Category: Knife Lists (page 1 of 5)

We originally wrote this list back in 2012 but we’ve since updated it to include newer knives.

When you think back to your first knife, it’s likely that your dad was the person who gave it to you. So, to honor your dad with the same special gift he bestowed upon you, consider getting him a brand new knife for Father’s Day this weekend.

CRKT CEO Flipper

The CEO series from CRKT is the ultimate dad knife. This knife was originally designed by Richard Rogers as an understated slim folder that you could comfortably carry and use at work. It would slip into your pocket and could be mistaken as a pen.

Needless to say, it was a big hit. But the best version is probably the CEO Flipper, which has the same slim profile but with a flipper mechanism for easier opening.

Buck 110 Folding Hunter

Fewer brands exhibit class and quality like Buck Knives. Show your dad that you’re no slouch when it comes to picking character over value by giving him Buck’s signature knife the Folding Hunter. The knife features a woodgrain handle and a classic lockback system and is widely recognized as one of the most iconic knives of all time.

The Buck 110 is still one of the most affordable US-made knives. We also have it available for engraving.

Benchmade Bugout

If you want to splurge a little on your dad and get him something that’s known for quality and craftsmanship, opt for the Benchmade Bugout. This is the ultimate weekender or adventurer knife because it’s so lightweight yet durable.

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This post was originally written in 2015 but was updated in May 2024.

Every now and again, we like to take a look at the best-selling knives here at Knife Depot to find out what models and designs are currently the most popular. While the best-sellers change pretty frequently, this is usually a good indicator of the types of knives people are reaching for.

We thought I’d be cool to share this information with you, so you can also see what knives people are picking up. We took data from the last 12 months but also mixed in some of our own proprietary calculations like revenue to determine the top-sellers from  CRKT.

The original list only contained five knives and four of those are now discontinued.

10. CRKT Onion Throwing Knife

People love new knives, so many of the knives on this list were released in the last year or so. Coming in at number 10 was Ken Onion’s first foray into throwing knives: the aptly named CRKT Onion Throwing Knives.

Throwing knives are always among the top-sellers at Knife Depot, so when you add Ken Onion’s iconic name and design cues to a set of three throwers, you get a bestseller.

9. CRKT Ritual

The Ritual is an unusual knife in that it’s probably not a knife you’re going to be carrying around much because it’s big and gaudy. Still, people love this large folder from Alan Folts.

It’s inspired by Persian knife designs with a 4.37-inch upswept blade and Micarta and steel handle.

8. CRKT Squid Compact

You might not think so, but people love small knives.

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This post was originally published in 2012 but was updated in 2022 to include more fear-inducing killers and their knives.

The slasher movie is the bread-and-butter of the horror genre: give a guy a mask, a giant, glistening blade, and a few busty cheerleaders to carve up and you’re almost guaranteed to sell a couple million tickets.

At the Cutting Edge, we’re, of course, not encouraging you to use your knives for anything violent, but at the same time, we’d be remiss if we didn’t spend a second during the Halloween season to recognize some of the most brutal slashers in film history.

I originally created this post way back in 2012 with a meager four movie killers. So, I decided to revisit this ancient post to give it new life with 10 horrific movie killers.

Patrick Bateman | American Pyscho

Patrick Bateman, played by Christian Bale in the 2000 movie American Psycho, is a yuppie, status-obsessed Wall Street banker with a penchant  for bloodshed. Whether he’s carving up a defenseless homeless man with a pocket knife or slaughtering a rival with an axe, this guy’s got a bevy of murderous blades in tow at all time.

He’s also a big fan of unleashing deeply profound, sensitive critiques of ’80s pop music before commencing murder.

Knife of Choice: Ax

Even though he’s featured on the cover art with a kitchen knife, I don’t remember him actually using one in the movie. Instead, he uses a bunch of different weapons to murder people, ranging from his teeth to a pocket knife.

However, he seems to have the most “fun” with the ax. The one in the movie is most similar to the Cold Steel Trail Boss.

Jason Voorhees | Friday the 13th

When it comes to knife-wielding villans of the silver screen, few can match the body count of Jason Voorhees from The Friday the 13th Series.

