Ever fall in love with a knife but wanted to tweak a bit of its looks or materials to make it “perfect?” Getting a fully custom knife from a boutique maker can be expensive. But long-time knife and toolmaker Gerber has given knife enthusiasts the option to customize four of their models via their online Custom Shop, bringing your own unique creation to life. We’ve taken you step by step through a full customization of Gerber’s Fastball flipper. This time, we take a look at their three other offerings that you can personalize via Gerber’s Custom Shop.
Sharkbelly
The Gerber Sharkbelly is a lightweight and sleek US-made pocket folder that weighs 2.3 ounces. The 3.25″ sheepsfoot blade makes this a great utility slicer for EDC. It’s deployed using a thumb cutout on the blade itself, and it’s held securely in place with a reliable lockback mechanism. The glass-filled nylon (GFN) handle keeps the weight low and features the brand’s textured Sharkskin grip: unidirectional scales that enhance traction and give the knife its predator namesake. A hole in the handle lets you attach cordage for personalized aesthetics and better handling, while a skeletonized and scratch-resistant wire pocket clip keeps the Sharkbelly ready in your pocket when you need it.
The blade is ground from 420HC stainless steel, giving it good corrosion resistance with an ease of sharpening and maintenance. At the Gerber Custom Shop, you can choose from a plain or serrated edge, the latter featuring flat top serrations that can be sharpened on a whetstone. After selecting your blade type, you can lasermark text in different fonts, as well as choose from a wide variety of illustrations in the Custom Shop’s library, including categorized designs within nature, hunting, and military themes. There are also artistic and hand-drawn tattoo designs, including some from tattoo artist Luke Wessman. You can flip, rotate, resize, and move your personalized lasermark to where you want it on either side of the Sharkbelly’s blade, giving you a one-of-a-kind folder that you can have on you everyday.
Strongarm
If you’re looking for a robust fixed blade for hunting or tactical use, the Gerber’s Strongarm has you covered. The full-tang 420HC steel blade is a capable tool that terminates in a striking pommel at the tip of its handle. Its 4.8″ of usable blade length is covered with a black ceramic coating that prevents glare coming off the blade, giving it a low, discreet profile. The rubberized handle scales are comfortable even during prolonged use, and feature a diamond-patterned grip to enhance traction in different use conditions. At 7.2 ounces and 9.8″ overall, this is a heavy-duty knife meant to serve you well for the hardest tasks. It comes with its own MOLLE-compatible multi-mount sheath, letting you keep the Strongarm ready and within reach for your next operation or adventure.
At the Custom Shop, you can choose the handle and sheath color for your Strongarm: an outdoors- and desert-friendly Coyote Brown, or a simple Black to maintain a tactical look and aesthetic. For the blade, you can choose a plain or serrated edge, and it features the same text and illustration options for lasermarking as the Sharkbelly. The much larger blade area does let you put bigger or even more designs, making it a good canvass for bold and multiple design elements. The Strongarm’s design was born in the harsh conditions of military service in the Middle East, and is a classic American made fixed blade well suited for your outdoors or go bag.
US1
The US1 represents the evolution of Gerber’s ability to deliver a quality American-made product for EDC, and comes as a result of decades of refining their designs for a lightweight pocket folding knife. At 1.0 ounce and 3.5″ closed, it’s meant to disappear in your pocket: there when you need a reliable edge to use, and unnoticed when you don’t. The glass-reinforced nylon (GRN) handles feature a rubberized section that, combined with the large finger notch and the grooves on the blade spine, offer a secure grip when in use. A simple nail nick helps deploy the 2.5″ drop point blade, and a reliable lockback mechanism keeps it in place during use. A lanyard loop lets you add some cordage for better handling and an easy way to retrieve the knife from deep inside your pocket.
The US1’s corrosion-resistant 420HC stainless steel blade is one of the best you can get in this class of small pocket folders, and it can be personalized with your own choice of lasermarking in the Gerber Custom Shop. Similar to the previous two knives, you have a plethora of options for illustrations and different fonts for text, and the black blade’s plain, wide surface invites a full coverage or combination of markings. If your’e going to have an iconic folder like the Gerber US1 live in your pocket every day, might as well make it uniquely your own.
Take It Home
Once you’ve decided on your design for any of these knives in the Custom Shop, you can save it to share with friends, or finish your order so it can be built and prepped for shipping. Once you do, it takes Gerber 7-10 days to ship your custom creation to you, as all of them are built, assembled, and finished by their seasoned factory veterans at their HQ in Portland, Oregon. These direct-from-manufacturer custom knives let you carry your very own unique design, and are backed by Gerber’s limited lifetime warranty. Check out all your options for Gerber Custom Knives at the link below.
This is a sponsored post presented by Gerber.
