Camillus Marlin Spike Folding Knife

For the price, I think the fit and finish of this knife is outstanding. I was given a similar sized Benchmade folder as a gift some years ago, which if I'm not mistaken cost around 4-5 times what this knife does. Time will tell whether it holds up as well in the long run, but out of the box the quality of this knife is very comparable to the Benchmade. To my mind, this is a bit of a niche knife; it's pretty small so if you are looking for a "pig skinner" or a deck knife for a professional mariner I think this will feel like more of a toy. But as a handsome "gentleman's knife" that you can comfortably carry in your pocket for 1001 daily uses at work, the house, in the garage, in the garden, and so forth it really excels. Even though it does not have a pocket clip, the little spike does a pretty good job of doubling as one; you just open up the spike a bit and slide the handle down into the pocket with the spike on the outside of the pocket. When pressed closed, the spike does a very good job of keeping the knife snugly in place. I suspect some folks might not like the idea of the spike catching on something and pulling open, but in my use it hasn't been an issue and I suspect anyone doing activities which would catch the end of the spike would also tend to get caught up on a belt clip outside of the pocket as well. The marlin spike, in particular, feels really small compared to any other folding marlin spike knife I've ever used (a Myerchin, a generic stainless "sailor's tool" knife picked up in a gift shop once upon a time, and a Camillus 7.5" recently purchased (see more below on the last one)). However the tip of the spike is nicely rounded and a perfect combination of just small enough but just big enough to be really useful for a lot of tasks other than the splicing of line or untying of knots in larger line. Think prying, poking, orange skinning, or any myriad of other tasks which would be bad for the blade or potentially bad for you if attempting to use a knife to accomplish. I got the 6.5" at the same time as the "Camillus Ti Marlin Spike Pocket Knife, Bamboo Handle, 7.5" (18589)", so a quick comparison between those two: - The fit and finish of the 6.5" is much better than the 7.5", imo. - Though surprisingly almost identical in blade length, the spike of the 6.5" feels significantly smaller than that of the 7.5" than I would have expected from just comparing the length of them. The 7.5" has a needle sharp spike, which might be handy in some situations (self defense...?) but is certainly not preferable when it comes to line handling tasks. That said, the diameter of the 7.5" lends itself more to untying knots in anything larger than parachute cord, so if that is your primary need then I'd say get the 7.5" and file down its tip to a more rounded profile. - Size-wise, the 6.5" just feels a lot smaller than the 7.5" even though the blades are practically the same length and the spike of the 7.5" only slightly longer. A lot of that perceived size difference is in the width and length of the handle section. Again that could be a good thing for gripping if you are using the knife as a deck hand on a boat, but for daily carry and general light uses I much prefer the 6.5". - Both knives are very sharp out of the package though I haven't done any significant cutting with them to be able to judge the edge holding. Conventional wisdom seems to be that the VG-10 of the 6.5" should be a superior steel to the AUS-8 of the 7.5", but I can't speak to the real world application of that. I bought one of these as a gift for a family member who is a somewhat compulsive buyer of pocket knives, most of them costing MUCH more than this one, and he was very impressed with everything about it. UPDATE MAY 2021: Just a note about longevity; the blade action still remains smooth as butter, but the spike has developed a decidedly un-smooth grittiness when opening and closing. That said, the spike still locks firmly in place and I remain a big fan of its size as a great compromise to keep the knife compact but still useful. The most disappointing thing about the gritty spike action is that I had taken to using the spike as a pocket clip since I didn't like having the knife sliding around in the bottom of my pocket when walking, and especially didn't like when it turned sideways and pressed into my leg when sitting down. Now that the spike doesn't close smoothly it doesn't have any "clamping force" when it shuts, so though it does still serve to hold the knife in place at the top of the pocket it is loose enough that it invariably falls out when taking off my pants at the end of the day. Still, this isn't a huge hit on the knife overall. For what it costs and its other features I still rate it as an exceptional value.

