We Put in the Work of Testing All Types of Outdoor and Kitchen Knives to Help You Find the Best Knife Related Gifts.
There are so many choices in 2024 when it comes to choosing the perfect knife to give as a birthday or holiday gift. We understand that it can be overwhelming, so each year the writers here at Nothing but Knives choose their favorites in different categories including tactical, camping, survival, and kitchen knives.
We personally test, curate, and update this guide every year. We like to pull from newer knives that came out over the last year in the interest of making everyone look trendy, but there are also some classics (or updated classics) that will make a cool gift every year. This guide is broken up into categories by use so you can find a gift based on what someone likes to do, and we’ll link to some of our more specialized articles throughout if you want to dive really deep into a rabbit hole for a certain kind of knife.
Top Picks for Gift Knives in 2024
EDC Folding Knives That Make Great Gifts
This is a sort of catch all category that includes casual folders and hard use beaters. We have a wider range of recommendations in our Best Hard Use Folders article, though, if you’re set on going that direction.
Kansept Mini Korvid
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Incredibly small | 3.8” Overall |
| Liner lock keychain knife | 1.45” Cleaver Blade / 154CM Steel |
| $60 – 80 | G10 handle (several patterns) |
| Made in China / Designed by Justin Koch | GNo pocket clip / Separate neck-knife sheath |
What’s Cool About It
This is a tiny knife. Not just small; it’s baby-bird tiny. It’ll fit into the third pocket of your pants, it’ll swing easy on your keychain, and it actually has a decent edge on the blade. It’s not exactly an everyday workhorse, but it’ll cut the tape on a box no problem.
Who Might Like This Knife
It’s a good keychain knife and a good office knife. It has the look and feel of a knife that’s not really a knife. Generally when you take this thing out it turns into a conversation piece about tiny cute things rather than answering sidelong-glancing questions about why you have a knife in the first place.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
Small knives are easy to lose, so it might be a good idea to take advantage of the lanyard hole in the handle. If you don’t keep it on your keychain, then it’s definitely worth picking up a thin lanyard braid for it.
Kansept also makes a neck-knife sheath for it, which is a unique solution, but definitely a workable one considering that size and weight.
Kizer Mini Militaw
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Tactical style in miniature size | 6.7” Overall |
| Liner lock | 2.82” Drop point blade / Nitro-V Steel |
| $55 – 170 | PEI handle w/ G10 inlays |
| Made in China / Designed by Jonathan Style | Deep carry pocket clip |
What’s Cool About It
First there are about a million color and material variations for this model (actually it’s more like ten, but still a lot of stylistic options). It’s also a mean slicer. It has a thin blade and surprisingly secure ergos, so besides being lightweight and under several legal limitations for blade length, it’s just a good work knife.
Who Might LIke This Knife
The Militaw seems to have broad appeal, but it’s definitely a more modern kind of knife. It’s almost invisible in the pocket as well, so in terms of space, weight, and dress it’s pretty low investment as an EDC. All that to say is maybe you have a friend who likes to keep things light and minimal, but still enjoys a pop of color.
So if you have someone in your life who’s a fan of Kizer, Bestech, or Civivi, The Beagle will probably fit into their collection nicely.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
Opening can be tricky. It’s a front flipper with a thumb hole, but the small size can make both of those tricky to actuate. The thumb hole is nestled snug against the handle so larger finger can have trouble catching it, and the short length of the handle doesn’t give a whole lot of legerave for the front flipper tab. It’s a matter of adapting to it, but it does take some practice.
Civivi Yonder
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Small, rugged folder | 6.62” Overall |
| Crossbar lock | 2.88” Spey Blade / 14C28N Steel |
| $58 – 65 | Micarta handle scales |
What’s Cool About It
The standout feature of the Purest chef’s knife (and all Butterfork knives) is that they’ve designed the handles to be replaceable. The cap in the pommel of the handle unscrews with a key that ships with the knife, and they make six different colors to choose from (for now):violet, ultramarine, turquoise green, light gray, and dark gray.
Maybe it sounds gimmicky, but it’s a neat feature that’s actually been done well. Not only is it easy to switch handles out, but they feel pretty solid once in place. And the knife itself is pretty good. It’s lightweight with a decent edge, and a Japanese kind of feel with a Western-style blade.
Who Might Like This Knife
If someone likes to color match things a lot and maybe has trouble making up their minds about things, Butterfork knives are practically custom made for them. Also if you hear someone complain about not liking heavy kitchen knives, these would be a great option.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
The light weight in combination with the western profile of the blade can make cutting feel a little different. The blade shape is made for rock chopping, but the weight makes you want to push cut. Both are viable, but it will feel a little weird until you get used to it.
Check out our Civivi Yonder Review to learn more.
