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Vaquita Mini Kukri Returns under Civivi Brand

April 27, 2023

Spring is in full flush over here at KnifeNews HQ, which means that Summer is already on the horizon. Civivi just showcased its first June batch of knives, and it includes a fixed blade from Nate Matlack called the Vaquita II, sequel to a discontinued WE Knife Co. model.

The Vaquita II is clearly a kukri; that much is clear from even a glance at the product page. It has that unmistakable, downturned, dog-leg style blade, possibly adapted from ancient farming implements and typically adept at chopping and demanding brushwork. However, if you look at Vaquita II’s specs, you’ll see that this knife’s blade length measures just 3.2 inches – quite small compared to average examples of the form, putting chopping out of the question.

The Vaquita II is small enough to be carried around the neck

No, in fact, the Vaquita seems designed as a companion outdoors knife, useful for the smaller tasks when out on the trail. There’s also an EDC consideration here, unconventional as the kukri may be in that role; if you demand a lot of slicing horsepower the bellied out blade will provide that in spades. In either use case the steel here, Nitro-V, should serve admirably well. As a sort of nitrogen-enhanced AEB-L, Nitro-V is quite stain resistant, adequately tough, and holds an edge longer than many other common budget-friendly stainless choices.

Although it’s smaller than the usual kukri, the Vaquita II does have a nice, sensible handle, with cuts that make it intuitively ergonomic and visually striking; a big groove for the first finger, and a bigger one behind for the others; G-10 scales, affixed by large torx screws, lay on top of the full frame and come in three different colors. The Vaquita II comes with a Kydex sheath and a length of beaded chain, suggesting that it may even be small enough to carry around the neck.

The Vaquita II is a Civivi-fied followup to the original Vaquita, a 2018 release. That model came with carbon fiber scales and S35VN blade steel. It has since been discontinued.

The Civivi Vaquita is slated for release in June.

Knife in Featured Image: Civivi Vaquita II

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