Tactical (And Kitchen) Knives Evolved: A Look at KA-BAR's New Offerings for 2025

It’s always big news when one of America’s best known knife brands releases something new and we’ve got the inside scoop: from redesigned fixed blades to a surprising foray into kitchen cutlery, KA-BAR is expanding its lineup for 2025 with a careful focus on quality and affordability. Read on to explore the new models, materials, and the strategic shift driving these exciting changes.

KA-BAR Reorients Affordable Options: Taiwan-Made Quality

KA-BAR is making a significant change to its approach to budget-friendly knives. They’re moving away from manufacturing in China and are now producing their more affordable fixed blade options in Taiwan.

Goodbye China, Hello Taiwan

This move reflects KA-BAR’s commitment to quality and a desire to partner with allied nations. The new fixed blades are made in Taiwan using D2 steel, a material known for its excellent balance of edge retention and affordability, which allows them to provide great value for the price.

Why This Matters

The decision to pivot their line of imported knives towards Taiwan is important for several reasons. First, it allows KA-BAR to maintain better control over the quality of its products. Second, it addresses concerns about counterfeiting, which has been a problem with Chinese manufacturing in general. (Remember, buying from reputable and official dealers is key to avoid counterfeits. You can explore KA-BAR’s offerings on our website).

The Dust Series: Designed for Performance

The Dust series represents a collaboration with in-house designer Ondrej Nemec, who also designed the Ek Commando flipper folder and co-founded ANV Knives. The Dust knives are designed for performance and durability, with a focus on ergonomics and practicality.

Meet the Dust 1 & Dust 2

The KA-BAR Dust 1 and Dust 2 are two fixed blade knives designed as a family. Both knives share similar design elements and materials, but each is optimized for slightly different tasks.

Dust 1

The Dust 1 features a D2 steel blade approximately 6 inches long. The injection-molded handle has a slightly rubbery texture, thanks to reduced glass content in the glass-filled nylon material. This allows KA-BAR to carefully tune the handle for both shock absorption and strength. The handle shape features a nice swell for a secure grip and an oval cross-section that fits comfortably in the hand. We like the crowned spine and cross guard, as well as the spike glass breaker/skull crusher—nice details that definitely add value to the overall package.

Dust 2

The Dust 2 features a shorter, approximately 5-inch blade with a Tanto-like profile and a full flat grind. The shorter blade length and keener blade geometry should help this design work better for everyday utility cutting as comparted to the larger size and more robust grind on the Dust 1. Also, we learned that the pommels on both knives are interchangeable, so the Dust 2 can use the glass breaker/skull crusher from the Dust 1 should you happen to have them both.

Sheath Details

Both knives come with a MOLLE-compatible hard plastic sheath. The sheath is designed to be ergonomic and functional. The holes and slots provide many aftermarket carry options.

The Apex: Urban EDC Fixed Blade

The Apex is an urban EDC fixed blade designed by Petr Janda. This knife is designed for everyday carry, with a focus on a slim profile and versatility. Carefully considered details like the crowned spine help make this knife easy and comfortable to carry and conceal.

Features

The KA-BAR Apex features a MOLLE-compatible sheath similar to the Dust series. With its firm retention and light weight, we think it could even be set up for pocket carry, which is increasingly popular among fixed blade users. The blade is approximately 4 inches long and features a slightly protruding tang at the end of the handle which houses a lanyard hole.

Ergonomics

The handles on the Apex have a less “squishy” feel than the Dust series, providing a more rigid grip. The design works well with both bare hands and gloves.

KA-BAR Kitchen Knives: A Cutco Connection

In a somewhat unexpected move, KA-BAR is introducing a new line of kitchen knives. By leveraging their connection to parent company Cutco—one of the largest kitchen knife brands in the country—these knives offer refined and useful blade profiles that will instantly feel at home on a cutting board.

Unexpected, But Familiar

As you can see, the KA-BAR kitchen knives incorporate the iconic handle design of the USMC fighting/utility knife, except that the handle is made of G10 instead of the traditional stacked leather. G10 is impervious to water and extremely resistant to heat so the handles won’t warp or crack over time.

Classic Kitchen Knife Designs

The line is launching with two knives to start: an 8-inch Chef’s and slightly smaller Santoku. Looking beyond the cool new handles, each design has elegant designs with features that were clearly made with cooks in mind. For example, the tapered bolsters facilitate an expert pinch grip for maximum control on a cutting board, and edge runs all the way back to the heel of the blade for easy sharping and long service life.

Production and Care

The kitchen knives are currently in small-batch production, but KA-BAR plans to increase production in the future. They recommend hand washing, although the knives are dishwasher safe.