Joker Pointer
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Old school camping knife on a budget | 8.26” Overall |
| Backlock | 2.98″ drop p3.75” drop point blade / MOVA 1.4116 steel |
| $30 – 32 | Stamina wood or stag bone |
| Made in Spain |
What’s Cool About It
It’s a simple backlock design with a soft stainless steel. Not all that impressive on paper, but it does make it a good camping knife for three reasons: It’s easy to maintain, it’s a cheap knife to lose or break, and it hits that classic hunting folder knife vibe just right.
Who Might Like This Knife
Anyone who likes a Buck 110 or classic Case slip joint designs would likely enjoy this. Or anyone who needs a simple knife for camping but doesn’t want to think about it too much.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
A big highlight is the budget price, but keep in mind that comes with compromises. One being the steel (it’s actually the same thing you’ll find in a lot of German kitchen cutlery) which is not known for edge retention. You might also feel the blade rocking a little as you work. The tolerances aren’t especially tight on the Pointer.
Case 0163 Amber Bone Trapper
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Classic multi-bladed trapper | 7.4” Overall |
| Slip joint, no half stop | 3.27” clip point / 3.25” spey / Tru-Sharp steel |
| $80 – 90 | Bone handle |
| Made in Bradford, PA | No carry system |
What’s Cool About It
On the practical side, having a clip point blade and spey blade in one pocket opens up a surprising amount of specialized cutting utility. Clip points are pokey and good for slicing; spey blades are good at cutting a material without damaging anything behind the material (these days that would mostly be packages, but ranches do still exist).
Who Might Like This Knife
It’s a classic kind of knife for classic kinds of people. Most of us had parents are grandparents who carried this knife or something similar, and sometimes you just want something to remember an earlier time. But there’s a reason these designs are still around. They’re nice camping knives and not a bad addition to a tackle box.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
The obvious danger is that this is a non-locking knife. Some people know how to work with that, and some people learn through bloody trial and error. After that, the spring is pretty strong. It can take a tough pull to get the blades out sometimes, so hopefully you have healthy nails.
You can find more great slip joint gift options in our article on the Best Slip Joint Knives.
Artisan Cutlery Xcellerator
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Large EDC | 8.86″ Overall |
| Liner lock | 3.86″ harpoon blade / AR-RPM9 steel |
| $100 – 200 | Micarta handle |
| Made in China / Designed by Mike Snody | Milled pocket clip |
What’s Cool About It
Forget what it looks like, there are a dozen different ways to hold this handle. Actual, functional, helpful ways to hold it. Not showy, mall-ninja, flip-it-every-which-way-for-Instagram style of ways to hold it. You can choke up on the blade, hold it in a pinch grip, and shift your standard grip up or down the handle so one of your fingers locks into one of the finger choils. The thing feels comfortable almost every which way.
Who Might Like This Knife
We’ve always treated it as a hard use knife and we will continue to recommend it that way. The steel is tough, stainless, and easy to maintain. The handle is conducive to finding more leverage in tricky positions, and there’s a lot of blade to work with. We’d lean toward saying this is great for someone who works outside a lot, but anyone who prefers a larger folder in the pocket should find this interesting.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
The standard no-switching-to-left-hand-carry applies to the pocket clip on the Xcellerator. Otherwise, there’s not much to warn about with this thing. It’s tough and functional. You might be interested in following what the designer Mike Snody is up to these days, though.
Camping Fixed Blades & Folders
The knives mentioned in this section are perfect for a weekend getaway into the mountains or a family camping trip. They are great at a lot of outdoor tasks from carving up some weenie-roasting sticks to campfire food prep. They are generally not quite as tough as bushcraft or survival knives, but they’re a little more nimble and better for carving. There’s a lot of crossover here with our article on the Best Horizontal Fixed Blades, if you want to poke around some very carriable options.
Texas Cowboy Knife
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Great EDC fixed blade design | 6.5″ Overall |
| Ships with a leather sheath and a kydex sheath | 3” clip point blade / 8670 steel |
| $289 | Bocote wood handle |
| Made in America | Leather pancake sheath and a kydex sheath |
What’s Cool About It
It is nice to have a fixed knife with two sheath options from day one. Both sheaths have their place, and the kydex sheath is really versatile, so this is a great option for anyone who likes to EDC a fixed blade.
The knife itself features a practical design that lends itself to hard-use. The Bocote wood handle is grippy even when wet, and the blade is tough enough to handle just about anything you throw at it. We have spent time with this knife working around a ranch and a campsite and it performed well.
Who Might Like This Knife
Anyone who like knives with a classic design that are made to be more than pocket jewelry. The Texas Cowboy Knife is a great option for backpackers or camping enthusiasts who want a knife that can be comfortably carried in a variety of ways.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
It’s tough, but make sure to dry it when it gets wet. 8670 steel is a high carbon steel that handles abuse well, but not water. This knife should be dried and oiled after use. The coating helps, but corrosion will happen if it is not kept dry. In spite of this, I think 8670 was a good choice for this knife. I wish there were more knife manufacturers who used it.
