This Strong, Ambidextrous Feature Has Quietly Flooded the EDC Knife World — Here’s Proof

In late January, I made the educated guess that one of the biggest trends in the EDC knife world would be the button lock. So far, that remains true.

However, the knifemaking world is broad and deep, so there’s room for more than one major trend, even when it comes to locking mechanisms.

As the year has progressed, it’s become clear that there’s another significant contender: the crossbar lock. Here’s all you need to know about this EDC knife feature and the knives equipped with it that have dropped so far.

Benchmade

Where it all began

Although they’re having a moment this year, crossbar locks aren’t new. In fact, they date back almost 30 years.

Unsurprisingly, that all began in 1981 when Michael Walker revolutionized the knifemaking industry with the invention of the liner lock.

Some years later, in 1996, knifemakers Bill McHenry and Jason Williams invented another wholly different lock. In 1998, Benchmade bought the design patent and named it the AXIS lock.

Until 2018, only Benchmade was legally allowed to utilize the design. However, when the patent expired, the technology entered the public domain, opening the floodgates for other knifemakers to use similar designs.

In 2025, crossbar lock EDC knives have finally found their way into the spotlight. It’s well-deserved, too, as this mechanism is as effective as it is user-friendly.

Editor’s Note: The 710 was the first benchmade knife to feature the AXIS lock. A version of that knife is still available today.

Vosteed

How crossbar locks work

Crossbar locks are surprisingly simple in concept. When properly executed, they’re also powerful, reliable and extremely user-friendly.

They rely on a solid (usually) steel bar that extends through the handle scales and slides forward (toward the blade) and backward (away from the blade). This crossbar is paired with a spring that exerts pressure to push the bar forward (toward the blade) into the “locked” position.

When the blade is deployed, it pushes the crossbar backward, disengaging it just enough for the blade to extend. Once the blade is fully deployed, the crossbar is pushed forward by its accompanying spring into a detent at the base of the blade. This locks the blade and prevents it from swinging back into the handle.

To disengage the lock, the user must pull the crossbar backward, out of the blade detent, and manually move the blade out of the deployed position.

Besides their security, one of the major benefits of crossbar locks is that their very nature — that they extend through the handle — makes them ambidextrous. Crossbar locks are one of the most naturally lefty-friendly locks around.

Ka-Bar

Crossbar lock knives of 2025

Like button-lock knives, many crossbar EDC blades have already been released this year. Here is a tiny sampling of the best ones.

Buck Knives

Buck Knives Range Series

The Range Series boasts the first Buck Knives to incorporate a crossbar lock, a modern mechanism that eases one-handed deployment and closing. The knife is available in both MagnaCut Steel (Range Elites) and 154CM (Range Pros), with both trim levels offering regular and mini sizes.

• Learn More

Benchmade

Benchmade Bailout (537BK-06)

Thanks to the signature tanto blade shape, this Bailout retains its tough tactical identity while getting more EDC-friendly. Drawing inspiration from the most popular Bugout, it possesses textured, ultralight Ranger Green Grivory handle scales plus a Cerakote-treated, 3.38-inch CPM-S30V blade and an aluminum lanyard pommel (sans glass breaker).

• $200 at Benchmade

Benchmade

Benchmade Adira Serrated

While this version of Benchmade’s fishing-focused folder retains all the same details and specs of its siblings, it gets fitted with a partially serrated blade that will make short work of cutting tasks, even in wet conditions.

• $260 at Benchmade

Related Topics