Kershaw and CRKT Knives By Ken Onion

If You Are Looking For a Ken Onion Designed Knife From Kershaw or CRKT, This List is a Good Place to Start

Ken Onion has about a million knives that make him famous. The big hitters seem to be stuff like the first Hi Jinx and the Chive. Certainly his run of vegetable-inspired knives hit the knife community like a big hole in the wallet. He designs knives like Stephen King writes books: suspiciously fast and with an enviable assurance of success. So I decided to try putting all of the currently available Ken Onions knives in one place. I don’t think I’ve succeeded yet, but this is everything I’ve found so far. I’ll add to this list periodically as I find new stuff.

Kershaw

• Leek – Read More…
• Chive – Read More…
• Scallion – Read More…
• Blur – Read More…
• Blackout – Read More…

CRKT

• Bona Fide – Read More…
• Eros – Read More…
• Foresight – Read More…
• Helical – Read More…
• Homefront – Read More…
• Hootenanny – Read More…
• Prowess – Read More…
• Outrage  – Read More…
• Rugar Windage  – Read More…
• Facet – Read More…
• Relay – Read More…
• Rave – Read More…
• Wrinkle – Read More…
• Ripple – Read More…
• Swindle – Read More…
• Hi jinx Z – Read More…
• Gusset – Read More…
• Bombastic – Read More…
• Slacker  – Read More…
• Shenanigan Z – Read More…
• Panache – Read More…
• Stylus – Read More…

Fixed Blade

• Ruger Muzzle Brake – Read More…
• Humdinger – Read More…
• ChanceInHell Machete – Read More…
• HalfaChance Machete – Read More…

Kershaw

Onion designed a really solid run of small slicers for Kershaw a while back, all of which feature Kershaw’s Onion-designed SpeedSafe Assisted Open system. I don’t really care about assisted open, but I really don’t feel like copy/pasting that in the details for the next 5 knives on this list, so I’m saying it here and you can just kind of mull it over as you read.

These knives have the kind of compact design that’s more finesse than power, but comes in handy for most of what you do, provided what you’re doing doesn’t require a blade over 4 inches, because all of these pretty much just dance around the 3 inch mark. I like all these designs well enough. If there’s a legitimate criticism to be made, it’s that after a while they all start looking the same. If you actually handle a few of them, though, you’ll see there are small degrees of difference, mostly in the blade shape, that justifies each design being on its own.

Leek

Blade Length:	3.0″
Overall Length:	7.0″
Blade Steel:	14C28N
Blade Style:	Wharncliffe
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	Stainless steel
Lock Type:	Frame

I’m not crazy about the look of the Leek, but that’s my own thing. Wharncliffe blades in general just look silly to me. That’s not to say they don’t have a place in the knife world, and as long as Ken Onion is designing a bunch of knives that are primarily distinct through their blade styles, he might as well throw this one in there.

I shouldn’t rag on it too much though. There’s something to be said for a fine point on a slender blade. It makes a nice letter opener. Honestly though, it seems like so many people jump after this knife that I don’t feel like I have to tell you why it’s good. It looks neat if it’s your thing, and there’s nothing wrong with a stainless steel body and frame lock. So long as you’re careful with that tip, it’s a pretty reliable piece.

Chive

Blade Length:	1.94″
Overall Length:	4.9″
Blade Steel:	420HC
Blade Style:	Clip point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	Stainless steel
Lock Type:	Frame

On the other side of the spectrum (in terms of blade shape) is this curvy piece piece of equipment. Ken Onion really turned it up to 11 on this one. I brought this knife up before in another shameless attempt at getting you to buy things under the assisted open category, and, holy damn, did you people go for it.

The Chive is good. I like the look, I like the 420HC steel, I even like that odd little attempt at jimping. The only thing I don’t really like about the Chive is the 2 inch blade. Don’t get me wrong, I like having blades of all sizes around me. I just don’t find myself reaching for that size very often.