Reiff F6 Leuku
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Big damn camping knife. | 11.25” Overall |
| Full tang and heavy | 6” drop point blade / CPM Magnacut steel |
| $400 | G10 or Micarta handle |
| Made in America | Leather drop-carry sheath or Kydex |
What’s Cool About It
It leans into machete and axe functionality. Historically, the leuku knife design was used for clearing brush and processing wood and large game. The weight also makes it something of a hammer (up to a point).
Double points for the Magnacut steel which makes the blade highly corrosion resistant and gives it a stable edge, so this knife is good to go for long trips in rough elements.
Who Might Like This Knife
This is for anyone who likes to build their own shelter or cooking structures when they’re camping or backpacking. It’s also for anyone who just likes to play with big knives. Nothing wrong with that.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
Reiff’s handles favor the top portion in terms of material distribution. What that means is they often feel great when you grip closer to the blade, but it’s a little less helpful nearer the pommel, which is where some like to hold a knife when chopping.
QSP Neckmuk
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Premium hunting and camping knife | 8″ Overall |
| Full tang | 3.5″ drop point blade / M390 steel |
| $160 – 170 | Micarta handle |
| Made in Italy / Design by Molleta | Leather sheath |
What’s Cool About It
It’s a little nessmuk, which is really cool for the growing minority of people who genuinely love nessmuk blades. It’s also nice neck knife with an efficient grip for its size. The duck-shaped handle does a lot for locking the hand in without restricting the grip.
Who Might Like This Knife
This is a good carving knife, and reasonably good with food within the limitations of its size, so people who like camping are an obvious choice. It’s not bad for backpacking either, considering how light it is, and how versatile the blade can be.
What Should the Gift Receiver Know About This Knife
First up the D2 steel blade is only partially stainless, so keep it dry. After that, the sheath should be compatible with a few convenient aftermarket sheath add-ons like an Ulti clip or small Tek Lok if you need to modify how to add it to your gear.
We liked the Nuckmuck enough to include it in our article on the Best Neck Knives You Can Actually Carry.
Bonds Creek Knife Badger
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Lightweight fixed blade EDC and hunting knife | 6.25″ Overall |
| Full tang | 2.5″ drop point blade / AEB-L steel |
| $130 | G10 handle |
| Made in USA / Design by Dave Pratt | Pancake-style Kydex sheath |
What’s Cool About It
Besides the steel finish and the EDC size, the Badger’s sheath design really stood out to us. It’s a pancake-style kydex with a spring clip attachment that pivots and can be moved to either side of the sheath. So not only can you slip the knife on without needing to undo your belt, but it’s really easy to adjust for right, left, vertical, and horizontal carry.
Who Might Like This Knife
The size and sheath make the Badger pretty versatile in terms of use and places it can be carried, but it’s probably optimized as a knife for small game hunting. It could run along something like the Bradford Guardian 3 as a good gardening knife, though.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
There’s nothing tricky to know about this knife, but it might be cool for your friend to know that the guy making these knives is doing everything by himself in Pennsboro, West Virginia, and he started making knives to follow somewhere in his grandfather’s footsteps who had been a blacksmith.
Schwarz Knives Lost Trail 5
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Pure-bred camping knife | 10.5” Overall |
| Full tang with exceptional grip | 5” standard blade / A2 steel |
| $195 – 205 | Richlite handle |
| Made in Idaho / Designed by TJ Schwarz | Pancake-style Kydex sheath w/ leather loop |
What’s Cool About It
This is by far the best camping fixed blade we’ve ever tested. It excelled at every stage of wood processing, fire making, and rugged cutting we put it through. It’s also a rare case where the maker put as much thought into the sheath as the knife. It’s one of the better vertical carries out there, and they formed the sheath with pinch points at certain places to minimize the Kydex scratching the blade.
Who Might Like This Knife
This is an only-tool-you-hypothetically-need knife for the outdoors. It’s out preferred knife for camping. It works well enough for fire-side cooking, and it rides well enough to take on a long hike. It’s a knife for pretty much any earnest outdoorsy kind of person.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
A2 steel is far from stainless. The blade finish will do a lot of work to keep it from rusting, but you should still be vigilant about cleaning the blade. There’s a lot more to this knife, so be sure to check out our full review of the Schwarz Knives LT5.
Bradford Guardian 3
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| General-use outdoor knife | 6.75″ Overall |
| Full tang | 3.5″ drop point blade / AEB-L steel (and others) |
| $120 – 200 | Micarta or G10 handle |
| Made in USA / Design by Brad Larkin | Leather sheath (Kydex option available) |
What’s Cool About It
This has become a modern classic in the realm of outdoor knives. It has a small handle with a three-finger grip, but something about the shape of it makes that grip secure and comfortable. It’s got a powerfully simple shape that just makes it good to take on pretty much any outdoor activity you have in mind.
