Two finishes stand out among CS2's gold-toned knives: Lore, a yellow-and-gold paint job with carved knotwork, and Tiger Tooth, a golden-yellow base with dark tiger stripes. Lore is available on ten knife models and doesn't depend on pattern, while Tiger Tooth spans eighteen models (including newer ones added via the 2025 Fever Case) but only in Factory New and Minimal Wear. Prices run from ≈$40 for Shadow Daggers | Lore in Battle-Scarred to ≈$1,640 for Butterfly Knife | Lore in Factory New. The best balance of price and look is Gut Knife | Lore, from ≈$70. Below: seven models across these two finishes — how they look, where they come from, and what drives their price.
Shadow Daggers | Lore (Budget Entry)
Shadow Daggers in the Lore finish is a yellow-and-gold paint job with carved knotwork across the paired blades. The finish launched in September 2021 with the Operation Riptide Case, then was added to the Dreams & Nightmares Case in January 2022; it comes in all five wears, with a StatTrak version.
The model itself is inexpensive, which makes Lore on it the cheapest way to get a gold blade: from ≈$40 in Battle-Scarred to ≈$100 in Factory New.
Gut Knife | Lore (Best Value)
Gut Knife in the Lore finish carries the same yellow-and-gold pattern as Shadow Daggers, but on a model with a curved, hook-shaped blade. The finish launched in June 2016 with the Gamma Case, comes in all five wears, with a StatTrak version.
The price gap between wears is noticeably tighter here than on the pricier models: from ≈$70 in Battle-Scarred to ≈$120 in Factory New — a practical pick if you want a predictable budget without betting on a specific wear.
Karambit | Lore (Most Recognizable)
Karambit in the Lore finish puts the same knotwork pattern on the most recognizable knife model in CS2, with its curved, sickle-like blade. The finish launched in June 2016 with the Gamma Case, comes in all five wears, with a StatTrak version.
Here the price is driven mainly by the Karambit's own base cost rather than the finish's rarity: from ≈$450 in Battle-Scarred to ≈$1,080 in Factory New.
Butterfly Knife | Lore (Premium Showcase)
Butterfly Knife in the Lore finish is the same gold pattern, but on a model with a flipping mechanism that commands its own premium on top. The finish launched in September 2021 with the Operation Riptide Case, then came to the Dreams & Nightmares Case in January 2022; it comes in all five wears, with a StatTrak version.
The priciest pick in the lineup: from ≈$480 in Battle-Scarred to ≈$1,640 in Factory New — a showcase pick, not a budget entry.
Navaja Knife | Tiger Tooth (Second Gold Finish, Budget Entry)
Navaja Knife in the Tiger Tooth finish is the second genuinely gold-toned look in this lineup. The finish keeps its recognizable golden-yellow base with dark tiger stripes regardless of pattern; the stripes' exact placement can differ between copies, but there are no rare or especially sought-after pattern variants the way there are with Case Hardened. The finish launched in March 2019 with the Prisma Case, and comes only in Factory New and Minimal Wear — no more worn condition exists for Tiger Tooth on any model.
Navaja is one of the cheapest models with this finish: from ≈$60 in Factory New to ≈$80 in Minimal Wear.
Survival Knife | Tiger Tooth (Mid-Tier)
Survival Knife in the Tiger Tooth finish carries the same yellow-and-gold, tiger-striped look on a heavy, wide-bladed knife. The finish was added in March 2025 with the Fever Case, and comes only in Factory New and Minimal Wear.
Price sits in the middle tier between Navaja and the pricier models. Going by LIS-SKINS' current listings, Minimal Wear runs a bit higher than Factory New here: ≈$90 to ≈$110. That gap may come down to a limited number of listings available in that wear.
M9 Bayonet | Tiger Tooth (Premium)
M9 Bayonet in the Tiger Tooth finish puts the same look on the classic, elongated bayonet model. The finish launched in January 2015 with the Chroma Case, and comes only in Factory New and Minimal Wear.
The priciest gold knife in this lineup, with that same narrow wear range. Going by LIS-SKINS' current listings, Minimal Wear runs a bit higher here too: ≈$580 to ≈$610. As with the Survival Knife, that gap may come down to a limited number of listings available.
