When it comes to purchasing pocket knives, the large selection and variety of pocket knives can make deciding which knife to buy difficult. A pocket knife can have a stainless steel handle, aluminum handle, wooden or bone handle. They can also have a double edged blade or single edged blade, or be plain or serrated. These knives can also be spring assisted, automatic, manual… The list goes on.
How can you discern which knife is best to buy? Well, there’s good news and bad news. The good news is, most pocket knives are all around pocket knives, meaning they’re great for any situation and task. The bad news is… each pocket knife has its advantages and disadvantages, though the disadvantages are minimal.
When purchasing a pocket knife, what you are looking for in a pocket knife and personal preference are the most important factors.
To make selecting your next pocket knife a bit easier, we have compiled, what we think, are the best pocket knives of 2019. Let’s take a look at them, shall we.
1) 8″ Tac Force Tactical Pocket Knife (705GY)
This pocket knife is a fan favorite, and is a best seller across the nation. What makes this model so famous? We may have some ideas.
Opening Mechanism
This pocket knife is a folding assisted opening knife, meaning the knife’s blade opens very quickly through user application of gentle pressure on the blade’s thumb stud or handle’s flipper. The spring assisted functionality of this pocket knife allows the user to open it with one hand. This makes the knife perfect for emergency and self defense situations, as you can have this tactical knife ready to go in a matter of seconds.
Handle Material
This pocket knife’s handle is made from aluminum, which provides the user an excellent grip when using the knife for daily tasks. Also, the sleek look of the handle is designed to give the user maximum control of the knife during use.
Blade Type & Material
Additionally, the knife highlights a single edged partially serrated blade. Essentially, this means the blade’s spine (back) edge is dull, while the front edge of the blade is sharp and has partial serrations closer to the handle. This allows the user to place their thumb on the back of the blade without cutting themselves, which may provide added pressure when slicing. The serrations allow for the knife to cut rough materials, such as rope, zip ties, and boxes. The plain section of the blade’s front edge allows for clean and accurate cuts. The blade also has a very sharp tip, which is great for piercing.
The blade’s is crafted from quality stainless steel material. Stainless steel material makes for great blades, which is why they are very common among pocket knives. Stainless steel is a relatively inexpensive material, while maintaining the quality of premium hunting and pocket knives. Also, it looks pretty darn good.
Accessories
Okay, so the knife is great at cutting, aren’t all knives great at that? That’s true, but what makes this knife truly special are some of the accessories other knives may not have. The knife has a protruding edge from the end of blade, allowing the knife handle’s end to break glass. This is known as a glass breaker, and is meant for emergency situations, where an individual may find themselves stuck in their car, such as being submersed in water, and their only way out is through the highly pressurized window. If that isn’t cool enough, the knife also has a bottle opener, perfect for opening up those.. soda.. bottles.
Locking Mechanism
This knife employs the liner locking mechanism. This allows the blade to lock in place when opened, allowing the user to slice, cut, or puncture without worrying that the knife will unexpectedly close on them. To close the knife, a small lever built in the handle is pushed down with one hand or finger, while the other hand or finger is used to gently push the blade down, and the blade easily locks into the closed position.
The 705GY makes for a great all around knife. It’s assisted opening feature makes it a great self-defense knife. On top of that, the knife’s assortment of accessories makes it a great camping knife and hunting knife.
So where does this knife go wrong? Although minimal, this knife does have some disadvantages. Firstly, the knife does have a partial serrated blade, which is mostly a good thing. However, this makes the knife difficult to sharpen. But this isn’t something a knife sharpener can handle.
Secondly, the knife’s aluminum handle provides an excellent grip, however, that grip may be compromised during rainy conditions. The aluminum handle can get a little slippery if wet, making it a bit harder to handle the knife. However, a decent grip can still be obtained during wet conditions. Knives which circumvent this issue are knives made with a plastic handle.
Specifications:
Overall length: 8″
Blade length: 3.5″
Handle length: 4.5″
The best thing about this knife, its only $10. Some may get the impression this is a cheap knife due to the lower price. Well they’re not wrong, this is a cheap knife. However, it’s a high quality cheap knife. This pocket knife will get the job done with any task thrown at it. The partially serrated blade makes the knife perfect for cutting through any material. The knife’s sleek designed aluminum handle offers a great grip for slicing and cutting. The window breaker and bottle opener adds to the knife’s multipurpose functionality.
If you like this knife, you should check out the 705 Series, featuring the same knife with an assortment of designs and colors.
This is what makes this knife one of the best pocket knives of 2019.
2) 8.25″ Elk Ridge Frontier Hunting Knife
When it comes to heavy duty pocket knives, elk ridge knives are the first to come to mind. These knives were designed and built for some of the most demanding tasks, such as skinning and cleaning large game. This is why Elk Ridge knives are famous amongst hunters. One of the great things about Elk Ridge knives, they are durable and relatively inexpensive, so you can go on hunting and camping trips worrying less by leaving your prized possessions at home, and focusing more on skinning and cooking.
Opening Mechanism
This Elk Ridge pocket knife is a spring assisted pocket knife. This means the knife’s blade is swung open in a quick manner via gentle pressure provided by the user on the knife’s thumb stud or flipper. With this assisted opening mechanism, the knife can be opened in a matter of seconds with one hand, and ready to use at a moments notice. The versatility and quickness of this knife makes it great for a variety of situations, including emergency conditions.
Handle Material
This Elk Ridge knife’s handle is made from simulated bone material. As pure bone material can be a quite expensive, the simulated bone a mixture of bone and other materials to give the handle a comfortable feel and excellent grip without drilling a hole in your wallet. Simulated bone feels great, provides a strong grip, and is very durable. Also, it will not decay as quickly as knives with handles made from pure bone.