Who Might Like This Knife
Normally I’d say this is a good knife for camping and hiking. It’s so nice to cut, whittle, and carve with the Guardian 3 that it finds its way into being used for pretty much everything when I have it on me. The thing is, everyone seems to like this knife. Knife people love it, non-knife people love it. The lady pruning her rose bushes in the yard seems to like it as much as the ranch hand tying a calf to his saddle.
Point being, if you’re getting a knife for someone who spends a lot of time outdoors, they will like the Guardian 3. But it seems like the odds are decent they’ll like it even if they don’t go outside much.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
The belt loop on the leather sheath is very snug. It’s still leather, so it’ll loosen up over time, but you’ll need to be patient with it at first if you normally wear a thick belt. Or, if you aren’t feeling patient, you can just get one with the Kydex sheath. Those are a little easier to work with.
Check out our review of the Guardian 3 for more words and pictures and a breakdown of all the available variations of this knife.
Survival and Bushcraft
These are fixed blade knives designed for the wilderness. These knifes can help start a fire, skin an animal, carve tent stakes and much more. Survival and bushcraft knives are similar to the camping knives listed above, but they are a little tougher and, in some cases, bigger.
In short, they’re the kind of knives people think about walking in one side of a forest with the intention of walking out the other end. If you have an outdoors man or woman on your gift list, we think they would be happy with any of these knives.
Reiff F4
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Midsized outdoor knife | 9″ Overall |
| Full tang | 4″ Drop point blade / CPM 3V steel |
| $330 – 350 | G10 handle |
| Made in USA / Design by Reiff brothers | Leather or Kydex sheath |
What’s Cool About It
I will never stop raving about the handles on the Reiff knives. It widens out at the top half so that the most material is under the grip of the index and middle fingers, which gives you a lot of control for carving tasks. The kydex sheath is also really clever because it rides on a pivoting clip. That makes the drawing ergonomics a lot nicer, and it’s easier to adjust the carry position.
On top of that, if you don’t like the kydex, they also ship the knife with a nice drop-carry leather sheath. It’s not my personal preference, but it does feel pretty dang nice.
Who Might Like This Knife
This is definitely an outdoor knife. We’ve used it happily for chopping, cutting cordage, and starting fires. It was especially good at processing wood, but that high sabre grind with a convex edge is incredibly versatile. If someone likes camping light, or taking high functioning tools for backpacking, this is would probably be a good option for them.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
The steel is high carbon, and not at all stainless. The finish on the blade helps a little, but we’ve definitely gotten some rust spots on it after some negligent shoots. It’s an incredibly steel that takes a nice polished hedge, and it’s pretty easy to sharpen in the field, but for the love of God dry it off every now and then.
Check out our full review of the Reiff F4 here.
Off-Grid Ridgeback V2
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Heavy camping and bushcraft knife | 9.7″ Overall |
| Full tang | 4.5″ spear point blade / D2 steel |
| $60 | Micarta handle |
| Made in China / Design by Cary Orefice | Taco-style Kydex sheath |
What’s Cool About It
Knives with scandi grinds are pretty much always cool, and the Ridgeback has a very well done scandi grind. Of-Grid also makes a version with a flat grind if that is your preference. If you are not sure which version the person you are shopping for would like best, it is probably safer to go with the flat grind model.
This thing chops and carves like a champ, and even though the handle is big, the shaping and texture of the handle do a lot to keep the knife in your hands with a lot of control over where the blade goes.
Who Might Like This Knife
This knife will do it all at a campsite, so active campers will definitely find a use for the Ridgeback, especially if they like to go all out and build their own shelters. This knife excels at just about every outdoor activity you would need a knife for, and maybe a few you don’t.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
If you like to start fires with a knife and a ferro rod, the Ridgeback can do that really well, but only off the sharpening choil. Once you find the spot, it works really well, but it takes a little bit of technique. We say a hell of a lot more about it in our review of the Off Grid Ridgeback.
Tactical Knives
These knives are primarily designed for self defense. They may be capable at survival or hunting type tasks as well, and also at making boring people feel cooler sometimes, but their primary purpose is helping you survive emergencies and get out of danger as quickly as possible. You can find more recommendations in this category in our Best Tactical Knives from Our Favorite Brands article.
Hogue SIG K320 AXG
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Grippy gun-companion EDC | 8.0″ Overall |
| ABLE crossbar lock | 3.5″ drop point blade / S30V steel |
| $160 – 200 | Aluminum handle w/ G10 inserts |
| Made in USA | Deep carry pocket clip, Reversible |
What’s Cool About It
From the company that started out making really good gun grips then started making really good knives, this is the conceptual descendent of the Sig P320. It’s also a tough, comfortable design with a slide lock and four possible carry positions for the pocket clip, so it’s completely ambidextrous.
