Columbia River Knife and Tool

Columbia River Knife & Tool is a relativeproduces a wide range of knives, bladed tools,
newcomer to the American knife market, havingand accessories such as sharpening rods and
only been established in 1994. Based in Oregon,systems. Their knife selection includes fixed blades
Columbia River Knife & Tool, or CRKT forand folding knives for nearly any purpose. CRKT
short, was founded by two former employees ofcurrently owns fifteen patents, with many more
Kershaw Knives, a well-known knife maker. Thepending, and prides itself on constantly developing
founders were Rod Bremer and Paul Gillespi. Manynew features. Although relatively new to the knife
of the revolutionary new features of CRKT weremarket, Columbia River Knife & Tool is
designed by these two men.known for including major developments and
The first CRKT knife to see widespread successfeatures in each new knife model.
was the Keep It Super Simple, or K.I.S.S.,One of their most popular knife design features is
introduced in 1998 and designed by Ed Halligan.the AutoLAWKS locking mechanism. This system
This small folding knife immediately sold out,keeps the knife locked once it is opened,
causing CRKT to triple their original productionpreventing the knife from being closed unless the
figures for the year. This small folding knife islock is disengaged. The Outburst system is
known for smooth operation and a precisionanother one of their proprietary features. This
design. The K.I.S.S. was originally designed with aspring-assist quickly opens the knife once it is
Tanto-inspired blade, and can be opened or closedopened 30 degrees. Other patents include other
with one hand thanks to innovative new designopening or locking mechanisms, as well as
features. This knife is designed to be carriedVeff-Serrated knife edges. Veff-Serrations are
anywhere; it can be placed on a keychain, anddifferent from regular serrated knife blades
also includes a money clip. This simple and elegantbecause they are much larger than typical
design is known for its small size and goodserrations, and are set at a 60 degree rather
performance. Several versions of this popularthan 90 degree angle. Overall, these new
knife are still available today, over a decade sincedevelopments have made Columbia River Knife
its introduction.& Tool products much easier to use than
Today, Columbia River Knife & Toolother knives on the market.