2019 Gear of the Year
2018 was a banner year for sure. There were a half dozen knives that, any other year, would have run away with the top pick, but the Gent won the crown and deservedly so. This year has another runaway winner, but it is definitely not a knife.
2019 was not a good year in knives. The market is absolutely clogged with boring knives, iterations (sold to people as Sprint runs—“Look! New G10 color…please buy another”), and flavors of the…wee (or WE)…da…moment. There was very little that was interesting. Even MassDrop, aka Drop, wasn’t as hot in 2019 as they were in 2018. The production knife market is in full Tulip Mania mode. And no, I don’t want a Manix with burlap micarta handles in 154V steel. I just don’t care or need that many of the same knife…There were some bright spots, but compared to 2018, this was a low wattage year in knives.
Flashlights, on the other hand, were hitting on all cylinders. BOSS torches keep coming in small batches and they are still, three years on, the most advanced lights on the market. Lumintop crowd sourced a design and released a few different variants of the FW3A. RovyVon took a swipe at the full size market. And EVERYONE AND THEIR BROTHER released some stellar high end torch, from OKLuma’s remarkable DC0 (a 1xAA high end light!) to Frelux working on his own AA torch. But the best release of the year was clearly the JetBeam RRT-01 Raptor v.2.
Let’s get to the awards.
Overall Product of the Year: JetBeam RRT-01 Raptor v2
No questions asked, this was the best EDC-related producted released this year. Not only did it fill a gap in the flashlight market in terms of an easy to recommend torch, it also brought back my favorite UI, the selector ring. By improving on the already great original, JetBeam hit a towering home run. The fact that the battery has a built in charging port is just another touch of design greatness. Given how weak the field of knives was and how few other lights rivaled this thing, the Raptor lapped the field.
Best Value: Gerber Fastball
Its American made. It runs a very competent steel. It has top shelf design. And it flips like a Romanian gymnast. The Fastball is an unquestionably great knife. It also stopped the downward slide of one of the most venerable names in knives. All that is awesome. But the price, at just under $100, is glorious. If you can’t afford a $100 knife, save some money and get this one. Its superb. I’d love to see an upgraded version with carbon fiber handles and S45VN or 20CV or some other nice American steel. But even in S30V, this is a damn fine knife and one heck of a value.
Biggest Surprise: CRKT XOC
Its massive. How massive? The XOC is so big that it makes Cold Steel knives blush. And it is incredibly well made. The deadbolt lock is awesome—intuitive, easy to use, and safe. It also keeps the digits clear of the blade path. And this is a CRKT that sports XHP. In all nothing was more surprising than this knife. Maybe ever. And when I got a review sample I was even more surprised because it was better than the hype suggested. You won’t pocket this knife, but the stream of premium CRKTs coming owes a debt to this blank check knife. Its $750 and no knife is worth that, but among the $750 knives out there, this is a pretty good entry. Oh and the finish is pretty damn amazing too—flush carbon fiber, beautiful materials transitions, and a flipping action that sounds like a shotgun going off.
Company of the Year: Three Rivers Manufacturing
Yes, I am a bit of Homer, TRM is right in my backyard of Palmer Massachusetts. But few companies make production knives that pair materials, design chops, fit and finish, and value like TRM. The Neutron is still hard to get (and rightfully so). The Atom was similarly great. The Nerd, which goes on presale in December, looks spectacular—a locking Dragonfly-sized knife. On a per-release basis no one has had as many easy wins as TRM and 2019 was a year they really fired all the cannons. If you are a company in the same market niche, I would be worried. Most manufacturers in this space sell knives for three times as much, have one quarter the availability, and half the design greatness.
Knife of the Year: Triple Aught Design/Hinderer Compact Dauntless
I wanted this knife for years. A nice, production-ish version of the compact form of the Dauntless. I am sucker for the Dauntless in all its myriad variations, but this one is the very best of the best. Once I tweaked the pivot, the knife has become a staple of my carry, handling big tasks and small chores with aplomb all the while looking as cool as a knife can look (and no I am not a fan of Liberace-styled mokuti laden bullshit…). This might be my last TAD product ever, though see below for why that may not be true, and if it is the last, I am content. Its great.
Light of the Year: Lumintop Fw3A
You want 80% of a BOSS at 10% the price? Get this light. As a herald of enthusiast-designed crowdsourcing, I’d love the Fw3A to be the first of many, but even if it is not this is a great light. Its not a light for everyone, its UI is bafflingly complex, but if you don’t mind that and you know not to run your lights on high for long, this is the torch for you. With its hourglass body and washer style clip, the Fw3A hits a lot of the right buttons. But if we are all being honest its the 2800 lumen high that grabbed and kept our collective attention. The BOSS35 cranks out 3500 on max, but this is insignificantly dimmer but significantly less expensive. BTW, I had to reset my computer (three times—but who is counting?) and I lost the email of the person that lent me this light for review. If that person reads the blog, email me and I will send the light back.
Pen of the Year: Spoke Pen
Brad Dowdy, the Pen Addict, finally designed a pen from soup to nuts. Brian Conti of Spoke Design built it. This is kind of like Carroll Shelby and John Wyer designing and building the original Ford GT 40 (go see Ford v. Ferrari if you like cars…the acting is decent, but the cars are the stars of the show). There is no way around it—this is a great pen. It is also surprisingly inexpensive given the provenance and the durability. At $60, this is the only entry on this list that is a relatively hesitation free purchase. CRKT XOC this isn’t.
Pack of the Year: ::insert needle scratch sound::
I was all ready to just give the award to Tom Bihn for their amazing Snyik 22, when with just days before this article was set to go live TAD anounced a follow up to last years cult favorite the Axiom 24. I haven’t had a chance to handle the first one and with a new one out, I feel like it is probably time for me to pony up the cash and grab one. At $365, its not cheap, but I don’t want to lead anyone astray. Its also worth noting that the Synapse was updated this year and its awesome too. One of those three is probably the best pack of the year, I just don’t know which it is. Hence the last minute rewrite of this section.
Accessory of the Year: Anker Powercore Fusion 5000
As both an AC adapter and a portable charger, the Powercore 5000 is great. It can do a lot of different stuff, including charging two items at once either from the wall or from its own internal power. It is also Hi-Speed USB-C compliant. And all of this is contained in a package the size of a wall wart that costs $25. You won’t be disappointed. I also strongly considered the awesome and weird Biolite Camp Stove 2 kit (purchase link). The original was something of a joke, but this little number can charge your phone (for real this time) and make soup all from a handful of sticks. One will definitely grace this site in 2020 for a full review.
Derek Bohn/Marshall Hoots Community Member: Best Damn EDC
He has a great channel on YouTube, has done a lot in coordinating different parts of the community, and does a video a week, which, having posted once a week (or more) for ten years, I can tell you is a lot. Larrin from KnifeSteelNerds also deserves a shoutout. His in-depth analysis of steel is music to my ears. But it is a bit technical and even more niche than just EDC gear, so I give the nod to Best Damn EDC.
Amazon Purchase Links:
If you want to support the blog and are interested in the gear mentioned here, follow the links below and purchase items—the proceeds help buy new review samples to keep the blog running and 100% independent: