Knives of the Week: Five Fixed Blades, Multitools, and Premium Flippers Worth a Look

Introduction

This roundup covers a wide slice of the knife world: a stout USA-made woods knife, a compact EDC fixed blade in an uncommon steel, a wildly flat multitool, a set of custom titanium scales for a classic folder, a big budget liner lock, and two genuinely premium flipper knives. Each one has a clear identity, and each will appeal to a different kind of buyer. Here is what stood out and who each pick is really for.

Shed Knives Skur

The Skur is a fixed blade built primarily for outdoors use and woods craft, and it is beefier than it first appears: nearly a quarter inch of 154 CM blade stock, hollow ground so it thins out noticeably toward the edge. That combination gives you a blade that feels sturdy in hand while still cutting reasonably well. It is USA made and positioned at a very affordable price, which makes it an easy entry point into the brand.

One of the best details is the included kydex sheath. It is excellent: the knife slides in smoothly without repositioning your hand, and the sheath is drilled for multiple carry options, including neck carry, pocket carry, and scout carry. The attachment hardware itself is not our favorite style, but the versatility of the setup more than makes up for it. If you prefer smaller fixed blades on the stout side for bushcraft use, this is one to watch.

Compact EDC Fixed Blade from Tcale Knives

This compact fixed blade pairs AEB-L steel with well-executed G10 handles, and the steel choice is a big part of the appeal. AEB-L has to be imported and is uncommon to find, but it offers balanced, mid-range performance: high toughness, good corrosion resistance, and decent wear resistance. In practice that makes it a versatile all-around steel that holds up to serious everyday use.

The G10 handles have cutouts that add real grip. During tip testing, jamming the blade hard into a log produced no slippage at all. The knife is slightly thicker than ideal for fine slicing work, and people with thicker fingers may find the first section of the handle tight when choking up, but for a compact EDC fixed blade it is very comfortable. The cross-draw belt setup disappears under a shirt, and the included case comes with additional hardware for more perpendicular belt mounting. It is not designed for hours of carving, but as a daily fixed blade it is easy to recommend.

Up Knife M2

The Up Knife is one of the strangest and most charming multitools around: a blade and a long list of functions packed into a bar barely more than a quarter inch thick. The earlier version used a steel handle with a 440C blade and was made entirely in the USA. The new M2 generation moves to 775 aluminum handles at roughly half the price, and it is still made in the United States, which is an impressive feat for a small maker.

The function list is long. In the closed position the exposed blade edge works mostly as a package opener for popping plastic attachments; despite what some assume, it does not work well as a seatbelt cutter because of the spacing. The outside features six different sized nut drivers with openings wide enough for threading to pass through, plus a magnetic spot that holds a quarter inch bit for high-torque work. There is a sawing end for making notches, a wire stripper that works very well, a bottle opener that doubles as a can opener in a pinch, and a glass breaker on the bottom that is really designed for punching holes to mark spots on hard surfaces. The blade springs open with roughly one pound of tension, which takes some getting used to. Even the spacing is exactly a quarter inch apart, so the tool can double for markings. Pre-orders are currently on batch three.

Original Goat Titanium Scales for the Cold Steel 8010

The Cold Steel 8010 is not a new knife, but a set of custom gun stock pattern scales from Original Goat turns it into something special. These scales replace the steel liners completely, leaving a carbon fiber and titanium construction running on washers, and the action is extremely smooth. It is essentially the dressed-up version of the standard 8010 with Micarta handles, and it is heavier as a result.

There is one important caveat. The machining on these scales is so aggressive that the texture makes Cold Steel’s already grippy factory finish feel mild by comparison. Carrying it with the pocket clip installed would realistically tear up a pocket, so this set needs the edges knocked down before it becomes a daily carrier. Original Goat reportedly warned about this in advance, and a refinishing is planned to soften the edges. These scales cost more than the knife itself, so this is a purchase for someone who already knows the 8010 is a permanent resident of their collection.

CJRB Large Liner Lock

This big folder from CJRB was first spotted at Blade Show and it has only gotten better since then. Early plans reportedly omitted thumb studs entirely, which would have been a real loss, because with them this knife is excellent. It runs an AR-RPM9 blade steel, which is a genuinely good budget steel, with a full fuller running the length of the blade and a nearly four inch blade overall.

Despite the ridges along the blade, it is very comfortable in hand. The large liner lock action is smooth, and the knife ships with a spare pocket clip so it can be set up for reversed carry. There are not many large budget folders that hit this combination of steel, size, and finish quality, which makes it an easy pick for anyone who likes big knives without a big budget.

Concept Knives Baku

Concept Knives has already proven it can do budget knives well, and the Baku shows it can play in the premium tier too. This one features a Fat Carbon inlay with copper included, 20CB blade steel, a milled titanium pocket clip with a matching shelf, a bolster lock design that sits underneath the scales like a frame lock, a brass pivot collar, and a captured stop pin. The inlay is carried all the way around the pivot, which is a lot of extra milling work and a clear sign that nothing was cheapened in the build.

The action and detent are excellent, the blade is well centered, and the fit and finish stand up next to the big premium brands. It is hard to find fault here, and that is the highest compliment for a knife in this class.

There is also a smaller sibling in the same premium spirit, built around a blackwashed titanium handle, a bronze titanium back spacer, brass screws and thumb stud, and a carbon fiber inlay with copper. It uses a flipper tab and thumb stud combo with a Tanto-like trailing point blade in S35VN. Despite being smaller, the ergonomics are somehow better, and the pocket clip follows the handle curvature so completely that it practically disappears in hand. The clip is slightly darker than the handle out of the box, but wear will even out the coloration over time.

Buying Advice

If you want a hard-use woods knife, the Skur’s thick 154 CM blade and versatile sheath make it a strong, affordable starting point. If your focus is everyday carry, the compact Tcale fixed blade offers an uncommon but excellent steel in a package that disappears under a shirt. The Up Knife M2 is for the person who loves gadgety, multi-function tools and wants something genuinely different. The CJRB large liner lock is the best value for anyone who wants a big folder on a budget. And if you have reached the premium tier, the Concept Knives Baku delivers materials and execution that justify the price, while the Original Goat scales are a passion purchase for committed 8010 owners.

Conclusion

This lineup covers the full range: stout fixed blades, clever flat multitools, budget-friendly big folders, and premium flippers with serious materials. Whichever end of the spectrum you shop, each of these picks does something specific very well, and that focus is what makes them worth a closer look.