plain edge Knives, Swords, Blades

SOG's Woodline WD-50 Folder fits in a belt pouch, not in the pocket. For a compact survival knife large enough to make difference, that's a very sensible idea -- pocket clip styles get snagged on brush and disappear.

The Woodline WD-50 keeps the unusual styling of SOG's other Woodline civilian ...

The Chicago Cutlery Signature series uses full tang construction with blades ground from the same blank of stamped high carbon stainless steel. The handle shape and grip is completely formed from the slabs of American black walnut hardwood fixed to the tang with three solid brass rivets. Blades ...

Beautifully designed for slicing harder cheeses like sharp cheddar, the Wusthof Classic 4-3/4-inch Hard Cheese knife works best on sandwich-sized blocks, not large wheels. The unusual blade of the Classic has practical purpose behind every odd feature.

The upswept point of the cheese knife should be first to touch the ...

Blade Magazine presented Columbia River Knife & Tool with the 2009 Most Innovative Imported Design award, earned by CRKT's Flux knife and tool combination system. Whether your frontier is the city or the country, you'll find a useful combination to tailor to your own pursuits.

Although the Flux tools ...

The Spyderco Chokwe G-10 Titanium knife includes an important locking system from the Chris Reeve product line. Chris Reeve Knives won the 2009 Blade Magazine Manufacturing Quality Award for such excellent innovations as the R.I.L. or Reeve Integral Lock used in the Spyderco Chokwe.

One of Spyderco's modern folder designs ...

Winner of Blade Magazine's 2009 Collaboration of the Year award, the Spyderco Bob T. Slip-It -- also known as the Spyderco Terzuola -- combines Spyderco's popular folding clip design with Bob Terzuola's improved slip joint. If you want a knife with traditional action but modern features, the Slip-It is the ...

The Paul Defender from Lone Wolf Knives won Blade Magazine's 2009 award for Overall Knife of the Year. Termed the Gentleman's Tactical Folder by the manufacturer, the Defender is a collaboration between Lone Wolf's designers and Paul Poehlmann, inventor of the Paul Axiel lock.

What you'll notice first is ...

Ka-Bar made the FIN Folding Frame Lock Knife in both drop point and tanto blade styles and offered a choice of combo-serrated or plain edges on each version. This combo-serrated drop point FIN offers very little plain edge for fine cutting. Make sure it fits your purposes.

Open length of the ...

Built for work but good enough for show, the Bear & Son 247R Rosewood Large Stockman knife holds three important blade styles. Originally developed to suit the needs of frontier wranglers and farmers, the blade selection is just as practical for those of us who no longer work ...

The Bear & Son 205R Midsize Lockback with rosewood handle slabs does resemble the Buck 110, but Bear & Son always do things their own way, and those differences show up plainly here.

The 205R's 3-3/4-inch blade of high carbon stainless steel looks a little undersized compared to ...

Al Mar's Falcon Ultralight Folding Knife does not have the stripped-down look of minimal back country knives. This pocket clip folder works like heavier counterparts with extra features you'd not expect in a knife that weighs only 1.25 ounces.

The Falcon's overall length of just over 7 inches includes ...

Much of the work that produced this 8-piece Knife Block Forged set from Victorinox actually happened in Solingen, the cutlery capitol of Germany. Forged from German high carbon stainless steel, the knives undergo final shaping and polishing in Switzerland.

The fundamentals of these knives match the quality of ...

Inspired by the assault rifle adopted by the Russian Army in 1949, the Cold Steel AK-47 Knife's most obvious resemblance to "the People's Rifle" is the bayonet groove in the four-inch AUS-8 blade. Add to that the kind of rugged construction that you can drop in a muddy ...

Climber's knives often seem under-designed, with strength cut back to save weight. The 14 K Summit Long's Peak folding clip knife from Columbia River Knife and Tool takes inspiration from the climber's choice of either weight or strength and provides a rugged answer.

Four ounces for a pocket clip folder ...

Although some very well-known carvers use pocketknives exclusively, a pocketknife was actually designed for occasional use. Where hours of work are involved, other styles work better. The carving set from Flexcut of Erie, Pennsylvania, offers four specialized carving knives meant for the long haul.

The problem with pocket knives ...

The four knives in the Wusthof Stainless Steel Steak Knife set could hardly be simpler in design, but details you don't see add considerable quality.

Blades and handles are solid 18/10 cutlery stainless steel. Very resistant to stains and corrosion, this set holds a high polish as well ...

