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While much of the firearms industry spent 2021 focusing on fulfilling demand for existing products, knife companies didn’t miss a beat developing new and intriguing knives of every flavor and configuration. New functional fixed blades? Absolutely. Exciting everyday carry pieces? You bet. As always, there are too many knife introductions for us to be able to cover every one. So, here are the new knives that really stood out at the show.
Benchmade Raghorn
When I first picked up the Raghorn my first thought was “wow…that’s light, really light!” If you want a full-size fixed blade hunting knife without the full-size weight, this is your huckleberry. To save some weight, the 4.6-inch blade is fairly thin. That’s ok though, use it like a knife instead of a crowbar and you’ll be fine. Made from CPM-CruWear® stainless steel, the blade is Cerakoted safety orange, which is good, because this is an expensive knife you’re not going to want to lose. Another weight saving feature is the carbon fiber scales which are lighter than G10 handles. These are beautifully contoured and very comfortable to hold. The carbon fiber scales are fastened to the full-tang blade with blackened stainless steel screws and orange anodized aluminum washers. The combination of orange blade, carbon fiber and the anodized accent pieces give the Raghorn a unique and striking appearance. A Boltaron sheath is included.
Benchmade Raghorn Specifications
- Blade length: 4.6 inches
- Blade thickness: 0.9 inches
- Overall length: 8.8 inches
- Weight: 3.6 ounces
- Sheath weight 21.2 grams
Spyderco C260TIP Stovepipe
I never knew I needed a pocket cleaver until I handled the Spyderco Stovepipe. Ok, “need” is a strong word and it’s not really a cleaver, but after handling it at the SHOT Show my thoughts went from “what the hell would I use that for?” to “I don’t know but it’s crazy cool!” The Stovepipe is inspired by knifemaker David Rydbom’s “Bill the Butcher” design. Named after the top hat worn by the infamous 19th century gang leader William Poole, the Stovepipe’s .157 inch-thick cleaver-shaped blade is made from CPM® 20CV, a powder metallurgy stainless steel with significant amount of chromium and vanadium to increase wear resistance, corrosion resistance, and impact toughness. The blade features a deep hollow grind and the trademark Spyderco opening hole. Beautifully machined and contoured titanium handles and backspacer help offset the weight of the substantial blade and are very comfortable to hold. Even the clip is machined titanium. The finely machined decorative pivot pin also serves as an over travel limiter for the locking bar. With an MSRP of $600.00 the Spyderco Stovepipe isn’t for everyone, but it’s a fascinating and strangely desirable piece. For those looking for a rugged, custom quality, production knife with unique styling and appeal, this fits the bill.
Spyderco C260TIP Stovepipe Specifications
- Blade length: 2.75 inches
- Blade thickness: 0.15 inches
- Overall length: 6.8 inches
- Closed length: 4 inches
- Weight: 4.9 ounces
Hogue Deka
One of Hogue’s new knives for 2022 is a more “accessible” version of their Deka knife line, the Deka Polymer. The new Deka features an injection molded handle rather than machined G10. This substantially reduces the cost while maintaining some nice features for a pocket-knife. One thing immediately noticeable upon grabbing the knife is that it’s exceptionally light. This would be a great choice when wearing thinner or looser clothes where a heavier knife would be obtrusive. The one-hand opening blade is a thin, shallow clip point made from CPM MagnaCut steel and is well suited for EDC or hunting. The Deka features Hogue’s Able Lock which is a crossbolt style mechanism. Left-handers, who are often neglected, will appreciate the ambidextrous, deep-carry pocket clip. While not as “high end” as the other models in the Deka knife line, this new model retains most of the solid features that make this a good, easy-to-carry pocket knife. It should be a good value for the dollar.
