CRKT 5311 Pilar Folder Knife Review

CRKT has been a reliable American company since 1994. Over the past two decades, they have developed a fantastic reputation based on their knife designs, the selection of knives that they offer, and the quality of those knives. CRKT puts innovations and integrity first, because they want to be known for building products that can inspire and endure. They have been working with integrity since the very beginning. This means that they build products that are can perform reliably whether you are using it for work, fishing and hunting, tactical, survival, or any other need. Working with integrity also means that CRKT will deal with their customers honestly, letting you know that they respect and cherish you. They also want to put innovations first, and to do that, they try to bring useful technological advancements and entirely new product concepts to market. To achieve this purpose, CRKT has collaborated with many of the world’s best knife designers and the best knife makers. Out of these collaborations have been born some of the most innovative and ground breaking technological advancements that are in the knife community. Some of these innovations include the Automated Liner Safety System, the IKBS Ball Bearing Pivot System, and the OutBurst Assist Opening Mechanism.

CRKT believes that everybody should be able to afford a high quality knife. To keep costs low, CRKT uses the most advanced manufacturing equipment to develop their knives efficiently, but still with fantastic quality. CRKT believes that these high quality knives should help build confidence in the users, guaranteeing that they are able complete the task at hand. CRKT believes that if a knife isn’t up to your standards, then that knife isn’t up to CRKT’s standards.

They have recently released a brand new knife and they call it the Pilar.

 

The Blade:

The blade on the Pilar is made out of 8Cr13MoV steel. This is a Chinese produced steel. There are a few different types of Cr steel in the series, but 8Cr is one of the most common. This steel’s biggest selling point is how inexpensive it is. While this is a benefit to many people, you have to keep in mind that the less you spend on a steel, the lower the quality you are going to get. 8Cr13MoV steel is similar to AUS 8 steel, it is a little bit lower on the quality scale though. It is not quite as hard as AUS 8 steel and it is more corrosion prone than AUS 8. This steel has poor edge retention abilities, however, it is extremely easy to sharpen. With this steel, the better the heat treatment it goes through, the better the steel is going to be able to perform.

The steel has been finished with a satin finish. This is one of the most common steel finishes. This is a pretty average finish. It really has no character, and while it does add a small amount of reflection and glare reduction, it doesn’t add enough to be super noticeable. This is not a matte finish, but it is also not a shiny finish. The satin finish also works to cut down rust and corrosion, but it doesn’t do this well enough to make a noticeable difference.

The 8Cr13MoV steel has been carved into a sheepsfoot blade. The history behind the name of the sheepsfoot blade shape is that this style of knife was originally used to trim the hooves on sheep. But throughout history, this blade shape has also been very popular of delicate work such as electrical work or even woodcarving. A sheepsfoot blade shape is not common, but it is also not uncommon. What I mean is that many people have heard of the sheepsfoot blade, but they aren’t totally sure what its advantages and disadvantages are. While many people have heard of this blade shape, fewer have actually used a knife with this blade shape. So what is the sheepsfoot blade shape? This is a blade that has a straight sharpened edge, with a rounded unsharpened edge. However, on the Pilar, the usual straight sharpened edge is actually rounded slightly. The two edges still meet with a “false point”. This is one of the major disadvantages of the sheepsfoot blade shape; it cannot stab. While this is a drawback, some career paths benefit from having no point. One of these careers is an emergency responder. They can use this blade to cut a seatbelt without having to worry about injuring the victim with a sharp point. This blade shape is also very popular with sailors, because they can cut the rigging without needing to worry about piercing the sails. Because the sharpened edge is relatively straight and long, it will give you one of the cleanest cuts you could receive, especially if you are cutting on a flat surface. The sheepsfoot blade shape excels most at cutting or slicing. Another big benefit to the sheepsfoot blade shape is that it is very controllable. This is because the unsharpened edge of the knife is curved, so you can hang on to that section of the blade while cutting, instead of needing to hold on to the handle.

On the blade, near the unsharpened edge, there is an oval hole cut out to allow you to manually deploy the knife. This blade is a plain edge, which allows you to get a sharper edge than if it was a serrated knife. The plain edge also allows sharpening to be easier than if you had a serrated edge.

