Early on in the holiday season I posted about these new Kobalt EDC-style mini utility knives that appeared at Lowe’s.
A reader mentioned these were made in some kind of partnership with Gil-Tek and they were modeled after the RUK.
At some point I gave in and ordered a pack – you get all 3 for $9.98.
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Lowe’s was offering free shipping (apparently shipping is now $2.99 to get it tomorrow, or $5.99 or free with a $35+ order to get it in 3 days), and so I figured maybe it was worth it.
I finally started going through my holiday season purchases, and I learned very quickly that I don’t like these. I boxed them up, requested a return, and sent them back to Lowe’s.
The build quality seemed fine, but it just wasn’t for me.
With how these work, you apply slight downwards and forward pressure on an otherwise very smooth surface.
All of my replacement blades tend to have a light coating of oil, and that’ll make them even slicker.
I tried removing the blades. One of them caught and just wouldn’t budge. I felt like I couldn’t force it without cutting myself.
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I really appreciate the design. And the price point seemed compelling.
But it just seemed impractical and maybe even a little hazardous for me to use.
The Gil-Tek RUK is made in the USA and priced at $30 each – to start. That’s for the aluminum version.
The Gil-Tek RUK is machined. I’m guessing the Kobalt RUK from Lowe’s is made from cast aluminum.
Lowe’s Kobalt RUK is not bad, but it just didn’t feel right to me. That’s why I sent it back.
Is the Gil-Tek version worth 10X the price for made in the USA? Maybe. At $10 for 3 for the imported Lowe’s tools, maybe I set my expectations too high.
I won’t consider this a knock against the RUK’s design, and only consider it a reflection of what Kobalt could build at the $3.33 price point.
Still, the idea of deploying a utility knife by sliding it with my thumb – that’s always going to be a potential issue with the oiled-up blades that come out of popular brands’ refill dispenser packs.
I don’t think the Kobalt tool is bad, it’s just not for me.
Rob H
Oh wow! I didn’t realize you just slide it in and out with friction. I didn’t look closely at it in-store. Very glad I didn’t pick a set up.
Stuart
There’s a [feather?] spring underneath the blade that helps it lock into place. But yes, friction between your thumb and the blade is all that extends or retracts the blade. Friction against the sidewalls oppose the motion, and I’m thinking they shouldn’t and probably don’t in the $30 machined version.
blocky
I always wipe my blades off before installing. Since I do a lot of clean work, the factory oil can be a liability. If I know I’ll be cutting a finished material like museum board, which is an archival unsized paper product, then I also wipe the blade down with alcohol.
MattW.
I wasnt impressed with the quality but kept them as stash them in place box openers. I did some light smoothing and work do the dismay of the coating but there better. Not gonna guy more but holds true to if its too cheap theres a reason. No one would say workpro talon like grips are snapon for sure. Custom machining required by end user yep!
William Adams
My father always carried one of the mini utility knives in his pocket (for so long that the chrome wore off the brass button) — I still have it, and have bought two more, but can’t bring myself to replace the Gerber Exchange-a-Blade I’ve carried since they first came out.
I’d like to replace it, but the replacement needs to:
– afford more control over blade extension (all-too often the EAB shows way too much blade)
– be as small/convenient
– have a nice clip
– deploy as quickly
I’ve been pleased w/ the Ever-ratchet from Gear Infusion, so have been considering their GhostTi Utility Knife, but currently waiting to see what reviews are like for the Placed Atoms Maker Knife II once it ships since the Kickstarter funded.
I did buy a Metmo Edge, and added it to my car/truck key carabiner along w/ a house key, and it’s been useful the few times I’ve needed a small/thin cut or scraping, but I like the sharp/replaceable blade.
CJ21
You can’t beat the Gerber EAB, imo. I have a bunch of these stashed around because they are just super convenient. More recently I picked up the Prybrid, they are a different use case but becoming a fast favorite.
Jon
The EAB is barely ok. I’ve had 2. The screw to change blades is a terrible design. Opening it one handed is awkward. The overall feel is uncomfortable. Screwpop Ron’s utility knife is better by far.
KokoTheTalkingApe
Agree. Fiddling with that tiny screw is for the birds. I like the Workpro, which I mentioned in another comment.
TomD
There’s some formula for it but basically the closer my hands/body is to a sharp edge, the more I’m going to pay for the tool just to reduce the chance of injury from a badly-made part.
Oarman
This looks like the kind of thing I wouldn’t want (fingers way too close to cutting edge) and if I did want, would 3D print. Even $3.33 seems pushing it for “utility blade with a wrapper”. I wouldn’t want this or the $30 version floating loose in my pocket either, and $30 is more than enough for some sort of good folding / retracting razor.