The CRKT Carajas is a flipper knife pretty enough to take to the prom, but tough enough to use during a long weekend in the woods. This knife looks custom-built but it doesn’t carry the premium price tag.

Construction & Materials
I both love and hate the fact that the Carajas relies on ball-bearings in its smooth pivot.  Ball bearings make the blade action smoother, but they require upkeep for long-term functionality.  I appreciate CRKT’s decision to adopt lightweight plastic–G10– for the Carajas handles. The G10 is lighter than traditional nylon but also. The knife features a liner lock, which is not my favorite style of lock. Don’t go stabbing this knife into a tree or a beer pong table or you’ll end up with stitches.

Ease of Use
The IKBS Pivot System makes this an easy-to-operate knife. The nice, smooth action of the blade pivot illustrates the high caliber of the Carajas. The pocket clip, however, is a real bear–an unfortunately trend with CRKT. I alleviated problem of the overly tight clip by bending it out slightly to get some clearance between it and the handle but that modification shouldn’t be necessary.

Steel Quality & Edge Retention
The 12C27 Sandvik steel blade has a fair resistance to corrosion, and will hold a good edge for some time. The steel has a hardness of 55-57, which is on par with some of the more common knife steels.

Durability
The name Carajas could very well mean “durable and good looking.” I had no problems tumbling this knife in gravel and wiping it off to look new. The handle scales are stubbornly tough and are a nice choice for a knife which will be used for both business and pleasure.

Value
Function is always a key factor in a tool, but function matched with an appealing form is even better. The found the Carajas, to be a good looking knife that functions quite well. It features a ball-bearing based pivot system (IKBS) which performs like it costs top-dollar but doesn’t.