Old Okie
Oklahoma

Mar 12, 2020

Pros: Weight, Overall Quality, Blade Sharpness

Cons: None

Real tool not gimmick

I do own this knife and three other field strip knives, plus I find them all to be just what a knife should be, usable for cutting chores everyday, these knives do just that. What else can a folding knife do? Well these can come apart and be cleaned of any debris. Hey I'm just an old Okie but that's good enough for me. Sharp blade on the Raikiri, good balance and fits the hand well. Elite minded knife snobs are useless, this knife and others like it work, look good and are usable.

Bobby
Hickory, Nc

Jan 24, 2021

Pros: Ease of Opening, Handle Material, Pocket Clip, Overall Quality, Blade Sharpness

Cons: None

Awesome

I've heard mixed reviews on this knife but at $30 I thought I'd give it a go. So glad I did. Instantly became my favorite knife. Love everything about it. Just get it.

Butthead
Tennessee

Jan 07, 2022

Pros: Ease of Opening, Handle Material, Pocket Clip, Blade Material, Overall Quality, Blade Sharpness

Cons: None

A sweet deal

This knife is a beast! It's a steal for the price. It could be a little smaller but I have big hands so it fits pretty well. This is my 2nd CRKT field strip knife. I really like both of them. Great service as always from Knife Center!

Fugitive Savant
, Burlington VT

Feb 18, 2022

Pros: Overall Quality, Blade Sharpness

Cons: Weight

Work Horse

I carve walking staffs. I carve intricate designs and carve out handles for jute twine, Paracord or leather inlays. This knife makes quick work of it. It's so sharp I can whittle the tiniest curls or remove bigger materials. I wanted the Field Strip technology for easy cleaning in the field. I don't want to have to worry about loosing screws or washers at camp. It's quite comfortable unless it's very cold. Then the aluminum is painful. It's a chonker so flipping it open without wrist action is impossible. It's a great addition to my small but growing collection. I started with the CRKT SPEW, Kershaw Hotwire, Artisan Cutlery Sea Snake designed by Mike Emler, Morakniv Bushcraft, now the Raikiri. Great knife, great design and absolutely worth the price. It's a pocket hog & can be rough for your hands or anything else that's in your pocket. So I started clipping mine to my MOLLE pack.

Steve Tec
Arizona

Dec 01, 2025

Pros: Blade Material, Blade Sharpness, Ease of Opening, Handle Feel, Handle Material, Lock Ease of Use, Lock Type, Overall Quality, Pocket Clip, Weight

Cons: None

Dew Hara Raikiri Flipper 3.759

Well made knife with great blade profile, for box opening and slicing some snacks its perfect. Slim and fits in the pocket easily with a strong clip to keep it in place, Price and Value for your Dollar is excellent, I would recommend this Folder. A+

Douglas
CALIFORNIA

Nov 05, 2021

Pros: Weight, Ease of Opening, Handle Material, Pocket Clip, Overall Quality, Blade Sharpness

Cons: None

my new EDC.

I have very large hands, and I really need a knife that fills my hand when I am using it. this really fits my hand. I am partial to flipper, and the action on this knife is really smooth once you go through the initial "break in" of flipping it for an hour or so ( I know I am not the only one who does this with all new knives anyway ;P ) this has replaced my EDC blade of over 10 years, because it is just that nice to use. it's blade geometry is very well designed, and it does what it is supposed to do, it cuts anything I put it to. the retention on the pocket clip is top notch, the only weak point ( and this is a very minor weakness) is the detent could be a little stronger. this would help with the flipping. as it is, I do need to use just a little bit of wrist to get that nice snap open. but I have certainly carried knives with a softer detent. Also, having the field strip on it makes cleaning it So much easier, and more complete. you will not have to worry about grit and grime inside the handle on this knife.

Tanto_Oreo
Washington

Oct 07, 2021

Pros: Weight, Overall Quality

Cons: Handle Feel

Light

Pretty light feeling and the blade is really usefully shaped. It wasn't the sharpest thing but should be a breeze with it being horizontal. Handle has a few hotspots but not terrible.

Popeye
Suffolk VA.

May 05, 2025

Pros: Blade Material, Blade Sharpness, Ease of Opening, Handle Feel, Handle Material, Lock Ease of Use, Lock Type, Overall Quality, Pocket Clip, Sheath, Weight

Cons: None

Great knife

this is now my daily carry knife. I clip it into my pocket when I get dressed for the day ahead. It is a little bit heavier than my last everywhere knife but it feels good in my hand. I use my ring on my ring finger to retrieve it quickly and flip it open in one smooth move. I can open and close with one hand very easy to operate.

Rl
NC

Jan 29, 2026

Pros: Blade Material, Blade Sharpness, Handle Feel, Handle Material, Lock Ease of Use, Lock Type, Overall Quality

Cons: Ease of Opening

Nice knife and good idea

I like the field strip technology. I personally like this particular steel especially on this type of knife because it is easier to sharpen. And if you do want to increase the detent, just ask AI for The Stack That Fixes CKRT 5040. It’s not all that hard to add a little resistance on the front end and get that nice snap when it opens.

Perry
Hurricane, Ut

Apr 20, 2026

Pros: Blade Material, Blade Sharpness, Ease of Opening, Handle Feel, Handle Material, Lock Ease of Use, Lock Type, Overall Quality, Pocket Clip, Weight

Cons: None

Big dog

I was interested in seeing if you could buy a knife at this price and have it be worth throwing it in with my camping gear. The field strip feature actually works well and makes me feel less guilty about getting the knife down and dirty every once in a while.