 

The Handle:

The handle on the Pilar is made out of stainless steel. This material provides exceptional durability to your handle. Stainless steel is also very resistant to corrosion. However, no steel, even stainless, will rust if left in a damp, wet, or humid environment. Just because it is a stainless steel metal, you still will need to maintain the handle. It will obviously benefit you with less maintenance time than a non stainless steel. Unfortunately, stainless steel is not a lightweight material and will add significant weight to the Pilar. Another drawback to the stainless steel handle is that stainless steel is known to be very slippery, giving you a not so solid grip on your knife. CRKT has finished the stainless steel handle with a bead blasted finish This finish is created by blasting small ceramic or glass beads at the material with high pressure. This will create an even, gray finish. The blasted finish also works to reduce reflection and glare because it does have a matte surface. This style of finish helps to hide scratches that the Pilar’s handle will accumulate over time. Unfortunately, these small beads do create micro abrasions in the surface, so the stainless steel is more prone to rusting and corrosion.

The handle also has an elongated finger groove that helps with precise cutting tasks.

 

The Pocket Clip:

The Pilar comes with a pocket clip. This clip is stainless steel to match the rest of the handle. It is kept in place by two small silver screws. The pocket clip has been stamped with “CRKT”. This pocket clip is only able to carry your knife right handedly, but you can reverse the clip and carry it tip up or down.

 

The Mechanism:

The Pilar is a manual folding knife that is deployed by a thumb slot or thumb hole. This is really exactly what it sounds like: there is a hole in the blade that allows your thumb to get a solid grip on your blade and then allows you to push the knife open. This mechanism is simply elegant while remaining easy to use. This knife also sports a Frame Lock keeping sure to lock your blade into place while it is open. This allows you to work with your knife, even with the tougher jobs, without having to worry about your blade giving and closing on you.

 

The Specs:

The blade on this knife is 2.402 inches long with a thickness of 0.145 inches. When the Pilar is opened, it measures in at 5.938 inches long, with a closed length of 3.530 inches long. This knife weighs in at 4.2 ounces.

 

The Designer:

Jesper Voxnaes is the man behind the knife. He is a native of Denmark, so

when he needs to test a knife, all he has to do is venture out into his backyard. Because he lives in the fjords and forests of Denmark, he has a harsh environment that his knives need to be able to endure. He started designing knives because no one was making the kind of knives that he wanted. He learned how to perfect a knife only by trial and error. In 2013 he was given his IF Award for one of the Top European Designs. Jesper named this knife after Ernest Hemingway’s personal 38’ sailboat that he used for renegade surveillance on German U-boats during World war II.

 

The Pros of the CRKT Pilar:

• The steel is extremely inexpensive, which keeps the cost of the knife down considerably.
• The satin finish helps to slightly reduce glares and reflections while also working to cut down on rust and corrosion.
• The steel on this blade is extremely easy to sharpen.
• The sheepsfoot blade shape has no point, which is a benefit if you need to work in close quarters or slice without having to worry about piercing someone. This is great for people such as first responders.
• Because the sharpened edge is so straight, your cuts will be the cleanest that you will ever find.
• The sheepsfoot blade shape excels at cutting and slicing.
• The sheepsfoot blade shape is very controllable because the user is able to grasp the unsharpened edge of the blade.
• The stainless steel handle is durable and rust resistant.
• The elongated finger groove gives you better control.
• The bead blasted finish hides scratches.
• The pocket clip can be carried either tip up or tip down.
• The hole cut into the knife helps to manually deploy the knife quickly and efficiently.

 

The Cons of the CRKT Pilar:

• The pocket clip has only been drilled to carry this knife right handedly, so it is not ambidextrous.

 

Conclusion:

CRKT is an extremely reliable company. They are reliable to their customers, treating them with honesty and integrity. An they are reliable in their products, they produce knives and tools that are designed to be able to perform even in the most stressful situations. They believe that every person should be able to afford a high quality knife or tool, so they build their knives efficiently to keep the costs down. They have produced countless innovative and ground breaking new knives and one of the newest of their knives is the Pilar.

To create an excellent knife CRKT started out with 8Cr13MoV stainless steel. This steel’s biggest benefit is that it keeps the knife’s price down significantly. This steel is going to be able to get the job done, but it really doesn’t excel in ways that a high quality steel would have. This steel has been ground into a sheepsfoot blade that will give you clean cuts while letting you cut worry free because there is really no point. In fact, the point is dubbed as a “false point”. The stainless steel handle is very resistant to rust and corrosion, which does keep maintenance down. However, the stainless steel handle does add quite a bit of weight behind the knife. This is a great knife with a complex backstory and you can get yours here.