Who Might Like This Knife
Gun folks are a pretty safe bet for this knife, especially someone who owns a Sig Sauer (and especially if that Sig is a P320). But as good of a design as the knife is, one of the benefits of it is that it doesn’t have an aggressive “tactical” vibe. It’s just good, which makes it a nice hard-use EDC too.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
There are quite a few variations of this knife available, including automatic versions. It is possible to find a Hogue K320 that matches the handle materials and color of your companion Sig if that’s really how you want to live your life, but you might have to dig for it a bit.
Check out our review of the Hogue K320 for a little more info.
Off-Grid Black Mamba V3
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Oversized premium flipper | 9.25″ Overall |
| Frame lock | 4” wharncliffe blade / CPM Magnacut steel |
| $260 – 280 | Titanium handle |
| Made in China/ Design by Cary Orefice | Deep-carry pocket clip, reversible |
What’s Cool About It
Off Grid’s Black Mamba designs have always been high-performance cutters. Going up in size has not changed that except to add a lot more cutting edge from the V2.
There’s another interesting thing with the “coyote tan” titanium scales. Mainly in that you don’t see titanium scales that color very often. The result is actually more of a gold color, which may or may not be your thing, but it’s a nice break from the black and gray of most titanium frame locks out there.
Who Might Like This Knife
It’s definitely a decent tactical option, with a large handle that’s reasonably grippy for titanium and a viciously thin blade made from a high-end steel known for being the best compromise between edge retention and toughness. But the size makes it a good hard-use EDC for anyone with some pocket space to spare.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
While they’ve made this a right and left-hand carry by milling a pocket clip insert on both sides of the handle, it won’t be the same experience on both sides because of the frame lock. That’s the case with all frame locks, but the tactile experience of the lock under the index finger is a lot more pronounced on a knife this large.
You can read more about the Black Mamba V3 (and the first two versions) in our full review.
Spartan Blades Alala
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Small fixed blade prioritizing secure retention | 7.875″ Overall |
| Full tang | 3.75″ drop point blade / 1095 Cro-Van steel |
| $90 – 160 | Micarta handle |
| Made in USA / Design by Curtis Iovito | Polymer sheath w/ retention lever and strap |
What’s Cool About It
This has a pretty remarkable sheath. It’s kind of a locking sheath that has a little lever you push to get the knife out. That might sound bulky on paper, but in practice it’s incredibly fast and intuitive, and one of the best retention methods we’ve seen on any fixed blade design.
Who Might Like This Knife
If you know anyone who jumps out of planes regularly, they would be the obvious choice. But the sheath retention and overall size of the knife make it a great choice for anyone who has to spend a lot of time crawling, or climbing, or squeezing into tight spaces where the environment tends to tug at all their clothes and gear.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
Pretty much everything about this knife is ready to go out in the field. But it doesn’t ship with the sharpest edge (at least, not when we picked it up). Obviously it’s all about personal preference and use cases, but you might want to test the edge and put it to a sharpening stone before you try putting it to work.
We prattle on about this more in our full review of the Spartan Alala.
Gentleman’s Carry
Gentleman’s folder knives are pocket knives that are kinda dressy looking and can be a good choice for situations where a large tactical or survival knife are apparently inappropriate. We have gone through great lengths here at Nothing But Knives to avoid such situations at all costs, so this is probably the category we are least qualified to give recommendations in. But we have reviewed at least two folders that we liked and could maybe take to a wedding without getting weird looks.
You could probably find a few knives that count as snappy dressers in our nostalgic slip joint article.
Kershaw Federalist
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Slip joint throwback | 7.5″ Overall |
| Nail nick open | 3.25″ nessmuck blade / D2 steel |
| $110 – 120 | Micarta |
| Made in USA | No carry system |
What’s Cool About It
It’s one of those new “modern classic” folders the kids keep talking about. Kershaw did a really good job on this call back knife. It feels like something your grandpa would have carried except the blade is made of a really nice powder steel that wasn’t developed until 2006.
Who Might Like This Knife
This knife was made for the people who missed the salad days of Case, Old Timer, and Buck, when all anybody thought they needed was a sharp blade with a nail nick. As near as I can tell, those people tend to be the ones with a fifty year old truck that is somehow cleaner and in better condition than most cars made after 2010.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
There’s no pocket clip on this, so it’s a floater. On the one hand that keeps it looking nice, but it also makes it a little awkward to carry. It’s thin, though. I usually set it behind my wallet in my pocket and it rides well enough.
It’s also worth mentioning that the detent is pretty light. The integrity of the knife is just fine, but all the things people tell you not to do with a slip joint go double for the Federalist.
Read up a little more on it in the Kershaw Federalist review.
