Knife Review: ​The Chris Reeve Unique Spectrum Crosshatch Large Sebenza 21 Folding Knife

The Chris Reeve Unique Spectrum Crosshatch Large Sebenza 21 Folding Knife

Chris Reeve Knives is a production knife manufacturer. As a production company, they design and produce their own knives, as opposed to a custom knife maker who will work with a client to design or bring his or her knife idea to life. All of their knives are produced in a combination of hand and machine work out of their shop in Boise, Idaho.

They say, “Chris has always ‘pushed the envelope’. Whether on a motorcycle or behind a belt grinder, he dreamed of being a world champion. He did not win a motorcycle world championship but in many respects, the standing of CRK today represents one. His induction into the Cutlery Hall of Fame in June 2015 could be considered his championship trophy. The single thought in Chris' mind has always been to design every model with deliberation, taking into account how the knife works, its intended purpose and the most appropriate materials. On this foundation, CRK is a vibrant business, has a great staff of well-trained employees, and remains a company with a worldwide reputation for raising the standards bar – ‘pushing the envelope’ - for the industry.”

Today we’re going to look at the Large Sebenza 21 that has been finished with the “Spectrum Crosshatch” image on the handle. This knife is currently in stock at BladeOps.

The Blade:

The blade on this knife is made out of CPM S35VN stainless steel. This steel was designed by Crucible, in collaboration with Chris Reeve, which makes it no surprise that it is used on this Chris Reeve knife. The two got together to make a steel that was similar to S30V steel, but with some major improvements. S30V steel was known for having very high corrosion resistance levels. It was also known for having the perfect balance between hardness, toughness, and edge retention, which is a harder combination to achieve than it seems. This is because the harder the steel is, the less tough that it is going to be. S30V steel had created one of the best balances between these two characteristics. However, because the steel was so hard, it proved complicated to machine or to sharpen. This is what Chris and Crucible decided to fix. They started with a similar formula, but this time, they used a finer steel structure. They also added a little bit of niobium into the steel matrix, which brings out the hardness but makes it easy to sharpen still. This steel is going to still have the best characteristics that the original version of the still did, but it is 

definitely improved. When it comes to such a high-end knife, such as this one, you are only going to want the best steel. On the Spectrum Crosshatch Sebenza, you are getting the best steel.

The blade has been finished with a satin polished finish that has stonewashed flats.

The satin finish is the most common blade finish that you are going to find on the market. It gives the blade a more classic and traditional feeling. This is because in terms of luster, it falls right in the middle of the spectrum. The finish also shows of the fine lines of the steel, which does help to reduce some glares and reflections.

The stonewashed finish is less common than the satin finish. It is not quite as traditional. It is created when the manufacturer tumbles the blade in small ceramic pebbles, which roughs up the surface of the steel. It is then removed, smoothed out, and polished. The stonewash finish does still have the textured, rugged look to it. Because of those characteristics, it is known as being a low maintenance finish.

The stonewashed flats will make the surface of the blade look a little more traditional than it normally would. The two finishes are paired perfectly together.

The blade on this knife has been carved into a drop point style blade, which is the most common blade shape that you are going to come across in today’s cutlery industry. This is for a few reasons including that it is versatile and tough. The blade has a spine that slowly and shallowly curves from the handle to the tip of the knife. This slight curve does create a lowered point, which is one of the first meaningful characteristics on the blade shape. The lowered point is going to allow you to have more control when you are using this knife. You will be able to perform fine detail work with this knife because of the lowered point.

The other big feature of the tip is that it is a very broad tip. This broadness is where you get the high strength that you have come to expect from this blade shape. The strength of this blade shape is nearly unmatched, and you won’t have to worry about taking on tougher tasks, because this blade is not going to break easily. The broad tip is even enhanced by the high-end steel that the Large Sebenza 21 sports.

The last reason that the drop point blade is loved by many is that it has a very large belly that allows you to easily slice through almost anything. The steel can also get to a razor-sharp edge, which will enhance the belly perfectly. The drop point style blade really only has one major disadvantage: the broad tip. This is funny, because the broad tip gives the knife so much strength, but it actually also takes away some of your piercing capabilities.

