Models FAQ

For the reader who has the model families straight from Getting started and now meets a dealer listing full of names, suffixes and generation numbers. Each answer is short and links to the overview or article that goes deep.

Names and suffixes

What does the number or name in a model name tell me?

The number is usually the blade length in millimeters: F95, 111, Q95, and the 110 under the Kickstop. The F3 is the exception, a 95 mm blade under a name that is not a length, and NeOn, Hati, Quantum, Stellar and Astrum are names. The Russian prefix on a collaboration, as in Russian Dr. Death or Russian Overkill, marks a Western designer’s model built by the workshop. Show names such as CCKS, Arsenal or ORELEXPO are edition qualifiers, a standard model in a show finish, not variants. The full key is on How the designs evolved.

What do T and Turtle mean on an F95?

T is the T-pattern, hexagonal milling that resembles a turtle’s shell, offered in place of the standard 3D milling since March 2017; collectors call the F95T the Turtle, so the two words name the same knife. The Gen.4 configuration of November 2022 brought a thinner blade and the CPS pivot to it. The F95 overview lists the T generations side by side.

What does Nudist mean on an F95?

Smooth titanium scales with no milling pattern, the opposite treatment to the T-pattern. It was introduced in September 2016 and has also been offered on the Slim handle in Vanax 37. The name describes the finish rather than a change to the blade or the lock. The F95 overview has each Nudist configuration with its dates.

What is BearPattern?

A motif of small bears shaped like the workshop logo, milled into the scales. It has appeared on the F95 from April 2025 and on the Stellar from May 2026. Like the other milling patterns it changes the surface of the handle and nothing about the mechanism. The F95 overview and Stellar overview carry the releases.

What does Zero mean?

A plain titanium handle with the pivot or blade geometry reworked, rather than a stripped-down version of the standard knife. On the NeOn the pivot moves forward to put a longer blade in the same 110 mm handle. The F95 Zero of January 2022 is a fifth-generation configuration in M390. How the designs evolved places each Zero in its line.

What does Slim mean?

A thinner handle on the same blade and lock, so the knife carries flatter without losing blade length. The F95 Slim is a Custom Division configuration in S90V on single-row rollers, and the Hati Gen 3 Slim is a run of 100 in M398. The F95 overview and Hati overview list the Slim configurations.

What do Lite and Ultra Lite mean?

Both belong to the NeOn and both are weight reductions of the same 85 mm knife. The Lite is internally milled for weight and has been in production since 2015; the Ultra Lite took the skeletonization to its limit and was discontinued. The NeOn overview has each variant’s weight and dates.

What does NL mean?

An inlaid configuration: scales with inlays set into the titanium frame, in TechnoCarbo, carbon fiber weaves, colored G10, Micarta on the May 2023 F95NL, and occasionally copper-infused carbon fiber. NL configurations exist on the F95 and on the NeOn, where the first arrived in April 2020. The F95 overview describes the F95NL generations.

Is an NL a different knife?

No. An NL is the standard model with inlays set into the titanium frame, so the blade and the lock stay as they are and the inlays change the weight and the look rather than the design. What does vary is availability: specific inlay combinations were made in limited numbers and some only once, which is why two NL knives of the same generation can be priced far apart. The F95 overview lists the combinations by generation.

What does R mean on a model name?

A revision of the line it sits on. The F95R, the F3R with F95-style blade geometry, and the HatiR, which is the Hati Gen 2 under its factory name, are the three a buyer meets most often. The letter marks a reworked version rather than a separate model. How the designs evolved follows each revision.

What does NS mean?

The F3’s 2020 revision, the F3 NS, with 3D-machined carbon fiber scales and the F7’s wider blade profile. The suffix was first used on the 2010 Tabargan 100NS, so it predates the F3 by a decade. The F3 overview has the NS batches and what separates them from the standard F3.

What does 3M mean?

Three Bears, the top category of the factory’s Bears classification of 2016, which was a quality marking rather than a tier. The tier structure replaced it, and a factory notice of 31 March 2022 dropped the suffix from model names, so a 3M in a listing dates the knife or the listing. How the designs evolved explains the Bears system.

What do the Gen numbers mean?

Serial revisions of a line, numbered in sequence. From 2021 factory announcements named each one by generation, the 111 Gen.5, Quantum Gen.2, Hati Gen.3, F95T Gen.4 and F95NL Gen.5 among them. A generation usually changes blade thickness, pivot or scale construction rather than the shape of the knife. How the designs evolved follows each line generation by generation.

What does Ursus mean?

The working-knife line, named for the bear genus: the same designs in Elmax or Cromax PM with G10, Micarta or plain titanium handles, built for use and priced at the bottom of the workshop’s range. The suffix marks the configuration rather than a separate design. The Ursus section of From the early models to today has the line in sequence.

Which knives are Ursus?

