Maratac M390 Knife Review: A Modern Functional Fixed Blade Worth the Wait

Introduction

Most knife owners work through phases. There is the big-knife phase, the tactical phase, the survival phase, and eventually the bushcraft phase. Each one is fun in its own way, but the knives from those stages tend to serve narrow purposes. What usually comes last, and lasts longest, is the pursuit of a genuinely functional knife.

Maratac’s new M390 knife, sold through County Comm, fits that final phase well. It is priced at $119, which is a strong deal for a blade in M390 steel, and it comes with a practical feature set that most fixed blades at this price do not offer.

A Knife for the Functional Phase

The M390’s blade shape is where this knife earns its keep. It has a full belly, a sharp tip, and the tip sits in line with the handle. That geometry matters more than it sounds. With a large knife, a big portion of the cutting surface sits well away from your hand, a bit like using a hatchet. With this knife, you keep a strong grip and always know exactly where the tip is, which makes fine work far easier.

That precision is the reason this makes an ideal hunting knife, in the sense that matters most: you do not hunt with the knife, you gut the animals you hunted. Fine work on the inside means not puncturing anything you should not, and this blade gives you that control.

Blade Shape and Steel

The blade is thick and robust, with a large flat grind and indexing points that help you orient the blade by feel. Jimping runs along the back of both the handle portion and the spine, giving your thumb and fingers a secure reference point. Some people prefer a smooth, symmetrical handle for rotating cuts, and the indexing points can create hot spots in that style of use, but that is not what this knife is for. It is built as a precision tool.

Under the handle, there is no skeletonization at all, which is a good thing here. Extra material means extra strength, and the thinnest point of the tang still gives you roughly half an inch of M390 steel. Combined with the blade thickness, you are unlikely to run into anything this knife cannot handle.

M390 is a hard steel, and that cuts both ways. Harder steels hold an edge longer, but they take more effort to truly sharpen when they do go dull. The trade-off is worth understanding. Many knives do not need sharpening so much as honing, a few passes on a steel or ceramic rod to realign the cutting edge. Softer steels take a fresh edge faster but lose it sooner, which is why hunters often carry a steel partway through processing an animal. With M390, you should be able to go through multiple animals without needing anything more than a light touch-up, if that.

Swappable Scales and Hardware

One of the more unusual features is the included extra set of handle scales. A scale is simply the cover over the handle or tang, and this knife ships with three color options: black, green, and orange, along with the wrenches needed to swap them and a spare set of screws.

Changing them is straightforward. Two torx screws go into threaded collars on the opposite side of the tang, and the scales press onto standoffs between them. If you want, a little oil or grease under the scales will not hurt anything; moisture trapped under a scale can cause rust or corrosion over time, but M390 is exactly the steel you want in that scenario. As for color, orange is the practical pick for anyone who has ever dropped a knife in the grass, though the black and green options cover every other taste.

Sheath and Carry Options

The knife comes with a Kydex sheath fitted with an omnidirectional belt clip. That means you can run it on the belt or carry it in a pocket, and the clip can be repositioned or removed entirely if you prefer. It is a simple, well-executed touch that adds real carry flexibility without complicating anything.

Things to Consider Before Buying

Availability is worth noting: the knife is not out yet, and County Comm is collecting email notifications for when it ships. New customers may even find it for slightly less than the $119 list price. If you prefer a smooth, symmetrical handle for rotating grip work, the indexing points may not suit you, and M390’s hardness means sharpening takes more time when the edge does eventually need real work. Compared with similar fixed blades in this form factor, such as options from the Montana Knife Company, the price remains very competitive.

Buying Advice

If you have moved past the novelty phases and want a fixed blade for precise, everyday work, this is an easy recommendation. The M390 steel, the in-line tip, the swappable scales, and the flexible sheath add up to a genuinely useful tool at a fair price.

Conclusion

The Maratac M390 knife is an outstanding package for $119: premium steel, a highly functional blade shape, and thoughtful details like extra scales and an omnidirectional sheath clip. For anyone ready for their functional-knife phase, it deserves a spot on the shortlist.