What would happen if you put a squared knife’s handle in a vise and twisted it? This was the thought of renowned knifemaker Ken Onion when he devised the CRKT Helical Black knfe design.

The end result of this experiment is a knife with a very sleek line, which is also very effective in a multitude of roles, thanks to the plain edged, tanto styled blade. This is made in D2 tool steel.  D2 is a hypereutectoid high carbon, chromium, vanadium and molybdenum steel with 1.5 C, 0.3 Si, 12 Cr, 0.8 Mo and 0.9 V, which make it an air hardening steel.

These elements give D2 the wear and abrasion resistance properties that make it a material widely used for dies and that make it incidentally a great steel for knife blades, with excellent edge retention and toughness prorieties: exactly what we want for a slender blade like the CRKT Helical Black’s.

On this latter aspect there are two small drawbacks worth mentioning, even if they could both be considered a matter of personal taste. The first is the lack of a safety on the liner lock (like that on, say, the M16 knife), The second is the lack of a secondary opening method.

While the CRKT Helical Black flipper is surely a comfortable way to open a knife for working, it may not be the best choice for defensive use. Even if it allows very quick blade deployment, it’s not that reliable, particularly under stress, where the best practice, given the chance, should always be two-handed deployment, positively bringing the blade to the fully opened, locked position.

The CRKT Helical Black aircraft grade alloy grip offers a good grab on the knife, even to those with big hands, and the clip allows a deep tip up carry in the pocket. With a versatile blade made out of an excellent steel, at a very affordable price, and a very slim profile in your pocket, the CRKT Helical is a great EDC tactical knife.