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Boker Plus Exskelibur I – Badass Knife of the Week

February 5, 2018 / Tim / 0 Comments

Boker has released hundreds if not thousands of models over the past hundred years, but few have seen the success or critical acclaim as the Boker Plus Exskelibur line.

The Boker Plus Exskelibur I is a gentleman’s folder that pulls out all the stops. Along with using the best materials on the market, the knife features a simple design you wouldn’t be afraid to take to an office party or use out at the construction site.

The knife — designed by South African knifemaker Mike Skellern — boasts a long 3.5-inch blade made from high-quality CPM-S35VN stainless steel, an alloy known for its wear resistance, toughness, and increased ease of sharpening. The blade profile is a straightforward drop point design that performs well in nearly every way.

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Adding to the intrigue of the folder is the unobtrusive front flipper. It takes a second to get used to it, but you’ll be wishing the flipper was so placed on every knife. A framelock mechanism keeps the blade securely engaged.

What is a Knife’s Boye Dent?

February 1, 2018 / Tim / 8 Comments

The great thing about knives is just how many minor changes and innovations there are. Sure, we know about the biggies like creation of the pocket clip by Spyderco’s Sal Glesser or the Reeve Integral Lock, but what about the smaller things?

For example, if you’ve bought a Spyderco with a lockback mechanism in the past few years, you’ve undoubtedly used something called the Boye Dent.

But just what is the Boye Dent?

Here it is.

The Boye Dent is a very minor addition that’s infiltrated modern lockback knives from Spyderco. It is essentially a scallop-shaped recess in the release bar of the lockback or mid lock.

What is the Purpose of the Boye Dent?

The Boye Dent was pioneered by knifemaker David Boye, who is now known for designing boating knives. On his site, it says that the dent is for “preventing accidental disengagement of the blade when the handle is gripped tightly.”

Blue Whale Folder by Boye Knives

Essentially, when you put the palm of your hand against the release bar, there is less material there to accidentally disengage the knife.

Fox 479 Folding Karambit – Badass Knife of the Week

January 29, 2018 / Tim / 1 Comment

Although some people call the karambit nothing but a gimmick, it just means they’ve never used one the right way.

Because when it comes to self-defense, it’s hard to beat the Fox 479 Folding Karambit.

This unparalleled self-defense tool has undergone rigorous testing in extreme climates and high-pressure situations and utilizes all the advancements you could ever need.

Here’s an excellent video review from ForPete’sSake:

Highlighting the knife is the curved 3.14-inch liner locking blade that’s been coated in black teflon to dampen the reflective properties of the N690Co stainless steel.

See the New 2018 SOG Knives

January 24, 2018 / Tim / 0 Comments

It’s time for some more new knives.

We’ve already checked in on the new releases from Benchmade , CRKT, and Kershaw.

A few others have announced their new lineup, but today it’s all about SOG.

SOG has done well over the past few years. They strove for innovation and succeeded last year in the very unique Baton multitool series. Here’s a writeup on the Baton series if you’re interested. 2017 also saw the arrival of a few slipjoint knives and more Arc-locking knives.

For 2018, SOG kept the lineup nice and tight. I almost prefer a smaller, more manageable lineup of knives than being inundated with dozens of models. Let’s just hope that focus on fewer models means they’re very well done.

SOG-TAC California Special

I currently live in California. It’s not the most knife-friendly place, but there is a growing number of knives that cater to the tighter knife laws regarding automatics. SOG is getting in on the action with the SOG-TAC California Special.

This is an automatic that conforms to the laws in California. You’re basically allowed to carry an automatic as long as it has a blade under two inches. The California Special abides with a 1.9-inch AUS-8 clip point blade — well it says clip point but the small blade gives it a nice curve.

New 2018 Kershaw Knives

January 23, 2018 / Tim / 1 Comment

With SHOT Show starting today, that means Kershaw is releasing its new line of knives for 2018.

What do they have in store for us this year?

Kershaw has 15 new products this year. However, several are simply updates or new iterations of old products. From a quick glance at the new models, there’s nothing really mind-blowing, but you can expect some solid EDC knives.

Kershaw Method

Kershaw collaborated with Jens Anso on a few knives over the years, including the Fraxion. The latest is the Method.

The knife has a 3-inch 8Cr13MoV steel blade that uses KVT ball-bearing opening and a flipper. It looks good and comes to a piercing point.

MSRP $39.99

Kershaw Decimus

The Decimus is based on a Rick Hinderer design. It has the look of a stiletto with a dagger-style blade (though only one side is sharpened for legal reasons). The blade is 3.25 inches and uses 8Cr13MoV as well as SpeedSafe.

This is visually appealing though I’m not sure how many people would actually carry it.

MSRP $49.99

Kershaw Flythrough

On first glance, I almost thought this was the Blackout, but it features a different design upon closer inspection. This is an RJ Martin design, who has designed a few very solid knives for Kershaw.