Scallion

Blade Length:	2.5″
Overall Length:	5.9″
Blade Steel:	420HC
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	Aluminum
Lock Type:	Liner

So if you’re like me and think the Chive was too small, it turns out Ken Onion has us covered. The Scallion is essentially the Chive with an extra half inch padded on. Same steel, more or less the same blade design and grind. There are a couple small differences. For instance, you can get this with a liner lock instead of a frame lock.

I’m guessing the Chive was just a little too compact to make a liner lock worth it. That bit of extra length is just enough to make the Scallion a worthy camping knife for me, so between the two I definitely prefer the Scallion.

Blur

Blade Length:	3.4″
Overall Length:	7.9″
Blade Steel:	S30V or 14C28N
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	Aluminum
Lock Type:	Liner

A couple things I like about the Blur:

1. It’s the longest Kershaw knife on this list with about a 3-and-a-half-inch blade, and overall just under 8 inches. Normally that wouldn’t be a big consideration for me, but the Ken Onion options under the Kershaw label get small quick, and I don’t need that many 2 inch blades.

2. The slight recurve of the blade. Maybe it will complicate sharpening a little, but that little bit of wave on the edge can add so much cutting ability when the blade is made well.

You can also get it serrated, which seems like a neat idea, but for me kind of ruins the look and flow of the blade’s slicing. But I also rarely regret having a serrated edge, and this is one of the few with a blade long enough to fit a useful serration in the first place, so it’s a tricky field.

Blackout

Blade Length:	3.25″
Overall Length:	7.6″
Blade Steel:	14C28N
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	GFN
Lock Type:	Liner

If the Blur isn’t quite your style, the Blackout is a good alternative. It’s just about the same size but with a GFN handle (which also makes it a little cheaper), and a straighter edge. It has a little more of a tactical look, which is neat, I guess.

If I’m being honest, the name and all black, straight-edge aesthetic of the knife seems like it’s trying too hard to look scary and cool in an urban carry kind of way, but there’s no denying it’s a solid build. And I actually like GFN handles in general as a vastly underappreciated, low-cost material that’s easily more durable than most people really need.

CRKT has discontinued the Blackout.

CRKT

While I’m not personally a huge fan of CRKT, it seems like a good place for Onion to be right now. There’s a lot of variation in the stuff he’s making for them, and even if they aren’t always exactly winners, each knife at least seems to have a unique identity that makes it interesting to own. It looks like he’s taking a slightly more urban tactical turn from the vegetable theme he was so fond of with Kershaw, and that’s produced some pretty fun knives.

Bona Fide

Blade Length:	3.5″
Overall Length:	8.125″
Blade Steel:	D2 or 1.4116
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Flat
Handle:	Aluminum
Lock Type:	Liner

This neat little cigar of a knife features the second version of Ken Onion’s Field Strip technology. This iteration has been simplified to a single lever, which makes it even quicker to dismantle and clean.

It’s an interesting knife in terms of size. It has the length of a large knife, but the handle lines are so economical that it doesn’t really feel like an 8-inch knife. Then once you have it flipped out the lines of the blade actually fan out a little from the handle, so you end up with a lot more blade than you would expect from just looking at the knife closed.

Currently there are two versions of this knife. The silver version in D2 steel and the OD Green with 1.4116 steel in a PVD finish. Just be careful about which one you buy if you care about the steel, because the black blade is only in the German steel, and the satin finish blade is only in D2.

Check out our in-depth review of the CRKT Bona Fide to learn more.

Eros

Blade Length:	3.0″
Overall Length:	7.0″
Blade Steel:	Acuto 440
Blade Style:	Spear point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	Titanium
Lock Type:	Frame

It doesn’t get much more gentleman carry than this with Onion. A sleek profile with a titanium handle and an unusual stainless steel make for a cool EDC to show off and talk about.

If you’re unfamiliar (because I sure as hell was) Acuto 440 is supposed to be a kind of 440C improvement, so it’s fairly hard but its best feature is that it can take a very sharp edge and has good corrosion resistance. It doesn’t have the look of a heavy use knife, and the blade is definitely designed for light slicing, but it’s still tougher than the wispy aesthetic would have you believe.