Ocaso Solstice
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Slim EDC | 7.8″ Overall |
| Liner lock flipper | 3.5″ standard blade / S35VN steel |
| $180 – 360 | Carbon fiber handle |
| Made in Taiwan / Design by Andrew Demko | Deep carry pocket clip, Reversible |
What’s Cool About It
The fascinating pull to this knife when it first came out was that it was designed by Andrew Demko, who’s pretty famous for his big, overbuilt folders. Taken purely as a knife on its own merits, though, the Solstice is a super snappy, lightweight folder with a very fine slicing action.
Who Might Like This Knife
The Solstice hits a blade-to-weight ratio that you don’t see in knives often. There’s about an average of 1.75” of blade for every ounce. That’s a lot of cutting edge for something that’s barely noticeable in the pocket. So if you know someone who’s a snappy dresser and a stickler for efficiency, they’ll probably appreciate this design.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
This is more purely gentleman’s carry than a lot of the knives we review, which is to say that it is optimized for polite use. That thin, lightweight build makes it great for slipping into some tailored slacks, but I wouldn’t trust it to really hard use and abuse.
Check out our full review of the Ocaso Solstice here.
Vosteed Nightshade
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Shilin Cutter style | 7.48″ Overall |
| Liner lock flipper | 3.26″ leaf-shape blade / 154CM steel |
| $70 – 140 | Micarta (several other options, though) |
| Made in China / Design by Yue Dong | Deep carry pocket clip |
What’s Cool About It
In a world saturated with three-inch flippers, the Nightshade manages to pull from a tradition that makes it stand out. This is an homage to the Shilin cutter from Taiwan. It was made to be a slicey, hard use folder in its day, and over time it became a highly sought after collector’s item. There have been a couple of knives based on that design over the years, but Vosteed really hit it home with this.
Who Might Like This Knife
The designer, Yue Dong (aka Doctor EDC), has a bit of a following. He’s been clicked in on the crowd that loves snappy, smooth flippers for a few years now, and his designs seem to have a wide appeal. The Nightshade in particular falls into the category of “a nice looking knife that just works”.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
There’s a thinner, lighter, and cheaper version of the Nightshade called the Nightshade Lt. It doesn’t quite pop in the same way, but it’s still a damn fine knife if you want to go down a price category.
We say more cool things about the Nightshade in our full review.
Kize Begleiter V2
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Mid-sized dress knife | 8.24″ Overall |
| Liner lock | 3.54″ drop opint blade / N690 steel |
| $130 – 170 | Carbon fiber handle |
| Made in China / Design by Azo Mai | Deep carry pocket clip, Partially reversible |
What’s Cool About It
What’s really interesting is that even though it comes to over eight inches it feels like a smaller knife. It carries light and has a pretty understated vibe, especially if you get it in all black.
This is a very smooth knife, especially if you get the version with carbon fiber scales. The pivot runs on caged bearings, the thin blade slices with very little effort, and it slides in and out of the pocket easily.
Who Might Like This Knife
This is one of the few knives I would slip into a suit, if I ever made the mistake of needing to wear one again. So I imagine regular suit wearers looking for a knife would be into this. It’s also a very fidget-friendly knife, though. It’s fun to just sit and play with, if you happen to know someone who tends to tap their fingers when they’re still.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
There are a lot of different variations of this knife. The one pictured here is actually the second iteration of one of Kizer’s earliest popular designs, and they have been busy trying the design in every material they can get their hands on. If you want a different look or feel, you should be able to find it if you dig a little.
You can read more in our review of the Kizer Begleiter.
Boker Barlow Fixed Blade
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Fixed blade EDC | 6.02″ Overall |
| Full tang | 3.76″ clip point blade / AEB-L steel |
| $220 – 400 | Walnut handle |
| Made in Germany / Design by Lucas Burnley | Leather sheath w/ pocket clip |
What’s Cool About It
You don’t often see something that could be called a gentleman’s EDC fixed blade, but that’s definitely what this thing is. All the handle options for the Burnley Barlow have a sort of “classy outdoors” looks, and the pocket clip on the leather sheath gives it a fairly unique style of carrying that keeps handy and understated (if a little bulky in the pocket sometimes).
Who Might Like This Knife
I’ve always pictured this thing being carried at an outdoor wedding, but I do everything in my power to avoid weddings, so it’s better seen as a classic curiosity. The design is based off old barlow knives, so it fits in well with the old timer crowd (not just the old ones). It also handled camping tasks pretty well when we tested it. The handle is about as neutral as anything can get, which makes it workable in a lot of different grips, so it’s not a bad way to spruce up the next trip into the woods.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
The clip on the sheath is strong enough to keep everything in your pocket, but not strong enough to keep itself in place when you pull the knife out. At least not at first. You’ll need to hold the sheath in place yourself to get the knife free.
Check out more eye candy for this thing in our Boker Burnely BFF photo tour.