Buck 102 Woodsman – Badass Knife of the Week

January 22, 2018 / Tim / 0 Comments

Take a poll of outdoorsmen on what their favorite lightweight fixed blade for general outdoor use and most will put the understated Buck 102 Woodsman on the list. The kicker is that the Woodsman would be on that list any time in the past 40 years.

So, how could such an old knife remain in the hearts and minds of knife fans everywhere for so long? The answer is in the tried-and-true design perfected by Buck.

The design stems from the hugely popular and successful Buck 119 Special, complete with its clip point blade, black handles, and polished hand guard.

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The Woodsman is a smaller version of the knife with a 4-inch clip point blade made from 420HC stainless steel. In less capable hands, the steel would only be adequate but excels under the tutelage of Paul Bos, an industry leader in heat treating.

Canada Customs Bans Import of Nearly All Folding Knives

January 17, 2018 / Tim / 27 Comments

What is going on?!

Just a few months after Canada joined the rest of the world (except the United States, of course) in allowing small knives on planes, it announced a sweeping change that essentially bans nearly every type of folding knife in existence from being imported into the country.

On January 5, here’s what the Canada Border Services Agency wrote on its website:

In accordance with subsection 84(1) of the Criminal Code and the CITT’s recent decision in T. LaPlante, the CBSA resolves that centrifugal knives will be classified as prohibited weapons if the following conditions are met:

a. a knife has a blade that opens by centrifugal force, when the blade is released from the handle into the fully ejected and locked position with a simple and brisk outwardly flick of the wrist; and

b. it includes knives that require some preliminary or simultaneous minimal manipulation of either a flipper or other non-edged parts of the blade.

Knives that can be opened with the flick of your wrist are prohibited. This could include those knives that also use a flipper or other non-edged parts like a thumb stud.

If applied broadly, that pretty much covers the vast majority of folding knives — whether it has an assisted-opening mechanism or not. While slipjoints are safe in theory, you could probably open most of them with centrifugal force if you tried because this includes non-edged parts of the blade. (Hold the spine of a blade on your Swiss Army Knife and it’s not hard to see how you could do it.)

The ZT0350 was the subject of other CBSA disputes.

If you think I’m being a bit flippant, just take a look at how a similar law was implemented in New York City. The laws there are very vague and police have taken advantage of the vagary to classify pretty much any folding knife they want as an illegal gravity knife.

Needless to say, the takes have been brutal.

History of the Wharncliffe Blade

January 16, 2018 / Tim / 24 Comments

KA-BAR Wharnstalker

Tracing the origins of anything related to knives is difficult.

The sheer length of time knives have been used by humans makes going back to the first anything often impossible. Who made the first knife? Well, it depends on what you classify as a knife, but it was probably some unnamed Australopithecine dude more than two million years ago.

But when you have the ability to trace a single invention related to knives to a single moment, it’s always cool.

In a series of posts, I will be examining the history of specific innovations and evolutions in the knife community.

This first post will deal with the Wharncliffe blade. You can also check out our list of the top Wharncliffe Blades.

The Origins of the Wharncliffe

The year is 1820 (or thereabouts). For a look at what was going on in the world, Maine had recently become the 23rd state in the burgeoning United States of America.

According to the 1878 edition of “British Manufacturing Industries,” the first Lord of Wharncliffe — James Archibald Stuart-Wortley-Mackenzie — was having dinner with his relative Archdeacon Corbett in Great Britain.

Victorinox Pioneer – Badass Knife of the Week

January 15, 2018 / Tim / 1 Comment

There are hundreds of models of Swiss Army Knives, each with its own set of tools and appearance. It’s hard to pick just one above all the others, but if you only have one choice for EDC, consider the Victorinox Pioneer.

With the Pioneer being the civilian version of the Soldier — “the true Swiss Army Knife” — it has everything you need to get by, nothing more and nothing less.

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The Pioneer has eight functions. It has a large blade, reamer, can opener with small screwdrvier, bottle opener with large screwdriver and wire stripper, and key ring.

How to Tell If You Have a Real Damascus Steel Blade

January 11, 2018 / Tim / 48 Comments

Real Damascus Steel Knife

The knife world is, unfortunately, no stranger to fakes and frauds.

From people on eBay trying to pass off $400 Sebenzas as authentic to sellers on Amazon unknowingly peddling fake CRKTs and SOGs, counterfeit knives are everywhere. While I recently wrote a guide on how to spot a counterfeit knife, it didn’t address another popular question — is my Damascus knife a fake?

Damascus knives have exploded in popularity over the years, popping up everywhere from top-tier brands like Spyderco (think the Endura and others) to smaller names like BucknBear.

What makes people even more confused about the legitimacy of Damascus steel are the massive price differences. How can a $50 Damascus knife be “real” when other Damascus blades are priced at $500 or more?

Let’s dig deeper.

What is Damascus?

Before we get into spotting fakes, it’s important to understand what Damascus steel actually is.

Damascus is known for its distinctive wavy patterns—an exotic, almost hypnotic look that’s instantly recognizable. But getting that pattern the right way comes down to two types of “real” Damascus steel:

The Cutting Edge

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