Home / Knives / KA-BAR Apex Comes from the Mind of Designer Petr Janda

KA-BAR Apex Comes from the Mind of Designer Petr Janda

January 30, 2025

Earlier this week we discussed the new Dust series at KA-BAR, and promised more to come – well here it is. The Apex comes in the same material suite as its siblings from Dust, but lands in a different size class, with a look all its own.

In contrast to the drop point-palooza we saw with the Dust family, the Apex is flaunts an elongated clip point – in profile it’s not dissimilar from the curving, graceful clip point on the classic Muskrat slipjoints.  As on the Dust, the blade steel is D2, but the length on the Apex is shorter than that even of the Dust II.

The Apex in and out of its sheath

Now, given that both of the Dust blades were fairly sizable specimens, the Apex is by no means small, clocking in with a blade length of 3.9 inches – still plenty of edge for a healthy swath of cutting chores, from the day-to-day stuff to heftier outdoors work. And, as with the Dusts, the Apex’s blade is coated, so that the most notable failing of D2 – it’s relative susceptibility to rust – is shored up.

The handle is in fact the most distinct feature of the Apex relative to the Dusts. Whereas the grip on those two was a rounded, almost symmetrical, nearly barrel-like shape, the Apex sports a bracket-style grip, and its teal GFN scales are stepped in the center, with a pair of big screws on the top and bottom sections holding everything together.

The Apex is also a collaboration piece. KA-BAR partnered with Petr Janda for this one. Janda is a returning partner for KA-BAR and has been working with the company since 2007. He is a notable presence in the tactical knife world and beyond, having designed aftermarket sheaths for both knives and firearms.

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