Sharptactics; Sharp, Bright and Tactical WebMagazine

Idaho's SCAR Blades, New Company, Outstanding Quality...Review En Route.

2012-01-17T15:15:00.000-08:00

I caught myself a Grizzly at a very fair price on one of the well-known knife retail sites...& I love it.

SCAR Blades is a very young, family-owned company out of Idaho, USA. I get excited about new knife companies emerging, because the industry is growing all the time. It's sort of fun to guess at a company's intentions, & then watch what happens as they become more well-known. Is a new company huffing & puffing "Cold Steel" style, about their products? (Don't get me wrong, I own LOTS of Cold Steel, their marketing is just silly). Or are they the real deal? SCAR Blades, brainchild of the Radford brothers, seems to be the real deal indeed! These are thick, military/police grade knives built for a beating, working knives, you know what I mean. These are US made, purpose built blades.

After checking out SCAR's website, I checked around, & my favorite retail knife site was seemingly one of a small handful of sites carrying them. I took a chance. I got my SCAR Grizzly today, & I have to say...really well done. Everything you'd expect from say, another great Idaho firm, Tops Knives USA, but, in my opinion, priced a bit more fairly...but similarly constructed. The sheath system is great, the design is great, the compact size is great. I am seriously looking forward to putting this knife through its paces. Look for my review in a few weeks, & check these guys out. I'll be carrying my Grizzly on the belt, & just dropped into the side pocket of my Ranger pants, to see what my carry preference will be. Small batch production, family owned & operated, USA made. Can't go wrong.

knife Pr0n...Elishewitz is, and will always be...The Man...The Saboteur.

2012-01-15T23:04:00.000-08:00

Photo borrowed from True North Knives....they carry lots of awesome stuff...not just knives...but then, most of the knives they carry are not simply "just knives" either, they're works of art.

SpecificationsBlade Length: 4 1/2"
Cutting edge: 3 3/4"
Overall Length: 8 1/2"
Closed Length: 4 7/8"
Blade Steel: CTS-XHP STAINLESS
Handle Material: SUPER AMBOYNA BURL Bolster/Guard: Polished Titanium
Sheath Description: TNK Ballistic Logo Pouch
Weight: 6.2 ounces / 173 grams

New reviews & stuff are in the works, (slowly, but seriously). I just caught this on True North Knives...stunning.

You're probably familiar with his name & unique logo stamp, Mr. Elishewitz has been doing awesome things for a long time.

My intro into the whole "custom collaboration" world, long, long ago, was when I saw Benchmade's original Elishewitz Stryker folder, & the original (original original) Elishewitz Benchmade Nimravus fixed blade...ya know, back when Allen's name & logo were on both? My Nimravus is still with me, & in good shape & has served me well, but both of my original Elishewitz BM Strykers changed hands somewhere along the way. I still have a classic, albeit beat-up, Benchmade Elishewitz Sentinel as well, with the gorgeous blue anodized ti liners. Somewhere I also traded away my Sentinel "2.0" as I called it, the Elishewitz/Benchmade mini "Dark Star", which had killer gold anodized liners. The pic below appears to be a Sentinel, yet has the "star" cutout in the G10, like the later knife, the Dark Star series. The original Sentinels had black aluminum slabs atop the ti liners, whereas the Dark Stars used G10.

Benchmade's old Elishewitz Sentinel-inspired "dark star", circa probably 1996? Maybe 1998? Out of production, but still awesome. I wish they'd bring it back.

ANYHOW...

Those past collabs with the Big "B" are cool, & those knives hold a special place in my heart, & also in my out-of-control knife collection, but nothing is more jaw-dropping than any one of Mr. Elishewitz's custom pieces. Like many of us, knives like the one pictured above are out of my reach, financially, for an indefinite period of time, but I will own an Elishewitz custom folder some day...until then, I'll be drooling on sites like True North Knives & at Elishewitzknives.com.

Allen also makes amazing writing instruments & is a first-class Watchmaker, as well. A true renaissance man in the world of fine, functional art.

Important words on our KNIFE & gun rights from Sandy Froman.

2012-01-11T23:01:00.000-08:00

Please hang with the 20m & watch this...join knife rights if you haven't

Sandy Froman, past president of the National Rifle Association and one of the nation's foremost Second Amendment activists, was the keynote speaker at Knife Rights' Second Annual Sharper Future™ Awards Breakfast held June 11th during BLADE Show in Atlanta, Georgia.

Froman spoke on "How To Win a Knife Fight--Lessons Learned in the Crucible of the Second Amendment"

Christmas Music Interlude....rare, weird, & otherwise different.

2011-12-23T01:37:00.000-08:00

We'll be cranking out new reviews in the New Year. I've been lazy as hell with SB&T lately, I think it all started with the advent of the Facebook page. It's easier, quicker & more fun to start convos & put up posts there where a diverse community of cool people can mull them over...whereas, at least lately, when I'm uninspired, hammering out a review, w/ pix & all seems like a bit of work during the bleak Fall & Winter seasons. To everybody who has ever taken the time to read anything here, comment, or "Like" the Facebook page, THANK YOU! Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Happy Kwanzaa, & what ever else you celebrate around the world. May you all get lots of cool knives, flashlights & other tactical stuff & have a safe, fun holiday with the people who care about you. Enjoy the tunes & Jes & I will be back and on target ASAP. I've been stalling on videos too, but I have a tripod now, so no excuses!
Take care,
Aaron

Oh...and THIS:

GET IN THE SPIRIT DAMMIT!!

Sweet Neko Case hails from my town...I think this is a Tom Waits cover.

This, from stunning Allison Goldfrapp, is nice too. Yes! I do have widely varied musical tastes.

I'll leave you with the great Steve Earle...

WAIT......ONE MORE!!!!!!!!

Well said, or in my case "cut shit up". I find "taking down" recyclables with a big Cold Steel folder to be sort of therapeutic.

2011-12-02T11:47:00.001-08:00

2011-11-18T07:54:00.000-08:00

Pocket ToolX Brewzer Keychain Tool, USA made multi-use simplicity!

2011-11-17T09:13:00.000-08:00

Let me say, that, oddly enough, composing a review for simple items, like keychain tools and the like, can often be more challenging than really digging into a hotly anticipated tactical knife. I mean, there's really not much to say; either a keychain tool is mediocre, like Gerber's "Shard" & "Artifact" tools, or they're fantastic, like Mr. Peter Atwood's handmade, & extremely expensive cult-followed masterpieces for the keychain.

Brewzer, with my ITW Nexus Grimloc plastic carabiner, a useful tool in itsself, I've been toting the Brewzer on a small piece of ball-chain hooked to the Grimloc.

Unless we are Peter Atwood devotees, with large pocketbooks...not many of us in our right minds are going to shell out $75 USD on upward to a couple hundred for something that we throw on a ring with our car keys. Don't get me wrong, the man makes gorgeous, functional tools, but the reasonable pragmatist in me (what's left in me) calls "BULLSHIT" on spending that much on a little, yet well-made trinket. I'm not even going to "go there" with Gerber's little black keychain tools, which are essentially $5-$10 USD ripoffs of Mr. Atwood's ideas. Gerber has been on my BAD side for a LONG time. They were "acquired" by Fiskars of Finland back around 1989 I believe...& myself having worked extensively in retail cutlery, their obvious decline over the past 20 years is both embarrassing & shocking. I actually DO like their "Shard" prybar tool, a bit, though it IS Chinese made, & not of very good quality...if you're curious, google it, I'm not going to waste your time here but to say "shame on Gerber", for nearly every product they've put out in the past 15 years, many factory recalls, unsafe, noneffective & just plain goofy designs...I cannot tell you how backward Gerber "Legendary" blades now appears to people like many of us, who know our stuff regarding quality knives & tools.

The underside of the tool, showcasing the bird's-beak-esque "package ripper" that really opens boxes nicely, but is dull enough not to cause any bloody accidents in your pocket.

Enter Pocket ToolX, the name first found me on Facebook, maybe a year ago...& I thought, "ok, some fly-by-night" new little tool company riffing on Atwood...whatever. How wrong I was, & how surprised I am. For most of us tactical gear-heads, price can be irrelevant as long as we're after an item that really grabs us. I'm not rich, matter of fact, I'm unemployed at the moment, but I have very few expenses, no children, & I'm unmarried, so on the rare occasion I REALLY want something, I'll find a way to make it happen. Long story short, after I placed my knifecenter order for the Brewzer, by pocket ToolX, I thought "what the hell am I doing paying $12 USD for a frigging BOTTLE OPENER? I have a green aluminum 99c opener I bought @ Seattle's BigStar beer market that works just fine!? I'm madness incarnate, WTF?!". When my Brewzer arrived, i changed my tune....

The Brewzer with a flimsy aluminum .99c counterpart that I purchased from a jar on the counter of one of Seattle's best all-beer markets, BigStar beer.

I'm not a huge drinker, but I love gadgets, & it seems whenever I am around friends, & beer, some jackass is always drinking micro-brew, non twist-offs, & panicking without an opener. PTX's USA manufacture tipped my decision to go ahead with it, that's impressive to me, they probably could just as easily bang out their tools in some human-rights-violating sweatshop in Red China, or somewhere worse, & sell nearly as many...but they don't, they're made here, at home. Apparently they're finished & packaged in my own proverbial backyard, the great Pacific Northwest, in Renton, WA, which is literally about a 20 minute drive from me, which makes me an almost instant fan by proxy alone.

My preferred carry method so far (attached to my car keys) with a small ball-chain & ITW Nexus Grimloc locking polymer carabiner.

Pocket Tool X seems to be garnering a fast following (especially on Facebook) among those of us dissatisfied with inferior keychain-sized tools, who want something a bit more light & compact that say, Leatherman's fantastic Micra & Squirt & Style series tools. I'm a HUGE fan of Portland's Leatherman, just this past summer I upgraded my Multi-tool collection & procured seven new Leatherman models after selling some knives for cash to some good friends.
Sometimes it's just nice to go minimal, when you're traveling, to keep it light & simple, ya know? The PTX Brewzer is a very cool & simple little device that should set you back no more than about twelve American dollars. It weighs a scant 16 grams, is a solid piece of heat treated stainless, boasts USA manufacture, as I mentioned, & proclaims itsself to be TSA/airline compliant...of course, always check before flying with anything you don't want to have to surrender to those grabby-handed TSA assholes.

upon "unboxing", the blister card is all recyclable, & sports handsome simple graphics which lay out all you need to know.

The Brewzer, my Brewzer sports a nice tumbled/stonewashed finish. It's my understanding that "stonewashing" knife steel, is basically a process where the finished steel is tumbled in a machine with say, little diamond or ceramic beads or cones, to give the surface sort of a distressed, uniformly scuffed pattern look. I believe PTX also offers this tool in a "smoke" finish gray, which I have yet to see, except for pre-order from good 'ol Knifecenter.com, for a few bucks more.

Here's PTX's no-nonsense chart of features:

One overlooked feature is the curve above the bottle opener notch will accommodate a 1/4" hex nut in a pinch, I have yet to try it, but judging from the rest of the tool, I'm sure it performs adequately. You'll notice the beer bottle shaped cutout in the body as well, it will function as an oxygen tank wrench for beer drinking (off the job of course) professional first responders like SB&T's own new team member, Jesse. The tool sports jimping for grip on both top & bottom, making popping beer caps damn near effortless. The flat tip of the box/package ripper notch will handle flathead screws, & probably some phillips screws in a tight pinch as well.
Check out the links peppered throughout the above text...& see more of what these guys are offering, at pockettoolx.com

I am very impressed overall with the Brewzer, & excited to see what else the guys @ Pocket Tool X come out with this coming year. Their prices are fair, products are top notch quality made with great materials...very good stuff indeed!
Again, this tool is so well thought-out, inexpensive, & well-constructed here on our home-shores...that there's really not much else to say, it does everything it's supposed to, with ease & gusto, & will be the envy of your bottle-drinking buddies every time you break it out, instead of your lame souvenir shark-shaped aluminum opener that's all scratched to hell!

Here's one more shot, with my Victorinox Huntsman, simply for size reference...

Leatherman Wingman & Pocket Tool X Brewzer reviews coming soon.

2011-11-14T23:29:00.000-08:00

shitty cell pic, more pix soon. Leatherman Wingman.

A mean little all-purpose keychain item, like a Peter Atwood, but $12 USD instead of $150...and USA made to boot.

Fenix E11 is a handful of surprisingly awesome Chinese innovation, & thoughts on "Buying American".

2011-10-20T20:48:00.000-07:00

Like most of us, I try to "buy American" whenever I can. Doing so supports our local & national sagging economies, supports jobs at home in times of economic uncertainty, ensures we know where our products come from, ensures that fair labor practices were employed in said manufacturing situation, & almost always ensures superior quality. As I've noted before, as a much younger guy, I thought that the flag-waving middle aged men I heard shouting "Buy American" were somehow biased, or influenced by racism or nationalism. I know better as an adult of course, citing all of the previous examples, which are my own reasons for "buying American", most of the time. Those things said, there are such things as quality foreign made products, though we don't always think of them as "foreign". Victorinox/Wenger (the same entity in 2011) for example, they have an American HQ, but are still Swiss-based, in Ibach, & most certainly Swiss-made. As of late, people are & have been, talking about how "everything" is made in China. Certainly there's lots of stuff that's made in Asia, particularly China, that we sometimes cannot avoid. Go to Target, I challenge you to count the number of American Made items you find. Rambling opinions aside, Fenix Lights are out of China, & I gotta say, they're inexpensive (relatively) & superfucking high quality from a handful of examples that I own.
I found a $20 & some ones in my "car" backpack, that I stash under the passenger seat, I was looking for a business card when I found the hidden cash. I had time to kill & headed over to my local REI. I really dislike REI for their targeted super-fit, "money is no object", yuppie elitist clientele, their high prices, and many of their employees in many of their stores, but they DO carry good stuff @ reasonable prices on occasion, & depending on the time of year. Long story shortened, I dropped about $27 USD on a Fenix E11, & it's an impressive little piece of work. I have no home-fried pics up, because it's so new, but I'll likely throw some performance data & night shots up here as time allows. Fenix's site is great, because, while their Engrish...ahem "Eng-Lish" isn't always perfect, their big photos clearly detail all of their product specs...if only more American manufacturers would take this simple & effective approach!!