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This post was first published in 2016 but updated in 2023 to include different models.

In this world of big-box stores and 128-ounce sodas, some say the bigger, the better. In the world of knives, however, that’s not always the case. Sure, you could get a truly massive folder like the Cold Steel Counter Point XL (which has a 6-inch blade) for hard-core tasks, but what about when you need to carry something light that can cut some twine or open a package.

That’s when smaller is better.

For those who want a lightweight knife that will slip unnoticed in any pocket or attach easily to a keychain, we searched our store for the smallest knives around. There are a lot of tiny knives out there, but these come with blade lengths around 1.75 inches and under.

CRKT Squid Compact

Blade length: 1.75 inches
Overall length: 4.65 inches

The Squid was already a small yet bulky folder that was consistently called one of the best little big knives ever made.

So when CRKT decided to shrink some of its popular folders even more, the Squid was a natural choice. The Squid Compact has a small but capable 1.75-inch blade and an overall length of 4.65 inches.

Despite its small size, it’s still a very capable knife.

Spyderco Bug

Blade length: 1.27 inches
Overall length: 2.9 inches

Spyderco makes some minuscule knives like the Ladybug and HoneyBee, but the Spyderco Bug is the tiniest of all. This cute little guy fits in the palm of your hand with a 1.27-inch blade. When engaged, the knife comes in at less than 3 inches long.

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This post was originally published in 2015 and has since been updated.

My son is only two years old, but I’m already looking forward to all things I’ll teach him about my trade. Unfortunately, the things I work with aren’t necessarily cool. Sure, blogging and the occasional graphic design is fun, but it’s not nearly as badass as making knives.

A select few fathers and sons have traded thoughts and ideas surrounding knives, and some have even collaborated on designs.

Since it’s the time of year when fathers and sons get together, we decided to take a look at the father and son duos in the knife world. Let us know in the comments if we made any glaring omissions.

Michael and Baltazar E. Martinez

Michael, along with his father Baltazar, invented a number of items over the years, but what they were best known for was the CRKT Ultima Fixed Blade. Michael Martinez is a sculptor, inventor, and martial artist who helped reinvent the fixed blade with the Ultima.

Here’s what Michael said at the CRKT site: “In my edged weapons training, I kept noticing how many knives didn’t feel right, didn’t have a grip that gave both control and comfort in the four fundamental tactical grips.”

His father, who was a mechanical engineer working on classified nuclear system design for the defense department for more than 30 years, contributed to the project by injecting his own design into the knife.

The result was a knife that achieved 22 out of 23 ideal contact points with its comfortable handle. Even though this father and son duo is mainly known for designing this one knife, they definitely deserve some recognition.

Sal & Eric Glesser

Few knife makers have brought such innovation and legitimacy to the knife world like the legendary Sal Glesser. Sal—the founder of Spyderco—not only pioneered features like the pocket clip, serrations, and ambidextrous opening hole but he’s also a very down to earth guy. You can find him frequenting knife forums and answering people’s questions with honesty and modesty. He designed the Delica, Endura, Military, Persistence, and many others.

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This post was originally written in September 2017 and updated in March 2023 to include newer models.

Finding the perfect steel is tough. Not only are there so many types available but there are also tons of factors to consider — price, ease of sharpening, hardness, corrosion resistance, and more.

The perfect steel is ever elusive, but you can pick the right steel for the job. If you want a steel that’s nearly stainless but has great edge retention and wear-resistance, opt for D2.

D2 tool steel has been around for a very long time. It became popular as a tool steel during World War II in factories. In terms of knives, knife makers Wayne Goddard and Bob Dozier pioneered the use of D2 steel in knives. In fact, Dozier is sometimes called Dr. D2.

Here is an excerpt from Steve Shackleford’s Blade Magazine post on why D2 is still so great after all these years:

While D2 may not be stainless, it remains a top performer due in no small part to its high wear resistance/edge-holding ability. “It will hold an edge for a very long time before it will go dull,” says Paul Tsujimoto, director of engineering at Ontario Knife Co.  Combined with its relatively inexpensive price, this makes D2 a favorite of manufacturers and custom makers alike. “For us, it’s the perfect combination of performance and an affordable price,” notes Dietmar Pohl of Pohl Force Knives. Agrees Devanna, “It’s the best bang for the buck because it’s priced reasonably and works well.”

