Way back in 2014 when the Knife of the Week series first started, the Benchmade 940 Osborne was one of the first recipients of this prestigious honor.
In those ensuing years, the world lost the great Warren Osborne but gained his iconic EDC in a new form: the Benchmade 9400 Osborne Auto.
Knifemaker Warren Osborne unfortunately passed away in 2016 after a lengthy battle with an illness. Steve Shackleford of Blade Magazine had a great writeup on his life shortly after Osborne died.
The 9400 Osborne Auto retains all the elements that made the original such a quintessential everyday carry design. It has a 3.4-inch satin-finished blade made from high-quality S30V steel.
The modified reverse tanto blade remains a versatile and unique blade profile.
Nearly all of the major brands announced their new lineups for the year, and now it’s time to play catch-up on some knives we’re most excited for this year.
While I haven’t spent an extended time with all of these knives, I was able to get my hands on all of the knives at Shot Show 2023 in Las Vegas this year.
You can see the full list of all new CRKT 2023 knives this year at their website, but these are the 10 that caught our attention the most out of the more than 20 announced.
CRKT Squid Compact
The Squid has been one of the mainstays of the CRKT lineup. For years, it existed as one of the best little big knives available. However, CRKT and Lucas Burnley have slowly built out variations that range from an assisted-opening version to the larger CRKT Squid XM.
This year, CRKT went all in with compact versions of its knives, including the Squid Compact.
You can find other blue knives by searching at knife-depot.com, but hopefully some of these will inspire your own blue period.
Kershaw Scallion
Let’s kick things off with a great little EDC from Kershaw. The Scallion is a Ken Onion design (it has his signature angles all over it) with a 2.25-inch assisted opening blade made from 420HC stainless steel. This iteration comes with a navy blue anodized aluminum handle, which stays surprisingly vivid through use and abuse.
Victorinox Swiss Champ, Sapphire
When you think of Victorinox Swiss Army knives, you likely imagine the iconic red scales. The success of the knives has led to tons of variations and colors.
The late Kit Carson’s M16 folding knife design is one of the most beloved, tried-and-true tactical folders. For over two decades, the M16 has been the knife of choice for countless users in countless situations.
So, when CRKT decided to reconceive the classic (which is already one of CRKT’s best knives), they brought it up to date and then some.
This new iteration of the M16 is outfitted with all the latest technology and mechanisms a knife user could want. Its 3.58-inch black stonewashed D2 steel blade is durable and flips open using assisted-opening technology with an IKBS ball-bearing pivot that ensures smooth deployment.
When a knife becomes so iconic that it conquers Earth, there’s only one place left for it to go: space.
KA-BAR teamed up with the relatively new branch of military called the United States Space Force to bring a unique and head-turning take on a cultural icon.
This version of the most recognizable fixed blade is essentially a reskin of the original USMC KA-BAR. However, it has some welcomed humor injected into the design.
But if you think the knife is just a gimmick, you’d be sorely mistaken. The knife features the same 7-inch clip point blade made from 1095 Cro-Van steel, an alloy that’s tough, has great edge retention, and is easy to sharpen.
Despite its legal gray areas, the automatic knife (sometimes called a switchblade) is one of the best types of knives on the market.
For those who don’t know, an automatic knife is a knife that can be opened with the push of a button or switch. For a more in depth look at the difference between a switchblade and an assisted-opening knife, check out this article.
We’ve been going through and carefully picking some of the best knives of each brand and category. So, it only made sense to do autos.
One caveat here: We are not including OTF knives in this list. While most out-the-front knives are technically automatics, they’re almost their own thing. We’ll have a separate list for the best OTFs coming soon.
Check out which autos made the list below.
1. Buck 110 Auto
The Buck 110 Folding Hunter is one of the most iconic folding knives ever made. Its only major downside is its inability to open quickly with one hand.
With just the push of a button, the classic 3.75-inch clip-point blade bursts to life instantly. This version uses the same 420HC stainless steel that the 110 is known for and also keeps the lockback mechanism. For strength and dependability, you can’t go wrong with a lockback.
The handle is Crelicam genuine ebony with brass bolsters and pins.
Even after all these years, the Buck 110 remains an excellent choice for a knife and this auto version just makes it even better. You can opt for the premium Buck 110 Auto Elite if you prefer S30V steel and a G-10 handle. There’s even the Buck 112 Auto if you need a smaller knife.
2. Kershaw Launch 6
With the new Kershaw Launch 15 coming out in 2023, this list could easily have contained 10 different Launch knives because they are all simply excellent.
But we kind of arbitrarily picked the Kershaw Launch 6 for this spot. The Launch 6 is a full-sized auto with a 3.375-inch drop-point blade and an aluminum handle.
It has a cohesive all-black look that’s downright sexy.
What better way to launch yourself into the new year than with one of the best automatic knives from one of the best knife series ever made?
The Kershaw Launch 11 is a compelling everyday carry auto with a ton to love.
It has a 2.75-inch black blade made from high-performance CPM 154 stainless steel. The alloy not only holds an excellent edge but provides resistance to corrosion and wear.
Like all the knives in the auto series, the blade bursts open lightning quick with the press of the slightly recessed push button. Its low profile button helps prevent any accidental deployment.
If you’re one of the roughly 13 million people who live in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania, we have some good news for you: the switchblade ban in Pennsylvania has been repealed and is now in effect.
Thanks to the hardworking lobbyists at American Knife & Tool Institute and Knife Rights, a repeal of the switchblade ban in the state was passed and signed by the governor in November. The repeal officially took effect January 2, 2023.
Here’s a quote from Penn. state representative Martin Causer, who sponsored the bill that repealed the ban:
“I am pleased we were able to work together to finally get rid of this antiquated law that needlessly infringed on citizens’ rights and put knife manufacturers here at a competitive disadvantage. Thank you so much to American Knife & Tool Institute for your strong advocacy in getting this bill across the finish line.”
This means Pennsylvania is now the 45th state to allow the manufacturing and carrying of automatic knives.
If you’re curious about the contents of the bill, you can find more here.
With our selection of the best knives of 2022 posted last week, it’s time to look at the knives the people voted for with their wallets. So, I combed through the data on the best-selling knives from Knife Depot in the 2022 calendar year.
A few things to note: This list is in no particular order because we factored in the price of these knives as well. If we sold 500 $30 knives and 500 $150 knives, we gave some special considerations to the pricier model because purchasing is more of a hurdle.
We did our best to get this list as accurate as possible.
Kershaw Launch 6
The first thing you’ll notice on this list is the surprising number of automatic knives. I argue no knife series is more popular than the Launch series from Kershaw.
The Launch 6 was one of the most popular knives from the series this year. That’s meaningful considering it sold a ton of units and it’s a fairly pricey knife.
It’s hard to argue with the sleekness of the Launch 6. It has a 3.75-inch CPM 154 stainless steel blade with a black aluminum handle and a red push button that fires with force.
Smith & Wesson SWFR2S
Smith & Wesson knives were also very popular this year. But the Smith & Wesson SWFR2S was by far the most popular.
Two factors contributed to the overall success of this knife, which is a best-seller year after year. First, the knife is a workhorse. This is a knife I have in my personal collection and one I often recommend to people looking for a reliable folder at a good price.
This unique folding knife from Smith & Wesson came out earlier this year to a ton of fanfare. That’s why it’s an easy pick as the latest Knife of the Week.
The Smith & Wesson M325 Revolver Knife works well as a standard pocket knife. It has a good-sized 3-inch stainless steel blade that can either be opened with thumb studs or popped open with a flipper tab.
It locks securely with a sturdy frame lock mechanism.