Because they have ready-made photos of specs & data on the site, this spares me (and YOU) the monotony of naming features & listing specifications, (thankya Jeezus-sah!). All you need to know if that the E11 is mega small, mega light, uses a single AA battery, comes with a lanyard, spare o-ring & spare tailcap, has a momentary/constant "tactical" style clicky tailcap, and goes from 32 lumens to 105 lumens with a short rotation of the bezel-head. Oh, and it's waterproof, IPX8, which basically means it'll survive full-on immersion, as long as depths that create big pressure are avoided. If I'm wrong & you're one of those forum-obsessed flashlight analysts, feel free to comment, but basically, you could drop your Fenix light in a shallow stream (under a meter deep?), come back for it in the morning, & while your battery may be exhausted, the internal chip & guts should be good & dry. It's sealed tightly with an o-ring, & the fact that they've provided a spare, along with the spare rubber tailcap boot increases the value of this little guy tremendously. I can't remember how many times I ran an incandescent Surefire bulb into the ground & had to wait for shipping on another, or get to a local Surefire dealer who was out. As you know, LEDs, more or less, do not burn out...that is, if a light is used so frequently that an LED does burn out after tens of thousands of hours...the bulb is not replaceable. Most good manufacturers SHOULD warrant the LED chip itself, if they do not, then they suck. So, natural burnout-free LED technology, provided with a couple of heavy-wear spare parts in package is worth a lot to who?? To THIS guy...right here.

Take a look, aside from Streamlight (some US & some Chinese products), Fenix is the only company I know of that really delivers on fairly inexpensive LED lights that perform like much more expensive products...now if only they were made here in the States!!

Images Courtesy of Fenix Light

Fenix Light Site in English

What I Carry

2011-10-09T18:02:00.001-07:00

So it's been a long time since I've sat down with the intent of putting something up here. Coming on maybe two years since my last entry was submitted... maybe more when you get down to brass tax. But I'm not popping out of my relative obscurity to simply deride myself for my utter infrequency in posting anything here. Far from it.

While I enjoy things sharp, bright and tactical, there's not a lot of the aforementioned that you might find around my house. Some of it may be in part due tot he distaste my wife has for things labeled as such. Namely assault rifles and large knives. The other aspect of that is that I've never been one to really fall under the gearhead umbrella when it comes to things relating to either the outdoors or personal defense.

I like simple tools that don't have a lot of room for failure. My pistol of choice being a no frills Taurus Ultra-Lite .38 Spl. I don't wear it concealed, simply a tool that lies within easy evening reach should the unthinkable be introduced upon my home. It's also a firearm that my wife doesn't find exceptionally intimidating and which she has no problems wielding herself should the necessity arise in my absence. It's not a fun gun, or particularly expensive, but it shoots straight and true and fires a fairly lethal load when compared to anything in its smaller sibling caliber of 9mm.

Now while I don't personally carry said gun outside of the home unless it's a trip to the local range, that's not to say that I am without gear unless sitting safely within the confines of my castle. I am a photography enthusiast above all things. I use a mid-level DSLR and it comes out with me close to any day that I'm not stuck at work. The type of photography I'm most fond of is urban and rural exploration, or urbex and rurex respectively. As such this finds me putting myself in places most citizens won't venture. Closed down mills and factories and foreclosed homes, in suburbs, the country, or urban sprawls... basically wherever I can find them.

When I say most people don't explore such places, that's not to say they're always vacant. To the contrary in some scenarios and while some people won't bother you should you happen upon other explorers, there's also another type of person that is potentially more common being so close to a near-metropolis like Seattle. Homeless folks, thugs, and vandals. The urbex mantra of "Take Only Photographs, Leave Only Footprints" is mostly lost upon most of those detailed, but that fact that I am often carrying a couple thousand dollars worth of camera gear may not be.

My typical first order of business is to scope out the area that I've chose to photograph. I keep my gear close at hand and always have my 12oz Wildfire pepper spray in the other. Luckily I've never had to actually spray it. I think my general demeanor and obvious grip on something for self-defense has managed to dissuade most potential attackers that I've encountered while on location. It's also nice because the other group of people you'll encounter most urbexing, and especially if suburban neighbors notice you entering a foreclosed home, is members of the police department, and while I have had several runins such as that, I've never had to explain why I have my pepper spray so close at hand. I guess it's kind of a given.

Anyway, I digress. While it couldn't be said that I am always out with my gear, I do wield a couple of tools that come out with me regardless. the first being a Leatherman Kick that I wear on my belt, the second being the smaller Leatherman Style CS which is permanently fixed to my keys. Both have proven invaluable since I have started using them. The Kick with it's larger blade and needle nose pliers have a plethora of uses that I can't begin to detail but needless to say I find it good for something literally every day that I have it on. It's flathead screwdrivers I've discovered are perfect for poking the tobacco ash of my pipe and the bottle opener as well is indispensable. The style is just as handy, giving me quick access to tweezers, a nail file (which is awesome because I habitually bite my nails which my wife hates), a razor sharp out of the box blade that while smaller than the Kick's blade I actually prefer. And the scissors... I never realized how much I would actually use them upon purchasing, but having them has been something that has brought me piece of mind countless times since attaching them to my keys.

That more or less sums it up for me. Simple and to the point. Like I said, I'm pretty much a regular guy and my funds are too deeply devoted to other hobbies for me to really quibble about fancy gear and expensive to boot. As much as I can see the value in a $300 Benchmade or some other custom knife such as I see often emblazoned on this website, for my purposes the lower priced Leatherman equivalents work just fine. I can't gripe about their foibles, either, while real blade and tactical gear collectors might be able to find fault, I really can't.

Ti Survival Exo Flame

2011-10-07T15:32:00.000-07:00

Review of Ti Survival Exo-Flame Lighter

For Sharp, Bright, and Tactical Web Magazine

By Jesse Israel

The quest for fire… one of man’s oldest pursuits. Well, I have had my own quest for fire over the last few years, except my quest was rather specific. I have been looking for a way to keep an easy fire source on me comfortably for quite some time. I am not a smoker, however when I do smoke it is my pipe, but I still feel the ability to make fire readily is one of those necessary parts of having self-sufficiency, kind of like carrying a knife. If all else fails in an emergency having the ability to make a fire allows you to provide heat and light, two very essential survival items.

Going with the survival mentality I began to carry a fire steel. Let me say that there are a lot of pros to carrying a fire steel as a source of fire. It can get soaked and still work, it doesn’t run out of fuel, it won’t leak fluid or strike accidentally, and it is small, light and compact. However, a fire steel is not a convenient way to light something on fire. To properly use a fire steel one must also have tinder. That means you either carry it with you (one more thing) or you find it at the time. Making fire is now a process rather than something that can be accomplished instantly when needed. So the quest continued…

Enter matches, MacGuyver always carried matches… and a knife, and drove a jeep; explains a lot of my obsessions actually. Matches are still my favorite way to start a fire and Coghlans waterproof matches are still my favorite domestically available match (in other places ie Africa, one can get matches with a lot more punch), but they are bulky to carry. I still carry them often in the winter in my shirt or jacket pocket, or whenever I go into the woods, but they don’t make for a good comfy EDC.

So next comes lighters… I have tried many, many kinds. I will give a short list: Zippo, Imco-Triplex, several “stormproof” butane lighters, Soto, and of course bic. The problems range, Zippo’s are big and bulk and the fuel evaporates too quick, the Imco evaporated more slowly but still did, the refillable butane lighters always crapped out on me after a couple of months even using “premium” butane, the Soto 1^st generation broke as well and the second generation is too bulky to carry and doesn’t work well to light a pipe. The Bics are fine, they aren’t amazing but they work. The issue with all of these lighters was that I didn’t have any more pocket room to devote. I needed a keychain type lighter that meet my needs in a compact way.

Next step… The County Comm Peanut Lighter. Seals with an o-ring so the fuild doesn’t evaporate, fits on the key chain, uses standard fluid easy to get, lights my pipe. The only things I didn’t like was the looks, the way it fell on the keys and the fact that it was actually a tad too small. Then I stumbled upon Ti Survival.

The Solution… The Exo-Flame Lighter by Ti Survival. What a freaking bad ass lighter. I love this thing. It is hand made out of titanium so the weight to size ratio is great and the thing feels bombproof in hand. I have yet to not have it light on the first strike. It is the perfect size for my needs. It has a o-ring seal so the fluid doesn’t evaporate and uses a normal wick, fluid and flint making for easy maintenance. All in all it is a great piece of work. But it is also a piece of art…

The options… I had mine done with a sandblasting followed by a mixed pattern of heat anodizing and it looks cool. I also had three glow dots added to the top which are very bright and now add a glow in the dark marker to my key chain. I also got a custom kydex sheath for it to hang from my jeep keys perfectly. I love almost everything about this lighter. The only complaint is that I am already nicking up the finish. Hopefully it will only be a small problem but I am guessing that it will eventually wear off. Still it looks cool now and everyone has loved it. Even people who aren’t “gear heads” like me or Aaron get a kick out of this thing and ask where I got it. The maker also makes clever little capsules ad kubotons, very talented man as can be seen in the detail of something as small as the treading of the lid.

Well that sums up my quest for fire… for now, hope it helps with yours.

-Jes

http://tisurvival.com/main/

Death By Supertool 300. Not for the faint-of-heart.

2011-10-07T02:02:00.000-07:00

Man these are the guys that messed with Luke & Kenobi in Star Wars...I'm about to test out the replaceable, burly 154cm wire cutters on my new-ish Leatherman.

DPX HEST-F 2.0 Review

2011-10-06T04:59:00.000-07:00

My New EDC

Let me start by saying there have probably been very few times when someone was so hard to convince that it was time for a switch in their everyday carry blade. Yes, I own a lot of knives, and there are things about all of them I like, but when it comes down to it I could count on 2 hands the number of times I have left the house without my Benchmade Auto-Stryker in my pocket in the last 5 years. That knife has seen some wear and has gotten me out of more than one bind. So why switch? Well I suppose the largest part of it was wanting to get away from carrying an automatic. I just don’t like the questionable legalities of it. Sure it was cool when I was young, but now the idea that that could land me in trouble just for carrying it has become unsavory. So the search for a potential replacement began…

It started about a year ago. I have learned a lot about what I like and what I don’t like in an EDC folder over the years. My requirements were that it had to have a metallic handle, not plastic. It needed a blade length under 4 inches, it needed to be deployable quickly without being an automatic, it needed to be tough, it needed to have what one might call tactical qualities to it as it may need to be deployed in self-defense, the weight could not exceed the current weight of my carry, it needed to have a solid lock-up, and it needed to have the option of a right handed tip up pocket clip carry. Now there are a lot of knives out there that meet these criteria. So what made the HEST-F catch my eye?

It all started with the original HEST by ESEE knives. I still love that blade. The idea of a folding version was very exciting from the get go. However, as many of you know there were several production issues with the first incarnation. I never owned a 1.0 so I cannot speak to those issues but I can say that I so far have not suffered any of those issues (lock-up, etc.). I had to think a long time about this purchase. The price was the same as what I spent on my Benchmade and was at the upper end of what I was willing to pay right now. If I was going to spend that kind of money I had to damn sure it was going to be the one.

Now onto the knife…

What I like:

Thickness, the blade is ¼’’ thick, that is massive and I love it. Lock-up is rock solid, so solid that it took me a while to figure out a way to be able to close it with one hand. The titanium handle, I love it. The finish is awesome it feels solid and looks great. The deployment is very cool. I have never owned an “emerson wave” type knife. Yes, I know it is not officially an emerson, but it works on the same principles, and no I do not feel they are knocking off emerson as the original fixed blade design had the exact same cut out which is there to serve as a bottle opener. That opening is indeed faster than my automatic was. It takes a little practice but once you get the hang of it that design is indeed lighting fast. For those who don’t know the emerson wave design is basically a notch or hook in the spine of the blade that hangs on the edge of your pocket while withdrawing the knife deploying the blade as it is drawn. I also like the many “bonuses” that this knife has, such as the bottle opener, glass punch, hex bit wrench hole, the very aggressive jimmping on the spine, etc. It also comes with a nifty little tool for adjusting things on the knife, kind of like an Atwood pocket tool. The knife is on the whole a very well thought out design with a lot of great features packed in a little package. I am also pretty impressed with the blade steel. The factory edge wasn’t bad but a few passes on the stone and a little stropping and it was hair popping sharp, something that normally took quite a bit of time with the Benchmade.