Foresight

Blade Length:	3.5″
Overall Length:	8.75″
Blade Steel:	AUS-8
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	Aluminum
Lock Type:	Liner

This gets pushed as a tactical knife but really it’s just a tough-ish EDC. The Aus-8 blade with ti-nitride coating is a nice touch. This knife is pretty resistant to the elements thanks to that, and the blade shape itself has plenty of curve and material behind it to make it a hefty slicer.

Aluminum is not exactly a tactical material, though. It’s just too smooth, and no amount of finger grooving is going to fix that. Outside that, this is a really good option if you like larger folding knives and are a fan of Aus-8 like me.

CRKT also released an assisted open version of this knife, which I’m personally not a fan of, but a lot of CRKT fans seem to like it. Regardless, the option is out there if that’s the kind of thing you’re into.

Helical

Blade Length:	3.52″
Overall Length:	8.13″
Blade Steel:	8Cr13MoV
Blade Style:	Flat
Grind:	Flat
Handle:	6061 Aluminum
Lock Type:	Liner

A tough knife with a tanto blade and aluminum scales has a lot of potential. All the descriptions of the Helical say it has a “twisted” handle, but it doesn’t look all that twisted. It just has a little wrinkle going down the side, which I like. It’s a good, simple way to give a slippery handle material a little more grippiness. And this is appears to be meant to be used as a hard-use knife, that is a very important feature to have.

A few people complain that the flipper tab is a little small for the task of getting the blade out comfortable, but it’s one of those things you just have to break in.

The Helical has been discontinued.

Homefront

Blade Length:	3.5″
Overall Length:	8.1″
Blade Steel:	AUS-8
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	Aluminum
Lock Type:	Liner

Okay, forget what I said about the new urban aesthetic for a minute. Ken Onion went full outdoor survival with this one. He came up with this neat idea called “Field Strip” for the Homefront that’s supposed to make it a lot easier to take your knife apart for cleaning and maintenance.

I haven’t had a chance to play around with this, and while most people seem to say it works well enough, the reviews are a little mixed. If it works as smoothly as CRKT claims then this would be a fantastic hunting/survival knife. Ken Onion actually designed four versions of this knife (so far) with different blade styles and a somewhat lower grade 1.4116 steel: the standard one you see above, the EDC, the Tactical, and the Hunter.

Hootenanny

Blade Length:	3.34″
Overall Length:	7.88″
Blade Steel:	8Cr13MoV
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	GRN
Lock Type:	Frame

For the most part this feels like a run of the mill EDC with a nice clean design, but the jimping up high on the spine of the blade and the choil cut into the flipper tab change things slightly.

Ken Onion clearly made this thing to be enveloped by the hand. My instinct is to use this as a whittling knife, but Ken Onion is also a pretty avid hunter from what I understand, so he might have had some more practical purposes in mind. Either way, the little details help turn what would otherwise have been an unremarkable knife into something I’d actually like to play around with.

Prowess

Blade Length:	3.4″
Overall Length:	7.75″
Blade Steel:	AUS-8
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Flat
Handle:	GFN
Lock Type:	Liner

Update: The plain edge version of the Prowess is listed as discontinued on CRKT’s site, but it looks like it’s still in stock with a lot of vendors. The serrated version appears to still be going strong.

The Prowess is a little more of a typical EDC design. There are no fancy gimmicks aside from something called the “IKBS ball bearing pivot system” which sounds nice, but I have to assume it’s just a slightly smoother design to any other ball bearing system. You can also get it with triple point serrations or plain edge, but the options stop there for the most part.

There’s actually not a whole lot about this knife that I would say makes it stand out aside from the fact that is a really simple, strong design. There’s nothing wrong with simple strong designs. I like the way it looks, and I’d say it’s worth the $50 price tag you’ll typically find it at.

Unfortunately, the Prowess has been discontinued.

