It’s a dark night and you are late coming out of work. Its late enough that the folks out at the front desk are already gone and the poorly lit parking lot outside is flanked by bushes. Shadows creep around every corner as you begin to move as quickly to your car as you can while still feeling like an adult instead of a kid afraid of the boogeyman. You near your car but as your hand touches your keys, a figure steps out of the shadows and grabs you by the arm to pull you near so he can reach for your keys. You would reach to your pocket for your knife but all you have on you today is your traditional slip-joint and good luck standing up against an attacker with that.
Life always comes at us faster than we expect. According to the FBI Crime Statistics, there were 1.2 million violent crimes across the US in 2016 with rates for robbery rising 1.2 percent from 2015. We live in a dangerous world that necessitates the use of force and training for self-defense in the event of violent crime. I have never seen so many tactical shooting classes, hand-to-hand courses, and gun sales in all of my 33 years on this planet. This, let me explain, is not a problem but it is the solution to a growing problem of criminal activity. People are getting better prepared and that is definitely not a bad thing. I am not the mall ninja who tells you that he is ready for every eventuality but I do try to be ready to handle the big threats. I am a licensed concealed carry holder, my family has an escape plan in case of emergencies, and I carry the necessary tools to handle most social predator encounters.
Part of my EDC system is usually comprised of a subcompact handgun and a knife that is geared towards self-defense like the Spyderco Endura with an Emerson wave opener and signet ring, the ZT 0452cf, or the Microtech Ultratech Spartan special edition. When people think of self-defense blades, Microtech is one of the companies that tends to garner the most attention because of their solid OTF offerings and high-quality fit and finish. I don’t claim to know a ton about the company as a whole, but Microtech makes knives that are definitely geared towards a defensive purpose. You can see them in TV shows like FOX’s 24 or movies like John Wick 2. They are functional but they are also cool. This is why people are willing to spend the exorbitant prices to obtain their quarry.
I regularly carry my Microtech Spartan as a defensive means, especially in the winter when large coats and gloves can make it difficult to deploy a standard folding knife easily. There is a place in the world for these types of knives. Don’t get me wrong: I bought this knife because I am a big kid and it was cool. That doesn’t stop the fact, however, that the knife is very good at what it does. Just like the Ultratech Spartan, however, there is a whole lineup of defense-purposed knives which Microtech offers. Today we are going to look at one of Microtech’s other OTF offerings: the Microtech UTX-85.
Little Big Shot
First up, I’d like to thank Joe M. for letting me borrow this little guy to get a better look at it. I love my Microtech so I was interested to see how well I would like it in a little smaller scale. The particular version that I am reviewing today is the single-edged two-tone blade and blue aluminum handles. The UTX-85 has a double-action OTF blade (cutting edge) that comes in at a scant 2.875 inches in ELMAX steel. The knife handles are 4.375 inches long and it has a full length of 7.5 inches from glass-breaker to the tip of the blade. This knife is fired and retracted via a two-way position switch on the side of the handle. At the very back tip of the handles, as previously stated, the UTX-85 has a ball-tip glass breaker (or compliance device, ala a kubotan or pressure point device should you so desire to use it that way) to aid your escape from a sinking car or simply to wise up those who would begin to distribute bank drafts which their posterior was incapable of honoring. Next to the glass breaker resides a lanyard loop for attaching an easy grip lanyard to aid in retrieval from your pocket.
My first impressions of this knife were at how tiny it was in comparison to my Ultratech Spartan. The Spartan is by no means an enormous knife but in hand it is generously sized and gives you a sizable piece of real estate to grip for use of the knife. The UTX-85 is nearing on the pint-sized category. When I first used the knife, I was dumbstruck: it had the same solid action as my Spartan but in a smaller package and that was really appealing to me. The weight had been toned down a bit as the knife was like someone had taken an Ultratech and popped it in the dryer for a few days only to come out with this diminutive little mini-me. As I fired the knife, I became fascinated with the smaller single-edged blade which, I thought, might make it more plausible for EDC tasks. I stuck it in my pocket and took it home, completely convinced that I was going to have to pick one of these little guys up soon so that it could replace my bigger and clumsier Ultratech in my self-defense slot.
