Hey everyone, David C. Andersen here
coming at you from the KnifeCenter, and today we're taking a look at the best CRKT
pocket knives that you can get your hands on right now in 2020. Let's check them out.
So the success of CRKT is always hinged on their ability to bring knives from big
name knife designers to a mass market with some affordable prices. Obviously they're
not the only company that does this but for them. They've really made their name with that strategy.
The first knife on our list today is the M 40, which is a design by Kit Carson, who is really
intrinsically linked to the success of CRKT as a company, and this m 40 channels the legacy of the
M 16, which is the knife that really helped kick off the flipper craze back in the day. This kind
of updated or reimagined take on that m 16 design. Now comes with CRKT's new deadbolt lock, which has
been spreading across their lineup because of the strength it offers as well as the ease of use. Now
the button to actuate the lock is actually part of the pivot itself and when I turn the knife over.
You can see this bar on the back, and essentially this is kind of a U shaped arrangement that runs
through the Tang of the knife. When you push that button down to little prongs pull out of the Tang
of the knife and it allows you to close it. In a way it kind of feels like the deadbolt on a door
which is why they gave it the name that they did, except with two points of contact on the tongue
of that knife, it feels exceptionally strong, but despite that strength, it is still like I
said very easy to operate with a simple push of that button right there. And you can even flip
it closed when it's broken in, and then just a little bit of extra safety inherent to a design
like this since your fingers stay out of the path of the edge when it's closing, it's that much
safer, plus the lock looks really good when it's anchored in this aluminum bolster as well. We've
got some glass reinforced nylon flanking it, that actually does a fairly good job of mimicking some
carbon fiber fives. As for the rest of the night, we've got ik bs ball bearings in the pivot, which
give us some really good flipping action. Steel they use is a one dot 4116, which gives us some
decent toughness as well as an easy maintenance. There's three sizes of this knife right now with
prices ranging from about 110 to 120. You can get this in a three inch Tonto or in a three and a
half inch spear point blade and both of those come with plain edges also got this version right
here with a four inch spear point blade, as well as a partial serrated edge with veff serrations,
and something you only really see CRKT doing, and the serrations are essentially angled
backward for more aggressive side of material, plus the blade shape like that is just
combat ready with a nice hollow grind and a full deep swedge keeps the tip nice and acute, and
it also helps it to move through softer materials. All right, next up we've got everyone's
favorite affordable gentleman's knife, the CEO from the mind of Richard Rogers,
very affordable at about 40 bucks. One of the nicest things about this
knife is when it's closed up, you've got a real nice pencil like profile when
you put it in your pocket, and the blade itself is completely hidden, plus the glass reinforced
nylon handles on this knife just like on the M 40 feel higher and then the materials would suggest
thanks to the texture that they put on there. Now this is not a flipper but this knife still
manages to have some really excellent opening action. You've got ik bs bearings in the pivot and
the thumb stone itself is in just the right place for the perfect application of pressure. The blade
pops right open and that liner lock holds it open. There's actually a bit of kwaiken style
DNA with this straight back blade design, and that becomes especially apparent on the new
bamboo version, it's not actually a bamboo handle it's just a bright yellow GFN. That's rigid to
mimic a bamboo look creates a nice set of grips for your fingers and the process actually of the
steel itself is 8CR series stainless steel it's simple but effective, and it got a nice narrow
profile that in conjunction with the swedge allows the CEO to make some very precise cuts,
especially when you're going around tight curves. And one of the things that CRKT has been paying
attention to especially a lot with their newer designs are the pocket clips. This one is a
right side tip down only design, but it's deep carry and from the side, you can see a few things
they do to keep from anything snagging on your pocket when you're putting it back there. For one
thing, you've got some flush screw heads, as well as a ramp right in front of the clip itself to
guide the fabric right over there and make sure nothing gets hung up. It's a little small details
like this that really helped push this knife over the top, especially when you consider again this
is just a $40 knife or Next up we've got another great executive knife, similarly slim as that
CEO is the Crossbones flipper, which was designed by Jeff Park is actually a protege of the very
prolific Ken onion who we're gonna see a little bit from him later on to. Now the handles on this
knife are definitely more premium than on the CEO, we've got a two tone aluminum handle and these
new bronze coloration that just came out this year looks insanely good got a liner lock on this
knife as well, but to keep things even classier it's actually inset, so you don't see as much of
that liner popping out when it's closed or open for that matter, comes together to create
a feeling that's definitely more premium than its price would suggest they run from
about 70 to 75 bucks for the standard versions. Now the flipping action on these knives
is backed up again by ik bs bearings, but you've got that flipper instead of the thumb
studs, so it pops open very nicely. And you've got a trailing point profile, with a full flat
grind made from 8CR steel. It's got a good slicing shape and an elegant look, but both of