Outrage

Blade Length:	3.25″
Overall Length:	7.9″
Blade Steel:	8Cr13MoV
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	Aluminum
Lock Type:	Liner

From a purely aesthetic standpoint, the Outrage is confusing. The blade by itself looks nice enough to be on display, but the handle looks like they made the mold by having someone squeeze some putty then flattened it with a rolling pin. Don’t get me wrong, I like the milled design, and the aluminum looks pretty sleek.

Maybe all the waviness actually makes it feel more comfortable in the traditional grip, and the knife is bound to be a great slicer. I just get skeptical when designers try to make a handle fit this closely to my hand. You don’t know my hand, Ken Onion. Really nice blade, though.

Ruger Windage

Blade Length:	3.9″
Overall Length:	8.9″
Blade Steel:	8Cr13MoV
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Flat
Handle:	Aluminum
Lock Type:	Liner

Update: This has been discontinued, but still seems to be in stock most places.

This is one of three (last I checked) knives designed by Ken Onion for CRKT’s Ruger line. The idea behind the Ruger folding knives is apparently to offer knives that are in some way reminiscent of the gun’s look or its ability as either a tactical or survival tool. Whether any of the knives accomplish this is up to people who are into Rugers, I guess.

The Windage itself has a couple interesting features that make me curious. Primarily that tension clip looping out at the bottom of the handle. The first time I saw this knife I though it didn’t have a pocket clip at all, and I’m still trying to decide how I feel about this particular design. They also this knife with Veff serrations, which is nice of CRKT, but I’ve explained my mixed feelings about these things in my Ignitor review.

Ruger has discontinued the Windage.

CRKT Facet

Blade Length:	3.375″
Overall Length:	7.62″
Blade Steel:	D2
Blade Style:	Reverse Tanto
Grind:	Flat
Handle:	Stainless Steel
Lock Type:	Frame Lock

The Facet was the first Ken Onion designed knife to be released by CRKT in 2022. It has a slim design, and it leaves plenty of room in the pocket. Fortunately the long handle is plenty long enough to allow folks with large hands to keep a firm grip.

It was nice to see CRKT chose D2 steel for this knife even though it is relatively budget friendly. D2 is little more prone to corrosion than the 8cr13mov steel CRKT usually uses on their budget knives, but it offers significantly better edge retention.

We tested this assisted open pocket knife out for several weeks, and we were really impressed with it’s ergonomic handle, sturdy frame lock and super slicey blade. We would love to see a a more pricey American made version of this great design with a super steel blade and better fit and finish, but this version is easily one of the best budget folding knives currently available.

If you want to learn more about this knife, check out our CRKT Facet Photo Tour and Review.

Relay

Blade Length:	3.16″
Overall Length:	7.5″
Blade Steel:	AUS-8
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	GRN
Lock Type:	Liner

This knife is technically available to buy, but from a convenience perspective, it’s not available at all. CRKT released the Relay as a Snap On Tools exclusive which means you won’t find it in Amazon or Blade HQ possibly ever.

In fact, as of this writing, I haven’t found it online anywhere other than eBay so it’s possible the only way to get this knife is to walk into an actual physical store like some kind of stone age peasant and pick it up in person. That’s a shame because this is a great outdoor/hunting design that looks pretty tough and comfortable. Maybe someday I’ll stop being lazy and actually go outside to look for it.

Rave

Blade Length:	2.36″
Overall Length:	5.93″
Blade Steel:	1.4116
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	GRN
Lock Type:	Liner

If you just look at the handle, the Reve seems like the little brother to the Relay. It’s stout with grippy texturing that looks a bit like tire tread, a modest finger groove, and a bottom half that swells out. The blade as sort of opposite, though, in a way that’s really interesting. The spine drops down so dramatically it almost looks like a wharncliffe, but the edge has enough of a curve that ends up sitting somewhere in between a leaf shape and a wharncliffe.

The main thing that’s similar to the Relay, unfortunately, is that this is a Snap On exclusive. So you can’t pick this knife up through all the other traditional vendors.

