“Everyday carry” wasn’t a term 87 years ago, when Helle first opened up shop in Holmedal, Norway. Even if it were, it might not have changed the trajectory of the knifemaker – focusing primarily on fixed blades, Helle is both a response to and product of the remote fjords and mountains it calls home. So it wasn’t until late last year that the company created the first knife that we can genuinely say is EDC-oriented in the way we understand the term today: a tiny folder called the Kletten, which is currently on sale at Huckberry for 30 percent off.
With a 2.1-inch drop-point blade and a total weight of three ounces, the Kletten is the smallest knife Helle has ever made. It’s also only the company’s third folder, and the shortest of the exclusive group by over an inch.
The Kletten is unmistakably Helle, though. It uses the same triple-laminated steel the company brings to wilderness blades and curly birch handle scales that are as durable as they are gorgeous. Even its name refers to the hill behind Holmedal. So while the Kletten is a direct shot at contemporary pocket knife trends, it still holds fast to the traditions of a trade nearly a century old.