Blade Type and Material
The blade is a drop point single edged plain stainless steel blade, making this knife perfect for making accurate and clean cuts & slices. This type of blade also allows the user to place added pressure when slicing. The main disadvantage with this blade is, due to the lack of serrations, it will be a bit more difficult to cut through rough materials such as rope. However, this aspect is advantageous from a different perspective, as it can easily be sharpened without having to send it to a knife sharpening company.
Accessories
This Elk Ridge hunting knife comes with a lanyard on the handles end for easy portability. The knife also has a lashing hole within the blade, which provides the user the opportunity to run a line through the knife’s blade.
Locking Mechanism
This knife uses a liner locking mechanism, which allows the knife to lock in place when opened. Thus, the user does not have to worry about the knife closing on them when performing intensive tasks. Additionally, the knife’s blade locks in place when the knife is in its closed position, circumventing an issue where the knife may suddenly swing open unexpectedly.
Specifications
Overall Length: 8.25″
Blade Length: 3.5″
Blade Thickness: 3.2 MM
Handle Length: 4.75″
This Elk Ridge knife’s portability, durability and ability to perform intensive hunting tasks makes this one of the best pocket knives of 2019.
If you’re looking for more variety, you can visit our elk ridge knives collection for Elk Ridge survival knives, machetes, swords, and more pocket knives.
3) 8″ Tac Force Fire Dept. EMT Knife w/ LED Light
When thinking of the most versatile and functional knife, this Tac Force pocket knife is the first to comes to mind. This knife has it all, including a seat belt cutter, glass breaker, and built in mini LED flashlight. This knife is considered an EMT knife because it has various tools that help firemen, such as freeing an individual trapped in a car using the seat belt or window breaker.
Opening Mechanism
This pocket knife is an assisted opening pocket knife. As previously mentioned, this allows the knife to open very quickly for emergency and tactical situations. With only a gentle amount of pressure needed from the user on the thumb stud or flipper, the spring assist action takes care of the rest and the knife opens in a matter of seconds.
Handle Material
This EMT pocket knife’s handle is made from aluminum. Aluminum provides the user an excellent grip around the knife’s handle, as the material allows for hand contouring. Although, as aluminum is cheaper in price, it may not possess the same durability that other handle materials, such as wood, may have. However, these handles are less likely to decay over time. Additionally, as mentioned previously, aluminum handles can get a bit slippery during wet and rainy conditions, yet a sturdy grip can still be maintained.
Blade Type and Material
Similar to the 705GY, this fire department pocket knife offers a single edged, partially serrated, stainless steel blade. The blade this knife possesses is one of the many factors that make this knife versatile. The partially serrated blade makes this knife perfect for push and pull cuts, thus allowing it to make clean and accurate cuts, while also being able to cut rough materials. The blade design itself is very unique, providing a groove on the spine of the blade which allows the user to comfortable place their thumb on back of the blade to increase pressure when slicing and cutting.
Accessories
The high amount of accessories is where this knife shines. This pocket knife features a seat belt cutter, used to safely cut through a strong seat belt without the risk of injury. The knife also features a glass breaker, which can any type of window, including car windows. This is useful for emergency situations where an individual is stuck inside a vehicle with no exit. The individual inside the vehicle or an individual outside can use the back of the knife’s handle to break the car’s front or passenger windows. The knife also features a built in mini LED flashlight, which is easily accessible on the pocket knife’s handle. This is great for darker or night emergency situations, where a regular flashlight is not accessible.
Locking Mechanism
This knife features a liner locking mechanism, which ensures the pocket knife is locked in place whether it is in the open or closed position. With the liner locking mechanism, the user can trust the knife will stay open or remain closed without worrying about the knife accidentally folding on them during use.
Specifications
Overall Length: 8″
Blade Length: 3.75″
Blade Thickness: 2.75 MM
Handle Length: 4.75″
The number of accessories, material, blade style, and affordable price make this one of the best pocket knives of 2019.
If you are interested in seeing a larger variety of LED flashlight knives, our flashlight collection offers various flashlight knives with different functionalities and colors.
4) MTech Ballistic USMC Military Marines Spring Assisted Pocket Knife
This MTech Ballistic USMC Marines pocket knife is another great heavy duty military pocket knife. This knife is USMC Officially Licensed, making this knife a must have.
Opening Mechanism
This USMC military marines pocket knife is a spring assisted pocket knife. The spring assisted mechanism integrated within this knife allows it to open quickly once gentle pressure is applied from the user on the thumb stud or flipper. The assisted opening mechanism makes this knife a great tactical knife perfect for self defense situations.
Handle Material
This military knife’s handle is made from aluminum. Aluminum is a great material to utilize in pocket knives, as it provides a comfortable and strong grip, and is relatively durable. Unlike materials such as wood and bone, aluminum does not decay over time.
Blade
This MTech Ballistic USMC knife features a partially serrated ballistic blade. The partial serrations make this knife perfect for push cuts, such as slicing, and pull cuts, such as cutting rope.
Accessories
This military knife is lacking in terms of accessories. This marines knife features a belt clip. However, with this knife, the effort dedicated to accessories is diverted to making a strong and reliable pocket knife.
Locking Mechanism
This USMC knife features a liner locking mechanism. This locking mechanism ensures the knife stays open once it is sprung open by the spring, and remains closed in the folded position
Specifications
Overall Length: 8.5″
Blade Length: 4.25″
Handle Length: 4.25″
Weight: 11 oz – Heavy Duty Military Knife
