Late last week, the knife world suffered a huge loss with the passing of legendary knifemaker Harold “Kit” Carson. Not only was Kit Carson one of the pioneers in the knife industry but he was also a retired master sergeant as well as a mentor and teacher to so many people.
Carson was probably best known for his work with CRKT, which he collaborated with on a few groundbreaking knives like the M16 and M4.
Although he was respected for his knives, one of Carson’s lasting legacies was his willingness to talk to anyone who needed help, had questions, or just wanted to chat. He would go above and beyond to help out.
I was recently trying to pinpoint the person that invented or popularized the flipper and stumbled upon a thread at BladeForums.com from 13 years ago and Kit Carson was kind enough to respond to the post by saying with the utmost humility that it was in fact CRKT and himself who made the flipper popular in today’s folder.
This is just one example of a countless ways Kit Carson would make a point to respond to people and have an open line of communication.
In honor of the knifemaker, we’re looking at 5 of his creations. Incidentally, all of the knives were picked up by manufacturers, but the pictures show his custom work taken directly from his website.
If you are inclined to help out, the family has requested donations be made to parkinson.org.
M4
The Model 4 was Kit’s “flagship custom” (as he called it) because of its popularity. Even though the design was picked up by CRKT for the masses, it remained one of his most requested custom knives. It’s a solid EDC with a simple but reliable design.
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