A brand new EDC knife is gaining traction on Kickstarter with a intentionally retro pitch: don’t pay extra for the metal. The VIVID, from San Francisco–primarily based maker Infinity (its third Kickstarter marketing campaign), lands at $65 for the most cost effective early-bird pledge in opposition to a deliberate $109 MSRP. The spec sheet runs VG10 blade metal, a G10 deal with, a nested liner lock, a clean flipper, and a deep-carry clip. As of June 11, 2026, the marketing campaign reveals 88 backers / $9,486 pledged / $3,000 purpose, roughly 311% funded with about 24 days left.
Value: From $65
The place to Purchase: Kickstarter
Common pledge sits at $108 per backer, and crowdfunding aggregators are projecting the ultimate increase someplace within the $40,000–$70,000 vary. The marketing campaign closes July 6, 2026, with estimated supply in September 2026.
Add The Gadgeteer on Google Add The Gadgeteer as a most popular supply to see extra of our protection on Google.
What’s within the field, on paper
VIVID retains the spec sheet tight. The model is leaning on VG10, a stainless-steel that has lived within the Japanese kitchen-and-outdoor knife world for many years, moderately than chasing the M390, Magnacut, or S35VN labels that dominate 2026 EDC advertising copy. The deal with is G10, a fiberglass laminate that holds grip when moist. The lock is a nested liner; the deployment is a flipper tab. The pocket clip is a deep-carry design. Per Infinity’s launch imagery, the blade measures 85.6 mm at 61 HRC, with a complete size of 198.6 mm open and 113 mm closed. 5 colours are supplied: black, blue, white, purple, and orange.
For context, that stack is nearer to what you’ll discover on a roughly $30 to $75 manufacturing folder from Civivi, CJRB, or Kizer in 2026 than what most Kickstarter EDC knives pitch. The trade-off is the model premium: established manufacturers ship with a identified QC report, a guaranty, and an actual return path. A brand new marketing campaign has none of that till supply.
The claims price flagging
In accordance with the VIVID marketing campaign web page, two product claims transcend a typical mid-budget folder spec sheet, and each come straight from the model.
The primary is ambidextrous deployment. The web page states the bearings don’t differentiate between left and proper fingers and that the flipper works the identical approach for each. That’s in keeping with how most fashionable bearing pivots behave; the web page simply calls it out.
The second is the declare that the knife “works underwater” with the identical flick and snap as on land. That could be a stronger declare, and it hinges on the lock and detent holding up beneath a moist setting, which is one thing hands-on testing can affirm or contradict. We have now not dealt with a VIVID pattern. Deal with the underwater declare because the model’s positioning, not a verified reality.
A 3rd element, the ceramic detent ball contained in the lock, can also be brand-claimed. Ceramic detents usually are not uncommon at this worth tier, however the mixture with the nested liner is the sort of spec price verifying when the primary overview items ship.
The way it stacks up in opposition to the 2026 discipline
The 2026 EDC folder market is in an uncommon place. VG10 sits in the midst of the metal hierarchy: more durable and higher at edge retention than the funds 8Cr13MoV and AUS-8 knives that anchor sub-$50 folders, however a step beneath the S35VN-and-up powder steels that take a noticeable share of 2026 Kickstarter EDC launches. The commerce is actual: you quit some edge retention versus premium powder steels, you achieve simpler sharpening and decrease value.
G10 versus the carbon fiber, titanium, and micarta handles exhibiting up on this 12 months’s higher-end folders is the same story. G10 is denser than carbon fiber and fewer premium-feeling than titanium, however it’s grippy, sturdy, and low cost to fabricate. For a knife geared toward every day carry moderately than assortment, the fabric selection is defensible.
For patrons cross-shopping, the closest manufacturing analog on the worth is the Kizer Vanguard Begleiter, which truly pairs VG10 with G10 within the ~$55–$75 road vary. Different G10-handled funds folders price a glance embody the Civivi Elementum (D2 metal, ~$50–$59) and the CJRB Small Feldspar (AR-RPM9 or D2, ~$30–$48). Each are G10 grips however totally different steels, so they’re price-and-feel comparisons, not steel-for-steel matches. None of these names seem in VIVID’s Kickstarter similar-projects checklist. The checklist does present the ZONRING titanium folder with M390 (an actual, separate Kickstarter marketing campaign), which targets a special purchaser.
The place issues stand
The VIVID marketing campaign has the early indicators of a funded challenge: a modest $3,000 purpose, a transparent over-funding place, and a creator with two prior Kickstarter campaigns on its profile (supply observe report not independently confirmed). The chance profile for backers is the usual crowdfunding one: manufacturing delays, sample-to-production variation, and supply-chain hiccups are the recurring dangers which have bitten prior EDC knife campaigns on the platform, and the marketing campaign’s personal dangers disclosure ought to be reviewed straight earlier than backing.
Value: From $65
The place to Purchase: Kickstarter
The marketing campaign closes July 6, 2026, which leaves about 25 days for the funding curve to settle. Estimated supply is September 2026, which is tight for a maker on its third Kickstarter marketing campaign. The primary manufacturing run will inform you most of what you might want to learn about whether or not the motion and lockup match the marketing campaign’s claims.
For now, VIVID is price watching, not pre-ordering on hype. The spec sheet is affordable for the value, the metal and deal with decisions are deliberate moderately than low cost, and the elements that want hands-on verification (lockup, detent really feel, deployment smoothness over time) are the elements we can’t consider from a marketing campaign web page alone.

Love our content material?
Join for our publication at present.
No adverts, no spam, simply hyperlinks to our newest articles!
