The Greatest EDC Mounted Blades of 2024, Examined and Reviewed

In addition to MagnaCut, the largest development in knives is EDC fastened blades. Particularly knives that may be simply carried in your pocket somewhat than in your belt. The advantages of an EDC fastened blade are that they arrive out of the pocket able to work and might tackle more durable jobs than a folder. 

I examined 10 of one of the best EDC fastened blade choices on the market, so in case you’re In case you’re wanting so as to add a hard and fast blade to your carry rotation this can be a good place to begin. I assessed every knife’s chopping capacity, sheath, ergonomics, and ease of carry to make my closing picks. 

How I Examined the Greatest EDC Mounted Blades

My tenet all through testing is that an EDC knife must be straightforward to hold, minimize something, require low upkeep, and be easy to deploy. If a knife can do all these issues, it is going to earn a spot in my pocket or on my belt. Right here’s how I discovered if a knife met that standards. 

Lower Take a look at 

I minimize cardboard, wire ties, hemp twine, and apples for my minimize check. I ranked the knives’ chopping efficiency from finest to worst for every medium. Two attention-grabbing notes are {that a} high performer for one medium wasn’t essentially the highest performer for one more, and several other knives tied for first place in every check. I averaged the knives’ rankings for the minimize checks to provide you with a tier system. I’ll be aware the tier one, two, three, and 4 cutters in every assessment. 

Carrying

An EDC fastened blade is just nearly as good as its sheath. That’s why I carried every knife and evaluated their consolation, ease of deployment, and ease of sheathing. A number of the knives examined include sheaths that aren’t ultimate for EDC, however have glorious aftermarket choices obtainable. I’ll point out and embrace hyperlinks to these aftermarket sheaths in every assessment. 

Ergonomics 

Whereas doing the minimize check and carrying the knives, I famous how comfy and safe every knife was to carry in varied grips. My closing check of ergonomics was once I used every knife to carve inexperienced wooden and make feathersticks with seasoned firewood. Wooden carving requires extra pressure than chopping cardboard, so I observed ergonomic deficiencies extra readily. This was additionally an attention-grabbing check to see if the knives might double as a camp knife. 

Additional Testing

I’m nowhere close to finished shopping for and testing EDC fastened blades. There are nonetheless a ton of fashions which were bought out or I haven’t had time to order but. I’ll replace this text with new entries as they arrive in and put them by the identical testing protocol — with a slight modification. As an alternative of going face to face towards the entire class, they’ll go up towards my high performers: the Shwarz Overland Sport, Esee Sencillo, Bid Concept Designs Lookout, White River Knives Small Sport Hunter, and TRC Freedom Basic. 

The Greatest EDC Mounted Blades: Examined and Reviewed 

Greatest General: Schwarz Overland Sport 

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Key Options

• Blade Metal: MagnaCut 
• Deal with Supplies: G10 or Micarta in varied colours 
• General Size: 6.6 inches
• Blade Size: 2.8 inches
• Blade Thickness: 0.130 inch 
• Grind: Flat
• Comes with a Kydex sheath arrange for pocket carry with an Ulti-Clip 
• Made in USA
• Value: $265

Professionals

• Objective constructed for pocket carry
• Glorious sheath 
• Unbelievable ergonomics
• Lower all mediums nicely 

Cons

• You’ll be able to’t simply purchase one. You’ll have to attend for a drop or place an order and wait one to 2 months 

The perfect general choose got here right down to the Overland Sport and the Lookout. The distinction maker was the Overland Sport’s higher ergonomics and chopping capacity. It was within the elite tier of slicers, which included 5 knives. Its ergonomics are pure and safe. Your thumb lands on the jimping, which isn’t too sharp or too uninteresting. Your index finger sits near the sharpened edge for management, but it surely’s not at risk of slipping ahead throughout heavy use. The G10 scales I ordered for mine might use slightly extra texture, however they’re thoughtfully milled with leverage and index factors. Let’s say you’ll want to use a pinch grip or index finger on the knife’s backbone. There’s a divot on the grip on your thumb, which supplies it a ledge to push off towards. With a thumb on high of the knife, your center finger lands within the ferrule milled into the grip. Once more, it offers a snug and safe leverage level. 

