I first saw the Spyderco Charisma at SHOT Show in January. Even before I had a chance to really look at it, there was a bit of a wow moment when someone passed it to me and I felt the weight – or more accurately, the lack of it. We toss around the phrase feather light pretty casually, but it genuinely applies here. At just 0.8 ounces, the Charisma is one of the lightest folding knives I’ve ever handled.
Once I got past the weight and looked at the knife more closely, I realized there was more going on. Something this light could easily have been a tiny folder with questionable usability, but the Charisma has a nearly three-inch locking blade and a handle that’s actually comfortable to use. Spyderco managed to make it extraordinarily light without turning it into a compromised novelty.
Designed by Eric Glesser, the Charisma product page lists an overall length of 6.8 inches and a closed length of 3.82 inches. Its CTS BD1N blade is 2.98 inches long, with 2.8 inches of cutting edge. The blade stock is just 0.050 inch, or about 1.2mm, thick.
Ultralight Without Feeling Flimsy
The Charisma uses a linerless FRN handle, which obviously helps keep the weight down. It’s slim and nicely contoured, with a pebbled texture and molded-in troughs running along both sides. Those troughs give your fingers a natural place to settle and add useful purchase without aggressive texturing.
I’ve carried the Charisma in rotation for the past few months and used it for the normal assortment of EDC chores that come up during the day. Despite the minimal construction, the handle has always been comfortable and secure. This isn’t the knife I’d choose for abusive work, but that isn’t what it was designed for.
As a lightweight utility knife, it feels solid and well put together. The back lock engages positively, and I haven’t noticed any unwanted movement or questionable lockup during use. That combination of light weight and solid construction is really what makes the Charisma more interesting than simply being another tiny folder.
A Folding Paring Knife
The Charisma’s blade is probably my favorite part of the design. The full-flat grind and extremely thin blade stock make it an excellent slicer, and the comparison I kept coming back to was a good paring knife. The Charisma has that same thin, efficient feel as it moves through material.
There’s even some noticeable flex in the blade, much as you’d expect from a thin kitchen knife. That’s simply a consequence of the geometry, and that geometry is what makes the Charisma cut so well. Slicing an apple is almost a perfect demonstration because the blade slips through food cleanly without trying to wedge it apart.
It works just as well on mundane EDC jobs such as packaging, cord and other light utility tasks. I almost started thinking of the Charisma as a folding picnic knife. That probably sells the design short, but there is something to the comparison. It’s a light, handy slicer that excels when a thin blade is more useful than a thick one.
After several months of rotational carry, the factory edge is still doing fine. I wouldn’t present that as a definitive test of CTS BD1N edge retention, though. Most of my use has been fairly light, and the Charisma shares pocket time with plenty of other knives.
I’m also not much for artificial endurance tests involving thousands of identical cardboard cuts. I’d rather report how a knife performs during the kind of work I actually carry it to do. So far, the Charisma has handled that work without giving me a reason to touch up the edge.
The Spyderhole Is a Little Different Here
One area where the Charisma differs from many Spydercos is blade opening. Spyderco’s trademark round hole is there, but the slim blade sits deeply in the handle when closed. Part of the hole is covered by the handle, so you don’t get the same large thumb target found on many other Spyderco models.
I can open it one-handed, but I don’t find it especially fast. My natural technique is to pinch the exposed portion with my thumb and index finger and roll the blade open from there. It works fine, but it isn’t as quick as using a larger, more exposed Spyderhole.
I’m okay with that on this knife because the Charisma strikes me as a utility tool, not a design built around rapid deployment. If you use two hands, the round hole also provides a much better grasping point than a traditional nail nick. For the way I use the Charisma, that’s more important than having the fastest possible opening method.
Once open, the blade is secured by a traditional back lock. I think that’s a particularly good choice here because it’s a proven mechanism, provides positive lockup and doesn’t add bulk that would work against the Charisma’s slim profile.
Spyderco also uses its David Boye Dent in the lock bar. The small relief cut is intended to reduce the chance of accidentally depressing the lock during a hard grip. I never felt close to inadvertently releasing the lock, even when gripping the knife firmly.
Closing the Charisma is normally more of a two-handed affair, but that’s hardly unusual for a back lock. The lock can still be released while keeping your fingers out of the blade’s closing path, so I don’t see the closing method as much of a drawback either.
Carry Is Where the Charisma Really Makes Its Case
Spyderco fits the Charisma with a reversible deep-carry wire clip, which is one of my favorite pocket clip designs. The knife carries tip-up on either side and leaves very little showing above the pocket. Combined with the thin handle and 0.8-ounce weight, it’s about as unobtrusive as a nearly three-inch locking folder gets.
There are plenty of days when you can legitimately forget you’re carrying it. That discreet carry is a big part of the Charisma’s appeal, especially if you want a useful blade without adding noticeable bulk or weight to your pocket.
My sample is basic black, but Spyderco also offers gray, red and blue FRN handles. The brighter colors aren’t only cosmetic. For hiking, camping or backpacking, a bright handle can make a dropped knife much easier to spot.
I’m particularly fond of blue handles on outdoor knives for that reason. There isn’t much naturally occurring bright blue on the forest floor, so it tends to jump out among leaves and vegetation. If I were choosing a Charisma specifically for outdoor use, the blue version would probably be my pick.
Backpacking is another place where I think the Charisma makes a lot of sense. Backpackers spend real money shaving ounces from their gear, and the Charisma weighs less than an ounce while still providing a useful locking blade and a comfortable handle.
I’m not knocking the little Swiss Army Classic that a lot of backpackers default to. I own and use those too. If your priority is more cutting capability with minimal weight, though, the Charisma presents an interesting alternative.
The Spyderco Charisma isn’t a hard-use folder, and judging it by that standard misses the point. It’s an exceptionally light utility knife with a comfortable handle, positive lockup and a thin CTS BD1N blade that cuts extremely well.
The partially covered Spyderhole means opening isn’t as quick as it is on many other Spyderco models. After carrying the knife for a few months, I don’t consider that much of a drawback. It opens easily enough for the work it’s designed to do, and the tradeoff helps preserve the very slim profile that makes the Charisma so easy to carry.
What sticks with me most is that Spyderco didn’t chase ultralight weight at the expense of making a usable knife. The Charisma weighs only 0.8 ounces, yet it doesn’t feel like a novelty or a compromised miniature. It’s simply a very capable slicer that happens to be ridiculously easy to carry.
The Charisma is made at Spyderco’s Golden, Colorado facility and comes in black, gray, red and blue. Spyderco currently lists it at $130, but you can find it online for under $100. You can see the full specifications and current options on the Spyderco Charisma product page.