Hogue Deka Specifications
- Blade length: 3.25 inches
- Blade thickness: 0.1 inches
- Open length: 7.5 inches
- Closed length: 4.3 inches
- Weight: 2.3 ounces
Bear OPS Bear Tac III
The Bear OPS Bear Tac III is a lot of knife for the money, figuratively and literally. This new fixed-blade knife features full-tang construction with D2 steel. While not the most exotic blade material, D2 is a proven and popular choice because it’s a great balance between cost and performance. The 4.75-inch blade features a non-glare, black finish. Both the handguard/bolster and pommel are made from blackened stainless steel. Machined black G10 grips add to the ruggedness of this stout fixed blade. Some machined texture on the handle would be nice, but with a top and bottom handguard there’s not really any chance of your hand slipping onto the blade. The Bear OPS III is a large knife, but not obnoxiously so, and with its MOLLE compatible ballistic nylon sheath with Kydex insert, it would be a versatile piece of gear where weight isn’t the driving factor for gear selection.
Bear OPS Bear Tac III Specifications
- Blade length: 4.75 inches
- Weight 7.8 ounces
- Overall length: 10 inches
- MSRP: $129
Boker Slike
If you want to channel your inner secret agent, the Boker Slike might be the knife for you. Why? Because this ultra-light, ultra-thin, slide-out-the-front knife with a D2 dagger-style blade looks like something you’d see in a Cold War spy movie. The Slike is a very thin pocket-clip knife that would be easy to carry at any time. This thing is so slim and so light you could carry it in your front shirt pocket—you’d look geeky, but you could do it. The G10 frame makes it strong despite its lightweight. The blade is easily “opened” one handed by simply pushing the button and sliding the blade forward where it locks in place. There is a hallway detent that keeps the blade from being a gravity knife. With an MSRP of $75.95 and its light weight and slim dimensions this would be a handy knife to keep around almost anywhere.
Boker Slike Specifications
- Blade length: 3.3 inches
- Overall length: 6.97 inches
- Weight: 1.3 ounces
W. R. Case & Sons Kinzua, Spearpoint
Case is well known for making very traditional pocket knives like the Stockman and Trapper and traditional stag and wood handled fixed blades but has recently introduced more modern EDC knives. The new Kinzua Spearpoint is one of their takes on a modern pocket clip folder. This isn’t a flashy EDC knife but does have solid, functional features. The Kinzua Spearpoint has a nicely contoured aluminum handle and framelock that uses a steel insert into the aluminum locking bar to securely hold the blade open. The blade is made from CPM-S35VN which is a great steel that doesn’t cost an arm and a leg. A ball bearing pivot lets the blade open smoothly and easily. This is another knife southpaws will appreciate as blade deploys via a “flipper” easily accessed via right or left-handed and the clip is reversible. The Kinzua look could be described as somewhat subdued if not plain, but it’s a very solid every day carry pocket knife. Overall this is a great knife a fair price.
W. R. Case & Sons Kinzua, Spearpoint Specifications
- Blade length: 3.4 inches
- Overall length: 7.5 inches
- Closed length: 4.75 inches
- Weight: 3.5 ounces
- MSRP: $139
ESEE Knives ESEE AGK (Ashley Game Knife)
Sometimes simpler is better. The New ESEE AGK blade falls into this category. It’s a basic fixed blade with the scales screwed to the sides, plain and simple. But the scales, available in either Micarta or G10, are nicely contoured rather than radiused slabs, and it has a familiar big-game hunting blade shape. It’s also Goldilocks sized, with a 3.5-inch CPM-S35VN blade and an overall length of 8.25 inches. This knife is sized just right. The contoured handles are very comfortable to hold with a very pronounced finger guard at the bottom front for a secure grip and to prevent the hand from slipping on to the blade. A pouch style leather sheath is included. A Kydex type sheath would be nice to see in the future, but that would be easy enough to make. This very functional blade will probably have zero appeal to anyone looking for a crossover “tacticool” knife—and that’s a good thing.