The line opened with the Quantum Ursus NL of December 2021, followed by the G10-inlay Quantum Ursus of April 2022, the Quantium Ursus of February 2023, the Quantum Ursus Lefty of July 2023, the Q95 Ursus of June 2025 with the Q95 NY26 and Q95 Ursus Ti after it, and the F95 Ursus of May 2026, the first F95 on a liner lock. The Quantum Ursus models are frame locks; the Q95 Ursus and F95 Ursus are liner locks with Micarta over titanium liners, and both take hex bits in their screws.

Quantum, Quantium, Mini Quantum, MidiQ, Q95: which is which?

They are one platform at different sizes and tiers, and the names are close enough that dealer listings mix them up.

The Quantum overview sets all of them side by side with their dates.

Is the HatiOn a Hati?

No. The Hati is the F95 blade and frame lock on a handle with a titanium lock side and a carbon fiber or G10 show side, roughly a quarter lighter than the F95, with the name read as half titanium. The HatiOn is a NeOn-platform knife with one carbon fiber scale and the clip side in titanium, and the HatiOn Lite is the same build, also with a carbon fiber scale, so both belong with the 85 mm NeOn family. The Hati overview covers the three Hati generations and the HatiOn confusion.

What is the difference between an F3, an F3 NS and an F3-B?

One line, three builds, and the suffix carries the tier as well as the shape.

The F3 overview has the variants and the special editions.

What is the difference between the F95 and the F3?

The F95 and the F3 carry the same 95 mm drop point blade on two different locks: on the F95 a section of the titanium handle is the lock bar, and on the F3 the lock is a titanium liner under scales, with a backspacer on every model. In hand the F3 runs thicker.

What each lock changes in use is on Getting started. The F3 is the step above the Ursus knives on the entry ladder, where the F95 is the line the workshop is built on, with examples of every generation on the used market. The F95 overview and the F3 overview carry the variants of each.

Locks, sizes and mechanisms

Which lines are frame locks and which are liner locks?

The F95, Hati, NeOn and Quantum are titanium frame locks with a steel insert on the lock bar. The F3 has been a liner lock since 2011, and the 111 uses the same construction, titanium liners with a steel insert under the scales, which collectors call the inset lock. The Stellar and Astrum are liner locks with an apron, a lip on the liner that keeps dirt out of the gap between liner and scale, and the Q95 Ursus of 2025 and F95 Ursus of 2026 are liner locks on the working line. No serial, Custom Division or collaboration model uses a tab lock. What each lock changes in use is on Choosing your first Shirogorov.

How do the blade lengths compare across the lines?

The NeOn carries 85 mm, the NeOn-platform HatiOn 3.375 inches (about 83 to 85 mm, by generation and how it is measured), the Stellar 90 mm, and the F95, F3, Hati, Quantum and Q95 95 mm. The Astrum is 100 mm, as are the CannaBis and every Overkill, and the 111 is named for its 111 mm blade, the largest regular production folder. Overall length runs from 195 mm on the NeOn through 210 mm on the Stellar and 228 mm on the Astrum to 250 mm on the 111. The Custom Division scaled the Quantum down to 85 mm on the Mini Quantum and 90 mm on the MidiQ. From the early models to today puts the lines in order with what each brought.

Is there a left-handed model?

Yes, under the Lefty name, which marks a mirrored build rather than a reversible one. The NeOn Lefty of February 2021 was the factory’s first, then the F95 Lefty of February 2022, the Quantum Ursus Lefty of July 2023 in titanium and Cromax PM at 118 g, and the NeOn Lite Lefty of 2026. The Lefty entries are on the Quantum overview and the line overviews.

Can I move the pocket clip?

Not on a serial model. Clips mount tip-up on one side only, and on the Quantum, Stellar, Astrum and 111 Gen 5 they sit on a hidden screw. Two exceptions exist and both are limited pieces: the MidiQ CD carries the RPC rotating pocket clip, and the Mini Quantum SR a rotating clip that separates it from the fixed-clip Mini Quantum CD. The Quantum overview has both.

What is CPS?

The Captive Pivot System: the rear of the pivot screw is formed as a gear that keys into matching cutouts in the handle, so the pivot cannot rotate during disassembly or adjustment. It makes pivot work a one-driver job rather than a two-driver one. Bearing systems explains it beside the pivots it sits in.

Which knives have CPS?

The Captive Pivot System appeared on the Hati Gen 3 in May 2022, the first serial model to carry it, reached the F95 with the F95T Gen.4 in November 2022 and the F95NL Gen.5, and is on the Stellar, Stellar CF, Stellar BearPattern and Astrum. The F95 Braces editions run on washers, with CPS on the 2026 runs only. The F3 Elements editions carry it where the serial F3 NS does not. It is standard on recent top serial models and Custom Division pieces, so a model listed here without it is a question for the seller.

Steels and blades

What is the difference between M390 and Elmax on a Shirogorov?

M390 and Elmax are close: both run at 61 to 62 HRC, and on a listing the steel mostly tells you the era and the line.

