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Transcript Episode 661: My Growing Microtech Collection

Bob DeMarco: Coming up in the first tool, the Pesh Kabz. In the state of the collection, I get my Edgy American Junkie back, and then we're going to take a look at my growing Microtech collection. I'm Bob DeMarco. This is the Knife Junkie podcast.

Announcer: Welcome to the Knife Junkie podcast, your weekly dose of knife news and information about knives and knife collecting. Here's your host, Bob "The Knife Junkie" DeMarco.

Bob DeMarco: Welcome back to the show. One of my favorite comments from this past week was from Jason Scott, who said—this was about my interview with Captain Ricky—he said, "Always great interviews, Bob. You and Ricky had an awesome conversation. You and Ricky are my top two favorite channels." How cool is that? "I've been subscribed to your channel, Bob, for maybe six or seven years now, pretty much just as soon as I found the EDC community, and Ricky is a great newer channel. Ricky doing great content. I hope you both keep it up for a long time. God bless, guys." Thank you, Jason Scott. God bless you, sir. I really appreciate that comment, and I appreciate that in many ways, for someone who's been around a while like myself to be compared with someone new, cool, hip, and great at what he does, that's a feather in my cap too. So thanks very much.

Bob DeMarco: All right, there we go. Thanks for liking, thanks for watching all of the shorts and the longs and the close-ups and the podcast. We appreciate it greatly. Be sure to like, comment, subscribe. All right, that said, let's get to a pocket check.

Announcer: What's in his pocket? Let's find out. Here's the Knife Junkie with his pocket check of knives.

Bob DeMarco: In my front right pocket today was the beautiful Polaris XL from my friends over at Off-Grid Knives. This is a step above for them. They've always had very affordable knives, and then they've had a mid-tier, and then they've always had their elite lineup with really great knives in higher-end materials and sort of higher-functioning designs—not higher-functioning designs, but higher luxury designs I should say. But this one takes the cake. This is a step above even from their elite series. The Polaris XL, that's a four and a quarter inch clip point blade, which I, as you know, absolutely love. And then it's got a DLC coated Vanax super clean blade, which is ultra corrosion resistant and has an incredible edge retention quality. So this being my first Vanax knife, I look forward to seeing how long I can power through cardboard with it. I've already had one cardboard session with it, and as you know if you watch this show, I love Off-Grid knives for cardboard. This one is no exception. It has a tall blade, a tall grind, and a relatively thin blade stock. Jimping has the day is long. Really, really nice action.

Bob DeMarco: I had a bunch on me today. I had the—instead of a slip joint—I had this, the Spyderco MicroJimbo. The MicroJimbo, beautiful little knife in the Yojimbo lineup designed by Michael Janich. And I had this one out to do a craft. I was hanging up a thing on my older daughter's wall, a thing that basically amounts to a decal that acts as a whiteboard. And we were doing all sorts of precision cutting with the tip of this. And so I had it in my back pocket today. I love that knife, and I carry it rarely, though sometimes if I have to take a trip into DC, Washington DC, I will carry that knife because it's small and legal-ish, you know, for DC.

Bob DeMarco: All right, next up, on my belt, right next to my belt buckle, I carry this. I'm going to start carrying it again. I've been carrying it on and off ever since I got it. And today, I saw a video on the push dagger the other night. Oh, it was the guy, Scott Babb, did a video on the push dagger. I was like, oh man, I should bust out my Urban Edge. I love this thing. It's so small, so discreet. With just this little bit of paracord, I mean the purple paracord kind of attracts attention, maybe I should use just black, but I just put this right next to my belt buckle, and when I draw it, it stops right at my first belt loop. Boom, there I have a push dagger right in my hand, just ready to go. Not that I need it, thank God, but it's there. And I think they're cool. I love push daggers.

