EAB Pocket Knife

I used to carry around a little spyderco knife but it has a fatal flaw: it's too expensive and I can never get it back to factory sharpness. Sharpening knives is a total hassle--I've spent too much time doing it and it never comes out as good as I want. Anyway I used to carry around a spyderco but for simple things like opening packages or cutting anything that's not soft, I wouldn't want to use it for fear of dulling the blade. I got frustrated with the dilemma after a while and wished there was something like my utility knives that I use to cut anything and everything without worrying about it. Then I found this product. What a great idea! I now use this for an every-day carry knife. Features of this product that I like: =============================== * Nice big interchangeable blade. I use it any time I want to cut something...anything. Doesn't have to be a high-quality target. I don't worry about dulling it because the blade and easily and cheaply be swapped. * Good quality blade comes with it. It's quite sharp and it's very thick...much thicker than the blades you would pick up if you just went to a hardware store and grabbed the first set you found. I've read reviewers that said it doesn't work as well once you put in the "standard thickness" blades. I'm fine with getting the thick stuff because it's strong against lateral stresses--more like a regular pocket knife. You could use this knife to, for example, whittle. I'm not sure I'd use a regular knife for whittling because it would dull too fast. I wouldn't use a regular utility blade to whittle because it would bend too easily. * Locking mechanism works great. It stays open and won't close until you push the locking mechanism aside. That won't happen by accident, it's easy to do, and unlocking it doesn't endanger the fingers thanks to the little finger guard they have there. * Build quality is quite good. It's heavy, shiny, and smooth. The resistance to opening is appropriate. That is, it's easy to open when you want to but the blade doesn't just fall open in your pocket or elsewhere. There's a real light click when you open it and then smooth operation until you get it fully open. I don't open blades with a single hand, so I don't sympathize with people who want really easy-opening. That would be dangerous. * This tool is about as small as it can reasonably get and accommodate the blades it uses. I have heard someone say the pointy end of the blade pokes out beyond the handle. I haven't seen that...must be a different brand of blade that person was using. * When the knife is closed, the blade doesn't come in contact with the handle anywhere, so it's not getting dull or developing notches. * Fit in the hand is good. I mean, it compares well with a pocket knife. I don't put my finger on the little metal thing that holds the blade in. I think if I did, I would find this uncomfortable to hold. As it is, it's real nice. Mind you, it's not the kind of ergonomics that I would require if I were cutting things all day. But remember, this is a replacement for a pocketknife (seldom used) not a utility knife (used all day by some people). I would never cut carpet or shingles or something with this. I wouldn't even use it if my job were to open boxes all day. This is for occasional use. Use it in place of a pocket knife. Couple of things that could be better: ================================ * I don't understand why knives like this have clips. I always carry it low in the pocket and the clip is just in the way. The clip comes off very easily (though it is destroyed in the process). Simply bend the clip out then push it in a little. There's a little hook on the inside of the handle where the clip attaches and once the clip is bent it pops right out. I have removed and disposed of my clip. * Underneath the clip the level of the handle and of the knife-holding mechanism isn't quite flat. It doesn't affect anything but aesthetically I would prefer if it were flat. Minimal is good but it has to all match up. * This knife is made of surprisingly thick and heavy metal. It weighs a lot in the pocket...as much as larger knives of other brands. Maybe that's because of the all-steel construction. Anyway, it's heavier than I'd like. Maybe they wanted to make it lighter but the resulting knife wouldn't have enough strength or something. * I would have liked to have had a hole drilled somewhere so I could put it on a lanyard or even keychain. It's a bit heavy for that, but overall I think that would be a more likely use than the clip it comes with. I have looked around for a place that I could safely drill and use but there really isn't one in this design. Maybe if the main hinge had a hole in it or something. Closing Comments ================== I kind of alluded to this a little bit above: This is a pocket knife. Not a replacement for a Stanley utility knife or competitor. It does a great job being minimal in the pocket and working in a pinch for occasional light or heavy duty. Everyone I have seen who have given this a bad review did so because they wanted to use it professionally, cutting drywall or carpet or something. For those uses you want a full-sized utility knife with much better ergonomics. Also those full sized ones allow the blade to come out only partially, if you want to make shallow cuts. And they carry spares and stuff. There are lots of things a utility knife should have that this does not. I do not consider that a problem. This is a pocket knife. There are few or no things that a pocketknife has that this lacks. I recommend this to anyone who currently carries a pocketknife around and sometimes doesn't use it because they don't want to dull the blade.