While I was thinking about how to talk Joe out of his knife, a funny thing happened: I started to fire the knife like I would my Ultratech and the spell that Microtech had cast upon me began to break. I started to notice that the sleek, sexy man-sticker I had originally received was not what I thought it was. The more I began to use the UTX (because, let’s be honest, half the reason to buy the knife is as a fidget toy for grownups) the more I began to see through the bewitching colors, textures, and utility to the voids left by the design and the questions lingering about who this knife was for and what it was meant to be.
Identity Crisis
Bear with me for a little longer while we talk first about the philosophy behind what this knife is before we get to the aspects of the knife that I wasn’t really sold on. Much like your American male in his early 40’s who joins a gym, buys a motorcycle, and tries to wear skinny jeans, this knife seems to be suffering from a bit of an identity crisis. It doesn’t really seem to know what it is that it is going to do but it tries to do whatever that is really well. If Microtech knives are more geared to self-defense then shouldn’t this knife be, well, bigger? I’m sure, if properly motivated, I could fend off an attacker with a Swiss Army Knife but why try? “But Jake,” you may ask, “We aren’t talking about the Swiss Army Knife, we are talking about the Microtech UTX-85 and they are nothing alike!” Quite right! The Microtech has a premium blade steel in its ELMAX construction while the SAK has lesser stainless steel in most cases. The Microtech is an OTF auto knife that is prohibited in many places solely based upon its action while the SAK is a non-locking folder which is pretty much legal anywhere. The Microtech weighs in at a robust 3.10 ounces (.1 ounces heavier than a Spyderco Para 3 which has a cutting edge nearly an inch longer than the UTX) while the SAK Cadet weighs almost exactly half as much as the Microtech while still having a blade that is still very comparable in length. The Cadet has more tools and EDC functionality than the UTX-85 by hosting 9 tools (a wire stripper, a nail file with nail cleaner, a can opener, a bottle opener, two screwdrivers, and a key ring) where the UTX has a glass breaker. The only thing that they are really similar in is that they both have blades that are less than three inches long.
Am I saying that the SAK is better than the UTX-85? Not at all. People all over the world carry the SAK Cadet because it is a great EDC tool. It doesn’t stop to contemplate what it is. It is a basic, multi-purpose cutting tool for the EDC-minded individual. It seems like the UTX tries to swing for both worlds of EDC and self-defense but in doing so, it strikes out. The blade on the UTX is just too short to provide the reach that you could need in a self-defense scenario. I’m not saying it is worthless; I am saying that for the average engagement you want to put as much distance between you and an attacker as you can to mitigate risk. The UTX has a complicated mechanism that, while firing reliably, cannot be readily serviced during the daily grind without specialized knowledge and tools (or breaking the warranty). The SAK Cadet can be cleaned on a bus, in town, with a handkerchief while people watch. You do that with a Microtech UTX and you will probably end up getting some nervous stares if not a question or two from your local law enforcement.
While the single-edged blade on this model of UTX does make it more EDC friendly, it is like one of the “cool parents” who let the kids throw parties in the back yard and order a keg. It isn’t really a good parent or a good friend, it’s just kind of a mess that gets you in trouble. I don’t have a problem with the knife as it is, but the major flaw I see in it is that it is a solution in search of a problem. It seems too small and restricted to be a good self-defense weapon, and it seems too specialized and intricate to be a reliable EDC tool. This leaves the UTX-85 in a bit of a void where it exists almost as a utility fidget toy and, for the premium price commanded by Microtech knives, it seems to belong on the island of misfit toys.
