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The Ivan Braginets Akuma is Back with New Budget-Friendly Specs

July 3, 2020

Ivan Braginets is bringing his Akuma design to Real Steel in a new, more affordable configuration. In addition to the change in materials relative to the S Series Akuma concept, this knife makes a few techy tweaks to the overall design.

The first item of note on the Akuma is its blade length, which runs out to a sizable 3.74 inches. Its length, in combination with the flat ground drop point blade, make this a rough and tumble all-purpose blade, ready to tackle to anything from slicing chores to harder use applications. The steel choice on this version is K110, a Bohler-Uddeholm formulation that is most often compared to D2 – that is to say, a tough semi stainless steel capable of impressive edge retention.

Braginets brought his penchant for technical design work to bear in terms of the Akuma’s multiple opening methods. The S Series Akuma had thumb studs but here, Braginets is giving users three different ways to deploy the blade. A small thumb stud is still present, but is now accompanied by an opening cutout in the blade itself; finally, there is a small, in-line flipper tab for method number three. This Akuma forgoes the titanium frame lock and instead secures in the open position with a liner lock mechanism.

The blade is where the technological flair really shows itself; in terms of the handle design Braginets stuck to the basics. The bow shaped handle flares out gently at the front and back end to provide some general bracketing, and a crosshatched pattern has been cut into G-10 scales to provide some additional traction. Underneath the scales in either coloration (black or olive green G-10) are bright orange liners. The Akuma weighs just a hair over 4 ounces; it comes equipped with a steel loopover, deep carry pocket clip.

Now that the Akuma has been shifted out of the S Series, it will be hitting the shelves with a price tag under $100. Braginets’s presence at the more affordable end of the Real Steel folder spectrum was first established by the Rokot, a model which released earlier this year.

Knife in Featured Image: Real Steel Akuma

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