Whereas the Overland Sport is a greater knife than the Lookout, it lagged behind within the sheath division. The Schwarz makes use of a pancake-style sheath and an ULTICLIP to safe it to your pocket. That model of sheath takes up extra space within the pocket and the ULTICLIP isn’t my favourite attachment technique.

The Overland Sport is a small-batch knife, which is superb for high quality management however not ultimate if you’d like a knife immediately. You’ll at present wait two to 4 weeks earlier than you obtain your customized order, or you may attempt to snag one on the weekly drops. In my view, if you’d like a knife that’s a well-rounded cutter and is simple to hold, there’s no higher possibility than the Overland Sport.

Learn Subsequent: Greatest EDC Knives

Greatest for Pocket Carry: Large Concept Designs Lookout 

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Key Options

• Blade Metal: M390 (China) or MagnaCut (USA) 
• Deal with Supplies: Grade 5 Titanium, G10, Tigerwood, Ultem, and Pure Micarta
• General Size: 6.2 inches
• Blade Size: 2.2 inches
• Blade Thickness: 0.12 inch 
• Grind: Flat
• Comes with two Kydex Sheaths (left and proper pocket carry) w/ titanium pocket clip
• Made in China and USA
• Value: $200 (China) or $250 (USA)

Professionals

• Objective constructed for pocket carry
• Excellent sheath 

Cons

• Grip wants extra traction 

This knife isn’t one of the best for exhausting use. It’s not even one of the best slicer. Its ergos are good, however they’re not nice. So why is it my favourite EDC fastened blade for pocket carry? Its design and execution are good. If you carry and use it you may inform that somebody put a whole lot of thought into how this knife and sheath wanted to work round being carried in a pocket.

The result’s a totally intuitive consumer expertise the place pulling the knife out and dropping it again into the sheath takes no thought. Different knife firms ought to pay attention to the sheath design as a result of it’s the one one I’ve examined that works flawlessly for pocket carry — though the Overland Sport may be very shut. The sheath has ultimate pocket clip rigidity and a small footprint. Most taco-style sheaths connect the clip to the rivet holes close to the sting facet. However, the Lookout’s clip is moved nearer to the middle of the sheath, which prevents the clip from blocking entry to the knife and strikes it tight to 1 facet of your pocket. 

The knife was within the second tier of cutters, but it surely’s a lot slicey for many EDC duties. The jimping is just too easy to supply sufficient traction, and the titanium scales on my mannequin are slick. If you wish to use the Lookout for hard-use duties, I’d suggest getting the USA-made mannequin with G10 or Micarta handles. 

Greatest Large Knife: TRC Basic Freedom

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Key Options

• Blade Metal: M390
• Deal with Supplies: Micarta 
• General Size: 8.08 inches
• Blade Size: 3.63 inches
• Blade Thickness: .107 inch
• Grind: Flat
• Value: $280
• Made in Lithuania 

Professionals

• Mild for its measurement
• Slicey 
• Nice ergonomics 
• Good sheath for belt carry 
• Unbelievable end 

Cons

• Not all the time obtainable in inventory 

If the Overland Sport and Lookout blades are too small on your wants, the subsequent best choice is the TRC Basic Freedom. It’s about 1.5 inches longer than each of these pocket-carry choices and what you get in return is extra deal with and extra blade. I put on an additional giant glove, and I can get a full grip with room to spare. The grip has a ledge close to the ricasso the place your thumb can get leverage whereas utilizing a finger-on-spine grip. The deal with space is skeletonized to cut back weight and it places the stability level the place your ring finger sits. The backbone is rounded and really comfy when placing exhausting stress on it. 

The blade got here insanely sharp, and it was simply within the high tier of cutters within the check. Its traditional drop level form is ideal for practically all chopping duties. It will possibly do meals prep, feather sticks, subject dressing, and EDC duties. So it’s a perfect blade for tenting, searching, and doing chores round the home. 

The sheath has good retention and comes configured for horizontal belt carry. You could possibly take away the belt strap and add a pocket clip in case you’d like.

Another excuse the Basic Freedom is one in every of my favourite EDC fastened blades is its unimaginable construct high quality. The backbone and all hand-contact factors are polished and rounded. There isn’t a single flaw on mine and its knife that may be appreciated by severe customers and collectors alike.