While D2 does sacrifice ease of sharpening and some corrosion resistance, it remains an excellent choice for knife users everywhere.

If you’re interested in seeing what D2 has to offer, I collected a list of 20 knives that showcase the variety of D2 knives. Take a look.

1. CRKT Pilar III

The CRKT Pilar has been an unexpected hit the last few years. Although the larger Pilar was fine, it didn’t live up to the original. But the Pilar III definitely does.

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This article was first published back in May 2016. It was updated in November 2022 to reflect newer models.

Behold the wonders of titanium.

This metal alloy has so many advantages in its favor—from superior corrosion resistance to excellent durability—that it’s a coveted material. Even though it’s heavier than other materials like carbon fiber, titanium is surprisingly lightweight for a strong metal. The amalgamation of all these characteristics makes titanium one hell of a material for knife handles.

No company has done a better job at making titanium handles than Spyderco. So, we decided to take a look at six Spyderco knives that expertly utilized titanium handles.

1. Spyderco SpydieChef

Let’s kick things off with one of Spyderco’s best knives available: the Spyderco SpydieChef. Back when this article was first published, it wasn’t out yet. Since its release, this titanium folder has vaulted up to become not just one of best titanium Spyderco knives but one of Spyderco’s best knives ever.

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Quick, empty your pockets.

If you happen to be outside the house, you’ll likely have at least three items: a wallet, phone, and keys. We’ve already talked about credit-card knives that fit into wallets and the iPhone multitool case, but that leaves us with keys.

Since your keys are always within reach whenever you’re outside the house, they’re a natural place to attach essential tools.

If you’re looking to make your keys even more useful, we’ve assembled this list of tools that fit right on your keychain.

Some of the tools we first wrote about when this was published in May 2015 have gone the way of the dodo, so we decided to give this list an update.

Gerber Shard

The Gerber Shard is a small and easy to carry piece of steel that doesn’t overwhelm with functions. The small tool has two screwdrivers, a pry bar, a nail remover, a bottle and can opener, a scraper, and whatever else you can get out of it.

The tool is 2.75 inches long and made of stainless steel with black titanium coating.

Victorinox Classic SD

Perhaps the best-known multitool ever is the Swiss Army knife. The Victorinox Classic SD is not only one of the best-selling Swiss Army knives but it is also small enough to fit on your keychain.

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This post was originally published in April 2017 but was updated to include newer models.

There’s nothing like living in the great United States of America, but sometimes you simply have to get out to see the world. Unfortunately, not all of your knives can make the trip with you.

If you’re traveling to the United Kingdom (or live there), your knives will be heavily regulated and subject to confiscation if they don’t meet stringent requirements (and sometimes if they do).

Despite bin campaigns, increasing regulations on knife purchases, and a general demonization of all bladed tools, knife and gun crime saw a significant spike last year. That means knives will be under even more scrutiny.

You can still carry knives in the United Kingdom under very specific circumstances.

UK Knife Laws

Before we get into the actual knives you can carry, here are the basic knife laws in the UK.

“It is illegal to carry a knife in public without good reason – unless it’s a knife with a folding blade 3 inches long (7.62cm) or less.” It seems like it is therefore legal to carry a larger knife or even a fixed blade as long as it’s for “good reason” but I wouldn’t push my luck.

All locking knives are banned, including those in multitools (RIP Victorinox SwissChamp). There’s also a host of banned knives and weapons in the books, such as butterfly knives, flick knives, gravity knives, disguised knives, zombie knives (even those that fall under the regular regulations!), and more.

With that in mind, here are 12 UK-legal knives.*

*It’s very possible these knives will still be taken away so exercise caution no matter what.

1. Spyderco UK Penknife

Let’s start with the quintessential UK knife: the Spyderco UK Penknife. This knife typically tops all of these UK-legal lists because Spyderco designed this knife specifically with those laws in mind. The UK Penknife uses quality materials with a 2.93-inch CTS BD1 steel blade and an FRN handle. It weighs only 1.7 ounces and represents the best a typical US-made Spyderco has to offer.

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