What I don’t like:

The G10 handle, I don’t like it, it feels cheap, it is rough, thus hanging on your pocket, and is not as tough as a metal handle ( my keys have already made significant marks in just the first week). That is probably my biggest complaint about the knife. The black coating on the blade is not tough enough. I have no idea how theirs is different from other companies but it does scratch easily, period. It had scratched 15 minutes out of the box and scuffs in a day. Whatever they used I feel like there are better choices out there. Yes, the coating on my Benchmade is worn off too, but that took a number of years, I have a feeling most of this will be gone in the first year, but only time will tell. The pocket clip is set a little too far from the handle for blue jeans (maybe not for thicker pants). The retention is still very good, it just isn’t quite as tight in there as I like it. The tensioner has issues as well, it is basically either tight or loose, and there are no real adjustments to be made. If you loosen it then the screw will fall out so just keep it tight and wait for it to break in. Again not a huge issue as the tension reaches a rather nice medium after about 50-100 opens or so.

Credit where credit is due:

It is also worth mentioning that I probably would not have bought this knife, or at least not as soon if it had not been for the review done by Colin Despins. After all the issues with the first model, it took someone who’s review I trust to say the problems were ironed out to make me drop the money.

Overall I do really like this knife and it has replaced my Benchmade as my EDC. I cleaned, sharpened and oiled up my Benchmade to go in the drawer the other day, it was sad. However, I’m not getting rid of it or anything. We will see how the HEST-F 2.0 holds up over time; hopefully I will still be singing its praises in five years too.

http://www.maxvenom.com/dpx_hest_2.0_brilliant

http://dpxgear.com/

By Jesse Israel

For Sharp, Bright and Tactical Web Magazine

Benchmade 375 Adamas Fixed Blade.

2011-10-04T11:40:00.000-07:00

Benchmade Shane Siebert Adamas fixed blade for upcoming release.

This is all I know so far, photo is copyright Benchmade Knives. I'm SUPERFUCKINGSTOKED to see what they roll out this year...and if they've ironed out those quality control hiccups from the last few years.

"The Adamas was designed by Shane Sibert. Fixed Blade Knife with tan finished D2 plain blade and skeletonized handle construction. Also comes with injection molded sheath with secondary locking strap and tension screw.

The Benchmade 375 Adamas, supports Ranger Assistance, and a portion of the proceeds will be donated to the Ranger Assistance Foundation!"

Supposed Specs:
Overall Length: 9.03"
Blade Length: 4.20"
Blade Thickness: 0.17"
Blade Material: D2 Steel
Weight: 5.60 oz.

Apparently a folder is coming down the pipe as well!

Leatherman MUT (non EOD version, detail PIX only).

2011-10-03T21:49:00.000-07:00

This beast of a multi-tool has been out a while now, & I really don't want to spend an hour regurgitating all of its feature information. These are the most detailed pix I could manage with my current ghetto light & camera setup. If you have questions about the tools or are bewildered by what some of these odd implements are, you are likely an adult, & can use google, or sign up on forums. I will say, here's the company's official link.

If you're curious as to function & use, you can download the user's guide HERE.

This bad mamma-jamma is also available all over the web, at a much-reduced cost over the MSRP. Enjoy.

HQ Pix of the work of Elsa Fantino, France's Woman of the Forge.

2011-09-29T21:09:00.000-07:00

My cell pix in the post below did not do Elsa, or her work any justice, you really need to see the detail of these items, especially the neck knife. They have a rugged, old world appeal to them (many of her knives) but still a distinct look of natural beauty. I guarantee we'll be seeing lots of Elsa's work go through the various custom knife websites like the excellent Arizona Custom Knives (which is now actually out of Florida ;)

Sharpie pencil shown only for size reference, here's the untitled neck knife, I paid about $65 +shipping on AZCK

Devil Knuckle (aluminum) & knife (spring steel)

VERY solid & lightweight!

Man... the glass bead & skull round out a great looking package!

kydex sheath with Elsa's medallion

This knuckle comfortable fits even my large hand.

Again with the Sharpie liquid pencil for size reference, standard pen size

Grenades

2011-09-28T02:16:00.000-07:00

The Seattle kind. This is sick as fuck. If you don't like heavy loud hardcore music, don't bother clicking this.

http://grenades.bandcamp.com/track/chrononaut

http://wearegrenades.com/

Elsa Fantino, French Awesomeness

2011-09-27T23:33:00.000-07:00

This is just a quick phone pic of my new Elsa Fantino Devil Knuck, ground from aluminum (SOLID) aluminum. Elsa has a fascinating background in metal arts and often forges with the great Fred Perrin, who I think of as sort of France's answer to a man like Ernest Emerson!

Skull knuckle, about $40 USD + shipping from Julie Hyman's Arizona Custom Knives

I bought one of Elsa's forged neck knives, sorry for the cell pic, but this thing is rad!! Forged from automotive springs with a jeweled and skulled lanyard! Kydex too!

I'm going to keep checking AZCK for more of Elsa's work, she is a unique martial artist but her craftsmanship (craftwomanship!) is outstanding. Check out Elsa & Fred Perrin at work above, & see Elsa's section on AZCK

"Jack Mechal"

2011-09-14T16:30:00.000-07:00

Somebody calling themselves "Jack Mechal" has been spamming the shit out of the comments here...little does the idiot realize comments are moderated because of people like this. I will never post your "Chief Supply" Spam on my comments, nor will I ever shop from "Chief Supply". Please fuck off, or risk a painful beating...I know people all over the world who have the means to guide me to your company...or front door. Stop wasting your time, all of your comments have, and will be marked as spam, and deleted.

FUCK YOU very much.
-A

Ray Mears

2011-09-02T13:40:00.000-07:00

LION-Spy(derco)??

2011-09-02T13:20:00.000-07:00

I had to throw this up here....we've been hearing lots about Lion Steel's DPx HEST folder made for Jeff Randall's ESEE knives as part of the Robert Young Pelton "Dangerous Places" series. I'm really curious to get my hands on a HostileEnvironmentSurvivalTool, & I'd love to handle the LionSpy, (SPYderco & LIONsteel). Hey the name could have been worse, "Spyon", "Spyon Steel" etc. Spyderco's description, found @ knifecenter:

SP157GTIP: C157GTIP LionSpy
Spyderco

Lion Steel Knives of Maniago, Italy represents three generations of knife manufacturing by the Pauletta family. The Spyderco/Lion Steel col - laboration uses Bohler-Uddeholm Elmax blade steel for high edge retention and low maintenance. The blade is hollow-ground with a drop-point shape. The two-piece handle is a black G-10 front scale and a titanium back scale. Both scales are corrugated for enhanced grip and constructed with an adjustable pivot and scale screws. Its Chris Reeve Integral Lock is augmented with a Roto - Block, a pivoting locking mechanism that functions as a back-up lock (doubly locking the knife blade open in addition to integral liner), while also inhibiting the lock’s liner from overextending.

Features

Hand Orientation: Right
Tip Carry Position: Up

Specifications

Blade: 3-5/8" (92 mm)
Edge: 3-9/16" (90 mm)
Overall: 8-7/16" (214 mm)
Closed: 4-5/8" (117 mm)
Steel: ELMAX
Weight: 5.9 oz. (168 g)
Made in Italy

Pretty killer...at an MSRP of $499 it damn well be indestructible. Knifecenter will be selling it for around $320 USD plus shipping to wherever.

Meyerco's Dirk Pinkerton Paramecium Neck Knife- Review Inbound

2011-07-11T17:22:00.000-07:00

The little Paramecium, like most Dirk Pinkerton knives, is good at being concealed, & looking cool, along with being around when you might not be carrying much else.

Full review on the way...

Jesse Takes on Peter Atwood's Poltergeist Tool.

2011-07-11T14:57:00.000-07:00

Author's/Editor's note: Jesse is in his last year of undergraduate school (6^th year!) at North Carolina State University, Majoring in Biological Engineering with a concentration in Environmental, & works for a GeoTechnical Engineering and Construction Testing Firm.

He has been a volunteer firefighter for 7 years & is also a state certified EMT Basic. Jesse is a certified SCUBA diver; holding certs from NAUI in Advanced Open Water, Nitrox, and is also a qualified Rescue Diver.

He is an avid hiker, camper, kayaker, and sailor. Jesse holds a lifetime license in the state of North Carolina to Hunt and Fish both Salt and Fresh Water. Jesse also brews his own beer and plans on attending brew school after graduation. Needless to say, he's got a lot of real world experience using knives & other tools. (Aside from that, his life of work & play makes me seem downright boring! Jesse, along with Mitch, has also been helping me keep the SB&T Facebook page fresh-Aaron)

Photo found @ http://www.tygru.com/?p=484 mini Atwood Poltergeist, a shade smaller than Jesse's

Peter Atwood, for those of you who aren’t familiar, is a knife and tool maker. He occasionally makes knives, but currently seems to focus on small pocket/keychain type custom tools.

I would consider the Poltergeist to be a medium sized tool; it is smaller than his popular prybaby but not as small as the mini version. There are other tools he makes that are larger but it seems that most would fit in the palm of your hand.

His work is quite sought after. In fact, he no longer maintains his sale website and now simply updates a blog whenever he has made a run of something. You simply have to check the blog at the right time to catch something for sale and order one before they sell out. Unfortunately I don’t have the patience to check the blog everyday, waiting for weeks, or even months for a tool I am interested in to come up for sale… enter EBAY. The downside of the ebay approach is, of course, cost. While it seems this tool was sold for about $55 new, I paid about $100, the price of impatience.

Now onto the specs: this tool has a pry-bar/screwdriver tip, a bottle opener which serves as a 5/16 inch wrench, a ¼inch, and a ½ inch hex wrench. The included card states that it is either made of CPM S35v steel or titanium. Since the tool is magnetic, I will assume the former. Let me say that I am in no way a steel expert. I did a little bit of reading and it seems that this is a newer stainless steel that is in fairly common usage by companies such as Benchmade, CRKT, etc. (Editor's note: Pretty much spot on, Crucible Particle Metallurgy makes this one in the USA, I believe, specifically for the knife industry. -ARL)

Right now I have made a very simple para-cord lanyard for it and have just been dropping it in my pocket. I have thought about putting it on my key ring, but it seems a bit large for that and I think it would limit its usefulness.

I have been in the process of moving this month and have so far used it to take apart some pieces of furniture and open some cold ones post-work. In both tasks, its performance was stellar.

The other reason I bought it, and why I don’t want to put it on my keys, is its potential as a kubotan. I am not an expert in martial arts but I have recently been getting interested in this style of self-defense and tactical pens. Fortunately I have not had to use it in that capacity so far but I feel that it would function well in that sense.

It is a little shorter than would be ideal for limb manipulation but the sharpness and square edges of the pry-bar end allows some serious pain to be inflicted with very little effort, especially to the hands and abdomen of the assailant. (Ed. note: I agree, as an on-again, off-again martial arts practitioner. -A) It could also be wielded in a hammer fist style to strike at the face.

Overall I am quite happy with the tool. I look forward to future use of this unique tool and will continue to keep an eye on the Atwood blog for neat tools in the future. I should also mention that this tool was a gift from my wonderful wife as a welcome back from a trip to California.

The original Atwood site: http://www.atwoodknives.com/

The current Atwood blog: http://atwoodknives.blogspot.com/

Photo borrowed from Atwood's site.

SORRY

2011-07-05T03:50:00.001-07:00

Been away...back soon.

Jason Brous Silent Soldier, a Quick Peek, & a word on preventing spots on D2 steel, & some cussing.

2011-05-20T01:42:00.000-07:00

So, I got the Jason Brous Silent Soldier, & it is bad-ass indeed. I've had a rough couple of weeks & can't find the will to write or do any serious work due to some bullshit....but this is none of your concern. Rock out to Wormrot's "Freedom to Act", @ the intro, they're a killer grindey-sorta band from Singapore, & they rule shit, & you can download their new album for free @ Earache records. I'm not a spokesperson, I just dig the shit, which is why I leave interested parties to find the link for the download themselves...Anyhoo....diggit. Jason, "YOUNG METAL" Brous...no, nobody calls him that...but I just did, & if people were cool, they'd start calling Jason that also, because he's young, & does cool shit with steel.

photo borrowed from www.Brousblades.com

See Jason's wares HERE.

A Quick Look; Meyerco + Hideout Blade Master Dirk Pinkerton=Affordable Awesomeness

2011-05-04T23:29:00.000-07:00

Lonewolf Knives under Benchmade; Mountainside Drop Point 40031-100, quick look.

2011-04-15T17:49:00.000-07:00

40031-100 Mountainside drop point, my first taste of Lone Wolf, under the Benchmade corporate umbrella. Handles seem to be the same grade of walnut wood that De Asis & Co. are using on the new for 2011 Michael Waddell Bone Collector wood handle models.

If you're not as knife & knife industry obsessed as freaks like myself, you may have missed that Benchmade Knives, of Oregon City, OR has acquired their Oregon neighbor, Lone Wolf Knives. They have some beautiful stuff lined up for 2011 and beyond, including their revamped versions of Lone Wolf's "Paul" axial folding knives designed by the great Paul Poehlmann, which were originally manufactured by Gerber, back when Gerber Blades truly were legendary, long before Fiskars began to drive the company down the Chinese-made junk path in the early 1990s. Benchmade's new Paul knives look amazing, & I can't wait to get my hands on at least 2 of the models offered for 2011. Right as i was flying over the Pacific ocean to stand with my best amigo as he married his lovely wife, the Lone Wolf Mountainside Drop Point fixed blade was arriving at my door. I'm impressed so far, for a knife which barely set me back a bit more than $50 usd including shipping from Roger Claunch's excellent knifeworks.com, in Louisiana.