Both ship with an edge of 41 to 42 degrees. On a current knife the steel follows the model, not the other way around. The steels page has the hardness band for every steel in the range.

Generations and editions

How do I tell which generation a knife is from the knife itself?

The pivot and the blade thickness do most of the work. On the F95, Gen 1 runs on bronze phosphor washers, Gen 2 on single-row bearings, Gen 3 onward on the MRBS, and Gen 5 thins the blade from 4.0 mm to 3.5 mm. On the 111, Gen 1 through Gen 4 carry a 4.0 mm blade with a fuller, Gen 5 of August 2021 a 3.5 mm blade with a stepped cutout in place of the fuller, carbon fiber scales only and a clip on a hidden screw. On the Hati, Gen 1 is on washers, Gen 2 on MRBS, and Gen 3 has a TechnoCarbo show scale with a matching inlay on the lock side, a 3.5 mm blade and the CPS pivot; the NeOn is organized as variants rather than generations. How the designs evolved follows each line generation by generation.

What does First Production mean?

A First Production, FP for short, is the first serial issue of a new line since 2023: a limited run that fixes the dimensions, pivot and lock, followed some months later by the serial knife in M390 and a plain finish. Three exist: the Stellar FP of 30 May 2023 in S90V on blue titanium with a bronze cast, the Astrum FP of 27 July 2024 in MagnaCut, 100 pieces, on multi-stage anodized titanium, and the Stellar CF FP of 29 November 2025 in MagnaCut on purple-pigmented carbon fiber. First Production has the three runs in detail.

How do I tell a First Production from the serial knife?

By the steel and the finish first, since the FP carries its own pair and the serial knife that follows is in M390 with a plain finish. On the Astrum the quickest tell in hand is the pattern at the rear of the handle, parallel lines on the FP and slightly radial on the serial knife. An FP is not a Sprint Run, which is a smaller uncataloged batch that may precede it by a year, and not a Custom Division run. First Production has the per-run details.

What are the Elements editions?

Four themed special editions, Aquatic for water, Terrus for earth, Ignis for fire and Aerum for air, each with its own blade steel, TechnoCarbo scale material, anodized or polished hardware and a matching bead. The series ran on the F3 from December 2022 to September 2023 and on the 111 from October 2024 to July 2025, with the same steel and scales for each theme on both platforms: Vanax 37 on the Aquatic, S90V on the Terrus, M390 on the Ignis and Elmax on the Aerum. Every Elements knife shipped with a lanyard and its bead, and a listing without them is incomplete. Special editions has the dates and the full table.

What is a dealer exclusive?

A serial knife in a configuration made for one dealer, with the dealer’s scale colors, blade finish, milling pattern or packaging; the Monkey Edge Frag pattern NeOn is the best-known example, and the F3 and NeOn lines have carried several. The knife underneath is the production model, so a dealer exclusive stays on the serial tier even when a dealer lists it as a Sprint Run, as with the E-Knives Quantum Ursus edition of 30. The official distributors and dealers are those on the factory’s list. The tier ladder places dealer exclusives and finish-artist editions beside the tiers.

Is a Sinkevich Touch set a collaboration?

No. A Touch set is the workshop’s own production model, the F95, NeOn Zero, Stellar, Astrum or Q95, with Sinkevich hardware, anodizing and engraving, sold at the California Custom Knife Show in runs of 38 or 50 since 2018; Touch describes the finishing, not the design. Every set runs MRBS and none carries a Custom Division marking, so it is a show-edition sub-run of a serial model. From 2021 each set includes a Sinkevich-designed tool and a Cova leather pouch, and a set without its tool is incomplete. The register of the six sets is on the Sinkevich Touch page.

What is the CannaBis family?

The 2013 Dmitry Sinkevich collaboration: a 100 mm liner lock under Micarta, G10 or carbon fiber, in the True, Real, Ice and TNK configurations, with the 85 mm Mini CannaBis of the 2016 Cards V project beside it. Like every collaboration it is another designer’s shape built by the workshop in numbered runs. The CannaBis overview has each configuration.

What is the Overkill family?

RJ Martin’s collaboration family: five 100 mm releases on single-row roller bearings, from the Russian Overkill of January 2021 to the Arctic Overkill of March 2024, 900 pieces in all, and the series is closed. Rollers on an Overkill are what the family was built with rather than a sign of another tier. The Overkill family page has the five.

Which models ship with a tool or a bead?

The Hati and the F3 ship with a titanium lanyard bead. The Elements editions ship with a lanyard and a themed bead, and the 111 BE with a faceted bronze-anodized titanium bead. The Sinkevich Touch sets ship with their tool, the Cyber Tool in 2021 and 2022, the Ambi-Tool in 2023 and the Capsule Tool in 2024 and 2025, and a Cova leather pouch; the F3 Outdoor ships with a Sinkevich sheath in place of a clip. The Custom Division Tool, which carries the bits for Custom Division knives, is sold separately. Every bead and tool is registered on Beads.