My favorite Every day blade. This is the third one I've bought, I lost the other two. one thing I would change or add is a piece or two of grip tape, makes it that much easier to open and close one handed. I use this by flicking out the blade, the weight is good enough so that it doesn't need too much force to open and close and I can one-hand the open close process. The trick is releasing it enough from the closed position to flick it out. Super smooth and works every time. body/handle is too smooth and has an awkward feel to it, Really not comfortable to grip, but I don't hold it for very long so it doesn't bother me too much, you just figure a way to hold for whatever you're doing. Certainly not ergonomic for a hand grip. The belt/money clip portion had gotten so loose on my last one that it just came off, I had to bend it so that it would stay on, but it would still come off again, so this one I'm careful of what and where I clip it, nothing too thick, like the pocket of my jeans. That's really where I'd prefer to keep it but that's where I kept my last one all the time and likely why the clip bent out so much. One thing I like about it is the minimalist design, there isn't much waste here, the weight is good and the best quality blade is included with it, I've switched out blades on my last two a few times, but I would come back to the thick heavy duty blades these come with. You have to look up the model number to get the right ones though. I think that info is in the Q&A section. Another negative is the way the blade is held in, if you lose that screw, good luck finding one that fits the same. also I would like to grind down the screw face to be flush with the surface, although I use my middle finger to push against the screw to open the blade, I'd rather have a flat piece of grip tape to assist in this. I don't want to mess with this screw if I don't have to so it won't get loose and get lost. The price is also great, I really hated to lose the last two but it's not so bad to replace it. One more thing, I had to make a "key" to open my last one to lube it. and I have no idea if there is some sort of commercial screw driver you can purchase for this. But when you need to open it you will likely want to find the right tool for the job instead of having to make one like I did. Also I will never be able to find this key I made the next time I need it so I'll have to just make another, why not just use allen keys(hex) like most other manufacturers? Just one of the lame things about this knife, not a deal breaker but annoying.

I really like the amount of useable blade this knife affords me, that and the small UNbulky size of it. It's a really slick little knife.

Amazing little knife, folds down so flat and small with a solid clip. Seems very strong, has a great feel both closed and open, nice sized handle. Deploying the blade is simple but releasing the catch to fold it back is recessed into the mechanism too far and is way too stiff, for me and two other men who tried it, this isn't a knife for opening & closing routinely, requires two hands. The blade is a box cutter blade fully exposed, seems like it would be easy to cut yourself by accident (i haven't). It will NOT close by accident which is the point I'm sure. I cannot see the average woman being able to do it, tho, nor wanting to. This is a purpose-built box cutter, it will not adequately replace my Kershaw Leek knife (which I lose so often, decided to try a $14 replacement) but the Kershaw is $70. Definitely keeping it, people who hold it closed or open marvel at it until they go to close it.

Awesome little utility knife. I have a litany of this style of utility knife (TiRant Razor V3, Razor M, Screwpop, Screwpop Twintrack, GilTek RUK, OFUK, Quark, etc) and out of all of them this is the one that lives in my pocket. Gerber nailed the design. I use these with hooked Milwaukee blades. One handed activation is smooth, locking and unlocking is easy and it doesn't unlock when you don't want it to. Blade changes are easy and tool-free. Feels good in the hand and fits perfectly in coin pocket. All of this and it's still one of the cheapest utility knives I have. A win!

PROS: - No Blade Sharping - Clip That Holds It To Your Pocket Often Needs To Be Re Bent After 6 Years Of Heavy Abuse - Easy To Change Blade CONS: -Gerber Customer Service Is Slow And Or Never Responds ADVICE: - Use A Decent Brand Of Blades! REVEIW: As you can tell from above I've had this knife for six years. This thing has traveled all over the world and has been through heavy abuse. Going from America, to Africa, Japan, Italy, France, Australia, and more!! It gone from gutting deer to repairing a humvee power steering line in the field this thing has done it all. I've use this knife to gut a number of animal including but not limited to deer, frogs, gators, snakes and a few fish in it's time. We had knife throwing compitions, and I have used this knife to repair multiple humvees that our out on the front line protecting our freedom. RAH!!! This knife fits perfectly on the molle of the flack and if your in the military or know some one going in. Well this is a perfect inexpensive gift for them. Also this can be engraved at most jewelry stores for a low cost fee. This knife is extremely sharp and can cut through a seat belt quite easily with a new blade. I've done it. So who knows this knife might save your life or some one else's. It's also great for cutting steak in the chow hall. My only complaint is Gerbers costumer service. I have needed new bushings or washers for this knife for quite some time now and have gotten little to no response from them and I've reached out a numerous of times. So although the gerber customer service is below par, I still give this knife a 5 out of 5 because this is the best knife out there. So if your in the military, a prepper, a survivalist or human. Well get your self one! Also I use diablo blades from homedepot!!

This is a small knife with a razor style blade for small cutting tasks. If you like cutting devices get one of these. They are easy to use and require very little space.

I have used the Gerber EAB and EAB Lite knives for many years, pretty much since Gerber introduced the line. The knives have always done everything I needed them to do, and the quality has been very good. They do have one weakness, and it is fairly serious. The way that the pocket clip attaches to the knife renders it vulnerable to be dislodged in some common circumstances. I use the clip to secure the knife inside my jeans side or change pockets (depending on what else I am carrying that day), with the clip exposed (I expect this is a common practice). If the clip is bumped with any real force against an immovable object, it will detach from the knife. I believe the EAB Lite is slightly more prone to this, but I have seen it in both versions. This has happened to me several times over the years. In some cases, both the knife and the detached clip can be recovered from the pocket, and easily reassembled. Other times, one or both parts are lost. I have 2 of these knives that no longer have clips, and I have completely lost 2 or 3 others. At the price, I don't consider that to be a catastrophe; I don't look at it as Gerber owing me anything. At the same time, it would be nice if they would recognize this vulnerability, as I do not see that it would take a lot of extra design effort or major production expense increase to remedy it. I just lost my last intact EAB the other day. I think I am going to give the Prybrid with clip a try. Hopefully the clip attachment design is better. At least it has am alternative lanyard attachment that I can use if the clip design seems to be wanting. YMMV