
ORBITAL KNIVES CALLISTO - Final Design Process
Share
Let me introduce you to our Callisto pocket knife model. It has a 3-inch blade made of 154CM steel, paired with a liner lock system. At first glance, it might seem pretty standard, but trust me, the journey to this final design was anything but ordinary. In fact, the original version looked quite different. Let me take you back to the beginning!
As you can see, the blade started out as a modified tanto shape, sharp and distinct, while the handle featured noticeable slopes along both sides with the intention of providing a unique grip and look to the knife. We even planned for a wire clip at first, though we later switched to the sleek, milled titanium clip you see now. It was a real head-turner, with enough personality to make me fall in love with it right away.
We brought this initial design to life in our first prototype run, and when I say we put it to the test, I mean we put it through the wringer. Every aspect was pushed to its limits to ensure it wasn’t just beautiful, but built to perform. We also handed out samples for test to farmers, construction workers, and knife beaters to say the least. People who care about having a knife that cuts more than a beautiful piece. The kind of people that will just beat on it not caring about scratching the blade or what might happen to the edge.
As we gathered feedback from our tests, and from the people that were testing the Callisto for us, we started to see the need for changes. The knife needed to be simplified. Product of that, see the final design after all adjustments were made (there were many... MANY version before this).
Let's Go Through Fundamental Updates:
1. The Blade Shape
Starting at the blade, we decided to get rid of the tanto-like shape and switch it to a modified clip point. This gives it a much better cutting capability with one big belly that follows through from one end of the blade to the other. While a tanto blade is great for certain tasks, it is not superior for most tasks. That on its own, makes the Callisto Knife a better tool for you to use.
2. The Handle
There are a couple of changes made here. The most noticeable one is the flat scales in the final version. From our tests, the slopes in the original design were not very noticeable in micarta or gmascus as they might have been in titanium. They also didn't provide the ergonomic advantages we were expecting. Additionally, slopes add thickness to a handle. Given these facts, why keep them? and, why not make the knife thinner?
The second change is along the edges of the handle. Though they were not uncomfortable, we figured we could make the knife better and more ergonomic if we rounded the edges more as you can see in the image above.
3. The Clip
I tend to like wire clips. I think they are great when they are well made, and they are easy to design for a reversible option on the show side. However, I didn't feel like I could accomplish well what a wire clip is all about (unless I change the design), which is deep carry. I also felt the clip did not go well with the rest of the knife. I had thought of each line and each dimension of this knife design day and night for so long, but up till this point I had neglected the clip, and when the prototypes came, it showed. So I went back to the drawing board and started playing around with clip ideas, until I landed on what you see above. A beautiful milled titanium pocket clip that matches the titanium backspacer, and complements the rest of the design.
It's important to note that three changes mentioned above are just the tip of the iceberg. There were quite a bit more things we had to deal with to make the final product something we could be proud of. Some of those changes aren't even visible, but they are there, and they make this knife better.
The Product
We decided to bring 3 variations of this pocket knife to market. Red & Black Gmascus with a black coated blade and hardware. Blue Micarta with a stone washed blade and satin hardware. And Brown Micarta with a stone washed blade and satin hardware. We hope you enjoy using this knife as much as I enjoyed the creation process.