Wrinkle

Blade Length:	2.57″
Overall Length:	6.5″
Blade Steel:	AUS-8
Blade Style:	Modified wharncliffe
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	Aluminum
Lock Type:	Liner

Coming in with another Snap On exclusive, Ken Onion has a blade shape that definitely features the spine of a wharncliffe, but with a massive belly, creating a blade shape that I’m not really sure how to name.

Regardless, this thing looks like a slicing powerhouse that should give you a comfortable grip with a thumb over the spine while putting a surprising amount of cutting edge for a 2.5-inch blade in your hand.

Ripple

Blade Length:	3.2″
Overall Length:	7.5″
Blade Steel:	8Cr13MoV
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	Anodized aluminum
Lock Type:	Frame

This knife was made to be silky smooth. I think Ken Onion was trying to communicate that through the overall shape of the knife, but I’m not sure he quite got there. That being said, there’s something alluring in the subtle waves of this knife. It’s a born and raised slicer with that long-curved edge that’s pretty typical of Ken Onion designs, and a high hollow grind.

I really like the minimalism of this knife in terms of features. I feel like Onion does his best work when he’s not adding funny gimmicks to knives, and despite the Ripple’s insistence on telling us its fast and smooth through its milled handle markings, when you strip it of decoration it’s just a nice EDC to have.

Recently, CRKT updated this knife with a couple of carbon fiber editions, which makes sense for this knife design, but it does make me wonder if that would make this knife slippery.

The Ripple has been discontinued.

Swindle

Blade Length:	3.2″
Overall Length:	7.5″
Blade Steel:	8Cr13MoV
Blade Style:	Wharncliffe
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	Stainless steel
Lock Type:	Frame

I can’t really work out exactly what this knife was designed for, but it looks interesting if nothing else. This thin profile and weird tension lever pocket clip thing make it a good conversation piece with other knife nuts.

In that sense it’s a great gentleman folder, and it’ll ride smooth in the pocket. I see some potential use for the sharp point as a good way to open up packages without making a mess. It would be a great letter opener too, but on the whole I think you just get this knife to be a little different.

The Swindle has been discontinued.

Hi jinx Z

Blade Length:	3.25″
Overall Length:	8.0″
Blade Steel:	1.4116
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Flat
Handle:	GFN
Lock Type:	Frame

Update: This has unfortunately been discontinued. It’s still in stock and on sale in a few places, so be sure to snatch it up if you really want it.

The first iteration of the Hi Jinx was, by some standards, a perfect knife. It was hailed as a masterpiece of ergonomics and cutting and durability. It was also like $400.

Big differences with the sequel include a GFN handle instead of titanium, a fractional drop in length (probably due to the slight difference in grind), and a significantly less respected manufacturing country (the first one was made in Italy by Lionsteel). But I’ve owned plenty of good knives made in Thailand. The steel, though, gives us the most cause for close inspection. I’d never heard of 1.4116 SS before looking at this knife. I did a little research, and it’s most often compared to either 440A steel in terms of actual hardness and use, or 420HC steel in terms of chemical composition.

Knowing CRKT doesn’t exactly implement top of the line heat treatment I suspect this is nowhere near Buck’s 420HC. Supposedly the HRC is 55-57, which is a little under CRKT’s typical 8Cr13MoV, but still okay for me. I appreciate the attempt at making a budget version of the Hi Jinx. I’d be willing to take a risk on this knife for $40.

CRKT has recently discontinued the Hi Jinx Z, but there are still a few floating around online.

Gusset

Blade Length:	3.6″
Overall Length:	8.1″
Blade Steel:	8Cr13MoV
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	Stainless steel
Lock Type:	Frame

If you’re looking for a knife you can get dirty or drop off a cliff (for some reason), this is probably the best you’re gonna find from Ken Onion. The open-frame stainless steel handle makes for a pretty robust structure. Also, they don’t talk about this much in most descriptions, but it makes it a lot easier to clean grime out from inside the knife.