Multi-tools
Even non-knife types usually light up at getting a multitool. It’s like getting twelve presents hinged inside one pocket-friendly package. Even if someone doesn’t plan on using the knife part, odds are pretty good they’ll end up needing the phillips attachment and the bottle opener.Speaking of which, you might find some more streamlined options in that vein in our article on our favorite knives for opening beers.
Benchmade Weekender
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Simple two-blade, one cap lifter set up | 7.0″ / 6.0″ Overall |
| Nail nick slip joint | 3.0″ Drop point / 2.0 Clip point / S30V steel |
| $160 – 200 | Micarta handle |
| Made in USA | No carry system |
What’s Cool About It
The toothy blades and grippy handle make this a great whittling knife. It’s one of my new favorites to have around a campfire for that reason. I also like how the bottle opener is tucked into the spine of the handle. It looks awkward at first, but once you get a feel for the angle, it works incredibly well.
Who Might Like This Knife
My own experience says that anyone who likes whittling and drinking will like this knife. But I would extend that to people who like fishing and drinking too.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
There isn’t really a good way to carry the Weekender. There’s no pocket clip, and it doesn’t ship with a sheath, so it’s the kind of thing that’s best kept in your tackle box or small backpack pockets if you don’t like the feel of it floating around in the pocket.
We go into more detail in our review of the Benchmade Weekender.
Remington Cutlery Collector’s Sets
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Throwback collector knives | Varies 2.75 – 7″ Overall |
| Includes slip joints and lock backs, nail nick open | Blade shapes vary / 440 steel |
| $35 – 40 | Wood, bone, or synthetic handles |
| Made in China | Tin case |
What’s Cool About It
Remington’s Collector Series #AD has a wide range of classic-style knives that each come in a different themed tin case. Designs range from the Duck Collector Set (featuring ducks!) with a two-bladed lockback folder with a bone-white handle set with a waterfowl scene to the Whitetails Cut Over set featuring their 7” Jr. Sinner fixed blade and a tin with a scene of whitetail deer.
Who Might Like This Knife
Anyone with old school sensibilities (not necessarily just old school people). This is a return to an old tradition for Remington, and they’ve geared it for collectors to go crazy (which isn’t to say these knives aren’t viable EDC options).
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
This is a collector’s item first, but as it’s not an especially expensive collector’s item you should really press that these things can be used and abused. The vintage-style art and limited edition knife styling is all cool, but very often more enjoyable, and eventually more meaningful, after a knife has been worn in.
Kitchen Knife Sets
Kitchen knife sets make a great gift for anyone who likes to cook, but is getting by with substandard knives. Fortunately, there are great gift options for just about any budget from top cutlery brands. Here are a few of our favorites.
Vos Ceramic 4-Piece Knife Set
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Chef, utility, paring, and multipurpose knife | 11″ Overall on chef’s knife |
| High edge retention, but brittle | Ceramic blades |
| $60 – 70 | Polymer handle |
| Made in China (possibly) | Standing knife board |
What’s Cool About It
These are ceramic knives, which is cool with a big asterix that I’ll address in the “What to Know” section here. The upside is that ceramic is a very hard, lightweight material, so these knives have great edge retention and feel lighter than a feather in the hand. Also, since ceramic is an inert material, there’s no danger of rust.
Who Might Like This Set
A lot of people like knives like these for cutting vegetables, but the heart of it is that anyone who doesn’t sharpen their knives or complains about the slight steel taste left by more traditional knives will probably be into this set.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Set
Ceramic is not the kind of material you trifle with. It’s incredibly fragile, so you can’t use these knives on tougher foods like squashes or anything with bone. These knives will absolutely chip if you bump the wrong material or drop them. So there’s a certain level of exactness required in handling them. The bright side is that these are also very cheap knives, so it doesn’t cost much to replace one.
Bavarian Knife Works 19-Piece Dreamcut Set
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Large selection of German-style knives | 13.125″ Overall chef’s knife |
| Crowned spines | X50Cr15MoV stainless steel |
| $400 – 500 | Pakkawood handle |
| Made in China | Wood block w/ detachable steak knife block |
What’s Cool About It
What I really love about these knives is the crowned spines and the balance. For German-style knives these are very lightweight with just a minor bias toward the handle. More importantly, the spines are really nicely rounded, so these don’t bite into your finger in a pinch grip. I also like the selection of knives in this set. It has a 10-inch chef’s knife, a cleaver, a paring knife, a slicer, and a bread knife. All those cover a nice spread of uses for pretty much any kind of food you might bring into your kitchen.
The detachable steak knife block is another neat feature, if you like modular things and playing around with your counter ergonomics.
Who Might Like This Knife
This whole set looks and feels nice and has a certain premium feeling to it that you don’t quite get even with some Wusthoff or Zwilling knives thanks to the crowned bolsters. But the block is still pretty big and tall, so this is a better gift for someone with some counter space who needs a jumpstart on their culinary toolset.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
The edge retention is a little subpar on these knives. The steel is soft so the edge rolls a lot. It’s not too big of a deal if you just work the knives on a honing rod before using them. The standard block also comes with a 10-inch chef’s knife. If you want a regular 8-inch you’ll have to buy it separately.