Bob DeMarco: All right, next up, also on my belt, but a little bit further around to the three o'clock, was my TKell Knives Adversary. Love, I love the Adversary. I love that true Wharncliffe blade, the continuous swooping drop from the thumb down to the point, that nice low point. Super sharp. This is 80CRV2. A beautiful American-made TKell knife here with all the TKell trappings. I really dig this knife. And it's got two stablemates. It's got the Scout, I believe it's called, with more of a sheepfoot blade, and then it has the Combatant. And now he's in the second design of the Combatant, Combatant 2 I guess you could say. Beautiful drop point with a swedge. This one, if you like any three of those, they all share the same handle. But you can get handles that extend the pommel. And how that works is you have two pieces of G10 like this, and then as they pass the end of the pommel, they sort of clamshell together. And so gives guys with bigger hands or people who want a little bit more of a grip. This is perfect as far as I'm concerned for a concealable knife. It's just four fingers. Just my medium-sized hand can fit on there just barely. Great, great knife. I can't recommend it enough. I actually can't recommend TKell knives enough. I love them deeply.

Bob DeMarco: All right, last up here, my ESK, my emotional support knife for today, was the awesome Cold Steel Mayhem. So double Cold Steel today. I usually try not to carry two knives of the same brand in one day. It's just one of my little OCD-nesses about knives. That's one of them, but I broke it today boldly and bravely and carried the Mayhem. When I say carry, it was in my bag. Clipped to the, I'm carrying a shoulder bag that I haven't carried in a long time. It's like a military attaché case, and it's got a thing in the back, and I could just clip this on and access it really easy if need be. What a great knife, man. I really did not like it at first. I thought it was sort of comical, but when I finally got it in hand to play with, I knew, yeah, okay, time to get off the fence, time to get a Mayhem. And of course, I had to get a snaggletooth MF, which he makes one specifically for this knife. So awesome knife made in Taiwan. Aus 10. And then they frequently they'll do S35VN runs.

Bob DeMarco: That's what I had on me today. My ESK was the Mayhem. My main fixed blade knife was the Adversary from TKell Knives. Just right up front just in case I got in a gambling dispute, I had the push dagger from Cold Steel. I had this little MicroJimbo in the back pocket, and yeah, I was weighed down. Glad I didn't fall in a body of water today. And then here I had the Polaris XL with that beautiful Red Fawn carbon fiber that I forgot to mention before. Such a cool knife. Oh, and classy, classy filler tab there. Made by Kunwu, with all that implies.

Bob DeMarco: All right, sir. Well, speaking of TKell Knives, let me tell you about the affiliate program we have. If you like TKell Knives, I talk about them a lot because I love them, and I did a collaboration knife with them. You may have heard of it once or twice, the Agent 001. I bring it up every now and again. A very proud moment in my drawing life, to have a knife that I drew produced by one of my favorite people in knives and one of my favorite knife makers. So here are some knives you can get from TKell Knives if you like their stuff. The Sapper, formerly the Sapper, now called the Outrider. You got the Agent series, beautiful series, the best series, an excellent series of knives called the Agent series, 001. They're up to seven, but they're missing the six, I think. They haven't designed the six yet, but just an awesome series, which I started based on with my design of the Agent 001, of course, that I sent to Tim. It was based on this knife, the Nightstalker, that I was carrying all the time, and I loved the carry dimensions of it and made the blade and the handle basically fall within that.

Bob DeMarco: You got this, if you like something smaller, you can get this, which is actually based on this knife, but this is called the Nautilus. It's a three-finger fixed blade knife with all the strength and gusto and wickedness of a TKell knife, but in a smaller package. And they are known for their sheaths, sheaths that, except for the big boy here, which has a big sheath, but sheaths that fit within the confines of your belt. Very, very easy to carry. You can even get Badger Claw leather for my Agent 001 or for this Agent 001, as you may imagine, I have a few. But anyway, if you like TKell Knives, which a lot of you do, go to theknifejunkie.com/tkell when you're going to buy one, when you cannot resist anymore or when you've saved up enough or whatever the case may be. You go to theknifejunkie and tkellknives.com and use knifejunkie at checkout and you save 10%. 10%, people, in this economy. 10% off a TKell knife is a hell of a deal. So go check it out, theknifejunkie.com/tkell.