Getting a Gold Knife
Five Lore models — Gut Knife, Karambit, Flip Knife, Bayonet, and M9 Bayonet — drop from the Gamma Case and Gamma 2 Case from 2016. Five more — Shadow Daggers, Butterfly Knife, Falchion Knife, Bowie Knife, and Huntsman Knife — arrived later, with the Operation Riptide Case and Dreams & Nightmares Case from 2021-2022. Tiger Tooth is spread more widely: eighteen models across different cases — Navaja from the Prisma Case and Prisma 2 Case, M9 Bayonet from the Chroma Case line, and Survival Knife from the more recent 2025 Fever Case. All of these cases except Fever dropped out of the active weekly rotation long ago, so in practice people buy them on the market along with a key.
The second route is a trade-up contract. Five regular Covert-rarity skins are eligible for it, and the result is a random knife or pair of gloves from pools that depend on the collections of the input items used. There's no way to guarantee a specific model or finish — Lore or Tiger Tooth alike — in advance; the input skins only set the pool of possible outcomes.
What Determines a Gold Knife's Price
Knife model. The same finish costs very differently across models: Lore on Shadow Daggers runs for a fraction of what it costs on a Butterfly Knife, and Tiger Tooth on Navaja costs a fraction of what it does on an M9 Bayonet. That's a premium for the base model, not for the finish itself.
Float and wear. On copies with a high float, scuffing and damage to the pattern become more visible, so the blade can look noticeably different from a Factory New copy. Tiger Tooth's wear options are even more limited — only Factory New and Minimal Wear — and on some of its models, going by LIS-SKINS' current listings, a Minimal Wear copy costs more than Factory New, possibly due to fewer listings available in that wear.
StatTrak. Kill-counter versions are available for both Lore and Tiger Tooth. A StatTrak copy usually costs more, but how much more depends on the model, wear, and current demand, and with thin liquidity on a given model-and-finish pair the premium can swing unpredictably.
Patterns on other finishes. If gold color matters more than Lore or Tiger Tooth specifically, some collectors chase rare gold-leaning patterns of Case Hardened. Those copies are usually hunted down by exact pattern number, using marketplace filters or specialized skin-analysis services.
Comparing all seven picks — model, finish, wears, and price from each extreme:
| Skin | Finish | Wears | Price From | Price To |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shadow Daggers | Lore | all five | ≈$40 (BS) | ≈$100 (FN) |
| Gut Knife | Lore | all five | ≈$70 (BS) | ≈$120 (FN) |
| Karambit | Lore | all five | ≈$450 (BS) | ≈$1,080 (FN) |
| Butterfly Knife | Lore | all five | ≈$480 (BS) | ≈$1,640 (FN) |
| Navaja Knife | Tiger Tooth | FN/MW only | ≈$60 (FN) | ≈$80 (MW) |
| Survival Knife | Tiger Tooth | FN/MW only | ≈$90 (FN) | ≈$110 (MW) |
| M9 Bayonet | Tiger Tooth | FN/MW only | ≈$580 (FN) | ≈$610 (MW) |
Prices reflect LIS-SKINS listings at the time of writing. The "≈" mark means an approximate price; quotes and the availability of specific wears can change.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which gold knife is the best starting pick without a big budget?
Shadow Daggers | Lore is the cheapest option in the lineup, from ≈$40 in Battle-Scarred. If you specifically want Tiger Tooth, the cheapest entry is Navaja Knife, from ≈$60 in Factory New — there's no cheaper wear for this finish.
Are there other gold finishes besides Lore?
Yes. Besides Lore, CS2 has Tiger Tooth — a golden-yellow finish with distinctive dark stripes, available on eighteen models (from classics like the Karambit to newer ones added via the 2025 Fever Case, such as the Survival Knife), but only in Factory New and Minimal Wear. Gold tones also show up on individual Case Hardened patterns, but their look depends on the pattern number rather than being the finish's base appearance.
Which models come in the Lore finish?
Ten: Gut Knife, Karambit, Flip Knife, Bayonet, and M9 Bayonet from the 2016 cases, plus Shadow Daggers, Butterfly Knife, Falchion Knife, Bowie Knife, and Huntsman Knife from the 2021-2022 cases.
Can you get a gold knife through a trade-up contract instead of cases?
Five eligible regular Covert-rarity skins can be used in a trade-up contract for a chance at a random knife or gloves. The possible outcomes depend on the collections of the input items, so you can't guarantee a specific model or finish — Lore or Tiger Tooth — ahead of time.