these last two knives are really good classy folders without breaking the back. They look good
with a suit, they're going to be great for opening letters or packages and the Crossbones especially
is going to make a great gentleman steak knife. And it's almost impossible not to talk
about these next two knives together. We've got a pair of frame locking non slipping
folders that were both released this year with similar specs and color schemes, even
though they come from different designers. We've got the overland up here on top from TJ
Schwartz coming in at the $55 mark, and the tuna from Lucas Burnley here at the bottom for about
45. Now the tuna has a great shape for all around EDC with a hollow ground drop point blade with a
lot of strength because of its broad profile. But despite that width to the profile. It manages to
maintain a very acute point. So you can pull off some fine detail work with the tip as well since
you don't have a lot of belly to get in the way. Now the overland is still a great EDC shape but
it's maybe a little bit more specialized. We've got a flat ground modified sheepsfoot profile with
a bit of an offset to the handle that's going to give you a little bit of knuckle clearance when
you're working on a surface or a cutting board. It's still a pretty versatile shape though since
the canted handle also means that the tip is going to be raised up a little bit when you hold it
in a standard grip. So it's kind of almost the best of both worlds between a sheep's foot and a
drop point. But tying these two knives together. You've got black stonewashed 8CR steel for the
blades green g 10 handles with some accenting pivot collars and back spacers we've got orange on
the overland and bronze on the tuna. They've also got black stone washed frames and again there was
some special attention paid to the pocket clips. Each of them is folded back over onto themselves
and to keep your pockets from snagging on these knives. For one thing, you've got the smooth
metal of the frame, but also the pocket clip is inset into a milled recess so that it sits
flush with the frame as well. And then the screws themselves are also flush with the clip.
Finally my favorite thing on both of these knives, is the balance they've managed to
keep these so that the balance point sits right around where your index finger would be
gripping the knife. And that means that you're not really fighting the balance of these blades they
just want to move with you and feel very agile as a result. Another 2020 release to make the list
this year is the BT Fighter series from Brian Tighe. I love the compact version with its three
inch blade which comes in about 45 bucks, but it's only a real short jump to even more capability
just 50 bucks for the 3.64 inch Tonto version. Each one of these knives combines an ik bs back
flipper with a strong button lock mechanism, and they've dialed them in pretty perfectly. It's
got some of the most satisfying action in the sub $50 price range, both on deployment, and the lock
disengagement. The action is just so addicting. You can really do this all day and not
get bored with it doesn't get much more fidget friendly than this. But it's not just
for fun, the walk itself actually provides a good deal of strength as well to go along
with ease of operation. I love the cutting profile of this blade flat ground from 8CR and
it comes with a nicely done stonewashed finish, and the scratches is used the knife we're going
to blend in a little bit better on this type of finish than it would on a satin blade. Plus it's
just a really good looking finish on its own. I've always thought it really looked good with
carbon fiber on the handles as well. We don't get that here these are just GFN, but the texture
on there does mimic the carbon fiber a little bit just like we saw on the M 40, but we do get though
is a nice avant garde shapes that still manages to be pretty stylish. Now the reason I love this
knife and the reason I put it on this list is for one It's not often you see a button lock
at this price range. It's also not too often, that you see a pocket clip like this one, rather
than a simple folded metal clip, you've got a metal clip that's raised on a couple of standoffs,
and then you've got a nice ball bearing here at the tip for retention really cool. And it's that
combination of style and capability that really earns its spot today. Next up is a Jesper Voxnaes
design. The Pilar, which is available in two sizes but I'm particularly fond of this larger version
here. We got this nice sheepsfoot style of cleaver blade on this knife. It's been incredibly
popular, it's still kind of refined but it offers a different kind of style than something
like the CEO, like I said, refined but it feels a little bit more industrial, the smaller versions
have about a 2.4 inch blade and those open with just the thumb cut out on the blade itself
but the larger ones with a 2.7 inch blade and a flipper for deployment as well. The larger
sizes in the range, even offer a D two steel option for a longer lasting edge than these 8CR
versions but no matter which steel you go for in a blade like this with some pretty decent
thickness and a high flat grind. It's going to offer some very powerful cuts despite the small
size. That's partly due to that blade geometry, but also the secure feeling of the frame lock
and the finger choil here that allows for a full grip when the knife is open, despite
folding up to a relatively small footprint, when you put it in your pocket. Now the handle
options include g 10 for more traction copper for more style or the stainless steel you see
here for a more neutral look, and these versions are especially great platforms for modders
or folks who like to customize their knives. You could Etch It, engrave it or do whatever
you want with it and you can truly make this knife your own. All right, now we're going to get
to a couple of CRKT's more out there mechanisms which are things that may seem a little bit like