Bob DeMarco: Next up, I want to show the Gentleman Junkie giveaway knife for March of 2026. It is a fancy pants, and it comes to us as a gift from Michael Jarvis of Auxiliary Manufacturing. Michael Jarvis, awesome guy who just has created this powerhouse company, and it is just producing some of the coolest knives right now. And I love the Pocket Bowie series. I have a number of Pocket Bowies. I have a first custom run, I have a mid-tech Pocket Bowie fixed blade, of course, and then the big, the XL Pocket Bowie fixed blade, which is awesome and beautiful and great for EDC, even with its four-inch blade. But this little guy is so beautiful. This is a just slightly sub three-inch M390 clip point blade with a really nicely micro-milled and fluted titanium handle. M390 blade steel, as I mentioned, really nice construction, awesome action from mid-tech, and they're just killing it. I love it. This is part of the Dead Head series, so you can see that skull logo there on the detent. Beautiful, beautiful knife.

Bob DeMarco: We will be giving this away to one lucky Gentleman Junkie. Gentleman Junkies, who are they? They're our Patreon supporters and our supporters right here on YouTube when you join right here on the page. Every third Thursday of the month, there's a special giveaway on Thursday Night Knives. We give this knife away. So please, please join us if you like, if you have the extra scratch and you want to help support the show, that's greatly appreciated. You can go to theknifejunkie.com/patreon or scan the QR code on your screen, and when you buy a whole year, 12% off. And you get, here, before I go, with this plug, I don't want to just be sitting here begging for money, I want to say you get so much from becoming a Patreon member, including interview extras and all the amazing stuff on our page. Like this newest one, this is The American Edge 250. This is one of the series that Jim has been curating and putting up, and this one talks all about the long rifleman's knife, and also trade knives in general, and knives from around the Revolutionary War. And it's really interesting. We do Maker Mondays where you read all about, get an inside scoop on a maker and their history. There's the Friday Funnies, you know, so lots and lots of different features thanks to Jim who is ever working his butt off for this, and yeah, so go check us out on Patreon. We really, really, really appreciate it. It's theknifejunkie.com/patreon.

Bob DeMarco: Why pay full price for gas and food? With the Upside app, you don't have to. Just open Upside, find nearby offers, and earn cash back when you buy gas or eat out. Pay like normal and get real money back in the app. No coupons, no hassle. Just easy savings on things you already buy. Download Upside today and start putting money back in your pocket. Learn more at theknifejunkie.com/saveongas.

Bob DeMarco: First knife up in Knife Life News is a really cool one by a designer named Theo Estevao, I'm sorry, Estevao. This is the Artisan Cutlery Trust. It is big, elegant, and I think kind of beautiful. So this one is 3.7—look at that. I mean that's a nice-looking modified Wharncliffe slash reverse tanto. Anyway, 3.76 inches of S35VN. It's got a super acute point from the looks of it and a beautifully gently curving belly. You got a thumb stud on there. And then it's got a tie frame lock with scalloped aluminum handles. These, they're like inlay overlays. So it is a frame lock, it's a titanium frame lock, but it's got these fluted, or scalloped I should say, aluminum overlays that stop the, that act as an over-travel device and also just a beauty thing. So very nice, kind of a coffin-shaped handle, cool-shaped handle. This is a really, really good-looking blade. Sculpted ambidextrous pocket clip. It is light at 2.9 ounces. Available soon. MSRP on this is $192.

Bob DeMarco: Next up from Boker, whose, man, their catalog is deep and wide. Boker Sledgedog, Sledgedog. We all know that a sledge, or maybe we don't, but sledge is a sled, it's another word for sled. So a sledgedog is like a mushing dog if you will, a malamute or a husky that pulls the dog sleds up in the great white north. I'm thinking of Jack London, White Fang, and all those great books. But anyway, Sledgedog. This is kind of live up to its name here. This is a big heavy-duty outdoor fixed blade, heavy-duty outdoor fixed blade. This is also designed by a named designer if you will, Fernando Santos. 6.7 inches of D2. Man, and it looks like it's got a double hollow grind there, but they didn't say anything about a double. But they did say it's a steep hollow grind, drop point blade. It's got a TPR handle with jimping, finger guard. I'm not sure what TPR is, I know it's some sort of a plastic, but I can't determine, I tried to do a little research on it. I can't tell if it's hard like textured vegetable protein, or if it's a rubbery like textured vegetable protein. But really nice looking knife. Comes with a leather sheath. I do love the guard. I like the whole look of this thing. It reminds me a little bit of a Terzuola. Just a little bit. Like those old tactical fixed blade Terzuolas. So this one, as I mentioned, has a leather sheath. It is available now. $115 is the MSRP.