Learn Subsequent: Greatest Knife Sharpeners

ESEE Sencillo

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Key Options

• Blade Metal: MagnaCut or A2 
• Deal with Supplies: Brown Burlap Micarta
• General Size: 7.25 inches
• Blade Size: 3 inches
• Blade Thickness: 0.12 inch 
• Grind: Flat
• Kydex sheath with belt loop 
• Made in USA

Professionals

• Glorious ergonomics in all grips 

Cons

• Nice knife, so-so sheath 

There’s rather a lot to like in regards to the ESEE Sencillo. It’s an awesome worth at below $200 for a USA-made knife with glorious supplies and good construct high quality. Its tall, fully-flat-ground blade is a slicing machine that was a tier-one cutter in my check. The ergonomics are very safe, and the deal with fills your hand, so you will get a whole lot of management over your cuts. This was by far probably the greatest meals prep knives and would additionally make an awesome searching knife.

That is an all-to-common case of an awesome knife with a fundamental sheath. The sheath will work nicely for belt carry, however I’d suggest getting an Armatus sheath if you wish to carry it horizontally in your belt or Roac sheath for pocket carry. 

Greatest Hole Grind: Griffin Co X Sequence EDC Mounted Blade

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Key Options

• Blade Metal: MagnaCut
• Deal with Supplies: Brass, G10, Ultem, Micarta, and titanium 
• General Size: 7 inches
• Blade Size: 2.875 inches
• Blade Thickness: 0.118 inch 
• Grind: Hole grind
• Kydex sheath 
• Made in China
• Value: $230 

Professionals

• Slicey
• Good ergonomics
• Glorious for piercing cuts 

Cons

• Pocket clip broke throughout use 
• Drops promote out rapidly 

The Griffin Co X Sequence is a thinly-ground knife with a tremendous level. It’s a precision cutter, and it’s not your best option for any kind of exhausting use. The ergos lend themselves nicely to a whole lot of management. There’s a deep choil that secures your index finger and a flat in entrance of the choil if you wish to choke up extra. 

The sheath it comes with has extra rigidity than I’d like, and the pocket clip was additionally too tight. I used to be carrying the Griffin Co in my Origin Delta denims, which aren’t thick by any means, and the pocket clip wouldn’t slide off. It’s a 3D-printed clip that broke whereas making an attempt to take away it. 

Greatest Mid-Priced: Bradford Guardian 3

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Key Options

• Blade Steels: M390, Elmax, and MagnaCut
• Deal with Supplies: Micarta, G10, carbon fiber, and G-wood
• General Size: 6.75 inches
• Blade Size: 3.5 inches
• Blade Thickness: .14 inch
• Grinds: Saber and full flat 
• Value: $159 to $229
• Made in USA

Professionals

• Compact measurement
• Glorious grip traction (textured G10)
• A number of deal with, metal, and grind choices
• Good worth

Cons

• Not one of the best cutter within the check 

The Bradford Guardian 3 was my first EDC fastened blade, and I’ve had it for over 6 years. The design has remained unchanged, and it’s nonetheless probably the greatest EDC fastened blades. You get a full-size grip with a really helpful blade form and size. I’ve used mine for EDC and to quarter deer, the place the nice ergonomics and drop-point blade form excelled. 

The Guardian 3 was within the third tier of cutters in my check. I believe that’s a mixture of a reasonably thick blade inventory and its saber grind. Bradford now gives a full flat grind, which ought to slice higher. The advantage of the thicker grind is that you could abuse this knife with gentle batoning and exhausting chopping. Mine has finished each of these duties over time with out chipping the blade. 

Greatest Looking EDC: White River Knife and Device Small Sport

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Key Options

• Blade Metal: S35VN (58-60 HRC) or MagnaCut (62-64 HRC)
• Deal with Supplies: Micarta 
• General Size: 7.25 inches
• Blade Size: 2.62 inches
• Blade Thickness: .130 inch
• Grind: Flat
• Kydex Sheath
• Made in USA
• Value: $160 (S35VN) or $180 (MagnaCut)

Professionals

• Sculpted deal with 
• Slicey
• Full-length grip 

Cons

• Sheath isn’t ultimate for EDC

It is a mullet knife: celebration within the again and enterprise upfront. The large deal with permits a full grip and its Coke-bottle form makes for comfy ergonomics. This sculpted grip conforms to your hand with a hammer grip, thumb on the backbone, or index finger on the backbone. The small, thinly floor blade was a top-tier slicer. It’s a perfect knife for subject dressing, breaking down bins, or different light-duty chopping duties. 

