There are a couple of things that become relatively common once you’re an established knife reviewer. For starters, your spouse asks you before tossing out any type of cordage, leather, wood, or similar materials because you might want to use them as test mediums.
The other thing that happens is that people begin to recommend knives to you. This was how I learned about the Boker Plus Pocket MUK. Someone on Facebook tagged me in a discussion about the Pocket MUK. Unfortunately, I wasn’t quick enough to snag one that time around, as they sold out in a heartbeat. Thankfully, another shipment arrived about a week later, and I snapped one up.
The Pocket MUK is a collaboration between custom knifemaker Matthew Gentry and Boker. Some of the more experienced knife nuts might recognize the inspiration behind this knife. I mean, it’s right there in the name. This is a spin on the classic Nessmuk knife design.
For those scratching their heads, Nessmuk was the pen name for George Washington Sears. He wrote for Forest and Stream back in the 1880s and was an early forerunner of ultralight backpacking, though it wasn’t called that back then. He also wrote a book on camping called Woodcraft, which was published in 1884. His knife design has stood the test of time and is still popular today.
Where the full-size Nessmuk is a versatile field knife, the Pocket MUK takes that sensibility and practicality and turns it into a compact utility blade.
Pocket MUK Specs
This is a small knife that’s perfect for pocket carry. The Sandvik 12C27 steel blade is 2.4 inches long. Known for its corrosion resistance, this is a great steel option for this type of knife. It’s tough without being impossible to sharpen in the field. The blade has a stonewash finish, which helps hide marks from use if that’s a concern. Personally, I don’t worry about that a whole lot, but I do appreciate how it looks.
The Pocket MUK’s contoured handle is brown Micarta with black liners. It measures 4.29 inches, giving the knife an overall length of 6.69 inches. Micarta is my favorite handle material for outdoor knives. It’s incredibly durable.
My only complaint about the handle is that the butt end is left a little sharper than I’d like. A few moments with a belt sander will resolve the problem for me, but it’s worth mentioning. When using the knife in such a way that the end of the handle rests in the palm, it can dig in uncomfortably.
Pocket MUK Sheath
The Pocket MUK comes with a Kydex sheath. I’ll readily admit that I truly struggled with the sheath at first. It’s an extremely tight fit, and I really had to force the knife into it. Forcing an extremely sharp blade anywhere is never a great idea. However, the fit has loosened up just slightly over time, such that the knife is easier to insert and remove.
Another knife aficionado I know did a quick video on how he resolved the sheath issue.
One nice feature of the sheath is the weep holes they’ve put at the tip. This allows moisture to escape from the sheath rather than be kept on the blade.
Boker included a pocket clip that can be attached to the sheath via a couple of screws. Personally, I don’t carry my pocket fixed blades with such clips, but I know others who do. I just toss the knife and sheath into my pocket and go about my day.
Pocket MUK Recommendation
Matthew Gentry has designed one heck of a great knife. Boker, in turn, did an excellent job with their production run of it. The Pocket MUK is exceptionally handy and can be used in a wide range of roles, from food prep in camp to processing game.
One of the best features of the Pocket MUK is the price. It retails for less than $40. You’re getting a lot of quality for that price. It’s cheap enough that you could pick up a couple of them, one for EDC and another to toss into your pack or survival kit as a backup knife.
Find the Pocket MUK at Boker USA as well as DLT Trading.