Bob DeMarco: Next up from our good friends at Sencut. It's the Securis. Securis, as I can best pronounce it. In-house design, 3.3 inches of D2, very unique and beautiful pointy sort of clip point blade there. With a nearly straight edge, very low slung tip to that clip point, so sax perhaps. It's got a flipper, a thumb stud, and it sort of in this photograph here, looks like that's a front flipper, but it's not. That sort of sharp bit of tang where you see the jimping disappears completely behind that finger guard there in the handle when it's closed. It's got an aluminum handle with a button lock, reversible deep carry pocket clip. So a lot of the things we're used to from Sencut, but I gotta say I love when they do aluminum. I wish they did more of it. 3.15 ounces, late March 2026 this will be available for $55 MSRP.

Bob DeMarco: All right, lastly, we got two new Buck EDC folders. And Buck is, man, they've been on fire. They recently put out the Range series, a number of different knives in that series that are excellent. I really like them. And then slimming down of the Buck 110, but maintaining all of the traditional character with the material. Brilliant idea. I've been waiting for them to do that for years now. I just have to get myself one once they're available. I'm not sure if they might be. But now they have these two new ones, and they both are very handsome blades. The Ferrox and the Nomad. Both sub-$100 knives. The 698 Ferrox, we'll take that one first, is, and that's one right there, 3.25 inches. Modified Wharncliffe or reverse tanto D2 with a beautiful swedge on the top. So it's going to be nice and piercy, it'll have a thinner cross-section for sort of puncturing cuts. Crossbar lock, comes in black, gray, and tan aluminum. They're calling the tan bronze, but just so you know, it looks like tan. $80 MSRP available now. Also, I don't know, I love the look of the handle too. Good-looking blade. You must admit.

Bob DeMarco: All right, and next up is the 700 Nomad. The Nomad, kind of a stablemate here of the Ferrox. Similar handle, a little different, a little less bookending. This one actually, the handle on this reminds me of the Iridium from Kershaw, but just really nice-looking knife. And this one is a spear point or drop point. It's 3.25 inches D2, crossbar lock. Black, red, or tan—oh no, black and red, like you see here. Also aluminum handle. You can get it black with bronze accents or tan with black accents. $80. Good-looking knife. I can't wait to hear what people say. These are not ones I'm going to be getting. I'm going to hold out and I want to get the new 110 slim. Looks so nice, and I know it comes with MagnaCut steel, so it should be pretty darn sweet.

Bob DeMarco: All right, we're up to 46,000 subscribers. That's right. My daughter told me just this weekend. I was like, no way. But that still makes us 4,000 subscribers away from 50,000. And when we get to 50,000, the great and powerful Dirk Pinkerton will be making a custom knife for me to give away to you on Thursday Night Knives. And when this happens, believe me, I will promote the heck out of it so we all know and the largest amount of people can get in on that action. All right, let's get to the first tool.

Announcer: You're listening to the Knife Junkie podcast. Here's some cool knife history with the Knife Junkie, The First Tool.

Bob DeMarco: The Pesh Kabz. Imagine a knife built for one very specific job. Not chopping wood, not carving meat, not even slashing in a duel, but punching through armor. That's the story of the Pesh Kabz, a knife born in Persia and carried across Afghanistan and Northern India, where its shape was refined into something almost surgical. Even the name hints at how closely it was worn. In Persian, Pesh Kabz refers to a blade worn in the front of the body, close, ready, and intimate. And that tells you everything about its purpose. This was no camp knife. This was the knife you carry when trouble was already near.

