SOG Kiku XR LTE - Blackout

I almost lost another SOG I own that has sentimental value to me one day, so instead of continuing to carry that one I decided to get the Kiku XR LTE as the knife I'd always keep on me. Honestly I couldn't be happier with this knife. As far as the pros go and the specific reasons I bought this knife, there are very few other edc knives that meet all my requirements as perfectly as this one does. I wanted an EDC with a deep carry pocket clip, check. Guard so you never have to worry about what you're doing, your fingers won't slip up on the blade, check. Super high quality blade steel, check. Super lightweight, can barely notice it in the pocket, check. Great feel when held for any kind of use you could need an EDC for, check. Also I want to note that the grips feel really grippy and have a great feeling texture. The way they did the intentions really works well for holding it in any position with confidence. As far as the cons, they're only preferences of mine, but I do have a few. First off for my large hands the size could be slightly larger. It is near perfect but definitely on the smaller side, but I'd say it doesn't matter much as far as the overall practicality of using the knife. The only other slight complaint I have is that since the handle is so lightweight the heavy-ish blade makes it feel a little imbalanced. You might find yourself having to grab the handle harder than normal because if you flick it hard enough the handle can be harder than normal to keep ahold of. Now that I'm used to it though it's not much of an issue. Given that I already had a SOG edc beforehand I did a lot of shopping other brands, but ultimately SOG pulled me back in. In my opinion you can't find better designed knives from a usability standpoint than what SOG makes. Keep em coming!

This is by far my favorite edc, I've been carrying it for a month now and have been very happy. I love how light it is, but it's not so light that you forget it's in your pocket anymore. The handle is also extremely comfortable, and can still fit a full grip despite not being overly big. An additional benefit is the XR lock. This knife is very fun to open/close, and feels very "flowy" in the process. All in all, there is nothing bad I can say about this knife!

That one's in the "Satin" color (sort of a greenish Linen Micarta grip and a soft "satin" finish on the blade) and I love it, it's one of the most beautiful knives in my collection. When I saw the LTE version, I wanted it, too but I wanted it to be in a different color/finish as my first one. This one is "Blackout". I already have a black SOG knife, the Seal XR but I have to say that I like the finish on this Kiku XR LTE more. It's softer, a bit more subtle, almost a matte satin finish dark charcoal grey on the modified Tanto blade. The Linen Micarta grip is earthier than a true black color, it's muted and, again, subtle. This is a great looking knife! The blade is every bit as gorgeous as the one on my Kiku XR, which makes sense as it's the same blade. Speaking of the blade, this modified Tanto blade was made by traditional Japanese blade smiths and it shows. The grip has the same great feel in the hand and the texture of the Linen Micarta scales makes the handle very grippy. Now to the part that I'm still making up my mind about. Yes, this is appreciably lighter than the Kiku XR due to replacing the steel frame with carbon fiber (which maintains the same strength and structural integrity as the steel). That being said, holding both versions, I see the point that some of the other reviewers have mentioned — that this knife isn't very well balanced (though I think that with enough handling, I'll get used to it). The original Kiku XR is an impeccably balanced knife and, honestly, if I didn't have that one, I may not have found this one to be as lacking in terms of balance. Like all SOG knives, and especially the Kiku XR knives, this knife has an impeccable finish and is extremely well thought out and executed. I've attached three photos, two of the knife closed with each side of the scales, including the clip. The third photo shows the Blackout Kiku XR LTE on the left next to the Satin Kiku XR on the right, both open so that you can see the gorgeous blades on both. Now, I think I prefer the Kiku XR to this knife but I'm keeping it. In fact, I'm going to buy another Kiku XR LTE just like this one to give to my brother for Christmas this year.

Lightweight, smooth and easy one-handed opening. That was the single biggest thing I was looking for, and it checks the box. Sharp out the box. Easy to clean. Very pleased

This knife really ticked off all the boxes for me, CTS XHP steel which I like for my working knives, micarta scales, and the weight, super lite knife I can carry all day and forget about it. This SOG is so sweet in almost everything, that it's hard to knock it, but I have two problems with it, out of box. First, the micarta scales are so hard they could be G10 as far as the feel, and I don't want to try this wet. Second, and most importantly is the XR locking mechanism. When it's locked it feels like a fixed blade, it's beautiful, but when you pull back the lock, the blade is coming down as fast as gravity will let it, too bad for your fingers. So that makes it a two handed knife for me, not what I'm looking for. I'm sure some will disagree with me on that, but I don't own knives that bite me while just doing a simple function like closing. I wanted to give you an idea about the size of this knife, because numbers don't always work as well as pictures, so i have it next to a Spyderco Persistence Lightweight (smallest knife), a Spyderco Para Military 2 - 3.47" (tan scales), a Spyderco Spyderco Tenacious w/ G10 scales(scratched up blade), and a OFF-GRID Badger, which comes close to it in size the most. Those are just for a size in head to head picture, nothing else.