Oddly, this is one of the more boring looking blade designs I’ve seen from Ken Onion, but that doesn’t mean it’s bad. A hollow grind drop point blade made out of an okay steel with 58-60 HRC will get you where you need to go. It just doesn’t have that typical curving flair that I’m pretty sure everyone loves the Onion for. Regardless, it’s a tough knife with a good amount of function for the price.

The Gusset has been discontinued, but used versions can still be found online.

Bombastic

Blade Length:	3.3″
Overall Length:	7.8″
Blade Steel:	8Cr13MoV
Blade Style:	Spear point
Grind:	Flat
Handle:	GFN w/ steel bolsters
Lock Type:	Frame

The idea behind this design was some kind of WWII throwback. I can kind of see it, but i wouldn’t have called it a vintage call out if CRKT didn’t say it a dozen times in their product descriptions. The knife is cool though, and one of the few Ken Onion’s you could actually justify calling tactical.

I’m not sure those hand guards built into the blade would actually do much to protect the hand, but it’s a nice gesture, and the spear-point blade with a false edge does a lot for that point. It’s a neat EDC, and, if nothing else, just a fun knife to play with.

The Bombastic has been discontinued.

Slacker

Blade Length:	3.32″
Overall Length:	7.69″
Blade Steel:	1.4116
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Flat
Handle:	6061 Aluminum
Lock Type:	Liner

This is a smaller blade with the Field Strip feature from the Homefront. I won’t claim to know why Onion thought this knife needed to exist, but now that it’s here I’m not complaining.

It’s an interesting piece, and I hear the design is actually pretty handy in practical use, even if the manufacturing by CRKT in this case is a bit subpar. I guess this is where the Field Strip technology comes in handy, because it makes it a lot easier to replace lower quality parts like the washers.

I’d also like to note that, while the official listings say it’s a “drop point”, the actual shape of the blade is clearly leaning in the Wharnclilffe direction. The edge has just enough of a curve to lose that category, but let’s be honest: we’re all thinking Wharncliffe when we look at this thing.

Shenanigan Z

Blade Length:	3.25″
Overall Length:	8.25″
Blade Steel:	AUS-8
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	GFN
Lock Type:	Liner

I have used this knife to hell and back, and while my feelings are still a little mixed my conclusion comes back the same every day: this is a good knife for working in gloves. The handle is fat and grippy, there’s a lot of edge to work with, and the steel is tough. I’ve personally hacked through a few non-recommended materials with it, and while the edge does role, I have yet to chip it.

I don’t like it as much for carrying around town and using with my bare hands because it has a few irritating hotspots, and I have more comfortable and better looking knives. But when I’m working outside, I often pack this thing and my Esee Zancudo.

It’s worth pointing out that CRKT seems to like updating this knife. Recently they came out with an assisted open version with maroon colored scales, and I suspect they’ll continue to give it the occasional material and hardware update over the next few years.

I say more words about this little monster in our Shenanigan Z review.

Panache

Blade Length:	3.68″
Overall Length:	8.75″
Blade Steel:	CTS-XHP
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Flat
Handle:	Titanium w/ G-10 inlays
Lock Type:	Liner

This uncharacteristically premium knife is currently a limited run from CRKT. It looks like a mostly standard knife with a somewhat more angular design and a little but of fancy etching in the titanium. The handle does have some interesting features, not least of which is that little spike sticking out just below where the index finger will sit. I trust Ken Onion to have workshopped the comfort of that thing.

Overall this is a clean-cut general EDC that lies somewhere in between a tough work knife and an overbuilt gentleman’s carry. Either way it’s a limited run, which means I’m either going to replace this with a cheaper version soon, or I’ll have to remove it altogether.

CRKT has recently discontinued the Panache.

StylusPanache

Blade Length:	7.25″
Overall Length:	3.125″
Blade Steel:	12C27 Sandvik
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	Aluminum
Lock Type:	Liner

My suspicion is that CRKT asked Ken Onion to make a knife like the CRKT CEO only different. In this case, different means slightly shorter, with better steel, and spring assisted action. It’s also possible that Onion genuinely thinks this style of thin gentleman carry is worth playing around with since the CEO has become so popular.

