s worth highlighting here. They used to be the dusty old gun-shop knife brand. That’s not to say the old mini Griptillians were terrible, but just that I don’t think many people would have called them, “exciting.” Some of their newer designs from the last 2-3 years have been on a different level, and the Bailout is no exception.

Buy the Benchmade Bailout at BladeHQ
Buy on Amazon

The Benchmade Bailout is the companion to their also newish released Bugout. Both knives share almost every trait apart from steel, blade shape, and their vaguely prepper-ish names. I like these knives, but I’ve always had an affinity for tantos, so I opted for the Bailout.

Before we get too far into the review, let’s touch on some general specs…

(All Measurements are my personal measurements and may differ from manufacturers specs)

Blade: 3”
OAL: 8”
Thickness: .402” not counting clip .614” with clip
Blade Thickness: .93”
Steel: 3V
Weight: 2.1oz
Lock: Axis Lock

Blade and Steel

Before I get into the review too much, I want to address a potential elephant in the room. At the time of this review, there has just been a little scandal on Instagram regarding the Bailout.

Apparently, an Instagram account had one of these blades Rockwell tested by a friend. The knife came back with a mid 50’s Rockwell when it is advertised at 60 HRC. I have no real perspective on this apart from saying this: A single independent source is not something to base an entire opinion on. If ten knives had been randomly and all found to be lower in HRC than advertised, when tested by a reliable source, I would take a little more heed.

/rantoff let’s get on with it.

The Benchmade Bailout is a tanto shaped blade made out of 3V steel. The blade is then finished with a slick grey Cerakote to protect from corrosion and give it that “high-speed-low-drag,” appeal.

I’ve carried this knife in a lot of scenarios since first purchasing it. It was in my pocket when I built a fence around my house. It’s been in my pocket on river raft days. It’s also been with me whenever I’m doing something that I wouldn’t want to subject a custom knife to. In these contexts, it’s done a lot. I’ve split open Quik-crete bags with it, sharpened pencils, popped ties holding lumber together etc etc… It’s done all of these very well.

I’m not one to compare how something passed through a material or how many consecutive cardboard cuts it can do before failing. I am, however, someone that grabs for their pocket knife frequently and takes notice if it preforms the “real-world task,” the way I needed it to. The Bailout did this well, then stropped back to sharp easily.

The 3V steel that Benchmade has selected is a favorite of mine. I often request it on my custom knife orders. It’s also one of the nicer steels to sharpen, in my experience. 3V will take a fine edge with minimal effort and retain it for a long, long time. That being said, it’s not stainless. 3V has 7.5% Chromium, so it’s “nearly” stainless much like D2.

From what I’ve seen if you keep your knives cleaned and maintained you’ll avoid any staining and pitting. In the specific case of the Bailout, Benchmade has coated the steel, so you’re only really going to see any stain issues on the edges.

Handle, Ergonomics, and Pocket Clip

The Bailout’s handle is made from textured Grivory, a polymer based material. The handle slabs are thin and skeletonized with a consistent matrix of pockets milled out to reduce weight but maintain strength. The slabs themselves are a svelte .12” thick. They feel good in the hand with enough grip that the knife feels secure but not so much that it begins to cause hot spots.

Benchmade has flared the handle out near the pivot to reduce the possibility that you’ll slip onto the blade if you use it for a piercing task. This flaring also acts as a bit of a thumb ramp for me.

Moving to the back, we have an aluminum pommel. I suppose the idea behind this is for some last-ditch striking application. I would love to have seen hardened steel used instead, but I imagine it came down to a weight/strength type scenario.

The clip is excellent. It’s a short (in length) deep carry clip. It tucks right into the palm of your hand when you’re holding the knife and carry nice and deep in the pocket. I would love to see more makers take up the shorter clips instead of making them half the length of the knife itself. That being said, it’s a tight clip, so if you have thicker pockets, you may run into an issue getting it clipped on.

And speaking of pockets, the Bailout carries easily. At just over 2 ounces, this is a knife you will quickly forget you are carrying until you need it. The Bailout isn’t quite as discreet as the Bugout, as it has a has that slotted protruding pommel, but everything is blacked out for a low profile. Here is a picture of it in the pocket:

No complaints in the carry department.

Deployment and Lockup

The Bailout utilizes dual thumb studs and phosphor bronze washers to get the blade open. This is standard fare for Benchmade, and much like their other knives, the blade deploys smoothly and easily.

Ahh, the axis lock. I’ve talked about it before in previous reviews, but suffice to say I’m a fan. I like it when watch companies incorporate mechanisms that are ambidextrous. It opens the doors for left-handed users as well as potentials users that want to carry weak side.

The Axis lock itself is pretty great. It operates by moving a hardened steel bar along the curved tang of the blade until it reaches the open position. Once it does two springs, snap it in place blocking the knife from closing. The bar itself extends across the length of the knife’s handle allowing you to open it from either side, thus ambidextrous. The Axis lock has been historically proven to be a reliable and robust locking method for a good portion of Benchmade’s catalog.

Competitive Offerings

For the sake of argument, let’s look at some competitive options:

We have the Spyderco Para 3 Lightweight, priced around $40 less than the Bailout. Same FRN style handles, somewhat ambidextrous compression lock, but the steel is where you’re making a compromise. The Para 3 uses CTS-BD1N, which is new to me, but it seems like it wouldn’t outperform 3V.

Or we could look at Zero Tolerance 0450. I like this knife, but it costs roughly $40 more than the Bailout, and due to the Titanium construction will weigh significantly more. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but the Bailout is trying to fill a specific need in a folding knife. I doubt the 0450 would be a knife you’d literally throw in a Bailout (or Bugout) bag due primarily to weight and cost.

Benchmade Bailout Review – Final Thoughts

When I opened this review, I touched on the fact that Benchmade has been creating some incredibly fresh and cool designs that fit a little better into the landscape of 2019’s knife collecting. The Bailout (and it’s Bugout twin sibling) are perfect examples of this. Benchmade has taken tried and true materials and molded them into a configuration that the EDC community values greatly. It’s thin, light, and durable. Benchmade has selected top-tier steel that will take a beating and keep on cutting. On top of all of this, the knife looks cool! The Cerakoted blade with an aggressive tanto tip is primed and ready for some Instagram pocket-dump cred.

The best part, however, is the price: Currently, BladeHQ has the Bailout priced at $144.50. That’s a lot of value for your money in my opinion.

Benchmade - Bailout 537GY, Plain Edge Gray Coated CPM-3V Tanto Blade, Black Grivory Handle, Made in the USA

ULTRALIGHT DESIGN: A slim, sleek stealth knife that adds confidence to your kit; Lightweight design for optimal strength-to-weight ratio
AMERICAN MADE CPM-3V STEEL: A powder-metal tool steel engineered for high stress and extreme force; Exceptionally tough with good edge retention; Requires a little extra care to keep the rust off
6061-T6 ALUMINUM HANDLE: Originally developed as a premium aircraft grade aluminum it offers a solid handle and form at nominal weight.
AXIS LOCKING MECHANISM: Ensures safety and a smooth open and easy close; Mini tip-up reversible deep-carry pocket clip for ultimate accessibility

Editor: I recommend purchasing the Benchmade Bailout from Amazon or BladeHQ. Thanks for reading.