This set made such a good impression on us that we added it to our Best Professional Knife Sets article.
You can read our full review of the Bavarian Knife Works set here.
Chef Knives
The kitchen is where many of us really use knives, so we figured we should include a few of our favorite chef knives in case you have a busy home cook on your gift list. We think just about any serious cook would be happy with these knives even if they already have a chef knife or two in the kitchen.
Oishya Sakai Kyuba Gyuto Chef’s Knife
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Gyuto chef’s knife | 14″ Overall |
| Stick tang construction | 8.2″ blade / VG10 in 47-layer Damascus steel |
| $380 | Maple handle w/ bog oak collar |
| Made in Japan, finished in England | Comes in wood gift box |
What’s Cool About It
Besides the overall quality and cutting performance of Oishya knives, they have a certain level of presentation that isn’t always a given with Japanese knives. It comes in a nice wooden box with a five-yen coin to act as the symbolic exchange, so this is very much ready-made to give to someone as a gift.
Who Might Like This Knife
Really anyone who’s into more traditional Japanese kitchen cutlery will like this. But especially someone who cooks a lot of fish or dices a lot of fruit and vegetables. Our own testing showed this thing is excellent for making salsa, but the blade geometry is so smooth that it really makes itself useful for a broad range of precision cutting.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
Japanese knives tend to be more brittle than most. They’re hard and thin, so they’re a lot more prone to chipping. A lot more caution needs to be taken with this thing than usual. If your friend likes to sharpen their knives, they should have at least a 1,000-grit stone for this, and it should be used on anything with bone without a very steady hand.
The Sakai Kyuba series is also available in a set. We liked the set enough to include in our article on the Best Japanese Knife Sets.
Vosteed Morgan
| Stand Out Features | Specifications |
|---|---|
| Budget Japanese-style chef’s knife | 13.11″ Overall |
| 12/18° Asymmetrical grind | 8″ K-tip blade / 9Cr18MoV stainless steel |
| $60 – 80 | G10 handle |
| Made in China / Design by Yue Dong | Comes in cardboard box w/ blade sleeve |
What’s Cool About It
This won’t sound very exciting, but the Morgan is a really easy knife to take care of. That’s not a super common feature with Japanese style knives, but this one has a fairly soft steel that responds really well to stones and honing rods.
Who Might Like This Knife
This is a great intro knife for someone who’s either just getting into cooking or wants something lowkey but still unique. It would also be a good way to get more familiar with using thinner Japanese knives without risking a three-hundred dollar edge.
What Should Your Friend Know About This Knife
The Morgan has an asymmetric grind favoring the right side of the blade. There might be a few moments where you start to cut and it just doesn’t feel sharp enough. Sometimes you just need to adjust your angle to the grind. It takes some getting used to, but once you get comfortable with it, the cutting action is very smooth. There is also a Vosteed Morgan knife set available. We liked it so much we included it in our Best Budget Knife Sets article.
You can read more in our review of the Vosteed Morgan.
Knife Accessories
Sometimes the better answer is to get something somebody can use a knife with. Maybe because a person already has so many knives you can’t process the idea that they would actually want another one, or you have the wisdom to recognize you’re not sure what they’d actually want.
The alternatives are things like knife rolls and cases, sharpening systems, or maybe just a big cardboard box and the phrase “hey could you break this down for me?” All perfectly reasonable options.
Vault Case Secure
| Combo lock w/ resettable code |
| 2 small-loop panels |
| 2 small medium-loop panels |
| 1 large medium-loop panel |
| 1 large buffer/patch panel |
| Detachable shoulder strap |
| $40 – 70 |
What’s Cool About It
There are a few cases out there, but this one locks, and comes with a bunch of removable flaps. It’s a really great solution to a large EDC collection. You can fit a whole mess of knives and pens in this and still have room for notebooks, strops, sharpening stones, or whatever else is just a little too bulky to fit in the pocket.
Who Might Like This
Someone who travels with a lot of gear is likely to use a Vault case a lot. But also anyone with a large knife or pen collection will definitely use it one way or the other. Even if it just gets filled up and tucked into a drawer, things like this are an organizational God send to gear junkies.
What Should Your Friend Know About It
The lock on this is resettable, and you can buy extra panels separately, so there is a lot of possible modding to be done here. And if you’re not too concerned about having a lock, they make a few other variations in different sizes and colors.
More Options for Sharp and Pointy Gifts
If you didn’t find what you were looking for in this article, check our Kitchen Knife Reviews section for the busy home cook on your gift list or our EDC Knife Reviews for more info on great presents for the pocket knife fan you need to check off your gift list.