The Fault in Its Stars
The next section is pretty much just going to be word vomit of all the things that I would ding the UTX-85 for outside of philosophy. Do you remember those days when you would play Street Fighter 2 on SNES for days on end until your thumbs were raw? You get pretty much the same effect when you play with the UTX for more than an hour. The texturing on the UTX’s firing switch is so aggressive that it would probably hit on a widow at her husband’s funeral. I found it to be the single greatest cause for dislike on this entire knife. The action is also very stiff. This could either be a good thing or a bad thing. It is nice that the blade doesn’t fire while it is in your pants pockets because you reached for your keys but it also makes it fairly difficult to fire reliably with your off hand if you are not used to it. My Ultratech Spartan was the same way. I don’t really fault the company for this because of the type of knife that it is but I would like to make it known that it can be fairly difficult to engage. I don’t have a ton of experience with OTF autos so it could be that way across the board; that I don’t know, but if you are looking into this knife because you want an easy firing auto then you should know that the action on the UTX is very stiff and takes significant effort. Regardless of the benefits or drawbacks of the action, the switch is terribly sharp and aggressive. It negated the only joy this knife had going for it.
The blade is a cool two-tone black and bare metal. This would look great as a safe-queen or a wall ornament but I would be afraid to actually use it practically due to the general tendency for coated blades to show wear fairly quickly. This same issue translates over to the pocket clip which, whether it was painted or given some other sort of finish, wears as expected with little to no carry time. I wish knife companies would either take the time and the effort to find a more durable method of coating their hardware or just leave it bare. This can take a well-rounded and resilient knife and with regular use make it look like it was poorly maintained. This is more of a personal hang-up of mine and your mileage may vary.
The UTX (and many other Microtech knives) has the smallest lanyard hole that I have ever seen in a production knife. I don’t really know why they even bother putting one on there if they are going to make it so small. I actually had to use a micro paracord to create an anchor loop where I could attach an actual lanyard on my Ultratech Spartan. If you don’t use lanyards on your knives then you won’t be affected.
The following issues are more related to Microtech as a company but also affect the knife in particular. Microtech suffers from the same problem as Benchmade in that you will pay out the nose for many of their production knives (not to mention the absurdly priced Marfione Customs). Microtech produces special knives in limited numbers to create a collectible market. While this may work to your advantage if you are willing to mortgage your house so that you can buy one, you will obviously pay an arm and a leg for it. Resale is generally positive if you buy the right models but it is no guarantee of a payoff. The UTX sits around the $200-$230 mark depending on the market and for a knife that can be compared to a Swiss Army Knife in sheer utility that comes in at $32, it seems to be a bit on the extreme side. Add to this a premium price with the rampant rumors of poor customer service, their very own statement that poor sharpening can void the warranty (that’s a bit of a vague term that scares me), and that auto opening knives have a pretty limited legality depending on where you live and it tends to put a bad taste in the mouth of those who would buy them except for the die-hard fans.
Pros:
- Compact Size
- Good clip design
- Smooth aluminum exterior
- Reliable action
- Glass Breaker included
- Good blade steel
- Fairly collectible
- Fun to play with
- Good jimping grooves to provide adequate purchase
- Relatively lightweight
- Decent secondary market opportunities
Cons:
- Impractical for anything but self-defense to many
- Firing switch is stiff and abrasive
- Hardware shows wear easily
- Colored/coated blades tend to wear easily
- EXPENSIVE!
- Tiny lanyard hole
- Poor customer support rumors
- Limited legality
Final Thoughts:
The Microtech UTX-85 is a knife that doesn’t really know what it is. It wants to be a self-defense knife but, at the same time, it wants to be compact, lightweight, and EDC ready. There is a saying out there that a man who sits between two chairs falls in the floor. I am afraid to say that the UTX-85 is a knife that has fallen down and it can’t get up. I’m not going to say it is a “bad” knife because it isn’t; it just doesn’t make sense. If someone were to come up to me and ask me if I wanted to buy a fidget toy that could also do some basic cutting but I needed to pay $220 to get it, I would take a strong pass on that. And that’s all the UTX-85 feels like it is trying to be: a slightly useful fidget toy.
Jake of All Trades (Master of None) 