Tool review: Stanley 10-099 Classic 99 Retractable Utility Knife

Key Features:
 +   Extra blade storage
 +   Reliable slider
 -   Not much grip


Utility knives come in all shapes and sizes, and offer many different features.  If you are looking for a standard, bare bones, no-frills utility knife, the Stanley Classic 99 Retractable Utility Knife (model #10-099) is right up your alley.  It's a gray metal utility knife that typically costs about five or six bucks ($5.42 on BuilderProtection.com right now, $6.59 on Staples.com, $7.28 on Amazon.com).  It has a slider along the top to extend and retract the blade, and not much else.

The Classic 99 utility knife is not feature-rich, but it will get the job done.  It's a sturdy, solid knife with a slider that rarely gets stuck.  You can extend the blade to two different positions and retract it easily.  When you need to change the blade -- or if you ever need to lubricate the slider mechanism -- the knife casing comes apart easily with the removal of just one Phillips screw.

One feature the Classic 99 knife does offer is extra blade storage.  You can keep a few extra blades inside the knife casing, toward the back.  If you only store one or two blades in there, you can sometimes hear them rattling around as you carry or use the knife, but if that gets annoying you can always fill it with more blades, or buffer the blades with paper, cotton balls, or whatever you have laying around.

This 6" utility knife is good to have in a tool bag or tool box, but it may be a little heavy to carry around in your pocket all day.  It's significantly heavier than a box cutter or a plastic utility knife.  It has a small hole in the bottom of the handle so you can hang it from a nail or peg, or keep it on a key chain.

Unless you work in cold weather a lot (in which case the exposed metal will be cold against your hand) or you need a knife that offers more functionality, the Stanley Classic 99 Retractable Utility Knife is a good, simple utility knife that will most likely serve you well for a long time.  The knife comes with three carbon alloy steel blades and Stanley's limited lifetime warranty.

(Originally posted on Helium.com, Feb 2013)

Tool Review: Stanley 10-788 InstantChange Retractable Knife

Key Features:
 +   Good grip
 +   Extra blade storage
 -    Blade doesn't slide out quickly


A utility knife is a staple of any complete home tool box.  For many people, it's used every day at work.  There's nothing wrong with a "standard" metal utility knife, but if you want something a little bit better and don't mind paying a few bucks more, check out the Stanley InstantChange Retractable Knife (model #10-788).

The InstantChange retractable knife is similar to other utility knives; it holds a razor blade that can be extended or retracted with a flick of the thumb.  But this knife has many more features that make it an attractive purchase.

Rather than just being a long piece of hard metal, this knife has a plastic handle on the bottom side, a rubber grip on the top side, and a rubber thumb rest near the blade.  These features make the Stanley knife more comfortable both to hold and to use.  The thumb rest in particular is nice when you do a lot of cutting, or when you have to cut through something tough.  The rubber and plastic grip pieces make the InstantChange knife a good utility knife to use outdoors in the cold, rather than an all-metal knife that can feel freezing, even after using it for a while.

The blade can be removed easily -- just extend the blade, hold down the yellow button, and remove it.  A new blade (or the other side of the same blade) can be installed just as simply -- hold down the yellow button and push the blade all the way in.  Both the yellow release button and the slider on top of the knife can stick occasionally, but this doesn't happen often and it doesn't significantly affect performance.

This knife has room to store extra blades, so you'll always have a spare on hand.  The extra blades can be stowed in the base of the knife, and they can be accessed quickly and easily, without having to use any tools.  There is a hole at the bottom of the handle, so the knife can be hung from a hook, peg, or nail.

There is a slit cut into the base of the knife, exposing a tiny portion of the razor blade, which allows this knife to be used for cutting string.  If you do a lot of string cutting, this could be a useful feature.  The blade is recessed enough that there's no risk of injury from the exposed edge.

Aside from being practical, the Stanley InstantChange Retractable Knife looks a lot more appealing than other utility knives.  The gray metal and black plastic and rubber pieces fit well together, and the knife curves slightly, which makes it stand out from many other knives.  This knife would be a great addition to any tool box, and it would make a good gift for anyone who needs a durable utility knife.

(Originally posted on Helium.com, February 2013)

Stanley tool reviews

Levels:
- Stanley 42-240 Pro I-Beam Level

Multi Tools:
- Stanley 84-519 12-in-1 Multi-Tool
- Stanley T16 FatMax Multi Tool

Pliers:
- Stanley 84-096 5" Needle Nose Pliers

Screwdrivers:
- Stanley 66-344 4-in-1 Pocket Screwdriver
- Stanley 66-358 Stubby Ratcheting Multibit Screwdriver
- Stanley 69-189 FatMax Ratcheting Screwdriver

Socket Sets:
- Stanley 85-721 3-Piece 3/8" Drive Professional Grade Spark Plug Socket Set

Utility Knives:
- Stanley 10-099 Classic 99 Retractable Utility Knife
- Stanley 10-788 InstantChange Retractable Knife