Benchmade's take on Lone Wol'fs Paul Axial designs, just 2 variations, of one of several models, pic courtesy knifecenter.com

the Mountainside, with my paracordguy.com lanyard, apparently Benchmade has FINALLY listed the steel as N860, known for its affordability & corrosion resistance

Mountainside Drop Point QuickSpecs:

Blade Length: 4.23"
Overall Length: 7.97"
Blade Steel: N860 Stainless Steel
Weight (with sheath): 5.5 oz.
Sheath: Leather
Made in USA

This basic, classy little fixed knife just got unboxed late last night, but look for updates, and a short video on the way...& take a look at Benchmade's new Lone Wolf offerings. they are NOT, as some on forums initially suggested, foreign made. To the best of my knowledge all of Lone Wolf's offerings, with Les De Asis' Benchmade at the helm, will be made in the USA, and so far, from my short time with the Mountainside, it certainly appears that Benchmade is taking the classic brand down a solid path. More to come....

Update: I should also note that the Paul knives discussed & pictured above are being marketed as part of Benchmade's "Blue Box", every day knife line, they will sport the Benchmade butterfly logo, and not the Lone Wolf triangle logo

April 18, 2011 2:47 AM

A Look At The New CRKT Ken Onion 'Unusual' Skinner Knife

2011-03-25T21:21:00.000-07:00

Here I take a look at the new for 2011 CRKT Ken Onion Skinner. It caught my eye @ a local shop & I had to get it. It can likely be found most-everywhere for under $50 USD. The printing on the box calls it the "Onion Unusual Hunter", though you'll see it marketed more commonly simply as the "Onion Skinner". Hawaiian knife-making legend Ken Onion supposedly passed prototypes of this design around to various professional hunters, guides & outdoors-people for 5 full years before "perfecting" the design you see in my hands in this video. (At one point, in regards to "knife names", I incorrectly make reference to "Kershaw", but after Onion's association with Kershaw for so many years, who wouldn't be tempted to accidentally say "Kershaw" instead of "CRKT"?) There's even a video on the CRKT website where Ken Onion is talking about one of his new CRKT knifes and he says "Ker...uh.. CRKT". Interesting. Seems as though Knife People, including Mr. Onion himself, have come to verbally associate his name with "Kershaw" knives, though that chapter is closed, & he is now partnered with Columbia River Knife & Tool in Wilsonville, OR, USA.

Technical Specs:
*Onion Skinner
*K700KXP: Razor-Sharp (Plain Edged) Cutting Edge
*Blade: Length: 3.75" (95 mm)
*Thickness: 0.142" (3.6 mm)
*Steel: Bohler K110 Tool Steel, 58-60 HRC (Rockwell Steel Hardness Scale)
*Knife: Overall length: 8.00" (203 mm)
*Handle length: 4.375" (111 mm)
*Weight: 3.7 oz. (105 g)
*Made in Taiwan*
----------------------------------
*Onion Skinner Sheath
*Overall length: 6.75" (171 mm)
*Width: 4.00" (102 mm)
*Weight: 2.1 oz. (60 g)
*Made in Taiwan*

-Video Intro music is: "Forgive Us Our Trespasses", by A Storm of Light, on Neurot Recordings http://www.neurotrecordings.com/
-Video Outro chant music is from Alejandro Jodorowsky's brilliant 1973 film "The Holy Mountain" or "La Montana Sagrada"

The Tops/Despins Back Bite, a Purpose-Built Fighting Knife on a Whole New Level

2011-03-24T00:02:00.000-07:00

The Back Bite hanging out with my Lanyard Zone pewter glow skull.

   Regarding the state of the modern tactical knife industry in 2011; it seems that many martial-skills based knife designers are a lot of BARK and not much BITE. The martial-skills based knife designer, in general, talks big & barks loudly about his SpecOps experience, & all of the dangerous hot zones he's survived in his storied career as a certified bad-ass. If his design is produced by a factory knife company, they whip up some whimsically awesome advertising copy trying to suck you in, & give you tons of reasons why your life is neither safe, nor complete, without this precision-made killing machine.

   The martial skills based designer's knife brags about its hi-tech materials, & exaggerated indestructibility, & why You, the awestruck knife fan, should pay your hard earned money for it. What I mean by "martial skills based" is, the knife designer that has a primary professional background in military tactics, martial arts or close quarters combat etc, but who is not necessarily a knife-maker him or herself.
   You know them, you see them all over the web, some are legit, some are lesser known, and many are just blowing smoke up your ass-hatch. All BARK, big talk, but no proof of effectiveness or actual credentials.

   If you're just now hearing about a fellow named Colin Despins, know that you'll continue to see his work in the tactical gear & knife industry for a long time to come. Despins is somebody I would definitely consider a martial-skills based knife designer. Colin Despins has studied martial arts his entire life, & is a devoted knife collector, & end-user in his own right. He has extensive experience in professional Close Protection/Bodyguard work, as well as real-world experience in competitive intelligence, (aka: "****" edited per request). Despins' work in these intense fields has taken him all over, but he has spent a significant amount of time in Israel, where he had the opportunity to work in a number of fields. Despins is personable, honest & armed with a great sense of humor. Throughout various email/FB message conversations I found Despins to be incredibly straight forward both verbally, and also in typed text. He's done a lot of cool stuff, both in his professional life, and personal life, but does not come off as somebody who feels the need to brag or talk about himself. Have I become acquainted with the rare martial skill-set knife designer who can certainly walk the walk? I think so!

   Colin has trained in a ton of different martial arts disciplines, but there is one that changed his life, and his way of looking at, & thinking about combat & personal defense forever. Russian Martial Art. Hard to explain, difficult to teach & obtuse in its approach to all aspects of training. Russian Martial Art could be described as a holistic combat system encompassing aspects of mind, body & soul working together to transform the practitioner's body into an adaptable combat chameleon, ready to engage any challenger, & switch gears on the fly while thinking, fighting, & moving creatively. Despins was first exposed to Russian Martial Art through a chance encounter at the gym, with a man who would eventually become his mentor, trainer & friend.

Despins demonstrating the alternative, sabre grip with his Back Bite. Photo courtesy of Tops knives, Idaho, USA

As I was studying the Back Bite, I looked at various sites dedicated to RMA, I found a very interesting interview with Mr. Vladimir Vasiliev. Vasiliev's name is one of those that is famous in the cultural sphere of martial arts in general, not just Russian arts, specifically over the past 20-some years. I remember hearing about Systema ("The System", essentially another synonym for RMA) as a kid back when I was in Taekwondo. I used to trade knowledge and books & magazines with my fellow students, hoping to absorb as much martial arts knowledge as we could. Bear in mind this was the early 1990's, early enough that it was rare to have daily access to a computer, & before internet use was common among the masses. We used to stay after class & exchange dog-eared copies of magazines like Inside Kung-Fu & Black Belt Magazine, hoping to supplement our growing knowledge of sport TKD with anything we could find that would make us more knowledgeable, or make it sound like we knew what we were talking about at our tender ages of 13-16! I remember picking up on various articles about Russian arts & thinking it was too cool that these guys often just trained in fatigues or more-or-less "regular" sports clothing, instead of being bound to the traditional white "dobok" or gi that we wore.

The Back Bite with my newest "bright" item, the awesome Surefire G2X Tactical LED light, a formidable pair of tools indeed!

Tops outfits Colin's menacing knife with a very secure Kydex sheath.

Anyhow, as I was mulling over the phone conversation I had with Despins, I found a great interview on Vasiliev's own site, with Mr. Vasiliev himself from back in 2004; conducted by a Mark Hemels, for Meibukan Magazine #3.
Here's just a quick excerpt: "Why do you find the Russian System more effective than, for instance, karate in real combat practice?"
"The Russian System is more mobile. You can be ready instantly. There are no forms or patterns that you have to prepare yourself with. In the Russian System I learned how to move, and not so much the actual techniques. Techniques are learned step by step, by way of certain patterns, and then it becomes a style. The Russian System focuses more on how to move."

I felt that this sort of helped define Russian Martial Arts, in my head. As Despins had told me, it's a somewhat difficult art to define, and an even harder art to teach. For a deeper look at Vasiliev's Toronto RMA school, & more on Russian Arts in general, start with the rest of the interview quoted above. It was enlightening, and gave me a bit more perspective on Colin's design influence for the Back Bite itself. Vasiliev, being one of THE most prominent names in Russian fighting arts today, had some high praise for Despins' design, which is strongly influenced by his own years of experience training in RMA.

Upon reviewing the Tops/Despins Back Bite knife, Vasiliev replied to an email from Despins with the following;

"(The) Back Bite is a very unique blade. Due to the creative shape and feel, this knife provides new possibilities of applying it in a confrontation. It gives more variety of knife movements and work. A great addition to anyone’s knife collection." -Vladimir Vasiliev, Chief instructor - Systema Headquarters, Toronto

The above statement speaks volumes, in my mind, to the potential of the Back Bite, not only in Russian fighting arts, but in pretty much any other style. I spent a couple of years having trained in Filipino Martial Arts, & based on my limited knowledge I shudder to imagine the damage a trained Kali/Eskrima practitioner could do to an assailant with the Back Bite. Despins has written that it is not his intent for his design to be exclusive to Russian Martial Art, & in fact, I have already heard plenty of people with non-RMA backgrounds comment on the knife's smart design & comfortable ergonomics.

the engraving on the "flat" side of the blade.

Every time I look at, or handle the Back Bite, certain phrases enter my mind "outside the box", "20 years ahead of its time", "unique", & "unlike anything else". Those are still common thought-streams when I handle the knife! It almost feels as though this knife came from a warrior society from another time-frame, or dimension. Sounds corny, but get your mitts on one of these & you'll know what I mean. Perhaps it's because of the Russian Martial Art influence? One thing I do know, is that after lots of online reading, and a long conversation with Despins about his knife design, I understand the concept, & I'm getting a feel for its RMA influences, yet I still have a hard time explaining it in simple terms! Could it be that RMA is so esoteric, so forward-thinking & so holistic that examining a purpose built knife based upon its foundations is just plain tricky? Usually when a knife design finds me at a loss for words, I know I'm holding something special.

As far as what I consider the conceptual "Meat & Potatoes" of this knife, let me quote Colin Despins in a piece he wrote earlier this year, on his own website, MaxVenom.com.

The following sentences were the ones that sort of "brought it home" for me, in regards to Despins' intent with the final product that is the Back Bite fixed blade knife:

Despins says: "The Russian system of hand to hand combat includes notably ellipse like striking "patterns" that enable any point of contact from any angle or trajectory to be utilized to devastating effect. This allows for a near unlimited array with which to engage any and all targets of opportunity. In no case is Russian Martial Art blade craft limited to inflicting damage upon the adversary through application of the edged implement alone.

The Back Bite is enabled for this purpose by the concave strike face (edge out) section of the blade. This blade section allows the operator to strike the target with the fist when gripped in the blade down concave edge forward (RGEO, primary) configuration. The strike in turn draws the concave strike face section blade over the surface area of the strike creating a devastating wound in the process."

So, simply put, the "home", or primary grip is reverse grip (the knife in your fist with the tip pointing at the floor), with the concave, curved edge facing out toward your attacker. This makes sense, and the knife is certainly very comfortable in this position, but the Back Bite feels good in more traditional grip styles as well. There is an odd, natural feeling of balance when you hold the knife in your hand in any grip, surprising considering there is really not a single thing about this knife that could be considered "symmetrical" or "traditional"!

a close view of what some have called the "unsharpened chisel" blunt force portion of the Back Bite blade

Essentially, a sharp edge on either side enables the user to use their own arm-retraction momentum to facilitate a second strike as their fist & arm travels back toward their own body. This would be where the highly logical moniker for this design comes from, it "bites forward", as well as "biting back", as in, on the way back in. There's the straight Wharncliffe style edge, and the concave strike face on the other side. Despins notes in his own description of his design that that "straight" back edge can be utilized for inflicting damage using various trapping methods as well. What I have come to view as the knife blade's "third surface", is a flat chisel-like edge. This "flat" edge is intended to add blunt force to a strike, and also aids in overall tip strength, and penetration qualities, lending itself to creating a very nasty wound channel to the unlucky bad-guy who finds himself facing off against a victim who is toting the Back Bite!

The design is meant to be a "Purpose Built Fighting Knife", based on these manifold martial principles, but there's nothing stopping a Back Bite owner from performing general utility tasks with the thick blade. I could possibly see a soldier carrying it as a "backup" type weapon, and also using it for the occasional prying task that would damage a smaller knife, or a folding one. This is one burly piece of steel, 1095 carbon steel to be more precise, a time-tested classic that seems happiest when it is used to make hard-use fixed blades, like camp knives & fighters!

So, regardless of your preferred martial style, be it Russian, Filipino, or any other art that is creative & adaptable, if you have some martial arts training, chances are you'll immediately see this knife's potential. I should note that on the truly edged surfaces of this knife, that the "flat" reverse side is actually sharpened as well. Tops took great care to grind a very thin, straight bevel on what could be called the "flat" side of the knife, or the side with the logo & engraving. (I noted in my video preview of this knife that personally, I've typically found "chisel ground" knives like the Emerson CQC-7 etc, to cut better if I drag a fine ceramic rod across the flat back of the blade, then strop (basically 'wiping' the knife with some pressure toward the edge) the knife on cloth or my old disused wide leather belt that serves as my "ghetto" knife strop.)

I assume that this was A) part of Colin's original design, or B) something Tops decided on during manufacture, either way, putting a small grind-line on the flat side of the sharpened areas definitely lends itself to easier re-sharpening, and in-my-opinion, helps a chisel-like knife cut more smoothly.

the Back Bite, ready for action in my fat hand.

"Spec-Ops trust Tops", Aaron trusts Tops as well! Seriously, this is a really unique piece of well made combat steel.