Bob DeMarco: At first glance, the Pesh Kabz looks elegant, almost restrained. The blade is usually narrow, single-edged, tapered sharply, often with a reinforced spine that gives it unusual stiffness, kind of like a T-bar or an I-beam. But that design was not about beauty alone. By the 17th century, this style becomes associated with defeating mail armor and heavy protective textiles. Instead of relying on a broad cut, the Pesh Kabz concentrated force into a hard, needle-like point. It is one of those rare knives that feels less like a simple weapon and more like a piece of engineering, a solution to a battlefield problem.

Bob DeMarco: And yet, like so many historic knives, the Pesh Kabz did not remain locked into one single role. Museum examples show just how varied they became. Some were plainly mounted in horn or bone, practical and hard used. Others were dressed in walrus ivory, jade, gold inlays with floral decorations, and even talismanic inscriptions invoking blessings and victory. That contrast is part of what makes the Pesh Kabz so fascinating. The same form could live as a battlefield sidearm, a status object, a ceremonial piece, or a treasured heirloom.

Bob DeMarco: One surviving 19th-century example is in the Met in New York, which I've admired very many, I've admired many times in person, it's richly decorated. It looks like something that should be in a museum. Even though its form still echoes combat design, while British collections preserve more combative Afghan examples that preserve the knife's more martial identity. That's why the Pesh Kabz still feels so compelling today. That's also why I would love to have one hanging on the wall behind me. It's a knife shaped by pressure, literally by the pressure of steel against armor, and culturally by the movement of ideas across Persia, Afghanistan, and India. It is slim, severe, and purposeful. A blade that tells us knives are not just tools or weapons, but answers to the world that made them. And the Pesh Kabz answered with one hard, narrow point.

Bob DeMarco: Do you have a Pesh Kabz? I do not. If I had one, I would show it to you. I'd show it to you here. I'd show it to you on Thursday Night Knives. I'd probably even write a newsletter about it. So, be involved here with us at theknifejunkie.com. Check out our newsletter. Go to theknifejunkie.com/newsletter, find out what's on my mind, check out some cool pictures. It's also a good way for me to keep in touch with you if everything comes collapsing down around us. All right. You like that kind of conversation? Join us on Thursday Night Knives. Join us for all our other features. All right, let's get to the state of the collection.

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Bob DeMarco: Well, good news. I got my knife back from Shane. Shane of Edgy American Bladeworks, my good buddy. And the guy who made a knife design that I sent to him a little while ago and he knocked it out of the park. But he saw some things in a video close-up I did of it that he wanted to tweak, wanted to change. So I sent it back to him. He had it for months and he just returned it with a new sheath and a whole new finish and it's amazing. And a whole new edge. Holy mackerel. This is the Edgy American Junkie. And the sheath, the beautiful sheath, is from 1931 Leatherworks. Terry joins us on Thursday Night Knives, as does Shane. So this is a very, very special piece to me and the edge, which you'll see in a moment, was put on by Kyle Conley of Clinging Verks Sharpening, who also shows up to Thursday Night Knives quite a bit. So this is like a really cool knife for me to have. There's Shane's logo, you know, the trucker mud flap girl. Beautiful sheath. Terry asked me how I want to carry it. I said I'd like it so it's on a cant on my belt but either left or right side. I want the flexibility. So he made this incredible, incredible sheath. As a matter of fact, I'm going to put it in front of the microphone so you can hear the beautiful leather creaks here. [leather creaking sound] It's one of those kind of sheaths. I love that.

Bob DeMarco: All right, let me show you the knife. Ah. So you've seen this knife, and actually, this knife has now seen some action. I can see some of my handy work already on the surface. But you've seen this knife. And then it got refinished and it got blasted and it got refined, man. I could see how he re-ground the blade. He definitely had the edge redone. He re-sculpted the handle. It feels even better. I mean it felt great before but now it just melts in the hand. Nicely chamfered. It's very comfortable, but it's nicely squared off. It's not going to turn in my hand. And the jimping is very purposeful, great for gloves or the naked flesh. This CruWear, I am so excited. It's so razor sharp. And I'm so excited just, I only have one other CruWear blade by Alex Steingraber and I really like CruWear. So I'm very excited about this. I've carried this in a defensive posture a couple of times now in our local—I've only had it a few days now—but in our area we walk the dog, we go to a park, it's a wooded park, and this little EDC sax mamajama, whatever you want to call it, Junkie, this little Junkie really makes me feel quite safe. Very easy to draw out of this. He's going to start taking orders on this. He apparently when I showed this off on Thursday Night Knives this past week, people dug it. So I think he's going to start making this for others. But just a really, really, really cool blade and well, well done. So I'm really happy to have it back and in better shape than ever.

