EDC Utility Blade… Finally!

Posted by ryanc Posted onMar 10, 2021 at 12:05 PM and filed under Reviews & Features
Updated onUpdated on May 20, 2021 at 5:38 PM

A few months back, I wrote about my struggles finding something to replace my Maker Knife. I wanted something with similar utility, but with better build quality… I tested a lot of different designs from flippers to slides and just about everything I bought was either unable to be manipulated with one hand easily or was just too damned heavy and clunky to carry in your pocket.

Introducing the Exceed Designs Tirant Razor. Problem solved.

At first glance, it’s an overpriced titanium utility blade holder. Nothing changes with a second or third glance, but if you carry this every day for a month, you get it.

It’s light, built well, handles damned near perfectly with one hand, and when not in use it just gets the hell out of your way. While not as flashy or as editorial as the Maker Knife, its user interface is better in just about every single way imaginable. And, to me, it’s worth every penny of $60.

Get yours here.

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dr_clyde

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$59 seems like a bargain compared to a lot of knives, IMO.

That is a sleek looking utility blade. I like it a lot.
 
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jeepnut24

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I like that one, real nice, but Ill take 3 sets of Fastbacks instead. Then I know I can always find one... and feel less guilty when I lose it.
 
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AE2

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This is mine. Blade isn't the tightest but it works good enough. 2 pack is $14.99

71rxUnKLtoL._AC_SL1500_.jpg


https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B0751B7WXR/ref=cm_sw_em_r_mt_dp_K9VMCXXJ1849CJN210Z7?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1
 
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rlitman

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Tempting, but yeah, it's priced a bit high for me at the moment.
It does check off the boxes that have kept me from buying an EAB.
 
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Ryan

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The EAB just didn’t work for me. The action isn’t great and once open, it’s just too small for my hands. Love the price though.
 
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Ryan

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LegacyIndustrial said:
Ryan, it looks good. However, how tight is that blade locked in? Any movement?
Click to expand...

There’s a tiny bit of play... it’s not as tight as a screw in blade obviously... but far tighter than a maker knife.

The EAB has a screw in blade. Super tight. It’s pocket clip and open size don’t work for me though...
 
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KnurledNut

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Nice looking knife.
I can see where it would excel.
I too dont care for the EAB. Never was confident in the finger placement near the blade.
I never understood the Fastback fanfare until i got one. I have the older compact version. Great ergonomics, but not low profile.
 
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DIY_Guy79

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$59 is way too much. What you pay for in a pocket knife is the blade steel for the most part. When the blade is literally disposable blades... You're just paying for a handle. Unless the handle is made of copper or maybe brass, anything over $30 is just getting silly, imo.
 
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rlitman

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DIY_Guy79 said:
$59 is way too much. What you pay for in a pocket knife is the blade steel for the most part. When the blade is literally disposable blades... You're just paying for a handle. Unless the handle is made of copper or maybe brass, anything over $30 is just getting silly, imo.
Click to expand...

The handle is titanium, so yeah, that's where the money is here.
 
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Ryan

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DIY_Guy79 said:
$59 is way too much. What you pay for in a pocket knife is the blade steel for the most part. When the blade is literally disposable blades... You're just paying for a handle. Unless the handle is made of copper or maybe brass, anything over $30 is just getting silly, imo.
Click to expand...

Not paying for the “handle”? Man... don’t start looking at the custom knife world. You’ll have a heart attack.
 
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jeepnut24

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KnurledNut said:
Nice looking knife.
I can see where it would excel.
I too dont care for the EAB. Never was confident in the finger placement near the blade.
I never understood the Fastback fanfare until i got one. I have the older compact version. Great ergonomics, but not low profile.
Click to expand...

Yes, the older compact model is still my favorite model....
 
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NoahG

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I have carried a Fastback Compact for several years now. The Compact is notably smaller than the standard Fastback, you lose on board blade storage but get a much more pocketable knife.
 
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IndyGarage

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I like the EAB, but for some reason I don't carry it. I threw away the stupid pocket clip it comes with. Very convenient, but as Ryan states, just a little uncomfortable to use often.

My favorite carry is a Leatherman Juice S2 - They quit making them probably 10 years ago, and they are getting hard to find - even used. It's the perfect combination of tools in the smallest footprint. I broke the blade on my current one, so I need to send it in.

I carry a skeletool, but it's big and clunky compared to the juice and doesn't have scissors.

