Knife collecting is an extremely rewarding experience for knife enthusiasts. There truly is a knife for everyone. Many increase or hold their value throughout the years, making collecting knives something to pass on to the next generation of knife collectors.
The recent Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor Trade (SHOT) Show in Las Vegas introduced many new factory knives from many production companies, including several fresh models from CRKT. Here are eight of CRKT’s latest cutters.
CRKT Saker
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The CRKT Saker is a bushcraft knife designed by BLADE® Magazine contributor Abe Elias. It features a Scandi-ground blade of 1075 carbon steel, a walnut handle and leather sheath. It includes a special bushcraft tool for scraping, pitch harvesting, wedge splitting or prying.
This is a numbered Official BLADE Show Exclusive knife with limited quantity – only 300 available! Each custom Tighe Rade™ knife touts the Blade Show logo.
Designed by Brian Tighe, this knife is anything but understated. The textured and grooved aluminum handle complements the multi-purpose compound ground blade. The tip of the blade is reinforced, making it ideal for stronger cutting applications, while the area of the blade closer to the handle is optimal for finer cutting tasks and wire stripping. Keeping the blade secure is a button lock, allowing you to efficiently deploy the blade with a flipper or ambidextrous dual thumb studs. If you’re looking for a versatile blade with extreme style and sophistication, this is it. Learn more
In the April 2015 issue of BLADE® is a fascinating feature article about four knife collectors whose collections each consist overwhelmingly of the knives of one knifemaker only. The collectors and the makers they collect? The article, written by Stephen Garger, lists Chris Schluter, who enjoys accumulating the knives of Bob Terzuola; Tony Wang, who began collecting Bob Lum knives in the late 1980s; Tashi Bharucha, whose collection focuses on Tom Mayo knives; and Don Deckert who collects Ernest Emerson knives.
Don Deckert’s collection of Ernest Emerson customs includes these seven (left) very early “garage make” pre-tac knives.
The feature starts:
You’ve heard of people collecting dozens, even hundreds of assorted genres of knives, but have you heard of collectors amassing up to 100 or more knives of a single maker? Chris Schluter knows of such collectors and suggested the phenomenon as a topic for a BLADEstory.
Chris enjoys accumulating the knives of Bob Terzuola and is one of several who practice the one-maker approach to knife collecting. See the April 2015 issue of BLADE to read the rest of the article, or click here.
Tashi Bharucha’s Tom Mayo collection (left) features at least 55 of the popular maker’s knives, including one of Bharucha’s designs, the “Mayo Chopper,” though Mayo calls it “The Tashinator.”
The Hunter Pro from Victorinox is hard to miss in the new orange handle.The Kershaw booth was abuzz with activity at the SHOT Show.
The latest in factory knives and accessories were among the surest of bets at the recent Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor, Trade (SHOT) Show in Las Vegas.
New automatics—no doubt spurred in part by the recent repeal of antiquated switchblade bans in a number of states, a move led by pro-knife groups Knife Rights and the American Knife & Tool Institute—were introduced by such companies as Buck, Kershaw, Hogue, Timberline, Pro-Tech and Benchmade. Tomahawks/hatchets were also a hot item, with new versions offered by Spyderco, Puma, 5.11 Tactical, Hogue, Kershaw, SOG and Camillus. Big knives, including machetes, bowies, bolos and camp models, also sizzled, with DPx Gear, Benchmade, CRKT, HK, Steel Will, Outdoor Edge and Condor Tool & Knife among those in the mix.
There were a number of other knives of note, including a new lightweight tactical fixed blade designed by ABS master smith Jerry Fisk based on a longer, flattened out version of his Sendero hunter for White River Knife & Tool. Canal Street Cutlery, in a departure for it, also offered a new tactical fixed blade with slabs provided by VZ Grips and models named after battles of the Iraq War.
With its Impact model, Buck was among the companies introducing new automatics at the SHOT Show.
“Celebrity steel” also proliferated, including a new Utica/Kutmaster knife inspired by the Pigman TV series, tactical fixed blades designed for Camillus by retired Green Beret Grady Powell and retired Navy SEAL Jared Ogden of TV’s Ultimate Survival Alaska, and a chopper from Condor used by survivalist Matt Graham on TV’s Dual Survival.
Meanwhile, Buck presented the 245 Matt Would Go knife based on the design of Navy SEAL Matthew Leathers. Leathers gave his life for his country in 2013 when he was lost at sea during open ocean training exercises.
Smith’s Edgesport 10-N-1 Suvival Multi-Tool offers 10 different survival tools in one.
Mora introduced what for it is a higher-end kitchen knife set—three models in birch handles and 14C28N Swedish Sandvik steel at an MSRP of $299. Zero Tolerance offered new, smaller folders in the $200 MSRP range, and Kershaw introduced a new, larger version of its CQC-4 Ernest Emerson collaboration. Spyderco presented a number of new models, including a Craig Douglas (aka “Southnarc”)/Michael Janich “two-way” fixed blade called the “Reverse” in which the handle slabs can be detached and the knife flipped/reversed and the handles reattached, resulting in mirror-image “edge-out” ergonomics, or two knives in one. Meanwhile, ESEE announced the debut of its long-awaited bushcraft line of fixed blades.