Bob DeMarco: All right, and then next is from Jack Wolf Knives and Ben Belkin. I just received this as I record this just a couple of hours ago. I haven't even carried this. I've only shot my unboxing video and that should be going up shortly. But here it is, this beauty. This of course is the Jack Wolf Knives Gateway Barlow. And this is the second run and it's got a number of different handle materials as always and mine is this really awesome Miami camo carbon. So it looks like Miami Vice with the pink and the blue, the pastels and just really nice material. Triple fluted as on the old, I'm going to pull out my first run. Now this new one has a stiffer spring, my newer has a stiffer spring. It also has a nail nick instead of the long pull. But triple fluted stainless steel liners and bolsters. Beautiful, beautiful materials, incredible fit and finish on these. It's just, these are lesser materials, that's why these are the affordable gateway series. So they're your gateway to the world of Jack Wolf Knives. So 70 bucks for this one. I know they have a, I think they're doing an abalone model. I think they do an abalone exclusive with one of the dealers, I'm not sure. So they do get more expensive, but 70 to 80 bucks is generally where these reside and man, they are awesome. This first one, I've carried this a lot. I actually carry it pretty frequently because I can drop it in a pocket even without a slip, and because it's not one of the super premium expensive ones I'm not too concerned about it, though it does stand up North to South pretty well because it's a biggish knife. So I love this knife and I'm really, really excited to have this. I must be honest, this would not be the one I would order, but I'm really glad that this is the one that he sent me, that Jack Wolf Knives sent me, because in person I love it. I love these colors. And I think my daughters have already claimed them because of the pink, you know how that goes.

Bob DeMarco: So the new Jack Wolf Knives Gateway Barlow is out or will be out shortly as in my hot little hands. The Gunslinger Jack is out, been carrying that one like it's going out of style, and it's not going out of style, it's a very stylish knife. Trust me. Okay, so before we get to my growing Microtech collection, and I think I'm calling it that so that I bring, what do they call it, materialize juju coming my way that I bring more Microtech, check out our merch. You know you love t-shirts, you know you love hats. Get one for your girl. Actually, get an extra large t-shirt to sleep in. Now go check these out. This is "Have a knife day," or just "Have a knife," sharp. Yeah, me too. And I love the knives that Jim actually features in this design. You can get it on a hat, you can get it on an apron, tote bag, whatever you want. All manner of what-have-you. Show your support for the show and meet like-minded weirdos out there in the real world.

Bob DeMarco: All right, I'm going to show you Microtechs, but before I show you Microtech, I'm going to show you a Microtech clone. This Microtech clone was sent to me by my good friend Dave of OG Blade Reviews. I don't know how he came to it, but he was like, here, you know, he sends me all of these knives and passed this one along. He's like, "This one's for you. I know you like the Stitch, and who knows, maybe you'll get it someday." But this thing is, so check this out. So this is a genuine clone. This one is a clone, and the funny thing is, to look at it, you might not know it. If you're a Microtech guy, you'll know it. But to look at it, you might not know it in pictures, but when you hold it, oh, you can tell. That's one of the things about Microtech I like. Je ne sais quoi, it's an "I don't know what." It's got this intangible quality. Besides its solidity and its sharpness and its cool design and all that, they have a real quality to them. And as soon as you put this fake Stitch in hand, you know immediately just from the feel it's not a Microtech. But it's cool nonetheless. Fun to have. I actually keep this in my drawer at work in case any knife type chores come up. I have a bunch, I guess I have a bunch at work. But this is one that's there for any sort of, it's just there. It's just there to play with, I'll be honest. But don't fall for it, people. That's not M390, and especially not on the relatively cheap FRN handle. So that is a fake one. Let's get to the real ones, shall we? And when I get to my Stitch, I'll pull this out again and maybe we can see them side by side.

