CRKT has returned to a recent, eye-catching model, Princeton Wong’s Nucleus, to give it a material makeover and add it to the company’s growing collection of premium knives. The headlining feature on this new Nucleus is the presence of favored current-gen super steel MagnaCut.
The Nucleus stepped onto the stage last summer, just ahead of Blade Show 2024. It is, obviously, an eye-catching piece with its sci fi-inflected design – according to Wong, inspired by none other than Mobile Suit Gundam, the pioneering mecha anime that has been running in one form or another for more than 40 years. The Gundam mecha come in all shapes and sizes, but the most recognizable ones – like the RX-78-2 – are slender, agile, and built with clean hard angles. It was easy to see the connection between the battle robots and Wong’s Nucleus.
This 2025 Nucleus benefits from a major upgrade in blade steel, jumping from the trusty-but-entry level 12C27N all the way to MagnaCut, surely the most important knife-centric steel in the last five years. This is an entirely different class of steel so it’s not really fair to expect 12C27N to compete with it directly, but owners of the 2025 Nucleus will certainly notice very high edge retention and corrosion resistance, bringing the knife’s EDC capabilities to the next level.
The handle has been upgraded as well, with the strut-like frame replacing stainless steel with titanium. Not only is titanium a, well, cooler material than steel, but it is considerably lighter as well, and the 2025 Nucleus is significantly lighter than its predecessor: 2.3 oz. compared to 3.1 on the original. The bias-cut bolster is made from the classic checkered carbon fiber, complimenting the subdued tone of the blade and handle.
The 2025 Nucleus is available now.
Knife in Featured Image: CRKT 2025 Nucleus
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