Case introduced its “reborn” version of the V-42 with a special hollow grind based on the original blueprint of the knife made famous by the First Special Service Force, the father of today’s spec ops units, of World War II. A special treat was two surviving members of the FSSF—90-year-old Del Stonehouse and 93-year-old Eugene Gutierrez—on hand at the Case booth. Look for a special story on them in a future issue of BLADE® magazine.
For the complete rundown on the knives from the SHOT Show, see the June BLADE in March.
See the latest knives, swords, and edges of all types, and explore the latest trends in blades, steels, styles, and materials. Gaze upon a “State of the Art” section parading engraved, scrimshawed, jewel-inlaid, carved, etched, sculpted and forge-welded, and Damascus and mosaic-damascus knives. Click here.
Kirby Lambert resumes his perennial presence on the to-watch list of Neil Ostroff of True North Knives with such models as the Prototype Crossroads flipper in CTS XHP stainless steel, a Mokuti handle with zirconium bolsters and an IKBS bearing system. (TNK image)Dave Stark of Steel Addiction Custom Knives said two of knifemaker Lee Williams’ protégés are gaining attention quickly: Daniel Galloway and Pat Hammond. A collaboration with Williams, Galloway’s Mongoose is the cover knife of the March 2015 issue of BLADE®. Galloway’s price: $1,600. (Kris Kandler image)
Who will be the knifemakers to watch in 2015? How sharp is one of the hottest new knife steels in the industry? What were the most important knife stories of 2014? Learn the answers to these questions and much more in the new BLADE®, on newsstands today!
Some of the USA’s top custom knife purveyors were polled for the knifemakers to watch in the new year, with one of those makers, Daniel Galloway, having his “Mongoose” collaboration knife with Lee Williams serving as this issue’s cover piece. See who the other makers are, along with some of their top work, in the new BLADE on page 12.
The high-carbon steel known as 80CrV2 is among the newer and hotter blade materials among custom knifemakers especially.
Follow ABS master smith and BLADE field editor Joe Szilaski as he makes a knife of the steel and tries it out in his knifemaking and knife-using instructional, “How Sharp Is 80CrV2?”
The year past has seen many highlights and lowlights, from the landmark announcement by the Knifemakers’ Guild and the American Bladesmith Society that, after almost 40 years of jousting, they will finally hold their first annual combined knife show in 2015, trends—or were they just fads?—in the industry, to the back-and-forth between the federal government and legal ivory owners over changes in ivory regulations. Get the scoop on these happenings and more in “’14’s Blades of Grey.”
While on the subject of ivory, award-winning knifemaker Jim Hammond has made knives for decades, a number with ivory and ancient ivory handles.
Not only did he conduct an in-depth seminar on ivory at the 2014 BLADE Show, he also volunteered to write a three-part story on the past, present and future of the misunderstood substance. Check out part one in the new BLADE on page 78.
KnifeArt’s Larry Connelley said Duane Dwyer’s reputation for knife innovation helps place him among the makers to watch in the coming year. Dwyer’s SnG with a titanium frame carries a KnifeArt price of $1,200. (KnifeArt image)
There’s much more in this issue, including the latest in big flipper folders, profiles of Masecraft Supply and Pohl Force Knives, a test of two compact custom axes, four hot factory slip joints, HEPK master smith and BLADE field editor Ed Fowler’s essay on how knifemakers must follow their inner muse in “It Takes Courage To Be Yourself,” and much more, all in the March BLADE.
Check out the custom knifemakers to watch in 2015 in the new BLADE®, on newsstands now!
Navajo artist David Yellowhorse has collaborated with Buck on some of the most beautiful knives anywhere, and the two have nailed it again with the Yellowhorse Spirit Singer. The handle is turquoise, black jet and nickel silver. The knife comes with a glass top display case and in a limited edition of 100 (if, indeed, any are left!)
See the latest knives, swords, and edges of all types, and explore the latest trends in blades, steels, styles, and materials. Gaze upon a “State of the Art” section parading engraved, scrimshawed, jewel-inlaid, carved, etched, sculpted and forge-welded, and Damascus and mosaic-damascus knives. Click here.
Ed Halligan’s K.I.S.S. design (left) revolutionized factory folding knives. At right is his Delilah’s P.E.C.K. design. Both knives are reproduced by CRKT. (CRKT image)
An unusually high number of knifemakers have died recently, all of whom left more than their fair share of lifelong marks on family, friends and the knife industry. In terms of influence on knife design, though, the two that probably had the largest impact were Ed Halligan and Kit Carson.
Ironically, both men designed wildly popular folding knives for CRKT, and it is those folders that have been so influential on the knife industry.