Bob DeMarco: But the first one, I think you know what the first one is, maybe. This is the one that's nearest and dearest to my heart. This is the SOCOM Elite. This is my official road trip knife. Over the years I've shown this off on the channel a million billion times and I always talk about the adventures we've been on. I just really like it, but this knife represents a lot of firsts. First S35VN, first Microtech, first carbon fiber, first ball bearing pivot. I got this in 2012, 2013, I got this. It was made in 2012, I got it a year later. So it's got a lot of things that I didn't even know ball bearing pivots existed, but they did then and that was this. So a lot of firsts here. First glass breaker. And therein, that is the reason why this is my road trip knife. It became that when I first got it because it was the first thing I had with a glass breaker. But it's become now, I don't want to say superstition, it's become, well now I just like to carry it when I go on a road trip. Makes me feel, it's like my little security blanket. I also like the way it's starting to wear on some of the exposed areas. This thing has cut everything from 550 cord to waffles to duct tape to rope, sash rope, to that weird cord they use when they tie your Christmas tree to the roof. I mean this thing has cut a lot of stuff. I've never done anything too hardcore with it, but I love it. It will always be probably my absolute favorite Microtech. Also, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention this is such a beautiful tanto blade shape. And I miss this particular blade grind of the tanto, that drop point tanto with the long swedge. Oh, looks so cool. And cuts really, really well. All right, so maybe I'll leave these out on the desk. That's the Microtech SOCOM Elite.

Bob DeMarco: Here we have the Microtech SOCOM Elite automatic. And I traded with Dave of OG Blade Reviews for this one and man, I love it. He's got another one I want now. I should probably hit him up for it. We might want to do another trade. This is the updated blade shape there. This was a 2018 production. So this thing is already eight years old. But nice swedge on top. I love the way they do the mix of DLC with the polished flats, satin flats. It just looks so beautiful. This again is tip down. I'm very fond of saying one of the only designs I'm willing to accept tip down because I love it so much. Here you go. It doesn't affect the knife too much. Every once in a while I'll think of a reason why I don't like it tip down, but really it works, it works just fine. Look at that. As I like to say, when you put a knife upside down you can really see its contours differently. I believe your brain sees it better. And look at that shape. That's a cool blade shape. Which one, which one do you think is cooler? Which grind, which tanto grind? They both have that drop point, which is beautiful. They do it differently with the swedge.

Bob DeMarco: Next up, yes, it's another SOCOM. And if you think I've identified a favorite, you're right. This is the SOCOM Bravo made by Rike Knives over in China. Now this is the first time they ever did a foreign production and they did a beautiful job on this. This knife is gorgeous. It comes in this clip point, it comes in a tanto, and it comes in smaller versions as well. But just this really beautiful, sculpted, fancy version of the SOCOM. I love the SOCOM Bravo and Deltas, they're sort of fancy custom versions of this profile, and I really, really liked them. This of course has a titanium frame lock with really nice-looking carbon fiber. I generally don't go for that kind of twill carbon fiber, but it looks really nice here.

Bob DeMarco: Next up is the new SOCOM, not new now, it's been a little while, but the SOCOM Elite Ram-Lok. I bought this down at Blade Show a couple years ago actually. And man, this is a cool knife too. It gives you the full purchase. This is such a hand-filling knife, you get that in the regular ones, you get that here too. So hand-filling, and you get the addition of the crossbar lock, the Ram-Lok, which I find very easy to actuate. It's a nice big step cut thing. What I really loved though when I bought this was this straight back blade shape with the beautiful swedge. Very utilitarian point down low for utility cuts. To me, it kind of looks reminiscent of some historical blades. But a really, really cool knife. And the G10 here, super heavily textured. I think some people even were complaining that it was a little too textured. Oh wait, it wasn't here, it was underneath the pocket clip, the pocket clip was hard to get in and out of the pocket because of the texturing on the scale beneath. Really cool knife. I actually use this sort of as an outdoor beater, and honestly, the Ram-Lok has held up beautifully. The only other thing I use for that kind of thing is Cold Steels and they have Tri-Ad locks, so it's a completely different animal. But the Ram-Lok has been very impressive to me.