Speaking of edges, and cutting, and all of that fantastic stuff which makes a knife a knife, the Back Bite arrived right on the cusp of 'shaving sharp'. It was sharp enough on both the concave face, and the straight-line back edge to send some arm-hairs flying. It wasn't a total hair-annihilating razor, but certainly more than adequately sharp! This knife, in theoretical mortal use, seems to rely on angles, and the strength & speed of the person working with it, if the knife had come much sharper, it might almost be overkill. I thought to myself, "it's damn sharp, but by God, it's a fighter! I'm going to see if I can make it obscenely sharp!".

For simple "touch-up" sharpening, or putting sort of a nastier edge on certain knives when brand-new, I'm a fan of ceramic "dogbone" style rod sharpeners. You can generally find them in different grits & configurations from several different companies, usually well under $10 USD. They really aren't ideal for sharpening many knives, but they've become an essential part of my maintenance-sharpening arsenal. So, disclaimer; just because one style of stone or hone works for me, doesn't mean it'll work for you.

I usually encourage people to try various sharpening methods & practice on old kitchen knives or Swiss Army style knives until you are comfortable touching up pricier knives that you value more. Anyhow, as I said, the knife came very sharp, no mean feat for a hunk of steel as thick as this, but using very mild pressure & a steady hand, I managed just a couple of slides with my ceramic across that thin bevels on the flat side of the knife, this was enough to give the blade even more kick. I stopped at that point, thinking that "there's no way such a crazy-looking knife needs to be really any sharper", it's all about geometry, & I'm confident that the Back Bite could inflict some really awful cuts & pokes even if somebody dulled the factory edge considerably. Sharp enough is sharp enough!

the heavy-duty spring steel clip integrated into the sheath design is rotatable 360 degrees!

Here's a peek at the technical side of things:
O/A Length: 8 1/2"
Top Blade Length: 3"
Bottom Blade Length: 1"
Thickness: 3/16"
Steel: 1095 High Carbon Steel RC (Rockwell-Scale Hardness Rating) 56-58
Handle: Black Linen Micarta
Blade Color: Black Traction Coating
Sheath: Kydex
Weight w/o Sheath: 5.5oz
Weight w/ Sheath: 7oz
Designed by: C. Despins

a shiny close-up of the sharp concave strike face

I carried the Back Bite extensively across eight or ten weeks, very pleasantly surprised by its adaptability, and discreteness. A spring steel clip is bolted to the inner side of the sheath, with a large rubber o-ring between the two. You can rotate the knife, secured in the sheath any way you want, I wore it horizontally on my front right side under all manner of clothing. I'm one of those "shorts year round" guys, I wear cargo shorts or khaki shorts as often, if not more than I wear long pants. I wear 5.11's TDU belts, which are some of the best fitting, toughest belts I think I have ever worn. I simply rotated the clip until it was at basically a right-angle to the horizontal sheath, clipped it onto my TDU belt, and forgot about it. Same ease of use & carry whether shorts or pants, I even carried it the pocket of a ratty old pair of sweats for a quick trip to the grocery store late one night.
None of my friends or family ever noticed the edged demon riding on my hip, even when my jacket rode up a few times or I twisted & my shirt became pulled up over the sheath. I guess it's just a matter of, in some cases, being hidden in plain sight! Whether the knife was hidden under a t-shirt, a light jacket, a hooded sweatshirt or windbreaker, the knife didn't "print", or (show its shape through clothing) very much, if at all! Like nearly all Kydex-sheathed fixed blades, all it takes to unleash this little devil is a firm grasp of the handle, and a short push against the top of the sheath with your thumb. I was able to deploy the knife with my dominant hand, as well as my weak hand, very easily from a number of different locations & positions. I wore the knife at all manner of angles on both sides & had no problems freeing the knife for potential use, very quickly.

the Kydex sheath locks the knife in with a solid "click"! Audible feedback is something I value when inserting a knife into its safe place! This is a great sheath system.

Tops Knives did a great job executing this design. Some manufacturers would probably take one look at the complex blade geometry & run away crying...but not Mike Fuller & his crew at Tops Knives in Idaho. These guys have a long & always growing reputation for crafting hardcore, hard use knives in their own basic, bomb-proof style. I kid you not, when I hear phrases like "tactical fixed blade" a black Tops knife, often their Steel Eagle, or a similar large fixed blade pops into my mind. Maybe I'm a sucker for advertising, but somewhere across the years, in my odd, slightly atypical brain, Tops has become synonymous with big, burly fixed blade tactical knives!

Despins gave the knife a nice handle length, likely with the intent of accommodating multiple grip styles. The attractively patterned micarta handle is just under 4.5 inches, the perfect length for an average adult fist, at least, an adult man's fist. I have fairly large hands & the Back Bite was comfortable for me in every conceivable grip. I do think the knife would be comfortable in many womens' hands as well. I showed it to one female friend who called it "sexy" and also commented that she liked the slightly thinner handle profile. If I had to guess I'd say that the handle was designed to maximize maneuverability in a wide range of hand sizes. There's no clumsy or overly-beefy handling here, just pure finesse, especially if you have even a small bit of stick or knife training! I was impressed too with another small detail; in any grip, even in my big hands, there was enough of the handle-butt sticking out to act as an impact tool, just expanding your defense options that much further!

Tops likes to use micarta for its durability, grip performance, and solid good looks.
http://www.topsknives.com/

Across my review process & showing various people the Back Bite, including posting photos on the Sharp Bright & Tactical Facebook page, it became apparent that the Back Bite's unconventional design appeals to a wide cross section of "knife people", including those who don't have any formal martial arts or knife training. It's unique enough that I could see avid collectors & Tops knives fans picking one up simply to have as a unique part of their tactical knife arsenal. It's certainly cemented its spot among my own collection, and made a permanent impression on me. It's impressive as an unconventional facet of my collection, as well as being a knife that I know could help keep me safe in a really terrible area where I felt threatened.

here you can see the thin red spacers give the knife a bit more visual "pop!"

I often speak about the ability of select, certain knives to give the carrier a boosted feeling of competency or confidence. There are simply a few knives out there, whether fixed or folding, which imbue the user with this feeling. I'm not talking a cocky "hey man...I got a knife!" type attitude, just a quiet feeling of having a silent partner with you, along for the ride, in a pocket, or on a belt. This knife certainly gives off that feeling when I carry it around with me.

At its heart, the Back Bite is an earnestly designed weapon fit for various practitioners of a number of martial arts styles. Tops has done a great job of making Colin's idea come to life in 1095 & micarta. This illustrates one of the key things I love about knives, particularly high-end tactical pieces; makers & factory operations start with fairly simple materials, & craft them into something infinitely creative, useful or aesthetically pleasing. This knife is certainly all three. Despite the potential complexity surrounding facets of the Back Bite's design & use, at the end of the day, it's a finely crafted weapon in a very simple & effective carry system.

For additional info, contact Despins' MaxVenom Product Group or Tops Knives.com

Damn!!!

the Back Bite's flat logo side, with the knife resting atop my Para-cord Guy OD Survival Bracelet http://www.theparacordguy.com/

Next Level, seriously dudes...look at that!
http://www.maxvenom.com/

A 2nd Look at the 888 Professional Survivit Tool, Tiny yet Mighty

2011-03-05T02:40:00.000-08:00

Plenty of reviews have been done on the Triple Eight Professional line, but I wanted to give my 2 cents on one of my favorites. I sort of feel that many of us knife/tactical gear collector people have missed out on Triple Eight's designs. I've reviewed both the SOL and the Wright Knife, and they're both really cool, but I feel that this tool (the Survivit, formerly folding CopTool) offers a little bit more in the way of utility & versatility. Either way, I'm a big fan of these little knives, and stoked to see what the future holds for 888 Professional. Take a look. HD camera coming soon, I'm settling into my video groove, thanks for your ongoing patience with me, I'm a writer first!
;P

Upcoming....Coming up....Whatever, new stuff inbound.

2011-03-04T20:30:00.000-08:00

Colin Despins put lots of thought into this unique knife manufactured by TOPS Knives.

I gotta apologize for another big gap in regular posts. I've never been a daily-poster kinda guy, I'd rather post a few things and do them right, than rush them and give readers more to look at. Even when I'm most active, about a post per week is often the most I can handle, seeing as I'm the sole writer around here at the moment. Anyhow, apologies for the delay, new stuff is on the way. I'll give the lowdown of the TOPS Knives & Colin Despins Back Bite, a Purpose Built Fighting Knife inspired by Despins' lifelong martial arts experience, and especially the martial art that changed how he thought about combat...Russian Martial Art. It's a fantastic knife, I've done a quick video preview, but I'm in the process of finishing up a detailed written piece after having a chance to talk to Despins 1 on 1. Cool guy, cool knife!

This bad mamma-jamma retails for only $55 bones, and it's DAMN-BRIGHT! Boy Howdy!

Dang, I'm really impressed with Surefire's new G2X Tactical. Inexpensive, and it throws a crazy bright beam that stabs through the darkness like Despins' Back Bite stabs through bad-guys! Made in the USA from domestic & foreign components, it still qualifies as American Made, under the "Buy American" Act. The G2X Tactical is a class-act. Sort of a hybrid, a 200 lumen LED housed in an aluminum bezel/head, with a "Nitrolon" body like Surefire's original G2 and G2Z lights. Impressive.

888 Professional's Survivit Tool is just plain awesome, pictured next to a Lifegear floating 12 lumen LED flashlight that has more features than you can count on one hand.

I don't want anybody who hasn't played with a Triple Eight Professional knife to forget about these little gems. They're perfect for carrying just about anywhere, as they're tiny, yet very mighty, and each model is a slick piece of engineering. Video & written review on the way. Pictured attached to my Lanyard Zone Skull Cobra lanyard that I've had forever. Thanks for bearing with me, while life flips, flops and f*cks with my head. There's always something in the works...I'm just not always super-quick to get it up here.
Thanks
-Aaron

I Heart the Izula, from ESEE Knives

2011-02-08T13:44:00.000-08:00

from top; Izula II with micarta handle slabs and an extra half inch of handle length, orange ltd. ed. Izula, and basic black Izula

Bullet ants rule! An appropriate namesake for such a small, yet powerful & adaptable knife

My Izula pile, sans green & tan. I'm ready to go outside!

I sometimes get a little compulsive, well...maybe a little obsessive too. I have an original Tan colored Izula, from back when Esee Knives was RAT Cutlery. I also have an Esee Izula in Green, which is cool. My 3rd Izula was the black one you see here. I received the micarta-clad Izula II as a gift this past holiday season, & of course, the Safety Orange Izula was a no-brainer, introduced as a knifeworks.com exclusive. I've also seen a cement gray Izula around, but at this point, I think I pretty much have the whole "hard-use, skeletonized neck knife" thing covered pretty well. I've found I don't need the "survival kit" that comes as a fairly pricey add-on option to these knives. I'm happy to throw any of these on a ball-chain, or light cord with a cordlock, around my neck. They're simple, tough as nails, and depending on where you shop, very reasonably priced, especially if you forgo the survival kit option. 1095 is a great steel, very adaptable to almost any task, it sharpens up easy on pretty much whatever you have on hand. Forgot your ceramic sharpening kit or pocket diamond hone on a camping trip? Use the textured ring on the bottom of your ceramic coffee mug. One of my favorite improv-sharpening techniques! 1095 is one of those steels that can take an edge with this sort of MacGyver-ism.

The skeleton-style basic Izula weighs barely 2 oz. & includes a polymer (pretty much injection molded plastic) sheath. It's not Kydex, but it sure retains the knife well, each knife snaps in solid, and Esee's tolerances are so tight, that each Izula, regardless of handle style, is 100% interchangeable with the sheath of any of its counterparts. I like the simplicity, first and foremost; tough sheath with a fail-proof fit, good strong carbon tool steel which sharpens up like a dream, and a total lack of "bells & whistles" (as long as you get the basic kit, without all the survival stuff). That being said, the survival kit options are pretty cool, you get a bunch of little nicknacks to round out your personal survival kit; a MOLLE lock, paracord, ferro fire rod, hardware and a whistle, among other cool stuff.

This is what you get when you pay for the survival kit option, some neat little odds & ends, I just already have most of this stuff, so I personally don't need it.

My original tan Izula is numbered 0144, from RAT (Randall's Adventure Training) Cutlery's original run back in, I believe 2008, I ordered it around the Holiday season that year. I liked it immediately, and it quickly found a place around my neck, or in a jacket pocket, performing daily tasks normally suited for my right-front pocket folder, which varies day-to-day. Rowen Manufacturing is Esee's manufacturing partner, and they craft excellent stuff. It's safe to say if Rowen ever wanted to produce a knife line under their own name, they'd have a ready-made fanbase, as their name is on every fixed blade Esee knife, and I understand they have collaborated with Idaho's TOPS Knives (an excellent company as well) on occasion. Lion Steel, Italy's king of big, burly custom-quality folding knives, is producing the Esee folding HEST DPx knife, a folding variation of the Esee/Robert Young Pelton knife. I still haven't held one, but I know there are lots of us wanting to get our hands on one, it's safe to say it's going to be a beast. Esee is also working on a folding variation of the Izula, with Lion Steel at the helm, that's another knife I'm looking forward to!