ESEE AGK Specifications
- Blade length: 3.5 inches
- Blade thickness: 0.156 inches
- Overall length: 8.25 inches
- Weight: 5.1 ounces
Browning Rivet
Normally you don’t think of copper as a handle material for knives, but the Browning Rivet says “yet here we are!” This is a simple, yet elegant knife. The Browning Rivet is also a solid EDC pocket clip folder that will be home pretty much anywhere you want to carry it. A drop point blade made from blackened D2 tool steel is attractive and functional. It smoothly opens right or left-handed via a ball bearing pivot point and a “flipper” at the bottom of the blade. The reversible pocket clip makes the knife fully ambidextrous. A linerlock solidly holds the blade in place. The copper scales will naturally scratch and patina which will enhance the look. All the steel components including the blade, liner, clip, and screws are blackened. Because the handle is literally made of metal, this isn’t the lightest pocket-knife, but it’s not obtrusively heavy either.
Browning Rivet Specifications
- Total length: 7 inches
- Closed length: 3.8 inches
- Blade length: 3 inches
- MSRP: $49
Al Mar B-21
Al Mar Knives is recognized for making some very rugged tactical folders and their new B-21 Folding Knife definitely falls into this category. At 8.9 inches for overall length, this is a large folding knife designed to be carried in the included leather sheath. There is no pocket clip. The leather sheath also includes an attached ceramic sharpener which is a nice touch. It is literally a folding version of their new B-21 Fixed Blade modern bowie-style fixed blade. The D2 steel blade is 3.75 inches long. Steel liners and G10 scales make for a robust handle and linerlock design. The scales are designed to not fully cover the liners to balance the look of the handle-to-blade ratio. Even at that, there is plenty of G10 handle for the user to comfortably and securely hold. The shallow clip point blade is a great overall shape suitable for hunting, fine cutting work, etc. Opening is done via a thumbstud. The knife is not ambidextrous. The liners and blade have a polished finish which is both attractive and functional. Overall, this is an impressive knife that will be great attached to a belt or pack.
Al Mar B-21 Specifications
- Blade length: 3.7 inches
- Blade thickness: 0.1 inches
- MSRP: $190
CRKT M16-03DB
For 2022, CRKT is rebooting their venerable M16 with features they’ve introduced in other knives over the years. The M16-03DB is now an assisted opening pocket-knife. Though positioned as a tactical folder, the spearpoint blade made from D2 tool steel would be quite useful in the field and for EDC. The spring assisted blade opens via ambidextrous thumb studs or the flipper and solidly locks open with their Deadbolt locking system. This is an axle-style lock that relies on shear-strength of the locking components and is exceptionally strong. The IKBS ball bearing pivot system makes the blade rotation exceptionally smooth. Handles are comprised of machined aluminum scales fastened to steel liners. Lefties get a shout out with a reversible pocket clip, making the M16-03DB fully ambidextrous. For $150, it might be nice to see a steel like CPM-S35VN or similar, but overall the M16-03DB has some great features that will make it a solid choice as an EDC or pocket clip hunting knife.
CRKT M16-03DB Specifications
- Blade length: 3.5 inches
- Blade thickness: 0.1 inches
- Overall length: 8.25 inches
- Closed length: 4.65 inches
- Weight: 4 ounces
Outdoor Edge RazorCape
For 2022, Outdoor Edge has updated their RazorPro line with the RazorCape. This is a replaceable blade design that comes with three, easy to change blades that include a caping blade, drop point blade and a gut hook. One thing I like about the Outdoor Edge replaceable blade knives is their support system for the blade and how easy it is to change. Their support system lets the user take advantage of almost the entire length of the blade, and to swap out the cutting edge, simply push a button to remove, then reinstall. It’s very easy and I never feel like I’m going to lose a digit. The RazorCape is a lockback design that comes with a sheath to hold the knife and replaceable blades. It also has a pocket clip which is a nice touch. It’s small enough and opens easily enough to be a good little pocket knife. The blaze orange TPR inserts provide a good grip as well as visibility. While the blades are technically disposable, on the RazorPro I have found them to be easy to resharpen which saves waste and cost. The RazorCape blades, which are Japanese 420J2 Stainless Steel, will be no different.
Outdoor Edge RazorCape Specifications
- Blade length: 3 inches
- Overall length: 7.1 inches
- Closed length: 4.1 inches
- Weight: 2.2 ounces
- Sheath weight: 1.2 ounces
- MSRP: $54