6 picks
Traditional Pocket Knives
Slip joints, lockbacks and an Opinel: old patterns, plain steel and handles that wear in.
Slip joints, lockbacks and a twist-collar Opinel: patterns settled long ago and left alone since. Plain blades that come back to an edge on a stone in minutes, handles of wood, brass and bone that wear in rather than wear out, and makers who will sharpen or mend them. Nothing to charge and nothing to update.
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| Rank | Pick | Brand | Why it lasts | Amazon |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Buck 110 Folding Hunter | Buck | Lockback with brass bolsters and wood handle 路 Same pattern since 1964 | Buy |
| 2 | Buck 112 Ranger | Buck | Lockback, brass bolsters, wood handle 路 Smaller than the 110 | Buy |
| 3 | Opinel No. 10 Stainless | Opinel | Stainless Sandvik steel blade 路 Beech handle, Virobloc locking collar | Buy |
| 4 | Case Trapper | Case | Two-blade slipjoint 路 Traditional pattern | Buy |
| 5 | Opinel No. 08 Carbone | Opinel | In production since 1890 路 Carbon steel takes a keener edge than stainless | Buy |
| 6 | Opinel Premium Woods No. 08, Walnut | Opinel | Walnut handle, darkens with use 路 Sandvik stainless blade | Buy |
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Product photograph, Buck (110 Folding Hunter, ebony and brass)Buck 110 Folding Hunter
BuckA lockback folding knife with brass bolsters, a wood handle and a steel blade, built to the same pattern since 1964. Buck backs it with its Forever Warranty, and the design has no liner lock, clip or assisted opening to fail.
- Lockback with brass bolsters and wood handle
- Same pattern since 1964
- Buck Forever Warranty
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Product photograph, BuckBuck 112 Ranger
BuckThe smaller sibling of the Buck 110: a lockback with brass bolsters and a wood handle. Buck backs it with its Forever Warranty.
- Lockback, brass bolsters, wood handle
- Smaller than the 110
- Buck Forever Warranty
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Product photograph, OpinelOpinel No. 10 Stainless
OpinelA stainless steel blade in a beech handle, held by a rotating steel collar rather than a spring. With no liner, spring or clip there is almost nothing to break, and the design has been made in the Savoie since the nineteenth century.
- Stainless Sandvik steel blade
- Beech handle, Virobloc locking collar
- No springs or liners
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Product photograph, CaseCase Trapper
CaseA traditional two-blade slipjoint with no lock, no clip and no liner, the pattern Case has made for generations. Case covers it with a limited lifetime warranty.
- Two-blade slipjoint
- Traditional pattern
- Case limited lifetime warranty
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Product photograph, OpinelOpinel No. 08 Carbone
OpinelA carbon steel blade, a beechwood handle and a twisting collar that locks it open. Opinel has made this since 1890 and the design has been through one significant change in all that time, when the locking ring was added in 1955. The handle can be sanded and reoiled and the blade takes a keener edge than stainless, which is the trade: carbon steel rusts if you put it away wet.
- In production since 1890
- Carbon steel takes a keener edge than stainless
- Beechwood handle, sandable and re-oilable
- Virobloc collar locks open and closed
- Made in Savoie, France
- Product photograph, Buck (110 Folding Hunter, ebony and brass)
Buck 110 Folding Hunter
BuckView on AmazonA lockback folding knife with brass bolsters, a wood handle and a steel blade, built to the same pattern since 1964. Buck backs it with its Forever Warranty, and the design has no liner lock, clip or assisted opening to fail.
- Lockback with brass bolsters and wood handle
- Same pattern since 1964
- Buck Forever Warranty
- Product photograph, Buck
Buck 112 Ranger
BuckView on AmazonThe smaller sibling of the Buck 110: a lockback with brass bolsters and a wood handle. Buck backs it with its Forever Warranty.
- Lockback, brass bolsters, wood handle
- Smaller than the 110
- Buck Forever Warranty
- Product photograph, Opinel
Opinel No. 10 Stainless
OpinelView on AmazonA stainless steel blade in a beech handle, held by a rotating steel collar rather than a spring. With no liner, spring or clip there is almost nothing to break, and the design has been made in the Savoie since the nineteenth century.
- Stainless Sandvik steel blade
- Beech handle, Virobloc locking collar
- No springs or liners
- Product photograph, Case
Case Trapper
CaseView on AmazonA traditional two-blade slipjoint with no lock, no clip and no liner, the pattern Case has made for generations. Case covers it with a limited lifetime warranty.
- Two-blade slipjoint
- Traditional pattern
- Case limited lifetime warranty
- Product photograph, Opinel
Opinel No. 08 Carbone
OpinelView on AmazonA carbon steel blade, a beechwood handle and a twisting collar that locks it open. Opinel has made this since 1890 and the design has been through one significant change in all that time, when the locking ring was added in 1955. The handle can be sanded and reoiled and the blade takes a keener edge than stainless, which is the trade: carbon steel rusts if you put it away wet.
- In production since 1890
- Carbon steel takes a keener edge than stainless
- Beechwood handle, sandable and re-oilable
- Virobloc collar locks open and closed
- Made in Savoie, France
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