This is a great knife to have with you while sailing. It cuts and pokes. Most importantly, it locks so that it doesn't fold shut while your fingers are in the way. I'm still trying to figure out the best way of carrying this around with me. I prioritize having rapid access to my knives. I normally have pocket knives with a sturdy clip on them which allows me to clip it to a pocket, waistband, or boot. You can't do that here. The Camillus marlin spike doesn't have a pocket clip, so I either had to accept defeat and let the knife slip down to the abyss of my very full pockets, or come up with another solution. The obvious is to use the attached lanyard ring. I can see a lanyard working one of two ways - wear it around your neck like a wannabe pirate or leave a lanyard dangling out of your pocket, ready to grab by hand or ready to snag on whatever objects you brush against in the tight quarters of a sailboat. I declined this approach and opted to put my tiny and tough Metolius Mini carabiner to work. The lanyard loop has a nice flare to it but it still ends up being too narrow for the Metolius to connect directly to it. I found that a small locking chain link or "quick link" ended up being the perfect thing to slip through the lanyard loop. I can then connect to the quick link with the carabiner and attach the whole thing to my pocket or waist. It's definitely a compromise and I'd rather just have the pocket clip. But overall my satisfaction with this particular knife/spike combo makes it worth the inconvenience. Would buy again.

I rarely write reviews but this item has impressed me so much that I believe it deserves some of my time. The construction of the knife itself is superb. I've never seen anything this well constructed plus the inclusion of premium knife steel in this price range. I collect knives, and hand sharpen them, I have over 20 currently, but have had many others in the past. The knife is solid as a rock, there is no play in the blade or marlin spike. The knurling on the grip is perfect and it is lined with thick metal similar to a Buck or Spyderco knife. The blade and marlin spike open and close with buttery smoothness with the perfect amount resistance. When the blade and marlin spike lock in the open position, they lock securely with a click and once again there is absolutely zero play as if the blade & spike are now welded in place. The factory sharpening on the blade is razor-sharp enough to cut hair and slice paper like butter. I believe this is due to the fact that the blade is made out of VG-10 (it has a stamp on the metal) which allows it to achieve high levels of sharpness. I can't wait to sharpen it on my Waterstones. Lastly I must admit it is a handsome blade , and taking into consideration its quality of blade metal and its construction I believe it could be sold at a price rivaling Spyderco. I will definitely be buying a few more considering its affordable price as gifts.

This would be the second Camillus I have owned, the first being the Boy Scout knife I earned long ago which was stolen from me. This would be my first purchase of their products. I have to say, I like this knife by table top review standards so far. It is a bit small with a blade under 3 inches but big enough to do its job. The VG-10 blade steel is very good and used by Spyderco quite a bit so I consider it a higher end steel that takes a keen edge and shouldn't disappoint.The black coating also helps keep the blade resistant to the elements and is a nice even finish that is jet black in color. The sheepsfoot profile of the blade is attractive and allows the user to not puncture what they are cutting. It could easily take a role as a rescue knife if needed in an emergency.The G-10 grip is nice and will wear in with use. The stainless spike is great as it isn't too sharp on its point and works well with the paracord knots I made to try it out. Since I live in a desert setting with little water around, this is a dedicated paracord knife. I like how both the blade and spike lock open. Both locks are secure with the liner lock for the blade being of decent thickness and the spike lock being easy to disengage via fulcrum action of the lanyard loop.The loop does swing freely but does not get in the way of the blade in a closed position.On the picture on Amazon, it looks stainless but it too is coated black but with a different finish than the blade. Eventually, the coating will rub off the loop. The only negative I can see for some is the lack of a pocket clip. It is like a modern traditional pocket knife. The loop makes up for it as I have already placed a nice fob on mine for easy access. The price is good for what you are getting. A solid knife in VG-10 with dual locking tools.

