Tactical Knives

I know a lot about this subject. I started to buy and collect knives when I was just a little kid in Brooklyn, New York. I had so little money that to spend $5.00 for a knife was a great deal of money for me. I never had a decent stone to sharpen a knife, I only had a tiny India stone I used to sharpen Fish hooks that my Uncle gave me. I used to sharpen my knife on the concrete curb, thats all that was available to me.

In todays world of folding and sheath knives, you have choices of excellent knives at very reasonable prices. I will list a few and make my comments. If you like this subject and want to know more about knives and the various steels and sharpening proceedures please email me. I spent a lot of time in Karate schools learning how to fight against a knife when you did not have your favorite Glock or whatever. Of course its not a good idea to bring a knife to a gun fight.

COLD STEEL , No one makes a sharper knife. The Voyager series to name one model are excellent. The lock is excellent and the handle material is Zytel which is indestructible. Cold Steel also makes excellent neck knives like the Mini Culloden model, which is available in plain and serrated blades.

MICROTECH is a very well made liner lock knife that is high dollar. I own quite a few, they are super sharp and made using 154 CM steel, they are a permium knife by any standards.
They do not make many manual models and their "Socom" is like a razor. They do make a lot of Automatics.

MASTERS OF DEFENSE were just bought out by BLACKHAWK INDUSTRIES. They are high dollar and a very well made knife. They are not cheap and my facorite model is the "Lady Hawk". These MOD knives use a liner lock, they are a premium knife.

COLUMBIA RIVER aka CRKT is a very good knife, there line of knives is very extensive and they make everything you could imagine. Most of their folders use a flipper design, making one hand opening a piece of cake. They use a liner lock, but unlike most other brands they have a secondary lock to insure this knife will never close on your fingers. All their models are good especially their M16 model. They are made of very good steel in Taiwan.

CAMILLUS makes a model called the "Dominator" which is an assisted opening model and it can be opened with one hand very easily. I usually carry this model which has a blade made of SV 30 steel, it has a liner lock and has a very strong Titanium frame, buts its pricey.

SOG Knives are excellent, especially their "Vision" series which has an ARC LOCK and it is much stronger than a liner lock system. It opens as smooth as glass. They have two types, one has a Titanium frame and the other is a Synthetic frame at a reduced cost. They have an extensive line and some are made in Japan.

SPYDERCO knifes are all very good. I like their "Police" and their "Civillian" model. They are all very easy to open with one hand with some practice using your thumb in the large hole in the blade. They are all super sharp and they offer plain and serrated edges.

BENCHMADE knives are another company that is top of the line in quality. I like the AXIS LOCK much better than the liner lock system. They call them their McHenry and Williams series. These are not cheap knives and they have a nice selection for every ones needs.

KERSHAW makes a lot of knifes that were designed by Ken Onion of Hawaii and some are assisted opening models. Kershaw has an excellent knife for the money. Pete Kershaw and Al Mar used to work for Pete Gerber, both Kershaw and Al Mar opened their own companies to compete with Gerber. I believe Pete Kershaw still owns his Company and Al Mar died as a young man, many years ago while in a Chinese Restaurant.

GERBER knives are now owned by FISKARS CORP. and they make a decent factory knife along with an extensive line of scissors. They do make quite a few lock back folders giving you a very decent selection.

I would need a great many commentaries to be able to go into much greater detail about all the companies, some of which I have not named. I own a lot of very expensive hand made as well as factory knives and my biggest problem is opening them with one hand.
My personal choices are the Titanium Camillus Dominator, the CRKT M16, the Titanium SOG Vision using their Ark Lock and the Benchmade Axis folders.

I must admit that for a serious knife fight, there would be only one choice for me and that would be a Cold Steel Voyager or Vaquero with a very large blade, either 5 or 6 inches in length. This choice is second to none for a serious social encounter when you have left your handgun at home. Different edges are available, such as serrated or plain. I suggest you contact Cold Steel and get their free DVD, the link is on my home page of my website.

Please Note:
I would like to know if you want me to continue to write commentaries about knives and their steels and the best way to sharpen them. This is one of my favorite subjects.

Teddy Jacobson / Pistolsmith
www.actionsbyt.com
281 277 4008
tjacobson@houston.rr.com
www.actionsbyt.blogspot.com/