Vosteed Slim Knife Comparison

Vosteed Slim Knife Comparison: Parallel Crossbar, Parallel Spiderweb, Raccoon TiSlim, and Porcupine TiSlim

I have four slim Vosteed knives now, and I’ve reviewed each one. Vosteed asked for a comparison of the four I own, so here’s a Vosteed Slim knife comparison. It was on my table at the time of these photos, so as a “bigger” or “normal EDC knife size comparison,” I included the Vosteed Thunderbeast (3.49″ M390 blade) in some photos.

The Knives

• Vosteed Parallel Crossbar Lock: black titanium with orange accents
• Vosteed Parallel Spiderweb: spiderweb scales with brass-colored accents
• Vosteed Raccoon TiSlim: acid wash blue with a black stonewash blade
• Vosteed Porcupine TiSlim Acid Wash: acid wash on scales and blade

The campfire photo of slim Vosteeds!

Specs Side by Side

Thinness is the Design

These four thin knives aren’t remarkably different in blade length (2.90-3.18″) or overall size. They do differ in handle thickness. The Parallels are 0.279″; the TiSlims are 0.315″. But the main point isn’t how these four knives differ from each other, but how they differ from a more standard EDC knife. In this case, that’s the Thunderbeast, at  0.52″.

Just hearing the measurements isn’t as compelling as this: standard knives are almost twice as thick (1.86x on average) as these slims!

Vosteed Slim Knife Comparison: Blades

The Porcupine and Raccoon have drop points, the Parallel Spiderweb a tanto, and the Parallel Crossbar a reverse tanto.

The slim handles don’t mean slim blades. All four are 2.0-2.2 mm thick, which makes them more or less standard-thickness blades.

That said, yes, the Thunderbeast has a much thicker blade, at 3.5mm. In this regard, the Thunderbeast is literally a beast – it’s right there in the name!

Open / Close / Lock

Opening options here are all quite similar (with one notable exception). All four of these have thumbstuds as one ambidextrous option. Thumbstuds on these knives are shorter than many Crossbar lock knives, but the thin handles allow this.

The two Parallels and the Raccoon use a crossbar lock, which is basically an Axis lock, and I’m a HUGE fan. Crossbar locks allow you to flip the knife open and drop it shut without putting any digits into the blade pathway.

The Porcupine TiSlim has a top liner button lock that’s almost drop-shut smooth, and it (also) keeps your fingers out of the blade path.

For reference, the Thunderbeast uses the Vanchor lock (a button that presses in a millimeter or two) and offers several flipper options.

All four use caged ceramic ball bearings, and the blade centering is perfect on every one that I have.

In Hand

The point of this post is to help you decide which of the slims to buy. I think the photo below strongly makes a case for buying at least four of those. Wolverine cosplay! (I guess Wolverine would only require 3, though.)

These knives being so thin allows this grip. It also proves that they’re thin!

And if you just need to be extra stabby:

Carry

All four have tip-up-only clips. The Parallels use a “paperclip” style clip that stands off the handle, and the TiSlims use flatter, milled clips. As far as clipping goes, I have to say that I prefer the paperclip-style clips. For looks, the milled clips win hands down.

So Which One?

• Thinnest and cheapest: Parallel Crossbar ($129).
• Best grip: A wash among the top 3 (Parallel Spiderweb, or either TiSlim), with the flat Parallel coming in last.
• Most blade in a slim knife: Raccoon TiSlim (3.18″).
• Fastest to open: Porcupine TiSlim, thanks to the button lock and bearings.

Summary and Conclusion

I think I made the Wolverine case for buying four knives from this series. But if you have to pick just one, I recommend either the Parallel, depending on the blade shape (Tanto or reverse Tanto) and handle design you prefer, or any Porcupine TiSlim. I love opening the Porcupine TiSlim because of the top liner lock. I’d love to see a “smaller” version of this Porcupine TiSlim (something like a 2.75″ blade).

Regardless of which you pick, I do expect you’ll be amazed by how thin these knives are, and how invisibly they carry.

Notes

• These knives were provided for review by Vosteed.
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