The K.I.S.S. is a simple yet ingenious folding knife. In the closed position, its two-piece frame-lock construction and safe, user-friendly design “seals” the cutting edge of the chisel-ground blade against the handle. As Halligan once explained, “With the K.I.S.S., the frame and the lock are all one piece … I made the original knife with the blade chisel ground on one side only so it would slide against the frame when folded and make a seal so you wouldn’t cut yourself.”
Kit Carson’s M16 design remains one for the ages. This is the M16-12Z CRKT repro. The flipper is the extension with the hole in it seen here acting as a guard just below the handle pivot. (CRKT image)
In fact, when it first came out, I recall talking to one long-time industry observer who thought the K.I.S.S. was a lawsuit waiting to happen because he thought consumers would cut themselves on the blade edge despite the blade’s seal against the handle in the closed position. However, Halligan’s version of the design works so well that such accidental cuts never happen. One of the main reasons the design is safe is that Halligan tested it in real-life conditions to be sure that such accidents never occur. “Safety is a big reason why I carried the knife around so much to make sure it worked properly,” Halligan said.
In 1997, Halligan signed a deal with CRKT for the company to reproduce the K.I.S.S., and CRKT launched the repro of the knife at the 1998 SHOT Show. Only four years old at the time, CRKT was struggling to find a knife that would help “drag the rest of the product lines along,” as CRKT’s Rod Bremer put it. The K.I.S.S. was that knife. Unfortunately, a number of unscrupulous companies blatantly knocked the K.I.S.S. off so much that it eventually became one of the most copied sporting knives worldwide. CRKT and Halligan weathered that storm, though, and Ed designed a series of K.I.S.S. iterations and spinoffs for CRKT that included the Delilah’s P.E.C.K. (for Precision Engineered Compact Knife), Samson’s K.I.S.S., the H.U.G. (Halligan’s Ultimate Gadget), the Slip K.I.S.S., the Neck P.E.C.K., the blackened K.I.S.S. In The Dark, even a fixed-blade version called the Stiff K.I.S.S. and others.
Just as they were linked in their passing, Halligan and Carson were also linked in their CRKT collaboration deals. CRKT must have been living right back in those days because it was just a year after signing the deal with Halligan to reproduce the K.I.S.S. that it signed the deal with Carson to reproduce Carson’s M16 folder. Even though Carson did not invent the flipper, his M16 is universally credited as the model that popularized flipper folders—folding knives with one-hand-opening “flippers” that double as guards when the blade is opened. “The M16 with the Carson Flipper was a huge improvement on non-assisted blade opening, making a manual knife open almost as fast as an auto without a secondary thumb stud or hole mechanism,” observed long-time knife writer Mac Overton. “Because it had less moving parts and its opening relied on inertia rather than a spring or torsion bar, the mechanism was inherently stable and reliable.”
The M16 and its military look—Carson was a U.S. Army career man—soon became not only immensely popular with consumers but with service personnel as well. In fact, by many accounts, the M16 was the most popular knife among active duty service personnel in the wars in both Iraq and Afghanistan.
Turn back the clock with BLADE‘s digital collection of annual KNIVES books. Get every KNIVES book from 2004 to 2015 in one PDF download for just $79.99.
The Nov. 4 elections will impact the pending ivory ban, though to what extent depends on several factors. Meanwhile, even legal ancient ivory has been banned in New Jersey! Robert Appleby uses legal mammoth ivory on his fixed blades. (Chuck Ward photo)
While some might think Republicans taking control of Congress as a result of the Nov. 4 elections will be good for those fighting a pending legal ivory ban, such may not be the case.
Rob Mitchell of the Elephant Protection Association indicated that though the election results would seem to make a Republican majority in Congress more effective at challenging “out-of-control administrative agencies” that want to ban all legal ivory, including knives with handles of legal ivory, it could also have the opposite effect.
Since President Obama has indicated he will do what he thinks necessary to deal with aliens in the country illegally through executive order or administrative action by the end of the year at the latest, it also may mean he will take a similar approach to such issues as the ivory ban. “If so,” Mitchell writes, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) “may become more aggressive with regulations putting politics ahead of science-based conservation.”
Moreover, he added, such non-governmental organizations (NGOs) as the World Wildlife Fund, Africa Wildlife Foundation, Wildlife Conservation Society, international and American humane societies and others will “continue to spread misinformation in Congress to confuse issues and push an animal rights agenda in spite of the harm it will cause to legitimate conservation efforts and people who own legal ivory.”
As a result, Mitchell urges all those against the ban on legal ivory to either contact or to continue to contact their legislators and see where the legislators stand on House Resolution 5052 and Senate Bill 2587. In a nutshell, if approved, both measures would roll back the attempt by USFWS to ban legal ivory to the status quo of February 2014, “while allowing the government to pursue other means to combat elephant poaching and other wildlife trafficking.”
See the latest knives, swords, and edges of all types, and explore the latest trends in blades, steels, styles, and materials. Gaze upon a “State of the Art” section parading engraved, scrimshawed, jewel-inlaid, carved, etched, sculpted and forge-welded, and Damascus and mosaic-damascus knives. Click here.
2015 BLADE Show CRKT Tighe Rade™
