Description
Small, and dense with it
6.2 inches overall on 3.2-inch handles, and still 5.6 ounces. That ratio is the entire character of the DB-15. Short handles rotate quickly, so the same lazy wrist input that gently turns a full-size balisong will whip this one around before you have finished deciding what to do next. It rewards precise, small movements and it punishes sloppy ones immediately rather than absorbing them. There is also less handle to hold, so if you have large hands a two-finger grip runs out of steel in a hurry. Work through the basic roll and fan sequences slowly before you try to speed anything up.
| Overall length | 6.2 inches |
| Blade length | 3 inches |
| Handle length | 3.2 inches |
| Steel | 1095 + 15N20 Damascus, 352 layers |
| Hardness | 58–60 HRC, oil tempered |
| Weight | 5.6 oz |
| Handle | Damascus Balisong Butterfly Knife with handmade Steel and stag handle |
What the blade actually shows
The figure on this one is a pool-and-eye pattern: concentric rings and swirls opening up across the flat where the grind has cut down through manipulated layers. It is a worked pattern rather than a lucky one, which is a useful thing to understand when you are learning to separate genuine forged steel from an etched imitation. The tell is distortion. On a real blade the rings stretch and pull where the grind bites deeper into the billet, because you are looking at a cross-section of something three-dimensional. A printed or laser-etched face stays perfectly regular from spine to edge, because it is a picture sitting on the surface rather than structure running through it.
Stag on a small knife
Stag is the least uniform handle material on this bench, and on a knife this compact that is an advantage rather than a compromise. Ours run cream through the middle with amber and brown at the tips, and no two pieces are cut alike. The natural crown texture gives your fingers something to catch when your palms are damp, which is precisely the moment a light, fast balisong is most likely to leave your hand and find the floor. Polished metal handles offer nothing at all in that situation.
Looking after it
Keep stag away from prolonged soaking and away from heat, and give it a little oil once a year if it starts looking chalky. Dry the blade when you finish with it and put a little oil on the face before it goes into a drawer. The bolsters and pivots prefer being clean to being drenched, since oil sitting in a pivot mostly serves to hold grit exactly where it does the most damage.
The opposite end of the scale
If the small format turns out not to suit you, the 7.2 oz wood-handled DB-07 is the largest knife in this family and behaves in more or less the opposite way. Everything here is forged, ground, etched and fitted in Memphis, Tennessee. Legality differs from one state to the next and from one country to another, so check where you live before buying.
Model: BMK-DB-15
Marco Simmons –
This is one of those purchases that just makes you smile. Latch snaps shut clean every time. This flips cleaner than knives twice the price. Worth every penny.
Anna Williams –
This is hands down one of the best knives I’ve bought online. Pivots feel dialed in with zero blade play. Weight is perfectly balanced for flipping. Ordered from Black Mamba Knives before and the quality stays consistent every time. Latch snaps shut clean every time. Couldn’t be happier with this.
Brian Bishop –
This is the kind of balisong you show off without even meaning to.
Dennis Gutierrez –
Five stars isn’t even enough honestly. Latch snaps shut clean every time. Already planning my next pickup from this shop.
Donald Baker –
Ended up ordering a second one after how happy I was with the first. Blade came shaving sharp straight out of the box. Beyond happy with how this turned out.
Carol Scott –
It’s okay. Not great not bad. Blade needed some sharpening once it arrived. Action is okay but not as smooth as I hoped. It’s okay for the price.
Patrick Nelson –
It’s a okay balisong. Nothing extraordinary though. Action is okay but not as smooth as I hoped. It’s US made out of Memphis, packaging was just okay though. Wouldn’t say no to it but wouldn’t rave about it either.
Sarah Davis –
This is hands down one of the best knives I’ve bought online. Every piece I’ve gotten from Black Mamba Knives has been solid. Blade came shaving sharp straight out of the box. So worth it.