Zilla:
The Zilla uses 154CM steel for the blade and is a modified sheepsfoot design. The handles are made from G10 and ergonomically shaped for a comfortable grip. The blade is 3.84” long and the overall knife length is 8.37”. The Zilla runs on bearings allowing for smooth opening and closing. Its overall weight is 5.35oz. The blade on this guy is beefy!
The Zilla uses a liner lock mechanism to keep the blade locked in place. The blade can be deployed using it’s flipper tab. The Zilla has some jimping on the blade for additional purchase and has a small choil to allow for easier sharpening. As with the Drever, this type of blade excels in cutting and slicing. Have I mentioned the blade is beefy? The Zilla allows for left or right hand carry due to its movable clip so both right and left handed people can easily use this folding knife. Click here to learn more!
Drever:
The Drever uses N690 steel for the blade and is a modified sheepsfoot design. The handles are made from G10 and ergonomically shaped for a comfortable grip. The blade is 3.49” long and the overall knife length is 7.99”. It runs on bearings, so the action is super smooth. It’s overall weight is 3.42oz. The knife utilizes a liner lock mechanism to keep the blade locked in place when opened. Liner locks are very popular and are used on many of the other major knife brands out there. The blade can be deployed using either the flipper tab or the thumb studs on the blade. It has ample jimping on the top of the blade for additional purchase and includes a choil to allow for choking up the blade (as well as making sharpening easier). The sheepsfoot blade is a cutting and slicing specialist. A long, flat edge makes this blade popular with emergency responders who need a knife to cut through seatbelts and restraints. Coupled with the N690 steel and you have a very versatile knife that can be used in many diverse situations. Click here to learn more!
Splint:
The Splint also uses N690 steel for the blade and is a clip point blade. The handles are made from G10 and ergonomically shaped for a comfortable grip. The blade is 2.97” long and the overall knife length is 6.93”. It also runs on bearings, so its action is super smooth as well. Its overall weight is 2.83oz. The Splint uses a liner lock mechanism to keep the blade locked in place. The blade can be deployed using multiple methods. You can use the flipper tab, the thumb hole or front flip it. The Splint also has ample jimping on the blade for additional purchase and includes a sharpening choil for easier sharpening. The clip point tip is much sharper and thinner for easier stabbing. This is great for piercing objects, but this sharp tip can also subject the blade to easier breakage. The clip point design became very popular on Bowie knives. Given the thinner blade design, this would make a great hunting knife. The Splint also comes in a Ti version that uses CPM-S35VN steel. The Ti version is a framework where the locking mechanism is built into the back of the knife rather than being a separate piece from the scales. Click here to learn more!
Related information For Your Reference
A common question that comes up is what is N690 steel and how does it compare to other steel types.
The N690 Cobalt Stainless Steel is made in Austria by a company known for making steel that can be made into sharp knives and surgical instruments. This steel is very similar to 440C steel, and it has 1.07% carbon content. N440C steel has a carbon content ranging from .95 – 1.07 percent. The N690 is a high-end stainless steel with an alloy that is common in many good knives. It is durable knife steel that is wear-resistant. It is also very hard steel. This steel contains the important martensitic chromium steel with cobalt, molybdenum, and vanadium. This steel can be hardened to a very desirable hardness level. The surface finish is finely ground or polished.
How N690 Compares
N690 is sometimes compared to 440C steel. Many knifemakers do not believe that 440C is the best steel for comparison to the N690. The 440C steel is high-chromium stainless steel. Knives made of 440C steel are easy to resharpen, and it is an excellent steel for their price and performance. The N690 is good steel and it is very similar to the VG10. One prominent knife maker gave the steel a variety of knife makers’ tests. The results were good. They now have access to large sheets. Knifemakers consider the VG10 from Japan to be better steel for comparison than the 440C. Its overall performance and ability to hold an edge is superior.
Manufacturing N690 Steel
The N690 grade of steel is produced by a small Austrian steel plant that also provides steel for surgical instruments. The Austrian Bohler Company says that the N690 can be made into hardened cutting tools with excellent edge-holding properties, such as knife blades.
What is 154CM steel and how does it compare to other steel types?
Originally, 154CM was a proprietary, American-made, high-alloy, space-age, high-carbon stainless steel that was first used for knives way back in the 1970s. It was popular for a time because it was good-quality steel derived from a vacuum-melted process (using electric currents to create heat to melt metal within a vacuum) but after a few years, the manufacturer at the time stopped using the vacuum-melting process so the quality started to decline. As a result, many knife-makers switched their allegiances to Japanese equivalent steel called ATS-34, made by the Hitachi Corporation. Since then, the quality has been restored by Crucible Industries (the U.S. manufacturer) and it is regaining in popularity.
Properties
154CM is really an upgraded version of 440C steel. The upgrade is a result of adding Molybdenum to the mix. Because of its Rockwell Hardness (HRC) of around 58-61, it’s a harder (and ultimately superior) steel to most modern stainless varieties and holds its sharpness longer than most stainless steels with an HRC in the mid-upper ’50s. It has excellent toughness when it’s double-tempered, and it has a pretty decent resistance to corrosion. In spite of these upgrades, it’s less expensive than the well-known S30V steel.
As you have noticed, a lot if the Oknives available use G10 for their scales. Have you ever wondered what G10 is exactly?
G10 is a high-pressure fiberglass laminate, a type of composite material. It is created by stacking multiple layers of glass cloth, soaked in epoxy resin, and by compressing the resulting material under heat until the epoxy cures. It is manufactured in flat sheets, most often a few millimeters thick. G10 is very similar to Micarta and carbon fiber laminates, except that glass cloth is used as filler material. G10 is the toughest of the glass fiber resin laminates and therefore most commonly used.
G10 is favored for its high strength, low moisture absorption, and high level of electrical insulation and chemical resistance. These properties are maintained not only at room temperature but also under humid or moist conditions. G10 is a very robust and extremely durable material to use for knife scales and is a popular choice among many of the major knife manufacturers. It also allows for many different colour options.
Hope that this blog has given you some additional information about the Onkives that we have available and some of the technologies used in their manufacturing.
Learn more:What Is a Fixed Blade Knife? Exploring the Basics and Best Uses