Still the Standard

If there were ever a benchmark for quality in the modern-day cutlery world, Chris Reeve Knives has set the standard. For over 30 years, this knife manufacturer quietly tucked away in Boise, Idaho, has produced top-shelf knives for discriminating cutlery consumers the world over without ever needing to shout it from the rooftops. Chris Reeve’s Sebenza integral lock folding knife design was the launching pad for the manufacturer’s success and was borne out of the fact that as a custom knifemaker, Chris simply couldn’t keep up with the demand for his knives. I visited the knifemaker in Boise in 1999 when CRK was in the process of becoming a manufacturer and got an early glimpse of what made his knives legend. Simply put, it was his deep personal demand for quality. That quality lives today. Chris Reeve officially retired in the year 2014 but the same rigid standards continue under company President Anne Reeve, who has been there from day one. The Sebenza (Zulu for “Work”) has gained a bevy of stable mates since it burst onto the scene, and we bring you a selection of them here. Note that Reeve gives Zulu titles to his knife models as a tribute to his native South Africa.

Folders Extraordinaire

Chris Reeve is originally from South Africa and it was there the custom knifemaker conceived the Integral Lock design in 1986. This design is essentially a spin-off of the Michael Walker Locking Liner but much sturdier because it utilizes the strength of a beefy Titanium frame for its locking leaf rather than a much thinner one located between two frame rails. The Integral Lock design was an immediate success, and in 1989, the Reeve family relocated to the U.S., where the burgeoning tactical folder market was on fire. After the move, Reeve officially gave his Integral Lock the name “Sebenza.” The folder has gone through several upgrades over the decades and a smaller version of the legendary folder was added to the stable.

The Sebenza 31 is the latest generation of the legendary folder. The overall length is 8.335″ with a blade length of 3.625″. The blade steel is CPM MagnaCut (Reeve’s premium steel du jour) manufactured by Crucible Industries — without a doubt, the hottest steel on the market today. The standard Sebenza has a solid front slab, but CRK offers them with inlays like the Bog Oak version shown here. Colorful, anodized versions have also been offered in the past. The Sebenza 31 is offered in three blade styles: a Drop Point (pictured here), Tanto, and Modified Wharncliffe.

In 2001, CRK answered the call for a pure gents’ knife with the Mnandi (Zulu: “Delicious”) folder. This small dress integral folder was designed with inlays of exotic wood such as Bog Oak, Box Elder and Ebony front and rear. The Mnandi’s overall length is 6.375″ with 2.75″ of the total in a sleek, elongated Drop Point blade featuring a round triangulate cut-out for opening. The Mnandi was quite a change of pace from the Sebenza but at its heart is a Titanium frame with Reeve’s hallmark Integral Lock.

The Umnumzaan (Zulu: “The Boss”) was introduced in 2008, is Reeve’s largest folder (8.409″ in length) and rang in his second-generation Integral Lock, with improvements making it stronger than the first. This folder also sports his most radical blade design with a harpoon-like tip. Overall blade length is 3.675″ and like several CRK models, a Japanese-style Tanto is offered as pictured here. The Umnumzaan is a tour de force in Titanium and takes no prisoners.

The Inkosi (Zulu: “Chief”) was introduced in 2015 and represents the many refinements Reeve has made over decades on constant improvements. This folder is 8.4″ in overall length with a 3.60″ blade and, like the Sebenza 31, is offered in a Drop Point, Tanto and Modified Wharncliffe, which we’ve featured here. A smaller Inkosi is also offered, making this the most versatile platform in the CRK stable.

Fixed-Blade Finery

Like most custom knifemakers, Chris Reeve cut his teeth making fixed-blade knives. In 2002, he collaborated with custom knifemaker William “Bill” Harsey, an icon in his own right, to produce the CRK Green Beret. This 12.375″ knife embodies Harsey’s own military experience and knife design skills with Reeve’s superb reputation for manufacturing stout, bullet-proof cutting fare. The Green Beret’s 7.0″ Spear Point blade (available in plain edge or partially serrated) has a stealthy black Cerakote finish and contoured gray Micarta handle scales. The Green Beret is outfitted with a choice of black or coyote tan nylon sheath.

The CRK Backpacker fixed-blade will please the hard-core survivalist, serious hunter, or casual camper alike. This versatile fixer, 8.50″ in overall length, has a 4.0″ Drop Point blade that can handle game processing, fire starting prep, and camp set-up shores with ease. And the scales can be removed for a lighter, skeletonized version of the knife. A lightweight black Kydex belt sheath is included.

The Reeve Legacy

Just the development of the Integral Lock mechanism, commonly referred to as a “frame-lock,” would be enough to win a lifetime achievement award for cutlery design. Virtually every major company offering modern tactical and EDC folding knife products has injected it into their line — some to a great extent — not to mention the many foreign companies that flood the market annually.

Chris Reeve Knives has won Blade magazine’s annual “Manufacturing Quality Award” 16 times, not including the other major industry awards that have come their way. Add to this Chris Reeve’s dogged determination to not only produce a near-perfect product but to continue to make it even more so — this is the stuff of which benchmarks are made. This is the standard Chris Reeve Knives has set.

For more info: ChrisReeve.com

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