Camillus still offers a couple knives in Japanese VG-10 steel, and this rigging knife is one of them. The sheep's foot blade is straight-edged and extremely sharp, and coated for protection from salt water. It solidly locks and has no lateral play. It's long and sharp enough to cut light rigging, like paracord or boat rigging, but for heavier rigging as on a ship you'd obviously want a larger, serrated, fixed blade carried in a sheath. The marlin spike locks in place and is good for light rope work -- again, for heavy rope you would want a separate, long marlin spike, longer than this one. But unless you work on a ship or something big like that, with heavy thick rope, you just don't need a big ol' knife in one hand and marlin spike in the other: a smaller folding knife like this, slim and light for carrying around your neck or in your pocket, is sufficient. And, if you just want a nice jack knife at a great price, you get that too.

This is a very impressive knife, well worth even double the cost - VG-10 steel, while not a supersteel like Bohler M390 or CPM S35VN, IS high-end Japanese cutlery grade steel, right up there with 154CM. The liner lock engages well (neither early nor late) at 40% on the blade, there's no lock rock or side-to-side blade wiggle. The quality G10 scales line up nicely with the solid stainless liners and the thumbstuds deploy the blade quickly without requiring any wrist, and this is out of the box with just a few dozen openings for break-in.The blade has a small but well-formed sharpening choil and the the hollow ground blade is very thin behind the edge - it's quite sharp out of the box and is a good slicer. The spike is well formed and polished, and the end is slightly rounded so as to pry open knots without piercing the actual rope strands. It locks open solidly(just a hint of wiggle, no more) and snaps shut with authority when released with the lanyard loop. Even though Camillus is a bit of a Zombie brand (former US brand that sold off their name to to some holding company),this particular item is a quality knife, period. Don't let anyone who doesn't have one in hand tell you otherwise.

This is a great knife. It has a very thin blade, almost like a straight razor,made of stainless steel that cuts rope very well. It has a marlin spike that is correctly shaped to remove knots from rope.It is not too sharp so it slides between the ropes rather than digging into them. The handle material is textured like a file so that your grip does not slip while holding it. I also like the fact that both blades lock, preventing the blades from closing on your fingers. I still have a scar from where my Boy Scout knife closed on my thumb when I was trying to cut a hole with it. I used this knife to remove knots from 550 para cord and it worked perfectly! I was able to remove the knots, cut the para cord and reknot it all with the same knife. It really does the job well. I have other Camillus knives that I have purchased from other sources. They are all well made knives and hold up for a long time. Camillus also makes military knives under contract to the US government, so they have to meet military specifications.

Bought it for my 10 year old sailing daughter. Blade opens way way too easy. Wasn't very sharp out of the box. A few minutes on an oilstone and a strop got the blade passably sharp (shave arm hair), we'll see how it holds, seems like very hard steel. Don't buy it unless you're ready to use a stone. This knife made me sure I want a Boye Boat Knife. Update: My knife didn't work. It required inordinate force to cut 5/16 inch YachtBraid even after the cursory sharpening. Pushing, sawing and hacking a dull knife through a dinghy mainsheet is not acceptable. This knife is unsafe without modification. The blade bevel is too abrupt. If one has the wearwithall to spend the better part of an hour with oil, multiple stones, rouge and a strop, this knife will "work". I'll stop short of suggesting a power grinder to rebevel the edge - maybe a mill bastard.... The best thing about this knife is that it will not cause much consternation when it is dropped overboard. The marlingspike is nice to have around, too Our boat is on the line at least three days a week. Two other days it is sailed around the bouys, for fun or practice. We travel at least 1000 miles each summer to regional and national reggattas. I crew on bigger race boats. My daughter captained in 2 one-design classes last year. We are constantly in situations that require a rigging knife. When I'm de-rigging, trailering, and re-rigging up to three boats for a four day regatta, I'm cutting line with my old Buck, or a soldering iron with a blade tip. This knife is not a waste of money. But keep in mind what I've said.