The weather here in New England was strange. January and the first half of February were pretty dry and even warm. There was not persistent snow cover until the second half of February and then at the end of the month and then twice again in March we got major snowstorms, including a full Nor’easter on March 14-15. As a result, I started carrying “spring” stuff a bit earlier than normal. I also had a chance to get my hands on some really cool gear.

Pictured above: WE Knives High Fin and Vosteed x Reylight Rook

Every once in a while go buy a knife just for shits and giggles. Don’t fret about ratios, steels, or maker. Go buy something weird or cool or unusual (not like Spyderco Gunting unusual, but you know, off the beaten path). I did with the High Fin and I have been rewarded with a great slicer that looks super cool. Its not like slick modernist design cool, but knife guy cool, what with its harpoon tip and curve upon curve upon curve handle. But for a looks-first knife, it is exceptionally slicey. The Rook is a great pairing because of the color, but also because, like the High Fin, its a great piece of kit too. If you want a BOSS 35 but can’t justify the price or wait for the right material, this is your jam.

Pictured: Thys Meade Dino Front Flipper and the CWF Micro Arcadian

The Meade is still a joy to carry, use, and behold. But the light that I had been chasing for more than two years was not what I had hoped for and is already sold. Its not a bad light by any means, but it is so tantilizingly close to perfect that it drove me nuts. Why can’t this thing tailstand? That seems like such a basic thing and such an easy fix but for some reason it can’t. Then there is the UI. Its not bad, but, like 90% of the UIs on the market today, it is needlessly complex. To use a baseball analogy—the Micro Arcadian is Ken Griffey Jr: an all time great player that could have been more.

Pictured: Chris Reeve Small Sebenza 31 in S45VN, Lamy 2000 with custom Stub Italic Nib by the Nibsmith, and the FourSevens Mini Turbo Mk. 3 in Titanium

In the very justified explosion of enthusiasm over Magnacut, S45VN kinda got lost in the shuffle. Its a shame because, but for Magnacut, S45VN would be the darling of the IKC. It is a truly superb steel, the best of S30V and S35VN with a smidge more toughness in my opinion. I love using and sharpening it, it resist stains like crazy, and it is impressively tough (don’t tell anyone but I was cutting plastic sheeting in the muddy, rocky New England ground and saw no ill effects). Ironically, the Plain Jane Sebenza is the rarer model now, as CRK has shifted to producing higher margin inlay versions. Those are gorgeous blades, but I like the Plain Jane version a ton. The pen here is truly the Sebenza of the Pen World and with a custom nib I don’t have to play “nib roulette” that is part of the Lamy 2000 ownership experience. It has been my favorite writer since I got it and it looks as beautiful today as it did the day I got it. The last of this trio is the Mini Turbo Mk. 3 in Ti, which is probably my overall favorite production light right now.

Pictured: Civivi Elementum and Lego’d 1x CR123a Quark III

This pair is cloaked in mystery.

Mystery #1: Why is the Elementum so fat?

The Elementum is the 21st Century Leek—a knife with huge (staggering) sales numbers, tons of variation, and lots of crowd-pleasing features. The Elementum 2 is a button lock knife, which I really love, but it is…well…fat. I am not sure why either. I have owned a ton of button locks and none of them seemed all that corpulent. In fact, I have the CJRB Pyrite and it is also a button lock and it is about 33% slimmer. If anyone can tell me the engineering reason for this, I’d love to know.

Mystery #2: Why isn’t this a standard configuration of the Quark III?

Jason occasionally drops cool shit on his site with no fanfare. Even hardcore flashoholics like myself miss it. When he dropped new body tubes for the Quark III series, I missed it. That problem was quickly remedied and I got the 1x CR123a body tube. The resulting light, which, much like the innovative mid-Aughts Surefire, is a sweet Lego’d compact photon cannon. Sure there are a lot of clickies that are brighter, but not many are more compact, few have as easy a UI, and none have Jason’s innovative tailstand ring. This is a great light. So the question is this—why isn’t this a standard option? I’d take it without a clip, but making it a standard run with a clip would be awesome. And if you are making it a full run, I wouldn’t kick a Ti version out of bed for eating crackers.

Pictured: Oeser F22, Beats Fit Pro earbuds, Zebralight SC5c II LE

The knife and light are great, so that is out of the way. Really this is about the earbuds. With their Siri functionality, I think these guys pass the EDC test and justify their space in my carry. I have tried out a huge array of earbuds and these are, by leaps and bounds, the best I have ever had in every aspect—sound, ease of use, durability, and, key for earbuds, retention. They stay in the ear even with pretty heavy exertion (riding a mountain bike, for example).

Pictured: Victorinox Alox Bantam, Spoke Roady Gen 1, Prometheus Lights Beta Ti

As compact, capable, durable, and cool as an EDC can get in 2021. The Bantam is secretly the best SAK for compact EDC (step aside Cadet) thanks to the brilliant 84/91 Combo tool. And I just love the look and feel of silver Alox. My Spoke Roady has a place in my heart as it was my “pandemic grocery shopping pen” surviving 18 months worth of trips to the grocery. The Beta Ti is my personal “comfort food” light. I know it is not as bright as others, but it just feels perfect in the hand and in the pocket.

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