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Vosteed are on a roll this year, considering they first popped up on our radar late last year with a flashlight, then fast became a favorite knifemaker (for me especially) with their fidget- and budget-friendly models like the Corgi and the Raccoon. Designer Yue Dong and his team aren’t showing any signs of showing down, and the return of a fan-favorite model has me pretty excited.
The Thunderbird was an earlier model in their catalog, with a sleek, tanto-styled blade in S35VN and a larger 3.48” profile with Gmascus (G-10 laminate with a topo pattern) handle scales that contained Vosteed’s patent-pending Trek button lock, which, while not truly ambidextrous, can still comfortably be operated by either hand and still does the job of keeping your fingers away when closing up the blade. Inherent fidget friendliness was also the Thunderbird’s claim to fame, with three ways to flick it open between front and rear jimping and a thumb hole punctuating the end of the blade’s fuller.
The knife returns in a slightly smaller but more premium iteration, now with a top-tier M390 steel making up a 3.25” blade. Gmascus handles make a return with shuffled colorways (three available right now, with the blue/black one coming on November 7th), but this is shaping up to be every bit the fun, fidgetable knife as its larger predecessor.
What we like: Premium steel, a new take on G-10, and three ways to play—what’s not to like?
What to watch out for: The four base models are already good, but I can’t help but get hyped for the titanium variants coming on the 7th as well, which come with ELMAX steel and a frag pattern on the black variant’s scales. Watch this space for a hands-on when we’re able to grab one.
Final verdict: Time to get my flick on.
