Realistically, there isn’t much you can do that’s new with a knife. It still needs to have a blade, a handle, and if it’s a pocket-knife, it needs to have the blade retract into the handle for easy and safe carrying. That, fundamentally, doesn’t change. What designers and brands do, however, is build around that template, experimenting with new blade types, handle designs, materials, locking techniques, form factors, or even sizes, shrinking down the knife to its smallest possible size. However, what the Cubik does feels different enough to warrant an article. Unlike your flipper-style knife, or OTF switchblade, the Cubik relies on gravity to deploy its blade.
Press the trigger on the Cubik and hold it upside down and the blade casually pops out. Release the trigger and it locks in place. It’s simple – it doesn’t require complex mechanisms, ball bearings, springs that fail or rust, or any parts that need to be maintained or taken special care of. Just use gravity to your advantage and the knife’s blade can either pop out or retract in. It’s simple, satisfying, and so secure you can actually use the knife to do heavy-duty things like pierce hardwood. And like any good EDC, it’s designed with a little easter egg in the form of an extra feature – a tungsten carbide glass-breaker on the rear end that turns this gentleman’s gravity-powered EDC into a literal lifesaver.
Designer: IF
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I could spend a good hour watching the GIF above. The Cubik’s fairly simple deployment feels just about as satisfying as it looks. Press the button, flick your wrist, and the blade’s ready to do some cutting. Sure, the pedant will say that this isn’t gravity as much as it’s centrifugal force, but then again, the idea is to mainly use the force of the blade’s weight to eject it from its handle. There’s no spring, no manual flipper, and no complex mechanism to eject and retract the blade. It feels natural, intuitive, and honestly, has a fun, fidget-like quality to it.
The knife itself is simple on the looks of it. The exterior is made entirely out of machined titanium. It comes with a simple design that makes the Cubik look less like a knife and more like some flash drive for your computer. The knife measures 2.6 inches long, 0.98 inches wide, and a mere 0.2 inches thick. It weighs 1.65 ounces, thanks to the all-titanium outer body, and the fact that there’s no complicated part design or assembly. A small button lets you deploy and retract the blade. Diagonal lines give the Cubik character while providing grip, and jimping on the top gives you a secure place to rest your thumb while you maneuver the knife.
The blade, on the other hand, is your standard SK5 trapezoid blade, often found in heavy duty handheld cutters. It’s perfect for the Cubik because it’s crafted from surgical grade steel, is ruthlessly efficient, and unlike smaller scalpel blades, this thing is a rugged beast. It cuts through tough materials like acrylic and is even used for its ability to slice through things like linoleum, roofing materials, carpets, and even thin sheet metals. The blade’s trapezoid shape makes it dual-edged, which means when one end of the blade wears out, you can just flip it over and use the other tip. Unlike pocket knives with fixed or dedicated blades, the Cubik actually offers a few distinct advantages, thanks to this swappable blade design.
The swappable format means a few distinct advantages – for starters, the knife automatically becomes cost-effective and sustainable, because a broken or dull blade can easily be replaced without throwing the entire knife away. This means the Cubik can be used for longer, can be used relentlessly without worrying about a broken or ruined edge, and can even be carried on flights. Yes! The Cubik is TSA friendly – just ditch the blade and you can carry the handle around with you anywhere. Buy a blade once you land and you’re good to go. The entire thing barely loses you a few cents in the grand scheme of things.
The blade’s sharp design and the Cubik’s compact, classy form factor make it fairly universal. You can use it to cut stationery, open boxes, whittle wood, and even scrape flint to start fires. The blade’s dangerously sharp edge makes it perfect for self defense, and it’s honestly perfect even cutting through paracord or your seatbelt in the case of an emergency. To supplement that, the folks behind Cubik even fashioned a window-breaker tip, allowing you to make a quick getaway. Strike the tip against any glass surface and it’ll shatter instantly, allowing you to easily use it in rescue missions or even for a quick escape in the event of impending danger.
Although built for pretty much everywhere, the Cubik’s honestly perfect for the outdoors too, thanks to the presence of tritium slots on either side, allowing you to mount glow-vials that let you spot your EDC in the dark. A pocket clip makes it easy to carry around by slipping it into your lapel or pant pockets, and a lanyard hole gives you the added option of stringing a keyring or lanyard cord through the Cubik for effective carry.
The Cubik gets full marks for a bunch of things – for starters, it’s tiny, lightweight, and efficient to a fault. There’s no learning curve, it’s built with that swappable blade design, and the outer titanium body will last for centuries – literally. However, if there’s anything that truly impresses, it’s that gravity deployment. It’s incredibly simple but sheer genius – the blade opens and closes silently without the audible click of a flipper or switchblade (making it perfect for stealth use), but most importantly, it doesn’t use any extra parts, which means zero chances of failing, no wear and tear, and absolutely no need for repairing at any time in the future. That’s really what I admire about such a knife. It’s about as no-nuisance as a fixed-blade EDC, but has all the benefits of a pocket knife! The Cubik starts at $59, comes with 5 extra replacement blades, and ships globally for free.
Click Here to Buy Now: $59 $89 (34% off) Hurry! Only 10 days left.
The post You’ve Probably Never Seen A Gravity-Activated EDC Pocket Knife… Until Now first appeared on Yanko Design.