There are a multitude of different affordable, but high quality knives on the market. I was introduced to the CIVIVI brand of knives last year and am pleased with what I’ve experienced so far. CIVIVI is a subsidiary of We Knife, a line of quality everyday carry and utilitarian knives. I’ve previously reviewed the SENCUT Fritch. SENCUT is also a company under the We Knife banner, and I recount my experiences with the Fritch HERE and HERE.  My friends over at CIVIVI sent me a Baby Banter and an Elementum for some testing and evaluation. We’re going to look at the Baby Banter in this review.

A first glance at the Baby Banter

The Baby Banter is a small and squat pocket knife. This model has a 2.34” blade and can be opened one handed via the thumb stud. The Baby Banter is a lockback style knife that’s outfitted with a liner lock design. It comes equipped with a pocket clip, making it an easy choice for everyday carry.

The drop point blade is constructed of “Nitro-V” steel, a hard stainless steel. The Baby Banter that I received has a handle made from G10, a material similar to fiberglass,  in an ivory finish and the blade, excepting the edge, is painted red. At the end of the knife’s handle is a lanyard hole that’s suitable to accept commercially available paracord or other adornments/accessories as one may see fit. This is a handsome little knife.

The Baby Banter and Elementum, like most knives in the We Knife family, comes in a fashionable protective zippered pouch. Knives are nestled in the slightly padded case and that case comes in a small box. They don’t use an excessive amount of packaging, just what’s needed to transport the products and keep them stored well for picking and packing in a warehouse.

My first impression of the Baby Banter was that it’s rather mighty for a small knife. The extra width of the blade and handle give the Banter the feel of a knife an inch longer, while maintaining the controllability of having a short blade.

The Baby Banter comes out of the box sharp

Whenever I get a knife I usually take it to my arm to see if I can shave with it. The Baby Banter is sharp and yes I shaved my arm with it. One of the things I’ve noticed about the We Knife brands is that all of their knives come sharp and they hold a decent edge for a while. Most of the stainless steel they work with is very hard, so that edge will stay on the knife, but that also makes it a little difficult to sharpen down the road.

How’d the Baby Banter perform?

The knife can get the job done as an EDC. Straight up, this model is just too small for my liking. For me, manipulating the thumb stud and working the knife did not come naturally. This is not a bad knife, but not one that I’d be keeping on my person for EDC. I have my go-tos and like to carry what I like to carry – the Fritch ranks high on that list. None of this is to diminish the positive elements of this unit, it’s a solid #2 to have on standby for me.

The short blade does however make it useful for when a task requires a bit of finesse. I’m not going to say it’s good practice to use a knife for things like stripping wires, but if that was something you wanted to do with the Baby Banter, I can see the small and wide blade coming in handy for that purpose.

The compact design is an asset to the Banter if there are space constraints to how you intend on carrying or storing the knife. The unit would be perfect for different types of kits; put into tackle boxes, have on the ready in a bug out bag, or kept even in an emergency preparedness kit as one bladed tool option. It is a handy knife to have around.

There are plenty of applications where this knife would be suitable. I also think it’d compliment people with smaller hands better than those with larger ones.

What’s the verdict?

The CIVIVI Baby Banter is a quality knife that’s able to fit the needs of many. The smaller blade size makes it perfect for some of the finer jobs one might need to do. The overall length lends the Baby Banter to being easier to wield for people with smaller hands. I would purchase one of these knives if I was in the market for a small knife or if I was shopping for someone to give it to as a gift. If you’re looking for a small locking pocket knife, consider the Baby Bander by CIVIVI.