Kevin
Clearwater, Fl

Aug 20, 2021

Pros: Weight, Blade Sharpness

Cons: Handle Feel

Great Blade, Uncomfortable Handle

Great design on the blade, it is sharp and nice weight. Handles not comfortable - sharp edges and unnecessary design elements (stars wars?) distract from the quality. Knife comes apart easily - but took a while to get it back (worked when blade at 60 degree angel). Using it as a kitchen knife - fills a void between paring and larger blades - very sturdy cutting tool. Flipper action - blade is heavy so takes a wrist flip or easier to open using blade hole. For the price - this is an excellent value. Straight blade easy to sharpen also perfect for shaving (although watch the sharp tip).

0Edge
Japan

Nov 20, 2022

Pros: Handle Material

Cons: None

VERY NICE EDC

Hi, I am Japanese and I already have this knife. Some people say that the design of the handle looks like something out of "Star Wars", but I think it is actually a deformed version of the face of a dragon in an old Japanese painting. This is because the first name of DEW HARA, who designed this knife, is "Ryuichi = THE FIRST DRAGON". The sharpness, the solid construction, the ease of maintenance, and the pleasure of holding this knife are all very satisfying. I am so envious that I can buy this for $33. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Albert
NZ

Mar 16, 2021

Pros: Weight, Ease of Opening, Pocket Clip

Cons: Handle Material

Columbia River CRKT 5040 Dew Hara Raikiri Flipper 3.759" Satin

I am keeping the Raikiri as a collectors item I like the large size of the knife and its unique design The flipper is not as strong opening horizontally, but works fine vertically

Chris
MA

May 06, 2022

Pros: None

Cons: Weight

A Workaboo Knife

The Raikiri is a confused knife. It advertises itself as an "EDC sword." The sword thing implies it is somewhat tactical. The only thing really tactical about it, is that the blade type heavily resembles the popular Spyderco Yojimbo. Yes... the Raikiri is a Japanese-designed knife attempting to capitalize on the success of an American-designed knife that had a Japanese marketing angle... a knife that was designed around a European blade type. Confused! The 3.759" blade is pretty even if the steel is not impressive (think 8cr13mov or thereabouts). The satin finish looks great although there is nothing tactical about it. This is an easy steel and blade shape to sharpen if needed. As wharncliffe shapes go it is particularly sleek, aggressive, yet sturdy. I had a hard time finding other wharnies that were not much pointier or much stumpier. To me it hits a good middleground. The handle is made of smooth aluminum so there is no G10 or ergonomics put into the thing to try and keep it in your hand. That said, perhaps the most Japanese thing about the knife (aside from the designer) is the fact that it has a big, neutral handle. This is the way knife handles have been for just about the entire rest of human history, and it turns out it doesn't feel too bad. A lot of the other reviews have said it feels great in the hand, especially if you have bigger hands, and I have to say it is true. The sheer amount of purchase you get on this thing might be enough to offset the lack of directly grippy features. Deployment is pretty bad. Out the box the flipper barely worked for me and you need a lot of wrist action; even with the wrist, it fails often. I have a $15 S&W gas station knife on washers that deploys better. Again, not something you want in a "sword." However, you can indeed spidey flick it open. Actually, it opens much better/more reliably spidey flicking than with the flipper. Maybe with some oil and time, messing with the pivot tightness etc., the flipper will work better. It's got field strip tech, so you can wash out the blood of your foes. In all seriousness it's a nice feature if you actually use your knife to do work. In theory you could also paint the knife, so you don't have to pay Dew Hara hundreds of dollars to do so. Check out some of his custom Raikiris and you will understand the somewhat weird handle pattern better. tbh I thought the handle looked like some kind of cheap Star Wars toy in screenshots; IRL it actually does look pretty nice. I can't believe they sold this knife originally for like $100. About $30 is a very sensible price. Even then, if you just want bang for your buck... go by a Civivi or QSP or something in this price range instead. Every spec will be better. The REAL reason to get a Raikiri, IMHO, is that it's the Raikiri. There's nothing else truly like it. It isn't just another slightly canted G10 handle with an index dip and insert XYZ generic blade. It's big and bold and weird... and a little bad, but also a little good. Plus it's got tomoe on the pivot and it's named after Kakashi-sensei's signature technique. How could any self-respecting weeaboo say no?

Ldb
TN

Jul 06, 2022

Pros: None

Cons: None

Field Strip Tech needs improvement

When I opened the box the knife came in, the knife fell out in 3 pieces. It was not assembled. I watched the field strip tech video and thought "no problem". After following the instructions I tried to use the flipper to open the knife. The knife was extremely lose. The dial at the butt end of the knife was holding the two handle halves together but the rest of the knife was lose. Simply shaking the knife made the blade click around. The locking bar on the handle pushes the knife apart. It will not remained tightly closed. The flipper will get the blade about 25% out but then you have to pull it the rest of the way open. The knife is too lose to be of any use. I think maybe they need to send this field stripping tech back to he blackboard. I used vise grips to hold the two halves together while using needle nose pliers to force the lever shut. Without the pliers the lever would not close all the way. It is now holding but I do not trust it. I've now scared the handle and lever so I probably can't return it. I realize I did not buy an expensive knife and that is probably my problem here. This is a very cheap knife.