Overview & First Impressions
Urushi work is slow, humid and messy. You build lacquer in thirty thin layers, you cure in a damp box, and you sand between coats with paper wrapped around a block. The knife that lives on that bench needs to shrug off moisture and clean up fast. The QSP Emu QS164-B2 is exactly that kind of tool: a 3.25-inch clip point in 14C28N, green micarta scales and a slim profile that disappears in an apron pocket.
Materials & Construction
14C28N is a nitrogen-alloyed Swedish stainless, and it is the right choice for a wet workshop. It resists staining far better than a carbon steel, it takes a very fine edge, and it touches up in seconds on a ceramic rod. QSP knives runs it thin behind the edge, so the Emu slices lacquer film and paper without tearing, and the micarta handle does not care about sweat, sap or spilled urushi.
Design & Details
The handle shape is the quiet win here. A slight forward finger groove, a palm swell that fills the hand and a flat spine that sits level under your thumb all matter when you are cutting against a straightedge. The Glyde lock runs on ceramic bearings and releases with a clean, controlled fold rather than a drop, which is what you want over an open lacquer bowl. The ambidextrous clip swaps sides with one screw.
Real-World Use
Day to day this is a knife for cutting masking tape to width, trimming lacquer film at an edge, slicing paper strips for a repair and opening the bags that abrasive sheets arrive in. Among folding knives aimed at craft benches, the Emu stands out because the blade stops where you tell it to. The micarta stays grippy when your hands are tacky with resin and it wipes clean with a rag and a drop of alcohol.
Ownership Notes
Wipe the blade after every session and dry the pivot; water is fine on 14C28N but lacquer is not, and cured urushi on a blade is a job for a scraper rather than a stone. Do not leave the knife open on the bench where a dropped brush can spatter it. Oil the washers lightly and check the clip screws, because micarta compresses very slightly over the first month of use. Anyone building a small kit for a lacquer bench ends up comparing EDC knives on exactly these terms: stainless blade, sealed handle, nowhere for resin to collect, and a lock that folds rather than drops over a wet surface. The Emu answers all four at a price that makes a second one sensible.
Who Is This For?
This is the right knife for the lacquer worker, the bookbinder, the printmaker and anyone who wants a stainless slicer that survives a wet bench. It is also a sensible first quality folder because the price is modest and the steel forgives neglect. Skip it if you want a heavy chopper. EdcMall keeps both micarta colourways in stock.
Final Verdict
The QS164-B2 is what a working knife should be: 14C28N for stain resistance, micarta for grip, a thin grind for control and a lock that folds predictably over whatever is on the bench. It is not a showpiece and it is not trying to be. Buy it, keep it sharp, and let the lacquer cure while the knife does its quiet work.
