The Original is the knife Kizer built its reputation on, and the XL version with a carbon fiber handle is the version that finally makes the pattern interesting again. Same button lock, same 154CM, but a full 3.27 inches of blade in a 2.75-ounce package.
Numbers: 7.48 inches overall, 3.27-inch drop point in 154CM at 0.11 inch stock, 4.21-inch carbon fiber handle, 78 grams, deep-carry clip, button lock. The opener is a thumb stud rather than a flipper, which changes the feel considerably. On a button lock the stud gives a slower, more deliberate deployment and a safer close, and on a knife this light that is the right pairing.
154CM is the reason the Original has stayed in the catalog. It is not a fashionable steel in 2026, but it takes a fine edge, holds it through cardboard better than 9Cr18MoV, and is forgiving to sharpen on a bench stone. Kizer runs it around 58-62 HRC and ships a 17-degree factory bevel, which is a more aggressive edge than most budget knives get. The carbon fiber is the cost-conscious variable: it is real CF laminate over a liner, so the weight saving is genuine but the knife will still flex if you torque a blade this thin.
Compared with the copper Original at $53.40, this knife gives up 63 grams and gains an all-day carryable weight. Compared with the Amicus at $27.30, you are paying roughly $22 for the steel upgrade and the carbon handle. Both are reasonable, and which one is right depends on whether you will ever notice 154CM's edge retention in daily use. Most people will not notice it on envelopes; anyone cutting down boxes will.
Verdict: the version of the Original to buy if you want a knife that disappears in a pocket and still looks like a knife. The $49.20 price is fair for 154CM and a machined carbon handle, and the button lock is Kizer's best mechanism at any price.
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