For a very good small knife I like the Spyderco Grasshopper, but I can't keep from losing them.

I like the mini fastback as well as the full-sized one. For a full-sized utility knife I'm loving the fiskars one - locks the blade tight and very good ergonomics. .

I would recommend to anybody that is carrying a knife that uses utility blades to try the fiskars blades - they are very nice.
 
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itwnexus

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Skin

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DIY_Guy79 said:
$59 is way too much. What you pay for in a pocket knife is the blade steel for the most part. When the blade is literally disposable blades... You're just paying for a handle. Unless the handle is made of copper or maybe brass, anything over $30 is just getting silly, imo.
Click to expand...

$30 wouldnt leave you with much profit with titanium. Lock bars are also quite a bit more complicated to produce compared to a button lock.

I mean, I have a cheapie from Amazon that was about $12. It works but its made of pot metal and the quality is questionable. The first one had a failure in the blade lock and the screw heads were so stripped out from the factory that it was literally unserviceable. The second one I got has screw heads (some ******* torx size that doesnt exist) but 2 screw threads are stripped so the cover plate loosens over time.

After a certain point it would of just made more sense to get something good to begin with.
 
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jeepnut24

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Dzmax77

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One of the posts on the Amazon listing states that the CNC and milling is done in Washington while some parts are sourced from Taiwan to keep costs low. At that price, it should be fully made here. And so the body is milled here and the blade holding portion is sourced from Taiwan? Looks like that Taiwanese/Chinese manufacturer has a patent on that part because it looks like the same mechanism used in other utility knives. Must be TTI. Still, I don’t get why they have a monopoly on utility knife and ratcheting screwdriver production...
 
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Skin

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Dzmax77 said:
One of the posts on the Amazon listing states that the CNC and milling is done in Washington while some parts are sourced from Taiwan to keep costs low. At that price, it should be fully made here. And so the body is milled here and the blade holding portion is sourced from Taiwan? Looks like that Taiwanese/Chinese manufacturer has a patent on that part because it looks like the same mechanism used in other utility knives. Must be TTI. Still, I don’t get why they have a monopoly on utility knife and ratcheting screwdriver production...
Click to expand...

Maybe they're talking about their logo being machined/milled in WA?

It looks like they're made in China. Even the pictures are the same as the Amazon listing.

https://www.alibaba.com/product-det...ml?spm=a2700.shop_plgr.41413.9.50993c2fu75mvd

$60 is way too cheap for US. Only a handful of companies can produce knives in the US cheaply and its because its automated and they make a million of them. Even when those same companies make Titanium handled knives they're quite a bit more than $60. Spyderco currently has 6 models ranging from $200-$500. CRK has some good factory tour/behind the scenes videos as well. A lot of overhead and time is in those knives.
 
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darkzero

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Agreed $60 is too cheap for US made & in Ti. I'm not a crazy knife collector but I do have knives that I've paid up to $600 for. But I'm still too cheap to buy a $60 utility blade holder. I did get "suckered" into buying 2 of those Maker Knives. I guess for me I'd expect a box cutter to get beat up quickly & possibly even lost so I won't see myself paying more than $20-$30 max for one.

Here's the same looking utility knife on aliexpress for $39. https://www.aliexpress.com/item/100...earchweb0_0,searchweb201602_,searchweb201603_
 
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Dzmax77

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Skin said:
Maybe they're talking about their logo being machined/milled in WA?

It looks like they're made in China. Even the pictures are the same as the Amazon listing.

https://www.alibaba.com/product-det...ml?spm=a2700.shop_plgr.41413.9.50993c2fu75mvd

$60 is way too cheap for US. Only a handful of companies can produce knives in the US cheaply and its because its automated and they make a million of them. Even when those same companies make Titanium handled knives they're quite a bit more than $60. Spyderco currently has 6 models ranging from $200-$500. CRK has some good factory tour/behind the scenes videos as well. A lot of overhead and time is in those knives.
Click to expand...

See image. Thats what the post says.

I misspoke, it’s Hong Kong (China) not Taiwan.

Ive had the Milwaukee Fastback I for at-least 8-9 years now, and its taken a beating cutting drywall, boxes, wood, anything and everything. For $10, it’s held up nicely. I dont see how that $60 one is better.
 

