Civivi Mini Praxis Review: My First Impressions

This is definitely mini. I really like the blackwash finish. I don't necessarily love a black-coated blade, but blackwash is very different. It wears a lot better and looks a lot nicer.

The centering is extremely perfect, and this isn't the typical clip. The screws and the clip are fully recessed, which I like a whole heck of a lot. It's right-hand-only, though, and I feel bad for left-handed users. Before even deploying it, those details look really, really good.

My first impression of the detent was pretty good, with a very nice choil and nice ergonomics. After another flip, I thought it was a good detent, not soft, but I wished it were a little stronger for a knife this size. That's definitely personal preference. I can still pretty easily push-button flip it or light-switch it.

Then it kind of started feeling weak, maybe. I don't know. I can't knock it too much, but it's no Kizer detent. It's pretty good. The blade is D2.

I really like the ergonomics, especially for something this small. It fits into the first crease of my index finger, and it feels pretty good in hand with that forward grip.

The Elementum's detent is perfect. I really wish the Mini Praxis had an Elementum detent. The Mini Praxis is the exact same size as the Elementum and slightly smaller than the Altus. I think the Elementum is an absolutely on-point size comparison.

I also compared it with the Hogue Deka and Doug Ritter Mini RSK. It's very close in size to the Mini RSK, although still a little shorter.

These are my first impressions, and I do like it, but I'm a little torn about the detent. I can easily flip the blade out, yet I really, really wish the detent were stronger. I'm becoming more disappointed with each flip. I'm not upset, and I won't be returning it. It's still a great knife.

The edge is very, very thin. I don't have my calipers with me, so this isn't a measurement, but I'd say it's definitely under 0.020 inch and in the teens. I'd put money on that. It has very nice cutting geometry and very good ergonomics.

The action is good, nothing special or worth writing home about. The detent just isn't strong enough for me and doesn't quite do it. The handle, though, feels very nice. I get a four-finger grip even without using the choil.

With the choil, I initially thought spreading my hand out felt a little awkward, but it actually feels really good. That works if I want to spread my fingers. Keeping them up together feels a little cramped, so I'd probably lean toward the spread grip. The ergonomics are very good, and the blade is very good. It's the same Praxis blade shape, just smaller. I love the deep-carry clip. CIVIVI knocked it out of the park with that clip.

The scales are great, just regular G10. I really like that the CIVIVI logo is blacked out, and I'm always a fan of the black and OD-green combination. There's nice lockup with the liner lock too.

The detent won't be a problem for a lot of people, I guess, but it is for me because I want it stronger. It's very, very easy to fail a flip, and I don't like that. I'm used to knives that pop right out with a crisper detent, so it's disappointing.

Everything else, from quality to feel in hand, fit and finish, is fantastic. I think CIVIVI picked an excellent model in the Praxis for this smaller format. I think it's going to be wildly popular.

I'd recommend it, but someone very picky about strong detents may not like it. For regular to slightly lighter detents, I think it would be fantastic. It's sticking around for me. Even with the detent issue, maybe it's flirting with my ten favorite CIVIVIs because I love the Praxis that much. Overall, it's a very nice offering with an okay detent and fantastic ergonomics.