Boker Trance

The Trance is a folder designed by Chad Los Banos for Boker USA following the succesful line of the Subcom and Rescom folders. The Trance is the big brother in the Los Banos family with a 2.75in blade and a total length of 6.25 inches. The total weight is 3.2 ounces.

The trance follows the Subcom design with a handle that is half zytel and half steel the zytel has a good texture and helps the grip, the half-steel is slippery but I don't think the grip is a problem even when only half of the handle is textured.

To open it the Trance has round metal thumbstuds and a flipper, you can use either the thumbstuds or the flipper to assist the opening. The flipper when opened offers a surface where your index finger can rest and be protected from the blade if you need to push hard on the knife. It's particularly easy to open the knife in a wrist-flick movement using the flipper and closing it is a smooth movement. Users that are familiar with the thumbstuds can of course just ignore the flipper.

The blade made of AUS8 steel is very sharp from the factory and sustains the edge very well after most normal cutting jobs. Sharpening is not a problem with this type of steel.

The lock is a framelock mechanism that holds very well and can be operated with one hand if needed. The Trance has a pocket clip that can be moved for tip-up or tip-down carry, the clip is very strong and long enough to avoid losing the knife but as in the subcom model clipping it to a pocket can be a little harder due to the tension of the clip.

Summarizing the Trance is a very nicely designed folder small enough to be an EDC knife and big enough to perform excellent in typical cutting jobs, the construction is very solid and everything works as expected a great option for its price range.

You can get the Trance from EDCdepot for $30.