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PelicanPines

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darkzero said:
Agreed $60 is too cheap for US made & in Ti. I'm not a crazy knife collector but I do have knives that I've paid up to $600 for. But I'm still too cheap to buy a $60 utility blade holder. I did get "suckered" into buying 2 of those Maker Knives. I guess for me I'd expect a box cutter to get beat up quickly & possibly even lost so I won't see myself paying more than $20-$30 max for one.

Here's the same looking utility knife on aliexpress for $39. https://www.aliexpress.com/item/100...earchweb0_0,searchweb201602_,searchweb201603_
Click to expand...

Let's not forget... they are not making or milling or finishing a "KNIFE". It's a utility blade frame.

I respect the Opnion of the OP that this knife is perfect for him. However several other frames posted in this thread definately are a bit more interesting to me.
 
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dr_clyde

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Some folks buy things for the looks, fit and finish as well as the functionality. If I was scoring drywall all day, a regular utility knife would be better. But this looks sharp, is made from Ti, and I can EDC as a regular pocket knife with the added functionality of the utility knife blade.

And for only $60. Compared to a lot of pocket knives, $60 is an absolute bargain. My edc benchmade was $200 and the handle is plastic. Not titanium.
 
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Jeepster04

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No way I could carry something that sharp. I always cut myself right after sharpening my old case knife that I've been carrying for ~20yrs. Making me cringe just looking at it.
 
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NoahG

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Ryan said:
Anyone have a pic of the early smaller fastback?
Click to expand...


Here’s the 1st Gen Compact (top) Compared to the 2nd Gen (Bottom). I don’t have a full size handy for size comparison.
a5f07ffe5738acadf84f9bd2481ec07d.jpg


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Ryan

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NoahG said:
Here’s the 1st Gen Compact (top) Compared to the 2nd Gen (Bottom). I don’t have a full size handy for size comparison.
a5f07ffe5738acadf84f9bd2481ec07d.jpg


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Click to expand...

Thank you sir.
 

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mc4life27

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NoahG said:
Here’s the 1st Gen Compact (top) Compared to the 2nd Gen (Bottom). I don’t have a full size handy for size comparison.
a5f07ffe5738acadf84f9bd2481ec07d.jpg


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Click to expand...



I have them both along with the newer version that has the screwdriver built in. They are all great knives. I also use them all not at one time of course. Currently I have been carrying the newer one with the screwdriver and I love the thing. Works great. I do still like the first compact one the best as far a size goes. I sometimes forget it even there from time to time.


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shoeless

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I carry the Gen 1 Fastback compact. I bought a set for myself one year at Christmas that came with it and the normal fastback and a set of blades for $15. The next year I bought them for my brother, dad, and all my guys at work.
I prefer the clip on the Gen 1 to the wire style on the Gen 2.
 
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KnurledNut

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mc4life27 said:
I do still like the first compact one the best as far a size goes.
Click to expand...

shoeless said:
I carry the Gen 1 Fastback compact. I bought a set for myself one year at Christmas that came with it and the normal fastback and a set of blades for $15. The next year I bought them for my brother, dad, and all my guys at work.
I prefer the clip on the Gen 1 to the wire style on the Gen 2.
Click to expand...

Ditto. IMO they cheapened v2.0.
Also im biased toward the original handle shape.

Ryan, hope we havent de-railed your thread too bad...

:3gears:

:bounce:
 
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measuredtwice

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I have an original Super Knife that was a freebie with an order years ago. I think Gerber bought the Super Knife Co and makes them now. I don't know if they are as good as the originals. Now that Super Knife's patent expired, everyone makes copies.

I'm not really a fan of flippers. The locking mechanism looks good but the shape of the handle is a little boxy. Good detective work finding the original knives from China.
 
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BFHtime

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I keep a bunch of razer knifes around my garage because I always seem to need them. Most of them are cheap $1. I have a few that were a few bucks that have a big fat handle for pulling when needed. When do a lot of cuts, or applying a lot force the bigger thicker handles are a lot nicer. $15 ish range if I recall correctly. They have lasted a long time. Even the cheap ones seem to take abuse well.

I think this is more that you want something nice, rather then need something nice for function. I guess the titanium would make it lighter and the blades are replaceable, that would have to be my thought process to buy it.

I don’t think I would buy that. I have bought several stiletto titanium hammers, and have at least one that was really expensive that did not have a wood handle.

I guess I am glad someone makes it. So it is available if I wanted it. I don’t use that type of knife enough for me to justify the buy. I can usually create an excuse to buy a tool though, it’s very easy to do.
 
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