Designed by Chad Los Banos and manufactured by Boker, the Hyper streamlines one of Los Banos's earlier knives -- the Subcom. Built thinner but just as solid, this 3.2-ounce, one-handed opening knife slips neatly into the pocket with a barely noticeable profile.

Dual thumb studs allow opening from either ...

Designed by Alan Folts of Greenville, N.C., the Folts Minimalist neck knife produced by Columbia River Knife and Tool friction-fits in an inverted sheath worn around the neck. Grasp the deep finger chorls of the handle or the braided nylon fob hanging from it and pull the knife free ...

Cold Steel makes some interesting claims regarding this knife, stating that the Ultimate Hunter is a big game hunting knife with the best blade lock in the industry plus the strength and power of a fixed blade. That may be a bit of a stretch, but the Ultimate ...

The Boker Plus Double Action knife does have some good features which aren't obvious on first glance. This knife looks like an ordinary one-handed folder, but the construction quality and the extra slide lock have made the Boker Double Action a popular choice for automatic conversion as well ...

The nakiri bocho, a common knife in Japanese kitchens, usually has a rectangular cleaver style blade with a rounded cutting edge on the forward corner of the blade. Wusthof's Classic Nakiri Vegetable Knife follows the same general pattern but with the strong forged bolster style of Wusthof's Classic knives. Claims ...

The Folding Deluxe Whittler from Boker of Solingen, Germany, continues to be produced in what is now a somewhat rare metal -- plain-edged carbon steel. You'll notice the difference in the color of the blades right away, since they lack the mirror finish of high carbon stainless steel. If you ...

This Butcher's Knife from R.H. Forschner Victorinox uses the same simple and reliable construction as the rest of the Victorinox line, with laser-cut high carbon stainless steel blade and tang and a rugged handle of black Fibrox. Chosen by professional chefs as well as homemakers, the Butcher's Knife offers heavy ...

Designed by Jim Hammond, the Operator's Model A.B.C. (All Bases Covered) knife adapts Hammond's popular fixed blade diver's knife design to land use. With full-length cutting edges both plain and serrated, this rugged outdoorsman's knife covers every situation.

The four-ounce knife of AUS8 high carbon stainless steel incorporates a modified ...

Scaled down to only two thirds the size of the popular Spyderco Military knife, the ParaMilitary meets the needs of those who need a more discreet version better suited to pocket carry. This model created for civilian uses keeps the good features of Spyderco's larger tactical folder.

With a blade ...

Gerber re-introduces an old Gerber design, the Steadfast, this time with modern materials and reliable but venerable ideas. The modern Steadfast matches the old pattern superficially but isn't quite what it used to be. In old-fashioned high carbon steel, this was a much better knife.

Now made in China, this ...

The Kershaw Leek offers civilians an efficient pocket folder with an opening system that's as close to automatic as most owners can get. True automatics are reserved for law enforcement, military, and only a few other special categories, but the Kershaw Leek with Speedsafe provides reasonable one-handed convenience and ...

The Gerber Obsidian packs useful extra features into a small pocket clip folder, including three basic tools along with the drop point blade.

Only four inches long when closed, the knife conceals three blades within its black ballistic nylon handle. The main blade is a three-inch-long, plain-edged clip point of ...

Three useful prep knives and a matching sharpening steel make up this set of starter cutlery from J.A. Henckels of Solingen, Germany. Modern manufacturing processes at Henckels build in quality you won't suspect on first sight.

The smallest knife in the set -- the Four Star Paring Knife -- is ...

Although Spyderco's Military Digital Camouflage Knife was designed for military users, it's one of Spyderco's best choices for civilians as well, with a rugged build and special features other Spyderco lightweights lack. Anyone interested in a dependable folding clip knife should give this one a look.

Thumb stud opening systems ...

Six steak knives from Wusthof's Gourmet line -- their least expensive -- come with their own handsome oak storage block in this seven-piece block set. Convenient for out-of-the-way countertop storage, the dedicated steak knife block is a great idea. The knives themselves are good but definitely at the bottom ...

Designed by Bill Moran, one of the founding fathers of the American Bladesmith Society, Spyderco's Bill Moran drop-point, fixed blade knife provides adventurous knife owners with important modern features seldom found in traditional belt knives. Also find Moran's signature etched in the blade.

This 8-1/16-inch-long hunting and survival knife ...

The Buck 279BK Folding Alpha Hunter offers the best features of the Alpha Hunter fixed blade in a drop point folder style. If you've dressed out enough game in your life that you don't need a gut hook, skip the Buck 278 and get this one -- the same ...