It seems the mighty little Izula fixed blade knives are thought of, primarily as outdoor knives. They seem to fill the role well, and eagerly keep on going under hard use. That's one of the neat things about Jeff Randall, Mike Perrin & Co., they are survivalists & outdoorsmen first, all of their knife designs come from the fact that these men are walking survival technique encyclopedias who put performance first in their knives, never worrying about trends like fashionable blade styles, or buzzword super-steels. I don't specifically carry knives as weapons, but I'd be lying if I said I didn't think about those "what if?" moments. How would my carry-choice on a given day affect the outcome of a random attack or confrontation perpetrated by a random, violent individual? Would my past martial arts experience help me at all, or am I too out of shape ? Has it been too long? Those questions aside, & the fact that the Izula is an outstanding little camp blade aside as well...I'm convinced that if called upon, in properly trained hands, or the hands of somebody defending life & limb while running on adrenaline, that the Izula could operate as an excellent force equalizer, after all, they say the best weapon is the one you have with you when you need it. I guess that's why I appreciate this simple design so much, it's so rudimentary, so basic, but that's the beauty, and the reason it can fill so many different knife roles, it's a knife capable of being what you need it to be. It's adaptable to nearly any situation.

"Escuela" being school, Esee is an acronym for "School of Survival, Escape & Evasion"

Formerly RAT, for Randall's Adventure Training, namesake of founder, Jeff Randall

The Izula II is a bit heavier, because of the micarta handles, but only .5 inches longer, it's still within my acceptable range to wear as a neck knife. It can even be thrown in a pocket comfortably.

More info @ Eseeknives.com

Sniper Bladeworks LPC Folder

2011-02-04T18:07:00.000-08:00

"I was joking with a buddy that this LPC knife is built like a tank made out of bricks, or conversely, a brick made out of tanks, if you prefer."

this thing is a monster, as close to indestructible as I've ever felt on any knife, this LPC is BADASS!

Sniper Bladeworks is fast becoming a name in the tactical gear community that is synonymous with custom tactical folding knives that are not only works of art, but tools meant to take a serious beating. I started hearing about what Sniper Bladeworks does a few years ago, and have kept my ear to the ground ever since. This innovative project is a result of the combined talents of Lance Abernathy, and Mr. Jody Muller. These men have been collaborating since 2006, though Sniper Bladeworks wasn't officially launched until 2009. Abernathy uses experience from his long and varied professional career in Law Enforcement to design these fantastic knives, and Muller's lifetime of work as a knife-maker, jeweler and engraver bring Sniper's blades to life. These knives indeed do feel alive, I don't mean that in some esoteric, 'New-Age' sort of way either.

     Since the Tactical Folder market really exploded in the 1990's, we've seen so many knives that not only come off an assembly line, but simply have the boring look and feel of clones. After the novelty & excitement of buying a new knife wears off, we're left with a tool that's about as exciting as any other tool, a hammer, a saw, a screwdriver, etc. For example, your buddy buys the "XX" model from a certain knife company, you like it enough to buy yourself one, they are identical, from the same factory, plain & simple. It doesn't matter whether said company makes great knives or not, it does not matter where in the world they're made, you and your friend are now the proud owners of a knife that 100,000 (or far more) other guys around the world own. Get it?

   Sniper Bladeworks knives have personality, attitude, and are seriously capable of accepting the kind of use and abuse that only soldiers, firemen, cops and other LE and Safety professionals can dish out. They feel very much alive, from the smooth action, to the solid lockup, and distinctive looks. Many of their knives feature a hamon, or temper line, as seen on authentic Japanese swords, where traditionally, a sort of clay mud is applied to a blade's edge in a beautiful pattern, that ends up hardening the cutting edge at a different rate than the blade's spine as the blade is quenched. That's the term, "differential tempering". This process is an art in itself, within the fine art of knife-making. I'm impressed that a difficult process normally reserved for costly modern versions of what is arguably the most beautiful ancient weapon (the samurai sword), has been applied to the modern tactical folding knife. It's just one more aspect that brings "life" to the feel of these unique knives.

   Sniper Bladeworks is a true custom operation, with each knife given the care and attention that you would expect if you had ordered a custom automobile or motorcycle. Regular readers know that I get excited about knives in general, but that it takes really superb stuff to impress me on a truly deeper level. I tend to focus on outstanding products here in general, regardless of price range, that's just the type of stuff I buy. But I have to say, as far as tactical folders go, these guys take it to a whole new level. I'll admit I've flung around terms like "bomb proof" before, in reviews, usually in reference to knives which truly feel that way. But SERIOUSLY, as far as folding knives go, I think the LPC that I got to spend some time with is very likely, nearly bomb-proof.

the reverse side showcases the big burly Ti framelock

This version of the LPC (Lance Personal Carry), actually started life being carried by Lance Abernathy himself, and has been passed onto various people and publications for demonstration purposes. After my 4 weeks or so, handling & carrying it, it has evidently landed at one of the premier printed knife magazines that probably indirectly inspired Sharp Bright & Tactical! Colin Despins, martial artist and knife designer is the guy behind the Tops Knives Back Bite (see my previous youtube video post). Colin and myself started chatting on Facebook about knives, martial arts, and life in general, but especially knives. Somewhere along the way, he mentioned that he was in possession of a Sniper Bladeworks folder that was available for pass-around. Needless to say I jumped at the chance to check out one of these folders I'd been hearing about for years now.
When the LPC arrived in the mail, I was impressed immediately as I unwrapped the knife. Despite the fact that it had obviously been carried and used quite a bit, there were no signs of mechanical wear, or use-altered function of any kind. Despins had re-honed the blade to a frightening sharpness before sending it out, the type of elusive sharpness that makes your arm hairs seems to jump out of the way before the knife even makes contact with them. That sharpness was to last long into my use of this beastly knife. Even after a daily regimen of breaking down recycling, opening mail, and just cutting various materials, the thick edge stayed very sharp. I eventually touched up the edge on a fine white ceramic rod, using moderate pressure, but this thing stayed sharp for an impressive length of time. I was struck by the Gun Kote type hard coating, as you can see it's pretty much a woodland digital camo, like ACU, but richer, and darker. Even in spots where the blade has obviously seen more use and abuse, the coating is still very much intact. Sniper Bladeworks uses a handful of different steels, but one you'll commonly find, that has a proven track record for hard use, is 1095, a carbon tool steel.

I believe the blade length on this one is just a bit over 4 inches, though SBW's work varies, they can do orders to fit your specific needs, and I have seen Sniper Bladeworks knives online with widely varied blade lengths and styles.

Abernathy's design philosophy for the LPC goes something like this; "The LPC (AKA Lance Personal Carry) was a designed to incorporate more combat oriented features into a knife of slightly larger physical dimension. The LPC features a modified drop point blade, an incredibly ergonomic handle including a canted handle to blade geometry that makes the LPC ideal for thrust and snap cut style defense actions."

Cool! This LPC has a Titanium framelock, though the LPC knives are available with a slightly more traditional linerlock as well. There is a big solid G10 backspacer which cushions the interior of the handle's spine, and the 4.32 inch blade is forged from 1095, as I mentioned.

All of the assembly parts, like screws, are equally as tough as the rest of the knife, as evidenced by the fact that despite an obvious amount of use, that this LPC is no worse off for the wear it's undertaken. The action was buttery smooth, the thick carry clip solidly attached, and the whole package simply felt just about perfect.

I really like the unique Sniper Bladeworks logo, it embodies that bad-assery inherent in their knives.

   Average Sniper Bladeworks prices generally start around $500 USD, but are going to vary quite a bit depending on what materials you want, and how you want it to look. The LPC I handled is one of the more basic models visually. It's utilitarian, and simple, though Muller and Abernathy offer more exotic materials like carbon fiber, rayskin, mammoth ivory and damascus. The choice is yours, rightly, and you're guaranteed to get a knife that doesn't look like something off the shelf, because your knife won't be, as I said, it's evident these knives are crafted individually with much attention to detail. It's important to me that readers understand that the model shown here represents the toughness and build-quality of all of the Sniper folders. The LPC I used is pretty basic, but imagine it as a sort of starting point for all other variations of the LPC you'll see from them. Even if you order an LPC with damascus bladesteel and carbon fiber inlays, you can count on the same stout toughness. This is one company that produces custom knives where the quality & toughness do not vary from model to model, or across different sizes, they're all built like brick shithouses! I should note also that they make the LPC and DH folders in mini-size models as well, which are slightly scaled down for every day carry. Across the LPC line too, there are various options for alternate blade styles, if you do a search online, you'll see Sniper BW LPCs with pointy wharncliffe blades, or blades lacking the "blood groove" on the one I tested. From what I hear, Muller & Abernathy are ready & willing to work with the customer to produce your ideal version of their LPC or DH design. So, common prices for LPC variations range from $500-$600, but will definitely go higher, or lower depending on what you want. For example, a knife with a hamon temper line will run you an extra $50 or so. I have to say, I DO think many custom knives are overpriced for what you get, but I feel differently about the Sniper Bladeworks LPC I spent time with. I was sort of bummed to send it back, though I appreciated the opportunity to check it out, and I'm thankful for Colin's offer, and the time he took to ship it out.

   Despins actually ordered his own DH (Dark Hollow) folder from Sniper Bladeworks, he reviewed his personal knife on his site, Max Venom, on his personal blog, he says; "This is a reflection of what it is that Sniper Bladeworks does best. Beyond their absolutely stunning craftsmanship, Sniper Bladeworks focuses on producing a product that the end user can personally take pride in and identify with in a unique way that represents them as an individual."  Well said, for sure, beyond well-made, and very personalized are just two traits you can count on from a Sniper Bladeworks knife.

I'm in the process of straightening out some things in my life, monetarily, but once I'm back on track, I'm going to start my "Sniper Jar", and set aside 1's, 5's and change to go toward my personal LPC folder. I think, when the time is right, I'd like to see if Muller can work my Sharp Bright & Tactical "snakes" logo into either an etching on the blade, or a recessed/embossed pattern on the handle. I'm definitely looking forward to getting my very own personalized version of the LPC!

   I was joking with a buddy that this LPC knife is built like a tank made out of bricks, or conversely, a brick made out of tanks, if you prefer. You can see a general sampling of their wares on their website, as well as call for more info on what may be currently available, or to talk custom orders with them.

a view of the BEEFY Ti frame-lock liner

Sniper Bladeworks is on Facebook as well. You can see more examples of the aesthetic awesomeness that Muller brings to these knives. His background as a jeweler, watch maker & engraver becomes apparent when you see other knives that have a bit more detail, flare, and more exotic materials, as I mentioned, Damascus and ray-skin are just two examples of more exclusive materials that Lance & Jody offer on their knives for a bit more money.

This photo is from the Sniper Facebook page, just another example of the wide range of aesthetic options available, including various versions of the DH (Dark Hollow).

this photo can be found on SBWs' website, http://www.sniperbladeworks.com/

It's safe to say that Sniper Bladeworks is here to stay, and those knife lovers who haven't yet heard the names Lance Abernathy, & Jody Muller, will know the work of these 2 talented men very soon. In addition to folding knives, I have seen a couple examples of beautiful fixed blade knives from the duo as well, in addition to a tactical tomahawk that looks like it's capable of demolishing a small building, all by itself.

I had a blast carrying, using, and just plain admiring this version of the LPC, and I can't wait for the day that I can call these guys up, give them a credit card number, and let them know exactly what I have in mind for my own LPC folder.

BIG BAD clip and frame-lock

cutting the shit out of a cranberry juice bottle. like buttah.

Beefiest. Thumbstud. Ever.

Tops Back Bite, full written review coming soon, here's a look at this unique knife.

2011-02-03T03:53:00.000-08:00

photo courtesy of Tops Knives

Another Sort Of Practice/Warmup Vid, Benchmade Bone Collector Mini Folder

2011-02-01T19:07:00.000-08:00

Just another quickie, more just for the sake of me learning the camera(s) and software I am working with. This is a killer little folder, though it's been out for awhile, so there really isn't much to say that hasn't been said. I'm simply trying to see if I can improvise on the fly, and teaching myself to put videos together quickly, for future reference. I put the music in there to spice it up, I know the levels are weird, so feel free to ignore my blabbering and enjoy the jams.

NEW REVIEWS COMING SOON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2011-01-24T02:32:00.000-08:00

BELIEVE IT!

Tops Back Bite review en route, More Details about the Sniper Bladeworks LPC folder I had a chance to borrow, and Benchmade madness, in the form of 1 pretty new, and 2 really new folders, and maybe a 4th (wait & see). Also evaluating a great fixed blade by MA knifemaker Mike Newbrey, which rules!!! Plus the Esee Izula II which also kicks ass. Thanks for your patience, I'm up to my neck in new knives, and fairly broke now, but my knife-reviewing spirit will never die. New content is coming soon, and anybody who is reading this, you are awesome, and I appreciate your readership of this blog.
-A

PS;
Don't forget to check out the facebook page for more knife news & discussion
SB&T on Facebook

A Look At Becnhmade's 15000-1 'Bone Collector' Fixed-Blade Skinner, D2 Bladesteel

2011-01-13T16:17:00.000-08:00

Pardon my mis-wording regarding the handle, I keep referring to it as "green & black micarta", I know it's G10. I've been writing some stuff about 2 different knives with micarta handles today, and the word was stuck in my head, just a slip of the tongue...I'm well aware the difference between G10 & Micarta.

Just a peek at the Benchmade B.C. skinner, which I found this past summer. Full written review to come on the new walnut-handled D2 Bone Collector folder (the larger size). I haven't really found a whole lot of use for this fixed blade yet, but I anticipate Spring & Summer will see it used, and that I'll also get quite a bit of EDC use from the walnut-handled folder, which is totally killer, I love it, more to come.