The Handle:

The handle on this knife is made out of 6AI4V Titanium. Titanium is known as being very similar to aluminum, except that between the two it is the superior metal. Titanium is a lightweight metal alloy, just like aluminum. Titanium is the heavier between the two metals, but with the extra weight, you get incredible strength. Although it is considered to be the heavier of the two metals, Titanium is not hard—it is definitely still a lightweight metal that will keep the overall weight of the knife down. However, because it is stronger, it is harder to machine, which also means that it is going to be more expensive to machine. Out of all the metals, this titanium is going to give you some of the best rust resistance.

Titanium differs from aluminum because it actually has a warm feel to it instead of having high conductive properties. This isn’t going to make that big of a difference if you are using this knife in a warm environment. However, if you plan on using this knife in cooler environments, this is a big advantage.

The special “Unique Graphic” is “drawn” freehand on a milling machine. This mean that every single knife is going to be slightly different than the next one. The Spectrum Crosshatch design is a series of crosshatches that have been colored with various colors ranging from blue to yellow. This image starts about 1/3 of the way down the handle and then continues until the very butt.

The handle itself is simple, which is necessary when the pattern of the handle is going to steal the show. The spine is nearly completely straight from the top to the butt. The butt flares out ever so slightly and isn’t completely rounded. The butt does have a few angles that create the shape of it. The belly of the handle sports a smaller finger guard that will protect your fingers from some accidental slicing. Of course, with a knife like this, you probably won’t be needing too large of a finger guard. There is no thumb groove, but there is a slight thumb indent. This will help a little bit with grip, because it will add a bit of texture. There is a braided, black lanyard that comes attached to the handle of this Large Sebenza 21.

The Pocket Clip:

The pocket clip is statically designed for tip up carry only on the traditional side of the handle. This does mean that it is not going to be ambidextrous friendly, but it is going to make the handle look sleeker, due to the lack of extra drill marks in it.

The pocket clip is made out of titanium, which de have a springiness to it. This will help the pocket clip stretch over your pocket, without getting worn out over time.

The Mechanism:

This is a manual knife that has been equipped with a thumb stud as well as an Integral Lock frame lock design that was built to handle a lifetime of use and abuse.

Because this is a manual knife, it is going to be legal in more states and cities than an automatic knife. However, you do still need to know your local knife laws before purchasing this knife and especially before carrying the knife. While the manual knife is going to be legal in more areas, it is also not going to be as smooth or as quick to bring into play.

The thumb stud is a very common opening mechanism, especially for manual folding knives. It is a small stud that sits near where the blade begins and the handle ends. This stud allows you to push against it with your thumb, which is going to swing your knife open before locking it into place. There are some obvious advantages to a knife having a thumb stud. The first is that it is super easy to get the hang of as well as being easy to use. Also, the thumb stud allows you to open the knife with only one hand, which is ideal for complicated tasks that require two hands or your full attention. There are a couple disadvantages. The first is that some people don’t like how the stud extends off the blade, because they feel like it gets in the way when they are trying to use the knife. The second is that the thumb stud does put your fingers in the path of the blade when you are opening it. There have been many cases of people accidentally cutting themselves when they were opening a knife with a thumb stud. It shouldn’t be a huge problem, just be careful as you first get the hang of this knife.

The Specs:

The blade on this Chris Reeve unique knife measures in at 3.625 inches long with a handle that measures in at 4.71 inches long. This means that when the blade is deployed, the entire length of the knife comes in at an overall length of 8.335 inches long. This is a pretty standard size for a pocketknife, although some may argue that it is slightly on the larger side. The Chris Reeve Large Sebenza 21 measures in at 4.7 ounces. It was proudly made int e United States of America.

Conclusion:

The Chris Reeve Sebenza has become synonymous world-wide with quality, rock solid performance and a "bank vault" feel. First developed in 1987, the Sebenza has gone through only some minor changes over the years and in 2008, the Sebenza 21 was released to celebrate 21 years of this flagship model. This model features an Integral Lock® frame lock design that was built to handle a lifetime of use and abuse and each premium stainless-steel blade is deployed with the single thumb lug. The special "Unique Graphic" is "drawn" freehand on a milling machine which means every single knife is slightly different than the next. This larger model boasts titanium handle scales with a unique graphic, a drop point style blade in a satin polished finish with stonewashed finished blade flats and the titanium pocket clip is statically designed for tip up carry only on the traditional side of the handle. Additionally, this knife comes standard with a black paracord lanyard attached to a blued titanium lanyard bead.

This knife is currently in stock at BladeOps. However, this has been a popular option and it has been flying off the shelves. To secure yours today, click here.