Buck explains the 183CM Camo Alpha Crosslock (PBS) as a Portable Butcher Shop. Although the small size of this knife also works well for small game, the bone saw blade makes field dressing larger animals like deer possible as well. If you hunt quail, you'll need Buck's regular bird ...

If you like Forschner cutlery but prefer the natural beauty of rosewood to the company's black indestructible Fibrox, the Rosewood Utility knife offers users the same economy and quality with traditional styling. With only slightly more care, the rosewood-handled utility knife should survive kitchen duty just as well as the ...

Smith & Wesson's Military Police Magic Assisted Tanto shows good quality in an American-sponsored imported design. The Taiwanese makers of the Military Police Tanto put together good features and good materials. Tactical users may be tempted and anyone who needs a good urban survival knife should take ...

The Case Old Red Bone Baby Butterbean knife has been around since the days when pocket knives were essential tools of everyday tradesmen. Still popular with today's professionals, this 2-3/4-inch folding knife has no frills beyond quality materials and high standards.

According to Case, the high carbon stainless steel blade ...

This plain edge version of the Boker Magnum has a solid feel even though it's only 3.5 ounces in weight. The machined aluminum handle gives it considerable strength, and the action is smooth and accurate. The top locking system uses a plunge lock button that won't release until solidly ...

The Folding Powerglide Tanto from Smith & Wesson uses some of the basic concepts of the balisong or butterfly knife, but modifies the system enough to qualify as a two-handed pocket blade. Though the action is slower than the traditional Philippine version, the Powerglide still provides the same compact ...

Survival knives usually try to do everything with one tool and wind up not being very good at any of it. The Schrade Extream Survival Knife is a better knife than most all purpose blades but has a few weak points.

The Extream is large (12.5 inches overall length) and heavy ...

Two beautiful and rare woods form the handle of this full width, full tang hunting and skinning blade from Boker of Germany. Shaped to match the stainless steel bolster and fingerguard, two small slabs of Brazilian rosewood fill the forward section of the Elk Hunter's bolster. Full ...

Cold Steel intended the Voyager series to be both lighter and better than any of the competition. The Voyager does succeed in many ways -- getting used to a large knife this light may take a while. Even with a five-inch-long tanto blade of VG-1 high carbon stainless steel, the ...

Buck's small pocket clip folder, the Buck Rush in ATS-34 high carbon stainless steel, features the assisted opening system called ASAP. Buck claims the knife will be safer for pocket carry than a fully automatic knife and open with speed that's competitive with a standard switchblade.

When closed, ...

A light but strong plain-edged knife well suited to everyday use, the Kershaw Scallion clips to your pocket and stays within reach. If you find yourself too busy to free both hands, the Speed-Safe feature designed by Ken Onion lets you open and close the stout blade with one ...

This plain and simple folder from Kershaw Ken Onion doesn't have any gimmicks or flash but works reliably. The Whirlwind's 3.5-inch Sandvik 13C26 stainless steel blade has a partially serrated edge for quick emergency cutting of rope, belts, or rigging. Textured injection-molded handle slabs are warm to the touch ...

The frontier look of the Buck Special dates back to the days when Buck Knives was a two-man shop. This striking bowie pattern evolved from one of the most popular knives made by Hoyt and Al Buck when they built every knife themselves by hand. The blade is a ...

If you're looking for a well made set of four lightweight and slender steak knives, the J.A. Henckels International Classic Steak Knife Set is a good match. Forged blades and bolsters and full tang slab handles match the look of other knives in the Henckels Classic series, but without the bulk ...

Built with one of J.A. Henckels' best manufacturing processes this Twin Pro-S two piece Carving Set won't disappoint. An eight-inch carving knife and matching seven-inch carving fork handle even large roasts and poultry with efficiency and grace. The construction is ergonomically correct, and the appearance matches the look of ...

Much lighter than the typical forged Wusthof knife, this Wusthof Gourmet 9-Inch Fish Fillet Knife features a slender blade of razor edged and flexible laser-cut stainless steel. The high carbon blade of Wusthof's special no-stain X50CrMoV15 alloy steel holds an edge well and is easily re-sharpened with a handheld honing steel.

The ...

Large game fish like salmon are too valuable to risk on inferior tools -- if you're lucky enough to need a way to slice smoked salmon this 11-inch cutting edge Wusthof Gourmet Salmon Slicer provides the method. Designed especially for thin precise cuts of delicate fish, the salmon slicer's plain edge ...