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- Dec 7, 2019
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Review summary: The Civivi Praxis combines a nice belly and a thin grind to make for awesome slicing ability. It’s a substantial knife, but doesn’t weigh too much (4.42 oz) and it doesn’t take over your pocket. While not hard cons per se, I would have preferred to remove the choil and expose a bit more of the liner lock, but that’s just me. All in all, it’s a solid knife for the money. Scored it 9/10.
I’ve always been a fan of large sized folders since it’s nice to have some extra cutting edge. Anything with a 3.5” blade and above, and you had my attention. In the big boys league, what sets the Civivi Praxis apart is the efficiency of the design. It has a substantial blade, but not to the point of being cumbersome; there’s also plenty of room in the handle for hands of all sizes. Let’s see if this knife is worth adding to your collection.
Dimensions and specs
Blade length: 95 mm or 3.74 in
Blade thickness: 3 mm or 0.12 in
Blade steel: 9Cr18MoV stainless steel
Blade grind: high saber
Blade hardness: 58-60 HRC
Handle thickness: 12.4 mm or 0.49 in
Overall length: 214 mm or 8.43 in
Weight: 125.4 g or 4.42 oz
Blade and cutting performance
The thin grind and belly make for a great overall cutter. The factory edge was impressive, and I saw no need to give it a touchup out of the box. It sliced paper cleanly and opened packages without a problem. The tip is also pointy enough without being too delicate. Not much to say about cutting performance other than that it’s fantastic for EDC chores.
For the blade itself, this is more of a nitpick, but I’m not too fond of the finger choil. Guys with thicker index fingers may have trouble wrapping around that curve without teetering off to the cutting edge. I would have preferred to omit the choil entirely so we have more cutting edge at the base of the blade or make it as large as the Manix 2’s choil. Anyway, the user can control the knife just fine without using the choil. There’s some jimping as well on the base of the spine. I think a jimp-less profile would have added to the sleekness of the Praxis, but at least it isn’t too aggressive.
I haven’t extensively tested the 9Cr steel since I only use my blades for casual house chores, so I can’t offer first hand information on edge retention. According to the Cedric and Ada YouTube channel however (one of the reviewers I trust based on his track record), we can expect something similar to VG-10 in performance. For the price tag, I would say that’s adequate. Not as exciting as S35VN, but it will absolutely get the job done.
Fit and finish of the blade on my unit is excellent. Bevels are even, the grind lines look consistent, and the spine is straight. Centering is dead in the middle. If this level of quality control is possible for a $50 knife, this is what we should look for at the minimum in anything 50 bucks and above.
Deployment, lockup, and detent
The ceramic ball bearings make deployment a joy. It could be made smoother with some lube, but it’s good enough for me since I don’t really fidget with my knives. I don’t feel any snags or hiccups as it opens. Just for transparency’s sake, this is my first flipper folder, and I must say I’m quite happy with it. Wrist flicks aren’t necessary to lock it all the way, but flipper does need a convincing push. Push down on the flipper like you mean it, and it will lock every time. The jimping on the flipper is the one time I actually appreciate jimping.
Lockup is completely solid. I don’t detect any wiggle sideways or forward and back. No functional issues with the liner lock, though I must say it’s a little trickier to close one-handed since the liner lock isn’t as exposed as on some Spyderco knives. Still doable though with some practice.
Detent on the Praxis is positive without being too tight. For my unit, shaking it vigorously doesn’t cause it to deploy (if it failed the detent test, I would have sent it back). For safety purposes, I’d be mindful of the flipper tab not to catch on anything as I ease it back in the pocket, though it does take some force before the blade flies open.
Handle and ergonomics
As mentioned before, the Praxis offers plenty of handle to grab onto. I have around medium to large sized hands, and I can secure a four finger hold with some room to spare. No hotspots at any point for me. The G10 is rather smooth, so I don’t think it’ll shred your pockets. As a tradeoff, it won’t offer as much traction though. The Praxis has two finger grooves, and I think they aren’t overly pronounced, so they should fit almost everyone’s hands. But when in doubt, if grooves aren’t your thing, I’d look elsewhere. Overall though, ergos are great for this one.
Perhaps my favorite thing about the Praxis is how it rides in the pocket. It’s a large-ish knife, but it doesn’t feel that way when clipped in the pocket. The weight is reasonable for its size, and its height when closed isn’t that bad either. I can still fit a few small items in my right pocket even with the Praxis clipped in there. It reminds me of the Endura 4 in the sense of packing a big blade in a fairly slim, lightweight package. The Praxis isn’t the most compact EDC option around, but I don’t think it’s a huge bother to carry around either. The deep carry clip is a nice feature as well.
Concluding thoughts and score
All things considered, the Praxis is an excellent full-sized low-cost EDC that’s also space- and weight-efficient. My gripes about this knife merely revolve around eliminating the choil and exposing the liner lock just a tad more, but those aren’t dealbreakers by any means. Time will tell if this blade holds up in terms of durability and reliability, and I will update this review as necessary.
Now is this knife for you? If you’re looking to try out a quality flipper without spending too much (yet) on a high-end folder, I’d say the Praxis is an excellent starting point. This was my first flipper and I’m quite happy with the smooth action. If you’re curious about trying out a Civivi knife just for kicks and think the mainstream Elementum would be too small for you, then the Praxis might be the better choice.
For this review, the Praxis gets a 9 out of 10.
I’ve always been a fan of large sized folders since it’s nice to have some extra cutting edge. Anything with a 3.5” blade and above, and you had my attention. In the big boys league, what sets the Civivi Praxis apart is the efficiency of the design. It has a substantial blade, but not to the point of being cumbersome; there’s also plenty of room in the handle for hands of all sizes. Let’s see if this knife is worth adding to your collection.

