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Michael Reinhold Makes Böker Debut with Pair of Folders

September 11, 2020

Part-time knife maker Michael Reinhold is probably best known for the Spyderco Rhino, his first production design. Now Reinhold is increasing his production output by 200%, with a pair of new knives from Böker. Both knives embody the utility- and ergonomic-driven principles that make the Rhino, and Reinhold’s custom work, stand out from the crowd.

Rockhopper

The Rockhopper is a very tiny knife, with a diminutive 1.57-inch long blade. Reinhold went with a leaf blade shape that turns the edge into pretty much all belly, making the most out of every last millimeter – and this emphasis on performance is also visible with the steel, returning champ D2, the current prince of price-to-performance steel for most budget knives.

Anyone familiar with the Rhino’s handle will recognize the same design mind at work here; although the Rockhopper’s handle is more “traditional” than the Rhino’s, the same overall arched shape, flared butt, and centrally-located ridge are present and accounted for. The Rockhopper opens with thumb studs and is a liner lock knife; it should vanish in the pocket with a loop-over clip and weight of 2.16 oz.

Joule

Reinhold’s second Böker offering scales things up a little, although with a blade length of 2.44 inches, the Joule still falls well within Small EDC territory. Its blade shape is a businesslike wharncliffe, once again made from D2 and opened via thumbstud. However, instead of a liner lock, the Joule comes equipped with a stainless steel frame lock, giving it a bit more beef and muscle.

In the ergonomic department, we see some further complications to the Joule’s handle – a few more hard lines and cuts towards the back end – but, again, the family lineage is apparent. The same deep carry clip is applied here, and despite the steel off-side scale the Joule manages to keep the weight under 3 oz.; 2.85 to be exact.

Knife in Featured Image: Böker Rockhopper

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