The Shilin Cutter is a Taiwanese knife that was first made in the mid-19th century by a cutler named Kuo He. By the 1960s, there were more than 20 knifesmiths making the cutter in northern Taipei. The Shilin Cutter is a slip joint with a san mai blade shaped like a bamboo leaf, and an eggplant-shaped handle made out of horn. It was a common knife in Taiwan and Japan, and was used by market vendors, mechanics, fishermen, and even carried by bureaucrats.

The sheer number of knife companies and blades available is insane, and makes shopping even harder. There are some companies that have been under our nose the whole time, and we simply overlooked them. One knife brand that I never thought to give a try was QSP Knives. I've always been a Buck, Kershaw, Gerber, etc kind of guy. Always stuck to the mainstream and didn't dabble too much, mainly because of the unknown.

QSP Knives has been around for more than a decade and have been an OEM for other companies. It wasn't until 2017 that the company started producing knives under its own name. The company's name is an acronym for what they stand for, Quality, Service, and Price. I love a company who's pride and dedication is part of their name.

Vosteed believes in giving folks the best bang for buck and giving you amazing quality. They set out to create a highly affordable and reliable EDC, and the result is the Racoon. No, not some cute trash panda waking you up at 3am. That noise you hear is these guys making a heck of a noise in the knife industry.

The Racoon features a ergonomic micarta handle with a button lock. For the blade we have a 14C28N Sandvik steel that's has a high flat grind and a satin finish. All this for $60, quite a bargain, how does it stack up?

Vosteed Knives is a fairly new company that has been around since 2021. The company was founded on the principle of making great products with their collaborators and users. They have had several successful releases since their inception, and today we are checking out their Grind model.

When it comes to a great EDC knife, I look at a few different factors. I look at blade style to see how utilitarian it is for basic everyday tasks. How easy is it to sharpen when the need arises? Is the handle comfortable, and is it the right size for my hand? What locking mechanism does it have, is it ambidextrous, and can it be disengaged if one hand is occupied? And finally, I look at the pocket clip. I love a knife that carries well and doesn't take a lot of fuss to remove and replace in my pocket. When it comes to the Grind, it hits oh so many sweet spots; let's take a look.

I'm a huge fan of budget blades; you show me a good deal on a knife and I'm there. Budget blades are often sought  after because they have good form, function and are very affordable. When looking at budget blades one company that caught my attention is Sport Manufacturing Group. SMG is  an American based company that produces pneumatic guns as well as a pocket knife line by the name of Steel Will.

SMG is quite passionate about their pocket knives and it shows. They have a huge range of knives that cover many different categories and use premium materials. Being a budget guy I wanted to check out a knife I had been hearing a lot about and that's the Cutjack. The Cutjack is  a sub $50 knife that is aimed at the everyday carry crowd and hits home on so many levels.