My Talk-Intensive, (and quite rough) Tops SpecOps Pen video review

2011-01-10T22:12:00.000-08:00

I was killing some time one evening recently, and created this for the SB&T Facebook page, where it has been seen. Some of you may have missed it....It should be noted that despite my words in this video, I do NOT think the ink cartridge can be replaced, between tinkering with the pen, and re-reading Tops' description of the item, it's my new conclusion that the cartridge in the $20.00 USD plastic version, is not likely replaceable. I like this bad-boy enough though, that I ordered one in Tan as well. Tops is a great company. MORE VIDS & REVIEWS TO COME!!! I PROMISE!!
-A

Quick teaser; a brief look at one variation (options are endless) of the LPC folder by Sniper Bladeworks

2010-12-26T00:17:00.000-08:00

Written impressions in-process, this is, as I say, "a taste" of the kind of badassery that Lance & Jody bring their customers. This version is nothing special visually, compared with some of the gorgeous photos of gorgeous knives on their Facebook Page.

I will tell you that 60 seconds of shaky video in my ham hands is not enough to absorb the scope of this beast's durability. See a bit more info, & email the boys with questions at SniperBladeworks.com

I'll be back in a couple days with more info. I'm going to church on New Years Eve, or, I should say, my musical heroes, Neurosis are playing Seattle, @ Neumo's. I'll return to you, friends & readers, & all those kind enough to check this place out, with a clear head, refreshed and focused for the new year.

Take Care and don't let the world's bastards dull you.
-A

Winter Thief

2010-12-22T00:52:00.000-08:00

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

We'll be back soon (days?) with more reviews n' stuff ASAP. We're adjusting to significant (positive) life changes out here & trying to find the time to organize & make room for all our new projects, and also big, healthy changes in our 'day job' work situation.

Please hang with us, and know that we appreciate all new readers and followers of the Facebook page.

take care

-A

(oh yeah, by "we", I mean Me)

Princeton Tec BYTE Headlamp is Fantastic for its Size.

2010-12-14T15:33:00.000-08:00

The Princeton Tec Byte next to its slightly larger counterpart, the Fuel, in OD green with ACU digi-cam strap.

I'm amazed at how many reviews are already up for this little headlamp. I guess Princeton Tec did get it out in time for the press and bloggers to pick up on it before the holidays, wisely. It just so happens that this little light would have made it into my currently non-existent Sharp Bright & Tactical Holiday Gift Guide, had I found the time to complete such a post! Winter robs me of motivation, not to mention I've been trying to keep this very blog's facebook page up to date, and applying for additional jobs while doing some freelance writing for some small companies. I'm busier than usual & I apologize to those who read for not being one of those meticulously updated blogs. As you know, there are times when the posts pick up, and times when my activity slows down, either way, thanks for your continued readership & support, everybody who reads & leaves comments really keeps my enthusiasm going for this project.
I always considered Princeton Tec to be the darkhorse among flashlight companies, but they've built a solid history of quality stuff at generally very affordable prices. More well-known companies like Petzl (in my opinion) have nothing on Princeton. You can go to an overpriced retailer like REI and pay too much for a mediocre Petzl headlamp. Or if you're lucky enough to have a stellar warehouse sporting goods store like Sportco (Fife, just before Tacoma, WA) or Outdoor Emporium (Seattle) nearby, you can go pick up one of a number of Princeton Tec lights well below suggested retail. For instance, this little Byte retails for about $20.00 USD, I walked out of Sportco with an energy drink, and the new Princeton Tec Byte, for about $17.00 total.

The Princeton Tec Byte only weighs about 2.25 ounces, or 64 grams and is competently water resistant, durable and nicely compact.

Princeton Tec does manufacture many of their products in the USA and they even mention their USA manufacture on their decent looking, easy-enough-to-navigate website. I'm pretty sure this new Byte mini-headlamp is among the Princeton products that are not USA made. Last year I bought their 4 stage Fuel headlamp (shown in a photo above) in the slightly-harder-to-find OD/ACU camo variation. I remember the package sporting a small American flag on the front, with more details about how the light was USA made with foreign & domestic components on the back of the blister card packaging. I seem to remember my first Princeton Tec, the Quad Tactical having the same little flag icon and description of manufacturing origin on the packaging. The Byte's packaging had no such marks though, and wouldn't you know it, I tore that package open and recycled it, almost immediately, the evening I brought it home. Oh well, I believe the Byte is made somewhere in Asia, though Princeton Tec does indeed make some stuff here at home. Hey, for those of us that are bothered by largely foreign manufacture, it's cool to see a company that has US facilities, and at least makes an attempt to employ people at home. They probably couldn't offer this light at such a worthwhile price if it was 100% American made, and I, for one understand this, if you're bothered by it, there are plenty of US made headlamps out there, ok, only a few, but they are costly, I'm thinking of Surefire's awesome "Saint' headlamp series.

The Byte sans its elastic strap, showing off its subtle, tactical-minded red light for map reading, or simply not wanting to wake up your wife when you roll out of the tent to take a piss.

POWER	35 Lumens
LAMP	Maxbright LED, Red Ultrabright LED (2 stage brightness)
BURN TIME	146 Hours
BATTERIES	2 AAA Alkaline or Lithium
WEIGHT	64 Grams

The 35 lumen beam throws a good 50 feet ahead of you, and I really like that most of Princeton Tec's lamps have a multi position bracket to tip the light up & down, I believe I counted 9 positions from angled lowest to highest on this light.

You get 2 brightness levels with the single white LED, and one mild level of another LED, in red. All of the reviewers who beat me to the punch mention the white LEDs for camping, hiking etc. and report success in most outdoor activities.

Next to a 2008 incarnation of Petzl's decent Tikka headlamp. I like the Byte much better, it's lighter and has a better beam throw than the Petzl.

As I mentioned it's only about 2.25 oz, an ounce being 28.3495231 grams, the Byte weighing 64 grams. It's certainly the lightest headlamp I own, and with our recent spate of power outages from min-November to just last night, the Byte has definitely been getting used, taking frequent rides on my head (I know, sounds bad) to take the trash out, look for the cat, or simply to have available when the power is out. The strap is thinner than most, and I mean width, it's very comfortable. I'm easily bothered by straps, beanie hats and other headwear,& I find the Byte's little red strap very comfortable. I'm fairly certain the 146 hr. runtime is for the white bulb on low while you can get 80 hours out of the high setting, though in a testament to Princeton's design, I have yet to change the batteries in mine after several weeks, and haven't noticed much, if any loss of brightness. I should note that 2 brand name AAA batteries were included, and I'm still on that set.

The red light seemed almost like an afterthought at first, but I really like it. It's perfect for those times when you need light but don't really want, or need to be noticed. If you needed to get up and investigate a noise in your home, and wanted a bit of light to orient yourself as you exit your bedroom, without giving yourself away, the little single brightness red LED is perfect. I always like to have a less bright option for not waking others in a tent as well, and for this, the Byte is perfect. Princeton Tec's lights are water resistant, if not bordering on genuinely water proof. Of course unless a light is IPX Dive rated, you should not submerge it. This one is not meant really to take anything more than rain outside, but I took my Byte off the band and set it on the shower floor, on the low setting while I showered one morning. I toweled it off (and me!) and after making sure the exterior was dry, I opened it up and found no sign of moisture inside. This bodes well for the little light, and is probably the most effective, and demonstrative test I've performed on any piece of gear in recent months. The Byte was blasted with warm spray, soap residue & runoff and splashes, and had water running around its body for a good 5+ minutes, and seemed no worse the wear.

Byte goes strapless again, back bracket visible.

Princeton Tec has continually impressed me across my personal experience with 4 different lights across about 3 years, the Byte being my newest purchase, and their newest release. It's super light around 64 grams, boasts a long runtime, even on high, and the red LED is useful for more covert applications, or where you'd like to keep your night eyes unaffected and ready. The strap is comfy, and more narrow than many, they could offer an all black strap, but the included one is no big deal, at least for me.

Like I said, if I'd have had time to get cracking on my intended Gift Guide, this would have definitely been a recommendation! I paid about $16 USD for mine, and MSRP is about $19.99 USD, This may be the best price-to-immediate-usefulness ratio of anything I've bought recently. I actually had a chance to test it out the night I brought it home, the power went out, from wind, at about 1am, and stayed off until about 6am, from 1 to 3 I used the darkness to explore the yard and surrounding areas, the Byte is definitely competent, and priced right. I'd be inclined to take this on road trips or hikes, because of the weight and the overall runtime, not to mention the weatherproof factor. Overall I'm pretty impressed. Princeton Tec has a pretty cool Company Blog, and you can see the new Byte and many others at princetontec.com.

A press photo

At a suggested price of under $20 USD, the Byte is way more than a good deal, and one of my top gift picks for the 2010 holidays.

Just a Couple of Quick Bits Today...

2010-12-07T14:12:00.000-08:00

Video reviews are still in the works, I've been short on time & occupied with other pressing stuff, apologies, but keep an eye peeled. Working on Princeton Tec 'Byte' cheap LED headlamp review, coming soon, along with a feature on self defense instructional/training DVDs & more.

New Knives out this week (just a couple out of MANY):

Benchmade's new manual version of their venerable Bedlam folder promises to kick as much ass as the original auto. I actually prefer manual knives over autos, and I'll be snatching up one of these ASAP when $$ allows.

Benchmade's manual opening version of the Bedlam is out, or will be available in the coming days. The original was an auto. I love the Persian-inspired upswept blade. Very cool. See it at stores like Knifecenter and others.

Survival expert Doug Ritter has teamed up with hard use camp fixed blade forefather & Joy of Cooking author Ethan Becker, click his name here to listen to an audio interview. The project is made by Rowen Manufacturing, who is Esee Knives' primary manufacturing partner, and has apparently done work with Tops Knives. I own 3 Esee Izulas, made by Rowen, and the quality is fantastic, we can anticipate a big brutal knife from this collaboration. See it at Knifeworks, looks like it'll go for about $120 USD. The description of the knife comes across as sort of defensive of (IMO) the very reasonable price:
"As with the original Doug Ritter RSK® Mk1, one of the guiding principles in developing the Doug Ritter RSK® Mk2 Perseverance™ was to provide an exceptional value. Becker knives already had a well-deserved reputation for providing an incredible price to performance ratio, which has been one of the keys to their success. The challenge was to not mess that up. Doug has succeeded, producing an extraordinary hard use fixed blade knife, a knife you can bet your life on®, at a price that is a good value for a low-rate production blade. That's the rub. You can't do a high quality, low-rate production knife for the same low cost as you can a more mass produced production knife such as Ethan's KA-BAR Becker Knife & Tool knives. We hope that you find the unique properties of Doug's RSK® Mk2 Perseverance™ are worth the extra cost."

I feel that it's a fair price, but find their double mention of "low rate" both confusing, and potentially conveying some subconscious negativity to the target demographic. Companies should not have to justify the prices they charge, unless their products are prohibitively expensive for most "average" people. Anyway, looks like one hell of a camp blade.

The Long awaited Esee Knives Robert Young Pelton HEST (Hostile Environment Survival Tool) Folder made for them by Italy's fantastic Lion Steel brand, with a reputation for big chunky folding knives.

I'm really excited about the Italian made Esee/Pelton HEST knife., mine is on pre-order, unpaid though, so we'll see how much dough I have when Knifeworks gets them in. Robert Young Pelton is one of my writing heroes, and also a talented mind as far as what is needed in a knife. You can see what makes Pelton unique at his primary site, Comebackalive.com and see Jeff Randall & Mike Perrin's wares at Esee Knives. Lion Steel, in Italy is making these, as it's my understanding that Rowen Mfg. is not set up to make folders. Lion Steel has a great rep, and a growing fanbase.

Princeton Tec Byte, my written & video reviews coming soon.

Like most of you guys, the only thing I love as much as knives, is lights, hence the "BRIGHT" in this project's name. Princeton Tec recently started impressing me, like, around 2008 for their well made, low priced headlamps. I used to think of the company as a sort of "wannabe", but they have proven time and again that they are a competitor with companies like Petzl, who are famous for their headlamps. I like this little Byte light, it's got a single red LED and a dual stage, low-high white LED. More to come on that as well.

Thanks for your support, take care and happy holidays, I'll be back with more soon.

-Aaron

Interesting & Important Knife Rights Article in the NY Times, Please follow link...

2010-12-05T16:03:00.000-08:00

blogger is being finicky and refusing to let me print this link as text so...
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/05/us/05knives.html?_r=2&nl=todaysheadlines&emc=a23

Reposted blatantly and without permission from the NY Times, why should they care? credit is given. Sharp Bright & Tactical is in no way responsible for the below article, it is simply a REPRINT from yesterday's NY Times. Article by Marc Lacey of the NY Times.
New Hampshire State Rep. Jenn Coffey RULES!!!

If contacted by the paper, I'll take this down, but in the meantime, share the actual link with everybody you can.