White River Mannequin 1

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Key Options 

• Blade Size: 3 inches
• General Size: 7 inches
• Weight: 3.2 ounces
• Features a Kydex sheath 
• Blade Materials: S35VN
• Micarta or G10 handles 
• Made in USA
• Value: $175

Professionals

• Mild and straightforward to hold
• Excellent ergonomics 
• Would make an awesome searching knife along with its EDC position

Cons

• Jimping is painfully sharp when chopping exhausting supplies 

The M1 Caper is without doubt one of the finest EDC fastened blades I’ve discovered at balancing a full grip and straightforward to hold measurement. The deal with is Croc comfy and mountain climbing boot safe. The deep choil gave me a whole lot of management over cuts and whereas I appreciated the sharp jimping, it was painfully sharp whereas chopping with a whole lot of pressure. It was among the many finest slicers I examined, but it surely didn’t wish to chunk into the wooden like among the steeper floor knives. It comes with a Kydex sheath of fine high quality, however I might improve to an Armatus sheath for day by day carry. 

Greatest Funds Mounted Blade: Gerber Stowe

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Key Options 

• Blade Size: 2.5 inches
• General Size: 6 inches
• Weight: 2.6 ounces
• Features a leather-based sheath 
• Blade Materials: 440A
• Made in China
• Micarta deal with
• Value: $47

Professionals

• Mild and straightforward to hold
• Helpful blade form 

Cons

• Sheath might use enchancment 
• Choil must be slightly deeper 

There’s rather a lot to love in regards to the Gerber Stowe. Its blade form was nice at push and utility cuts. The complete flat grind sliced by all of the supplies nicely and the deal with can be utilized in a wide range of grips. Then there’s its below $50 price ticket, which will increase its enchantment for individuals who wish to experiment carrying a hard and fast blade. 

The Stowe’s ergonomics might use some refinements although. If the choil was just a bit deeper my pinky would have a a lot simpler time staying on the deal with, and it might give extra blade management. If the scales have been flush with the tang it might get rid of the new spots I felt whereas placing the Stowe by the minimize check. 

Knives that Didn’t Make the Lower

• Knafs Lulu: This Scandi floor knife isn’t nice on the slicing duties required for EDC, and it didn’t excel at carving wooden both. I just like the idea of a pocket bushcrafter, however a convex edge or a skinny, true scandi would have been higher blade grinds.
• Asher Knives: I actually like this knife, but it surely couldn’t sustain within the minimize check with simularily priced choices.

Find out how to Select an EDC Mounted Blade

Sheath 

Sheaths are simply as essential as knives. Sadly, knife firms haven’t put as a lot thought and care into sheaths as they do blades. Because of this, an entire business of aftermarket sheaths exists to supply finish customers with glorious choices. 

If the knife you need doesn’t include a sheath you’re keen on, think about a customized sheath into your buy value. Kydex sheaths are sometimes inexpensive and most of the people desire a taco-style for its smaller footprint. Leather-based sheaths may be bulkier within the pocket, however there’s no denying their magnificence, particularly as they patina with use. 

General Size

Typically, I like an EDC fastened blade that’s between 6 and eight inches lengthy. That permits for sufficient blade and deal with for it to be helpful, whereas nonetheless being sufficiently small to hold all day. 

Blade

For EDC, I like thinly floor knives with a drop level or wharncliffe model. I discover knives with an excessive amount of stomach have a tough time chopping cordage as a result of it slips down the sting as you apply stress. 

Remaining Ideas on the Greatest EDC Mounted Blades

There are a whole lot of nice causes to hold a hard and fast blade as an alternative of a folder: They’re sooner to deploy, have higher ergonomics, are extra dependable, and are sometimes extra inexpensive (all issues being equal). If you wish to carry a hard and fast blade, select the knife that has the scale, blade model, grip, and value you want and be ready to order a sheath that you just like too.