How Ken Onion & Crkt Brought Field Strip Technology to Market
Thirty seconds.
That is typically how much time the average knife buyer will look at a knife’s design or its mechanism and decide whether or not to purchase that product. Understandably, they may not realize the story behind the design and mechanics that come with its production, but every new product development team has stories of “taking two steps forward and one step back.”
Teams talk about concepts and engineering for hours and have bins filled with scrapped parts from design attempts that never even made production. However, with purpose, grit, inspiration, and a little luck, new designs featuring state-of-the-art technology and cutting edge innovations are still made and brought to market. Innovations such as Field Strip Technology from CRKT.
Field Strip Tech Development and Engineering
More than 10 years ago, Ken Onion, a world-renowned knifemaker from Hawaii, was frustrated that he could not easily clean debris from his folding knife. Dirt, muck, mud, sand, dust, lint and even peanut butter caused the knife to not function properly and sanitarily boot. Being a retired Marine, Ken thought about all the guns he easily disassembled without tools for cleaning and maintenance while in the military. He resolved to come up with a solution for this problem. That is how the concept of Field Strip Technology for knives was born.
Addressing Obstacles
This story is from the December 2016 edition of Knives Illustrated.
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This story is from the December 2016 edition of Knives Illustrated.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
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KITCHEN KNIVES DON'T HAVE TO BE DULL
I have a confession to make. See if this sounds familiar. I take meticulous care of the knives I use for everyday carry, hunting, and general woods wandering. I wipe them down with an oily cloth after use and I never let them get too dull. Seldom do I have to restore a damaged edge. Most of the time I simply touch up the edges of my pocketknives with a few careful strokes across the rough bottom of a ceramic coffee cup. That’s usually all that’s needed. I don’t use my knives as screwdrivers or pry bars. As a matter of fact, I still have the very first knife I ever owned, an old Boy Scout knife that was handed down from my older brother. The blades have a deep patina that comes with using carbon steel over the years, but the knife is very usable still.
