Civivi’s New Futuristic EDC Knife Has a Powerful Lock You’ve Probably Never Seen Before

Although the lock design is in the public domain, the brand worked with its creator to launch this unique cutting tool.

By Sean Tirman

Published May 6, 2025

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Updated May 6, 2025

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Oh, pocket knife, how do I lock thee? Let me count the ways.

In the EDC folding knife world, there are seemingly dozens of different locking mechanisms, especially if you count proprietary variants. As such, it’s rare to see truly new ones hit the market.

So it was a bit of a surprise to come across Civivi’s Buster FG, which sports a novel lock few have seen, the Superlock, and was made in collaboration with its inventor, Snecx Tan.

Civivi Buster FG EDC Knife — This 9.65-inch knife is a lot beefier than it looks.

Cutting edge, literally and figuratively

The Buster FG’s crux is the Superlock mechanism. It’s a clever, curious lock that uses a spring-loaded backspacer, which moves back and forth instead of up and down, to wedge itself between the blade’s tang and the handle’s stop pin.

While that may sound complicated, it’s functionally straightforward and user-friendly. Furthermore, it’s strong, uncomplicated and easy to service.

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A post shared by Snecx Tan (@snecx)

As mentioned, this knife was designed in collaboration with Snecx Tan, inventor of the Superlock. It’s also based on a We Knife design, also called the Buster. But there’s a little more to the story. The tech isn’t licensed; it’s free to use.

Rather than seeking a patent, Tan decided to allow the mechanism to become part of the public domain. That means anyone can employ it without having to pay licensing fees.

That’s a pretty generous gesture for an inventor to make. It’s doubly cool to see that Civivi, despite the lock’s open-source status, still reached out to work with Tan on this design.

Futuristic styling, modern mechanics

While the Superlock is the banner feature of this knife, the rest of it isn’t anything to scoff at. For starters, it’s a lot beefier than it looks, measuring 9.65 inches with a 4.2-inch Sheepsfoot blade.

That blade is made of hard-working Nitro-V steel and boasts ambidextrous thumb studs for deployment. It also has a straight edge that’s good for long cuts and a fine piercing point.

The blade is mated to a handle with an offset, reversible pocket clip, a measure of skeletonization (for style and to cut a little weight) and your choice of G10 or Micarta handle scales. It also has a caged ceramic ball-bearing pivot.

As a final note, the Buster FG is available in a trio of colorways: black and gold, blue and silver and green and black. The green and black option is the one with Micarta scales.

Civivi Buster FG EDC Knife closed — This knife comes in three distinct colorways, including the green and black version above.

Pricing and availability

The Civivi Buster FG is coming soon in three different colorways, covering two configurations. The two with G10 handle scales are priced at $115, while the one with Micarta is $118.

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