Disclosure: CIVIVI provided the Timberbark for this review. I received the knife at no cost, but was not compensated for this review, and CIVIVI had no editorial control over what I wrote.

CIVIVI Timberbark Review: A Fixed Blade Built for Pocket Carry

I've carried a lot of folding knives over the years, so my first reaction to the CIVIVI Timberbark was honestly a little unexpected: this thing is tiny.

The handle is short, the profile is extremely thin, and the overall package is much more compact than I expected. I have L/XL hands, and the Timberbark is considerably smaller than what I'm accustomed to carrying.

The small size does mean there are some compromises, particularly when it comes to ergonomics. But after carrying and using it for several months, I think most of those compromises make sense once you understand what CIVIVI was going for.

This isn't a little bushcraft knife that happens to be small. It's a pocket-carry fixed blade, and pretty much everything about it is geared toward keeping it that way.

The version CIVIVI sent me has blaze-orange G10 scales and an attractive stonewashed finish. Orange isn't exactly my first choice when it comes to knife scales, but there's actually a practical upside to it. The bright color made it an easy decision to throw the Timberbark into my hunting kit for deer season. If I'm lucky enough to fill my tags this coming season, I'll update this review with my experience using it for field dressing.

Carrying the Timberbark

I've been carrying the Timberbark daily for several months, and the first thing I did was replace the included belt clip with an Ulticlip.

I'd highly recommend that setup if you're planning to carry this knife in your pocket.

Coming from traditional folding knives, carrying a fixed blade took a little getting used to. For the first few days I was much more aware of the knife being there. After that, though, I hardly noticed it.

That's probably the biggest compliment I can give the Timberbark.

It's slim enough and light enough that it doesn't feel like you're dedicating much pocket space to carrying a fixed blade. In that respect, it has a lot more in common with the compact folders I normally carry than it does with the fixed blades I associate with outdoor use.

The Kydex sheath is fairly standard, and it does what it needs to do. Mine did need a little adjustment, though. Retention was extremely tight out of the box. In fact, with the Ulticlip attached, the retention was strong enough that trying to draw the knife would sometimes pull the entire sheath out of my pocket.

A little heat from a hair dryer was enough to fix that.

One thing I'd like to see CIVIVI consider on a future version is a small thumb ramp on the sheath. It would give you a better purchase when drawing the knife and would also reduce the amount of force you're putting on the fabric of your pocket when using a pocket clip.

How Does It Cut?

The Timberbark uses a thin, flat-ground drop-point blade, and that combination makes for a very slicey little knife.

I put it through my normal review routine. During the week, I used it for the stuff you'd normally expect an EDC knife to handle: opening packages, cutting twine and string, breaking down cardboard, and whatever other little jobs came up.

On the weekends, I pushed it a little harder. I cut jute cordage and worked through piles of cardboard boxes, among other things.

It wasn't a torture test. That's not particularly useful to me for an EDC knife review anyway. I was simply trying to use it considerably more than the average casual knife carrier would, essentially compressing months of normal use into a much shorter review period.

The Timberbark handled all of that without any real problems.

The one thing that did surprise me was how quickly the blade lost its edge.

It seemed to dull noticeably faster than I expected given the amount of use I was putting it through. I ended up giving it several touchups and honing sessions over the course of the review. Fortunately, getting the edge back wasn't difficult. A few minutes on my Work Sharp was all it took to get it back to work.

So I wouldn't call this a failure, but it was noticeable when compared with other CIVIVI knives I've used extensively. The Timberbark simply seemed to need an edge touchup sooner.

For normal EDC work, that's not something I'd consider a dealbreaker. If you're someone who puts a particularly high value on edge retention, though, it's worth knowing about.

The Handle

This is probably the biggest thing prospective buyers should understand about the Timberbark.

The handle is short enough that my pinky hangs off the end, and it's also extremely thin. There's no significant swell to fill your hand, which means it doesn't have the substantial grip of a traditional folding knife or larger fixed blade.

With my L/XL hands, that makes a difference.

I wouldn't want to spend an extended period of time doing hard work with the Timberbark. If I were heading into the woods to do serious cutting or bushcraft work, this wouldn't be my first choice.

But that's also not what I think this knife is trying to be.

That extremely thin profile is exactly what makes it work so well as a pocket knife. A thicker, more ergonomic handle would undoubtedly be more comfortable, but it would also take up more room in your pocket.

For the sort of tasks where you use a knife for a minute or two at a time, I had no problem with the Timberbark. Open a package? No problem. Cut some string? Easy. Break down a box? It handled it without complaint.

It's when you start talking about using it continuously for several minutes or more that the small handle becomes noticeable.

For this knife, I'm okay with that tradeoff.

Fixed Blade vs. Folder

That's going to come down to personal preference, but the Timberbark does make a pretty good argument for giving one a try.

Pocket-carry fixed blades have been becoming increasingly common in the EDC world, and I can see the appeal. You get a very simple knife without the moving parts and locking mechanism of a folder, but traditionally that has meant accepting a larger package.

The Timberbark gets around much of that problem simply by being so small.

Once I got used to carrying it, I didn't really miss having a folding knife. For the normal everyday jobs I was asking it to perform, the Timberbark was more than capable.

And because it's so thin, it was easy to carry without feeling like I was giving up much pocket space.

Final Thoughts

The Timberbark isn't going to replace a larger fixed blade for serious outdoor work, and I don't think it should be judged on that basis.

For me, the question was whether CIVIVI could make a fixed blade that was genuinely practical to carry every day. After several months with it, I'd say they did.

The short, thin handle isn't particularly comfortable for prolonged use, but it does exactly what it needs to do to keep the knife small. The thin flat grind makes it a very capable slicer, the Kydex sheath does its job once properly adjusted, and the whole package is light enough to disappear into a pocket.

The edge retention was a little disappointing compared with other CIVIVI knives I've used, although the edge was quick and easy to restore when it did dull.

CIVIVI has always been pretty good at giving you a lot of knife for your money, and the Timberbark is another example of that. You don't have to spend a ridiculous amount of money to get a useful, well-made EDC knife.

If you can find the Timberbark on sale and you're looking for a fixed-blade alternative to your normal folding knife, particularly if you want something that will disappear into your pocket, I think it's worth considering.

Just go into it knowing what you're buying.

The Timberbark is a compact EDC fixed blade, not a miniature bushcraft knife. For the former, it's very good. For the latter, I'd look elsewhere.

If deer season cooperates this year, I'll have another update to add. The blaze-orange scales have already earned the Timberbark a spot in my hunting kit, and if I'm lucky enough to fill a tag, I'll find out how it handles field dressing a deer in the field.