Gentlemen, are you looking for a pocketknife that can express your high-end tastes while also functioning as well as it looks? Oregon’s Benchmade Knife Company may have the product for you. Its new 480-1 Shoki knife has a 3-inch steel blade and is housed in an anodized titanium liner with a carbon-fiber handle.
This $220 knife oozes elegance the way a Ducati motorcycle or Pinarello road bike might — undeniably exotic and desirable. For the last few months, I’ve carried the blade and gotten “I-want-that!”-type responses most every time I show it off.
At just 1.8 ounces, it’s lighter than it looks, and it carries like a much smaller knife. Though it is too small for serious cutting jobs, the Shoki has worked fantastic as an everyday blade.
A decorative thumb stud for one-hand opening and matching bolt heads add to the knife’s aesthetic. Benchmade’s blade-locking mechanism, which is actuated by a svelte little decorative knob, felt secure and safe.
Honestly, the only thing I found to dislike about the knife was its price. But for those who can afford luxury-class items, this is a solid, beautiful blade. It’s made in the USA and comes with a leather sheath for toting the elegant little knife on your belt when you’re out and about.
—T.C. Worley is a professional photographer based in Minneapolis.