Bob DeMarco: Okay, stepping away from the SOCOMs for a minute, we get into the out-the-fronts. And this is an Ultratech. This is the D/E, double-edged. This was sent to me by my good friend Dave of OG Blade Reviews. I don't know why I keep doing that. And he sent this along with the Stitch. And he actually sharpened one side of this to a truly terrifying degree. And the action on it is great. Very stiff spring, which I actually prefer on out-the-fronts, though I don't have enough to really make that broad a statement, I suppose. But yeah, this has that apocalyptic finish which I love. Really hides wear, and I just like the whole double-edged symmetry of this knife. Now it doesn't make it great for EDC chores like push cutting with your thumb on the spine, but as a pokey-stabby self-defense thing, yeah, sure. The Ultratech, just a classic out-the-front and it's nice to have one in the collection.

Bob DeMarco: I also have another out-the-front, the Troodon. This is the full-size Troodon, not the Combat Troodon. This is also double-edged. Very similar in size to the Ultratech, but just a little more, I don't know, swoopy, a little more anatomical. Feels a little better in the hand. Got a slightly broader blade here. Really nice action on this one too. This is one that came from Jim. Thank you, Jim. Just a great, another great out-the-front. I definitely prefer out-the-side autos to out-the-fronts, but I still think out-the-fronts are the coolest fidget toy a man could have. So the Troodon D/E.

Bob DeMarco: Next up is my favorite automatic from Microtech, this is the LUDT. Large Underwater Demolition Team. Such a great, weird name. But this is the new gen 3, and they really hit it out of the park with the design on this. I actually had a gen 2 that I ended up selling because the handle was just a bit too thin for me. It was very slim, very pocketable, but it just didn't fill my hand right. This new gen 3, with these traction inlays, it's slightly thicker, slightly more contoured, and it feels absolutely perfect. Plus, the blade design, look at that. It's got that nice fuller, beautiful drop point, very slicey flat grind. It snaps out with so much authority. It's an incredible auto. I carry this one all the time. It is a fantastic user.

Bob DeMarco: Next we get into the Stitch. This is the auto Stitch. Man, I wanted this for years. A Borka Blades collaboration. Sebastian Berenji. And when I finally got it, it did not disappoint. Look at this wicked Wharncliffe blade with this huge choil. It's actually a forward finger choil and a sharpening choil all in one. The handle design is so unique, very secure. When this thing deploys, you'd better be holding on because it kicks like a mule. Just an absolute beast of a knife. The aluminum handles have this great knurling on them. And speaking of the clone, let's bring the clone out. Side by side, they look pretty similar, but the real deal is aluminum, the clone is FRN. The real deal fires with authority, the clone is kind of mushy. And of course, the steel. The real one is premium steel, the clone is definitely not. But it's fun to have them both. I absolutely adore the real Stitch.

Bob DeMarco: And lastly, rounding out the Microtech collection is the Amphibian. The new Amphibian with the Ram-Lok. I always loved the old Amphibian design, that recurve blade was so cool, but they were hard to find and expensive. When they brought it back with the Ram-Lok, I was thrilled. This one has a massive recurve blade, really aggressive looking. Fluted G10 handles. It's a big knife, fills the hand nicely, and the Ram-Lok works great here too. The thumb stud deployment is smooth, the reverse flick is smooth. It's just a big, bad, awesome blade. So that is my growing Microtech collection. Like I said, calling it growing so I can attract more of them to me. I've been eyeing a Combat Troodon or maybe a Scarab, we'll see.

Bob DeMarco: All right folks, that is the show for today. Thank you so much for joining me on this episode of The Knife Junkie Podcast. Be sure to check us out at theknifejunkie.com, join Patreon, get some merch, all that good stuff. Most importantly, keep carrying, keep cutting, and we will see you next time.

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