party tricks at first but they've proven to be quite well thought out and very useful when you
dig into it. And the first is field strip, which allows you to take the knife apart and put it back
together with no tools. You can get this on a few different knives across their lineup, but I still
think that the best model with this mechanism is the design that introduced it which is the
home front by Ken onion. This consists of two different parts you've got a thumb wheel here at
the back, and a switch at the pivot, and that lets you take it apart in just a few seconds into just
three pieces. Like I said before, it might seem a little bit like a novelty but this can actually
be really useful when it comes to cleaning out the insides of the knife, whether just for routine
maintenance or for quick rinses in the field, whether you're hunting or camping or something
like that. Now the most impressive thing to me is every time I've taken one of these apart and
put them back together. When it comes back, the centering is still perfect and the flipping action
is still just superbly crisp as it was beforehand every single time. And if you've ever taken
apart a conventionally screwed together knife, you know that it can sometimes take a little bit
of tweaking to get everything perfectly lined up and centered. When it comes to the reassembly. So
the fact that this knife can do that very quickly and very repeatedly every time. I've always found
like I said to be very impressive. Now there are versions with synthetic handles that come in about
64 bucks. But this aluminum version is definitely the best of the lineup comes in at about 96 right
now. The handles look very cool I think you've got kind of a world war two inspired style, both with
the green coloration as well as the star on the pivot also got a nice deep carry pocket clip as
well to help keep it out of sight until you need it. And for the blade itself, we've got an ever
so slight recurve to the drop point profile. We've got Aus8 steel and a hollow grind, and even has a
nice premium feeling touch with a horizontal satin finish, which is something more common to custom
knives rather than production pieces like this. They've got a good versatile shape for EDC as
well as stuff like hunting or other outdoor pursuits. And it's pretty cool the way they pull
that off the angle to the edge of the blade right at the back, lets the belly drop down a little
bit lower before coming up to meet the point. This allows them to combine really a lot of belly
for slicing or skinning while keeping the point low enough along the axis of the knife to still
be very usable. My last pick maybe a little bit controversial but I stand behind it, because
it shows CRKT's willingness to take a chance on something new and taking that chance really
paid off with the provoke by Joe Caswell, which is an innovative take on the folding karambit
with what they call kinematic opening action, basically you've got two swinging arms that
push the blade forward into that open position, rather than rotating blade around the axis
of a single pivot point. This type of design solves one potential weak point in other folding
karambits, because of the way it opens it's pretty much impossible for the knife to close on your
fingers. If the lock were to become disengaged in the heat of the moment. Speaking of the lock if
you haven't encountered this before it might be a little difficult to figure out, there's actually
a small tab here that you pull back towards the spine with your finger in order to unlock. Usually
it takes two hands, but if you do get used to it, you can kind of get it done with one hand with a
little practice. Now the other thing is kinematic action does is it provides really fast deployment.
You just put your index finger through the ring so you're ready for your reverse grip and your thumb
is already in the right place you just push on the arm rocket's the blade out and it's ready for
you to grip. It's definitely a very fast method of deployment, and it gets even better if you
pocket carry this knife, using the slim line clip right here. You can also use that thumb spot as
a pocket Deployer, you can catch that spot on the arm on the hem of your pocket, and it will open
the blade, as you draw for even more speed.
Now the hawkbill profile on the blade is certainly
intimidating, but it's also not so aggressive that you can also use it for some general utility got
D to steal for some pretty Solid Edge retention and a single primary bevel that's flat on the
backside. Some folks really like the way this type of grind cuts, but they mostly do it here so
that they can keep the sharpened edge, hugging in close to the frame when the knife is closed. Now
there's a few different colors available, and also a serrated blade option with some of those
Veff serrations and there's they're all priced around 200 bucks. There's also a boltaron sheaf
it's available separately for about 35 bucks. But if you're going to get any I recommend you get
the first responder version that I'm holding here. Priced at 225. This version includes the sheet
so you've already saved a little bit of money. And this is also the only version to come
with a ceramic glass breaker on the end and extra utility is always appreciated,
especially when it's essentially free. And that's it for my list today of the best CRKT
pocket knives, you can get in 2020 love to know what you thought of my pics and I should mention
I left out any of the special editions out there that they've produced, such as the Italian made
versions of the home front or the Crossbones just kept it to the regular production items. If
you want to get your hands on any of these knives, we will leave links in the description to take
you over to knifecenter.com. And while you're over there make sure you sign up for our knife rewards
program, because if you're going to put down your hard earned money on one of these knives, you
might as well earn some free money to spend on your next one, I'm David C Andersen from
the KnifeCenter signing off. See you next time.
