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I have owned this knife for 2 years now (the Gerber STL 2.5) and I can say it the most useful knife I have ever owned! It is small enough to keep in my back pocket and thin enough to where I can sit on it and barely notice it is there. It is large enough (just barely) to use it for most cutting tasks at hand. It is strong enough to where I can put my full arm weight behind it and cannot feel it bend backwards at all! It will flex slightly up and down, but not too much so. The build quality overall is impressive for an affordable Chineese made knife IMO.I can see where some people have a problem with the lock being akward to disengage, and I understand that. I myself do not have a problem. I hold the handle firmly with my right hand (blade facing toward the inside) and press down firmly with my left thumbnail and the blade swings in easily. I also have not had the problem where I opens up in my pocket either, but the good news is- I know how to fix that one! The hinge that the knife blade swings on is adjustable- you can easily tighten this with a T6 torx socket(I checked) to whatever tension you desire, and with a drop of Loctite you are good to go for a while.Was it razor sharp when it came out of the package.... I don't know, the first thing I do is put my own edge on it. I usually sharpen it every 3 months or so. This is a regular thing I carry in my pocket every day, I use it at home, I use it at work, and when on the move. So naturally it becomes dull, that being said- it holds a decent edge for a good period of time. It will not stay sharp forever, however it is easy to sharpen.The finish is OK, probably my least favorite thing about the knife. It can chip over time(allthough mine still doesn't look too bad). I am only dissatisfied with the finish of the STL2.5 because I have owned the Gerber STL 2.0 and it's matte type finish is superior and has a better grip. In spite of that, I still believe that this is my favorite knife of the two! (because of the ideal size)One thing is, when you lay down- say on your couch, it has a tendancy to slide out of you pocket and into the couch cushions. It does seem easy to lose. I can't complain about that however, because it is the same thing which makes it so convenient to carry everyday.When I tell you that this is a regular thing I put in my pocket every day along with my keys, wallet, and cell phone- it is no lie. When I reach into my pocket and realize I forget to grab it in the morning, a small feeling of sadness creeps over me. So for me , this blade is the most usefull folding kife I have ever owned. It is not the fanciest, it is not the longest, or even the most beautiful - It is however a tool which has been and will continue to be very useful to me for a long time to come (until I lose this one in my hungry couch)I hope this review has been helpful to you

I got this knife for use while on backpack trips, so was searching for a lightweight but sturdy knife. I've had this for about 6 months now and used it on several 1-2 night trips and one 6 day backpack trip. I'm pretty impressed with the little knife and it has performed very well.The knife handle is actually just 2 pieces of metal separated by spacers and the blade folds in between the side plates. That's a little different than I expected but it works and I have not had anything in my pocket get caught in the open space below the blade when it's folded.I have smaller than average hands for a man but the handle on this knife is still small for me. I use my thumb plus 2 or maybe 3 fingers on the handle, so don't expect to hang onto this with your tightest grip. If you're looking for something with a handle big enough to get a real grip on then look for something with at least a 4" blade.I wasn't sure a 2.5" blade would be long enough and when I got the knife I was a little surprised at how short 2.5" really is in a blade. That said, I've gotten used to it and it is quite useful. I have filleted several 14" trout with this knife where I usually use a much longer blade (8"). It works fine but takes a little bit more time is all.I liked this knife enough that I bought a 2nd one for my teenage son.There are some things I don't like about this knife, mostly the thumb slot and the lockback release. The thumb slot is useless for me. If I really try hard I can open the blade one handed but it's such a pain that I don't bother. I'd prefer a post on the blade that I can get some leverage on to open it. The lockback is part of the metal side plate - one of the side plates is cut and slightly bent to lock the blade open (they don't show that side of the knife in the photos). I'm not really fond of this arrangement but it works. At first unlocking the blade to fold it was difficult and I had trouble doing it one handed, but after folding it a dozen or more times it kind of worked in and now is no problem to fold one handed (and still locks the blade open securely).Here's what I like:- Super thin so I don't notice it in my pocket- Short length when folded, I measure a hair over 3"- Light: I measure 1-1/8 ounces on my kitchen scale- Sharp blade that stays sharp. Even after several trips I have not had to sharpen it and it is still razor sharp (it is a Gerber blade after all)- hole in handle for attaching a lanyardHere's what needs improvement:- The thumb opener slot is useless- I'd prefer a different lockback arrangement (personal preference)- The black coating on the handle gets coated with brass from the keys in my pocket. It just looks bad on the nice knife but no damage to it.Overall 4 stars for a very decent little knife at a great price.

nice small size pocket knife. I bought it for opening packages etc. Nice quality. Ez open.

I had been a bit cautious reading other reviews about problems with the liner lock but I am always looking for my next every day carry knife so I got it anyhow. The liner lock was a bit stiff to start with, but I have had no problems pushing it every single time. The lock is not too far down, I have sausage fingers and I hit it without fail. Now that it has softened up some from use closing it one handed is no problem. Same with opening, the slit in the blade made for easy one handed opening even with the stiff tension adjustment the knife came with (didn't bother to change it).The knife is very thin, but feels very sturdy. The locking mechanism also fits very well there is no play in the blade when locked. The finish has worn significantly in the two weeks or so that I have been carrying it which doesn't bother me at all but easily could bother some people. I would prefer a pocket clip, but this thing is so thin you don't even feel it in your pocket, very nice, I think I may keep it as my daily for a while.