Either way, this isn’t exactly my thing, but I appreciate seeing a little variation in this shape. The aluminum scales seem like a interesting take in a different direction, and the lanyard hole a nice touch too for anyone wanting to store this knife deep in a backpack or buried in their tackle box.

Fixed Blades

I honestly never would have guessed that Ken Onion made fixed-blade designs until I started looking around for stuff for this blog. Far as I can tell he’s only made them for CRKT, but I’ll be adding to this list occasionally as I come across more. I should note that he’s made two machetes for CRKT so far, forebodingly  named the Chanceinhell Machete and the Halfachance Parang. But those are machetes, and this list is a little too long for me to be making exceptions.

Ruger Muzzle Brake

Blade Length:	7.0″
Overall Length:	12.0″
Blade Steel:	8Cr13MoV
Blade Style:	Clip point
Grind:	Hollow
Handle:	GFN
Sheath:	Molded polymer
Structure:	Full tang

Update: This has been discontinued and it looks like vendor supplies are starting to show that. This probably won’t be on the list much longer.

I’ll give him this, when the Onion goes fixed-blade he doesn’t fool around. The Muzzle Brake is part of CRKT’s Ruger series. He designed the handle to be similar to a Ruger’s grip, but beyond that I’d say he went pure bowie. It’s got all the shape and build of a decent survival/hunting knife.

The only thing I’d say against that is I wouldn’t really want to do any chopping with a hollow grind on 8Cr13MoV steel. It’s just hard enough to be brittle, and the fineness of a hollow grind would make me nervous if I was going after a log. It would make great skinning though.

It looks like the Muzzle Brake has been discontinued.

Humdinger

Blade Length:	6.0″
Overall Length:	11.4″
Blade Steel:	65Mn carbon
Blade Style:	Trailing drop point
Grind:	Flat
Handle:	Thermoplastic polyurethane
Sheath:	Kydex
Structure:	Full tang

This is a little more what I’d expect from Ken Onion in the fixed blade realm. It has a long, smooth curve just asking to slice into something and a flowing aesthetic that makes you want to keep it clean. He clearly had long hunting trips in mind with this one. It has a big belly and a flat grind with a soft steel that you could easily sharpen in the field. The handle is a comfy polymer instead of steel, and the sheath is made for horizontal carry so you can scout carry it for long hikes.

I’ve had a little trouble finding out if it’s full tang or not. My suspicion, just from looking at pictures, is that it’s no more than three-quarters, but if we’ve learned anything from knives like the Morakniv stuff, it’s that three-quarters tang is plenty. Of anything I’ve seen come out of CRKT, this is easily the first knife I’d pick in the survival category.

Unfortunately, the Humdinger has been discontinued.

ChanceInHell machete

Blade Length:	12.0″
Overall Length:	17.9″
Blade Steel:	65Mn
Blade Style:	Drop point
Grind:	Flat
Handle:	Rubber
Sheath:	Nylon
Structure:	3/4 tang

This is a tricky one to list, because CRKT put the ChanceInHell name on a couple different sizes with slightly different designs. The 16 inch and 18 inch versions had trailing point blades, and both of those are discontinued now. The 12” ChanceInHell Machete has a more traditional shape, but appears to still be in production for now.

The handle is the real defining feature of this machete, though. It’s got a pretty impressive grip with the molded finger grooves and rubber material. And the way it’s shaped to curve inward should give you a lot of momentum and control over a swing.

Halfachance machete

Blade Length:	14.0″
Overall Length:	19.5″
Blade Steel:	65Mn
Blade Style:	Parang
Grind:	Flat
Handle:	Rubber
Sheath:	Nylon
Structure:	3/4 tang

This has pretty much the same handle as the ChanceInHell machete, but with a parang blade. That dramatic swoop in the spine that almost looks like a wharncliffe should make this ideal for chopping hardwoods because it puts a lot more weight in the top of the blade. So this thing won’t be as nimble as the ChanceInHell machete, but it should generate a lot more chopping power.