Dimensions and specs
Blade length: 95 mm or 3.74 in
Blade thickness: 3 mm or 0.12 in
Blade steel: 9Cr18MoV stainless steel
Blade grind: high saber
Blade hardness: 58-60 HRC
Handle thickness: 12.4 mm or 0.49 in
Overall length: 214 mm or 8.43 in
Weight: 125.4 g or 4.42 oz
Blade and cutting performance
The thin grind and belly make for a great overall cutter. The factory edge was impressive, and I saw no need to give it a touchup out of the box. It sliced paper cleanly and opened packages without a problem. The tip is also pointy enough without being too delicate. Not much to say about cutting performance other than that it’s fantastic for EDC chores.

For the blade itself, this is more of a nitpick, but I’m not too fond of the finger choil. Guys with thicker index fingers may have trouble wrapping around that curve without teetering off to the cutting edge. I would have preferred to omit the choil entirely so we have more cutting edge at the base of the blade or make it as large as the Manix 2’s choil. Anyway, the user can control the knife just fine without using the choil. There’s some jimping as well on the base of the spine. I think a jimp-less profile would have added to the sleekness of the Praxis, but at least it isn’t too aggressive.

I haven’t extensively tested the 9Cr steel since I only use my blades for casual house chores, so I can’t offer first hand information on edge retention. According to the Cedric and Ada YouTube channel however (one of the reviewers I trust based on his track record), we can expect something similar to VG-10 in performance. For the price tag, I would say that’s adequate. Not as exciting as S35VN, but it will absolutely get the job done.
Fit and finish of the blade on my unit is excellent. Bevels are even, the grind lines look consistent, and the spine is straight. Centering is dead in the middle. If this level of quality control is possible for a $50 knife, this is what we should look for at the minimum in anything 50 bucks and above.

Deployment, lockup, and detent
The ceramic ball bearings make deployment a joy. It could be made smoother with some lube, but it’s good enough for me since I don’t really fidget with my knives. I don’t feel any snags or hiccups as it opens. Just for transparency’s sake, this is my first flipper folder, and I must say I’m quite happy with it. Wrist flicks aren’t necessary to lock it all the way, but flipper does need a convincing push. Push down on the flipper like you mean it, and it will lock every time. The jimping on the flipper is the one time I actually appreciate jimping.

Lockup is completely solid. I don’t detect any wiggle sideways or forward and back. No functional issues with the liner lock, though I must say it’s a little trickier to close one-handed since the liner lock isn’t as exposed as on some Spyderco knives. Still doable though with some practice.
Detent on the Praxis is positive without being too tight. For my unit, shaking it vigorously doesn’t cause it to deploy (if it failed the detent test, I would have sent it back). For safety purposes, I’d be mindful of the flipper tab not to catch on anything as I ease it back in the pocket, though it does take some force before the blade flies open.
Handle and ergonomics
As mentioned before, the Praxis offers plenty of handle to grab onto. I have around medium to large sized hands, and I can secure a four finger hold with some room to spare. No hotspots at any point for me. The G10 is rather smooth, so I don’t think it’ll shred your pockets. As a tradeoff, it won’t offer as much traction though. The Praxis has two finger grooves, and I think they aren’t overly pronounced, so they should fit almost everyone’s hands. But when in doubt, if grooves aren’t your thing, I’d look elsewhere. Overall though, ergos are great for this one.

Perhaps my favorite thing about the Praxis is how it rides in the pocket. It’s a large-ish knife, but it doesn’t feel that way when clipped in the pocket. The weight is reasonable for its size, and its height when closed isn’t that bad either. I can still fit a few small items in my right pocket even with the Praxis clipped in there. It reminds me of the Endura 4 in the sense of packing a big blade in a fairly slim, lightweight package. The Praxis isn’t the most compact EDC option around, but I don’t think it’s a huge bother to carry around either. The deep carry clip is a nice feature as well.
Concluding thoughts and score
All things considered, the Praxis is an excellent full-sized low-cost EDC that’s also space- and weight-efficient. My gripes about this knife merely revolve around eliminating the choil and exposing the liner lock just a tad more, but those aren’t dealbreakers by any means. Time will tell if this blade holds up in terms of durability and reliability, and I will update this review as necessary.

Now is this knife for you? If you’re looking to try out a quality flipper without spending too much (yet) on a high-end folder, I’d say the Praxis is an excellent starting point. This was my first flipper and I’m quite happy with the smooth action. If you’re curious about trying out a Civivi knife just for kicks and think the mainstream Elementum would be too small for you, then the Praxis might be the better choice.
For this review, the Praxis gets a 9 out of 10.