REVIEW – I’ve been interested in reviewing small knives lately in anticipation of finding my new favorite box opening tool. My criteria for a perfect box opener are small size, ease of use, and ease of changing blades. Let’s see if the Ryfined Gear Duplex ultralight keychain utility knife, which is currently seeking funding on Kickstarter, ticks all my boxes.
What is it?
The Ryfined Gear Duplex ultralight keychain utility knife is a carbon fiber frame designed to hold two utility blades.
Design and features
The Duplex has been CNC machined from a block of carbon fiber. With a row of embedded magnets, Duplex can hold two blades.
When it’s time to slice and dice, you can use your thumb to slide the active blade forward.
On the back is an extra blade that’s ready to go when you need a new one. The great thing is that you don’t need any special tools to remove the extra blade. Actually, you don’t need any tools at all because the embedded magnets hold the blade securely in place until it’s time to remove it.
Also, note that this utility knife can use standard Stanley-style blades as well as hook and hawksbill-style blades.
The carbon fiber frame has a small tab that creates a stop when it falls into the slots at the top of the utility blade. In the image above, I point this out using a red arrow.
To unlock the blade, you have to use your index finger to flex the frame while sliding the blade forward or backward. This requires some finger strength.
The Kickstarter video for the Duplex makes it look really easy to slide the knife in and out of the frame, but I found it to be difficult for a couple of reasons. One reason is that these knives are made for righties, and I’m a leftie. To make matters worse, I have some issues with arthritis in my right thumb, which made the action even harder for me.
I don’t have any complaints about the build quality of the Ryfined Gear Duplex ultralight keychain utility knife. There are no sharp edges on the frame, and the whole thing is super lightweight while also being very strong.
There’s a loop in the frame that you can use to attach the Duplex to your keychain or one of the Ryfined Gear carabiners, which you can order as an add-on or directly from the Ryfined Gear site. See the picture and links below.
What I like about the Ryfined Gear Duplex knife
- Tool-less design
- Holds an extra blade
- Uses standard utility blades
What needs to be improved?
- Won’t ship until October
- Might be challenging for people with dexterity or hand strength issues to deploy the blade
Final thoughts
I love the minimalist style of the Ryfined Gear Duplex ultralight keychain utility knife, but it won’t work for me since I’m a leftie (Ryfined Gear may make left-handed versions of this knife, so make sure you check out their campaign page for updates) and have some age-related dexterity issues. Yay me. For those who don’t share my issues, I think the Ryfined Gear Duplex ultralight keychain utility knife is a well-made little utility knife that might tick the boxes of EDC fans.
Price: $47.00
Where to buy: Kickstarter
Source: The sample for this review was provided by Ryfined Gear. Ryfined Gear did not have a final say on the review and did not preview the review before it was published.
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Their website advises they have a ‘Lefty’ version available
Right, the Kickstarter said they had a few. I’m not so sure it would help me that much. I just found it too tough to slide.
By being to tough to slide, does that mean ‘fiddly’ tough or physically tough. Is there any danger of thumb/finger slipping onto the blade? Last question will the mechanism loosen up with use?
Malcolm it’s physically tough for me because I have some inflammation / arthritis in my thumbs. So it just takes more effort and kinda hurts – for me. Did you watch the video on the Kickstarter page? It looks easy for them. And no, I don’t believe there’s a big chance of cutting yourself with it. If you live here in the US, email me your mailing address and I’ll send you my sample since I won’t be using it.