While many knife brands iterate, innovate, and release new knives weekly or monthly, I prefer refinement and perfection, honed over years, in a select few models. Believe it or not, there is a sterling example of this type of knife production.
Massachsetts-based Three Rivers Manufacturing (TRM) does not release a new knife every week or month. Instead, it works on and refines models over years and releases them using Shigeru Miyamoto’s product release schedule — “when they are ready.”
The Bulldog is only the brand’s seventh folder in more than a decade of making knives under its own label (It’s been a U.S. OEM for decades), and it earns its spot in a stable of stellar blades.
In short: This is a brawnier N2 with a sliding bar lock and a knife only TRM could make — a hard use, sub-4-ounce folder.
Note: The Bulldog is new for 2024. It is also a TRM knife. Those two things combine to make it a very hard-to-get item. If you do get one, there are two different versions: one with flat handles and the other with fully contoured handles. I strongly recommend getting the contoured handles.
- Steel: 20CV (other releases have been in MagnaCut)
- Grind: Near full flat grind
- Lock: Sliding bar lock (called a river-loc)
- Blade length: 3.2"
- OAL: 7"
- Weight: 3.6 oz.
- Price: $225
- Country of origin: Made in the USA (Palmer, Mass., to be specific)
Pros
- Impeccable fit and finish
- Hand-filling handle design
- Excellent versatile grind
- Simple and superior, deep-carry clip
- Inexpensive compared to similar designs that are made in America
Cons
- Thumb oval might require some finger yoga for novice