Pushing a Right to Bear Arms, the Sharp Kind

Published: December 4, 2010

Pushing a Right to Bear Arms, the Sharp Kind

Hiroko Masuike for The New York Times
Illegal knives from a crackdown on stores in New York City.
By MARC LACEY
Published: December 4, 2010
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PHOENIX — Arizona used to be a knife carrier’s nightmare, with a patchwork of local laws that forced those inclined to strap Buck knives or other sharp objects to their belts to tread carefully as they moved from Phoenix (no knives except pocketknives) to Tempe (no knives at all) to Tucson (no knives on library grounds).
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Joshua Lott for The New York Times
D’Alton Holder, a longtime knife maker, said, “It’s ridiculous to talk about the size of the knife as if that makes a difference.”
But that changed earlier this year when Arizona made its Legislature the sole arbiter of knife regulations. And because of loose restrictions on weapons here, Arizona is now considered a knife carrier’s dream, a place where everything from a samurai sword to a switchblade can be carried without a quibble.
Arizona’s transformation, and the recent lifting of a ban on switchblades, stilettos, dirks and daggers in New Hampshire, has given new life to the knife rights lobby, the little-known cousin of the more politically potent gun rights movement. Its vision is a knife-friendly America, where blades are viewed not as ominous but as tools — the equivalent of sharp-edged screw drivers or hammers — that serve useful purposes and can save lives as well as take them.
Sure, knife fights and knife attacks are a concern. No knife-lover would ever deny that. In fact, Todd Rathner, the lobbyist for Knife Rights Inc., an advocacy group based in Arizona that is now in its third year, was mugged twice in New York City before moving to Tucson, once — “ironically,” he said — at knifepoint.
But the problem is with the knife wielder, not the knife itself, the knife lobby says, sounding very much like those who advocate for gun rights.
In fact, knife advocates contend that the Second Amendment applies to knives as well as guns. They focus their argument elsewhere, though, emphasizing that knives fill so many beneficial roles, from carving Thanksgiving turkeys to whittling, that they do not deserve the bad name they often get.
“People talk about how knives are dangerous, and then they go in the kitchen and they have 50 of them,” said D’Alton Holder, a veteran knife maker who lives in Wickenberg, Ariz. “It’s ridiculous to talk about the size of the knife as if that makes a difference. If you carry a machete that’s three feet long, it’s no more dangerous than any knife. You can do just as much damage with an inch-long blade, even a box cutter.”
As for the pocketknife he carries with him every day, Mr. Holder said: “I use it for everything — to clean my fingernails, to prune a tree or carve, even to eat dinner with. I never think about the knives that I carry or the knives that I make as weapons.”
Jennifer Coffey, the New Hampshire state representative who led the effort to overturn the state’s switchblade ban, is also an emergency medical technician who uses knives to extract people from vehicles after accidents. Even when switchblades were outlawed, there were exceptions for emergency workers and others who might use them on the job, but Ms. Coffey still considered the law outrageous.
“We had certain knives that were illegal, but I could walk down the street with a kitchen knife that I used to carve a turkey and that would be legal,” Ms. Coffey said. “I’d be more scared of a kitchen knife than a switchblade.”
She said switchblade bans were passed in the 1950s because of the menacing use of the knives in movies like “West Side Story” and “Rebel Without a Cause.” Her legislation drew the support of an array of knife-related entities: Knife Rights, a young upstart in knife advocacy; the American Knife and Tool Institute, a group based in Wyoming that represents knife manufacturers, sellers and owners; and publications like Blade, Cutlery News Journal and Knife World.
The effort to lift the ban on switchblades in New Hampshire even won the support of the New Hampshire Association of Chiefs of Police.

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(Page 2 of 2)

In Arizona, however, police groups were more circumspect about lifting all of the local knife laws. The Arizona Association of Chiefs of Police opposed the move, saying local jurisdictions ought to set their own knife restrictions. The Phoenix Law Enforcement Association remained neutral.

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Joshua Lott for The New York Times

Todd Rathner, the lobbyist for Knife Rights Inc., was mugged twice before moving to Tucson, once at knifepoint.

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Joshua Lott for The New York Times

A knife made by Mr. Holder.

In much of the country, especially in urban areas, knives are still viewed as weapons in need of tight control.

District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. of Manhattan announced in June that his office had pressured retail stores that were selling illegal knives to remove them from their shelves, forfeit profits from the knives made over the last four years and help finance a campaign to educate people against illegal knives.

“What makes these knives so dangerous is the ease with which they can be concealed and brandished,” Mr. Vance said of the illegal switchblades and gravity knives, which require a wrist flip to open instead of a switchblade’s spring, that were bought by undercover agents.

Mr. Vance’s offensive drew the ire of the American Knife and Tool Institute, which issued an “action alert” and offered to assist New York retailers and individuals charged with knife violations with their legal defenses.

The knife lobby similarly rose up in 2009 when the federal Customs and Border Protection agency issued a proposal that would have reclassified many pocketknives and pocket tools as switchblades and thus made them illegal for import or sale across state lines under the 1958 federal Switchblade Act. In the end, Congress intervened and blocked the change.

A case now unfolding in Seattle shows how volatile knives continue to be. A police officer there fatally shot a man in August after, the officer said, he ordered the man several times to drop a knife that he was carrying. But the legitimacy of the shooting has been questioned by the Police Department, partly because the knife, which had a three-inch blade, was found in a closed position near the body of the dead man, who had been using it to carve a piece of wood.

Knife advocates are hoping that, just as Arizona’s immigration law has led to a national debate on that topic, its move to end knife restrictions will lead more states to take up the cause.

“Arizona is now the model when it comes to knives,” said Mr. Rathner, who was aNational Rifle Association lobbyist before he switched to knives. “We’re now going to be moving to other states, probably in the Rocky Mountains and the Southeast. There’s probably half a dozen or more places that are ripe for this.”

Tops Knives CUMA Evolution, a Waysun Johnny Tsai Design Built to Take A Beating!

2010-12-02T22:47:00.000-08:00

Can you tell I've improved the quality of the photos on this blog? I realized I had a fantastic light source right under my nose, and tweaked my cheap little point n shoot until I found the optimum settings. Here's a detail shot with the serial number visible.

   I feel like martial arts & knives go hand in hand, naturally on some level. They are both interests that captivated me very early in life, and often when I think of one, the other pops into my head as well. There have been points during the relatively young life of the tactical knife market category that have been dominated by designs from Special Operations folks, in addition to professional, career knife-makers. Most production knife companies collaborate with all sorts of professional soldiers, police officers etc. to produce signature model knife designs. It's not rare to see knives out there designed by people with martial arts backgrounds, but it's more uncommon to see knives designed by what I might call, "pure" martial artists. Datu Kelly S. Worden of Modern Arnis fame comes to mind as somebody that, by most standards would be considered a pure martial artist, who has worked his knowledge and fighting expertise into a successful segue into the world of knives & tactical gear.
Sifu Waysun Johnny Tsai, of Tsai's Kung Fu in Chicago, is one such "pure" martial artist. He's made a career of teaching martial arts in many different ways to people from widely varied backgrounds and professions. Waysun is the son of Grandmaster John Chi Yuan Tsai, one of the world's foremost teachers of Shaolin Kung Fu in modern times.
  If Waysun Johnny Tsai's name is new to you, it won't be long before you're hearing it in many more places, in connection with the worlds of self defense and tactical products. Johnny is the founder of his own CUMA system, that's Combined Universal Martial Applications. He has more than a quarter of a century of experience teaching martial arts. Johnny Tsai is still a young man, it makes sense that when your father is a grandmaster, that you're going to get an early start, and lots of individual learning at a young age!

   SiJo (founder) Johnny Tsai defines his CUMA sytem as follows; "C.U.M.A. is a “Hybrid Fighting System” designed to develop a practitioner’s skills in the art of PRACTICAL martial art applications. It focuses on all ranges of practical armed and unarmed combat."
I have watched some of Tsai's CUMA instructional DVDs, and as somebody with a modest bit of on & off martial arts experience since I was 13 (that's 20! years ago, gah!) I can say that Tsai's CUMA system IS indeed practical. It seems to take an amalgamation of some of the most logical and effective martial arts techniques across different personal combat ranges and fuse them into a practical grab-bag of knowledge & muscle memory.

Johnny Tsai making a statement on the cover of a 2007 issue of Inside Kung-Fu

For most of us, knives are a tool first, and God forbid the worst scenario arises, a weapon second. But where do we draw the line, if at all? It's almost as if, because a tool happens to be a knife, it also has the capability to be used in a defensive role under extreme circumstances. Tactical Knives Magazine Editor, Mr. Steven Dick is a hero of mine. I used to read TK avidly, and I still pick it up when I think of it. I remember his statement about what it is exactly, that qualifies a piece of bladeware as a Tactical Knife. It seemed to be the consensus of Mr. Dick, and most of the TK writers, that a tactical knife, is simply one that is meant to be used. I would agree with that. Fantasy knives, in my opinion, are not tactical knives, because they are constructed to look neat (or dorky) on a wall. On the other hand, you could call a Swiss Army knife a Tactical Knife, because it's a handful of utility, meant to be used in even more ways than say, a pure fighting knife. Regardless of your exact definition of what constitutes a "Tactical Knife", there can be NO arguing, that Idaho's Tops Knives makes Tactical Knives that beg to be used!

This is a gorgeous piece of work intended for hard use, I would not think twice about using this as a camp or self defense blade, if the need arose!

Mike Fuller and company over at Tops have been putting out a wide array of hard use tactical knives for a long time. Mike's in-house crew is comprised of a group of people with real-life experience in many different fields. From the Tops website; "Our Knives are TOOLS designed, and built, using the extensive knowledge and REAL LIFE experiences of 12 Operators with backgrounds in the Military, Law Enforcement, Outdoor Professions, and the Martial Arts."
Tops has designs that are created in-house, with the input of the core group & lots of other knives which are designed by experts in various fields like military, law enforcement, survival and martial arts. Past collaborators include knife writer/survival expert Terrill Hoffman, Tracker Tom Brown (the knife used in the film 'The Hunted'), survival expert Ron Hood, and Canadian Special Forces Vet & knife-maker Brent Beshara, just to name a small but impressive handful! The aforementioned Steven Dick, one of my knife-writing heroes & a man with a ton of military experience even designed a great all around camp/outdoor knife called the Pasayten. Tops has always impressed me with the sheer number of designs they have produced over the years. They even make folding knives! Their website is a virtual treasure trove of knives for every imaginable use, from big survival knives, to small covert neck knives, they even make a "tactical steak knife"! Tops, as a company does have a refreshing sense of humor in some of their product names, but their knives are certainly no joke. They have a hardcore reputation for real world use, both by military & law enforcement folks, as well as adventurers & civilians.
It's no surprise that Waysun Johnny Tsai would team up with Fuller & Tops at some point. It seems like a pretty natural collaboration. Tsai is one of the foremost street survival teachers out there, who has been practicing martial arts since early childhood, a man who was practically born with a combat mindset. The CUMA Evolution is a nice, large fixed blade with a beautifully clean looking spearpoint, and an additional sharpened edge on top.

Let's check the specs:

Overall Length: 10"
Top Edge Blade Length: 4"
Bottom Edge Blade Length: 4 5/8"
Thickness: 3/16"
Steel: 1095 HighCarbon RC 56-58 (Rockwell Scale steel hardness rating)
Handle: "Rocky Mountain Tread" Black Linen Micarta
Blade Color: Black Traction Coating
Sheath: Nylon with a hard insert.

   The CUMA Evolution starts its life as a piece of 1095 high carbon steel. The knife wears Tops' classic black traction coating, a sort of powder coat, if I'm not mistaken. The fact that the blade is sharp on both sides adds a unique visual flare to the CUMA Evolution, with the black coating converging into a point, right before the knife's tip. I really like the fact that the back edge is truly sharpened, it is NOT a "false edge", it is truly sharpened. I wondered where Tsai drew his inspiration for this knife from. I could tell the first time I held it, that it was balanced differently in the hand, it's just a bit handle heavy, which actually gives it a great feel. With just a bit more handle-weight, the blade sits at a very natural angle in the hand in a more traditional "sabre grip". The Rocky Mountain Tread micarta handle (which I'll touch on in a bit) makes a transition to reverse grip, and other slightly modified grips very easy & quick. This feels like a very clear cross between a pure fighting knife, and a hard use utility fixed blade. I actually thought "hmmm pure fighter/hard use utility" as I handled the knife. It turns out, I was not too far off the mark of Johnny Tsai's vision & design influence. This knife can dance with the best of them, it moves very fast for a knife its size and very graceful as well.

Waysun Johnny Tsai told me;

  "The Cuma Evolution was designed to function both as a combat and a sportsman's knife. The double edged blade was designed for both piercing and slashing. I wanted a combat blade that had great balance and enough cutting edge so that if it should have it's tip broken in the field, it would still have plenty of cutting power."

   Wow! Statements like that are why it's clear to me, and many of Tsai's associates, that although his roots are in a fairly traditional martial art, Kung-Fu, that he brings a very modern, open & urban mindset both to his CUMA fighting system, his teachings, and any products he has a design role in producing. I realize that the term "Kung-Fu", because of poplar culture, and probably a bit of Western ignorance, has become a very broad, non-specific sort of catch-all phrase for many martial arts fighting styles of Chinese origin. I'm simply trying to say that it's apparent that Johnny Tsai is a master at combining the most useful pieces of martial knowledge and fusing them together, so they work well together. I am most impressed that Tsai seems to have designed the key points of this blade to be useful in real-world applications, for soldiers, hunters and adventurers. Again, that just speaks well of his "big picture" mindset. I can't wait to see what Sifu Waysun Johnny Tsai brings the world of tactical knives & weapons in the coming years.

The rear/unmarked side of the blade. Look at those clean lines and gorgeous spearpoint tip! The back edge is sharpened as well.

The CUMA Evolution's handle slabs, like many, if not most knives that Tops produces, are made of black linen micarta. Micarta is, in simple terms, layers upon layers of tough, papery cloth squashed together at insanely high pressures in a resin-like plastic to make a material that is lighter, and tougher, than say, wood. From WikiPedia;
"Micarta is a trademark of Norplex-Micarta industrial high pressure laminates and refers to a composite of linen, canvas, paper, fiberglass, carbon fiber or other fabric in a thermosetting plastic"

Needless to say, if you have been around a significant number of custom and factory knives in the past 20 years, you have likely (hopefully) seen and felt micarta, and you know it provides a very good grip, is light weight and very strong. Tops takes this a step further with their proprietary rocky Mountain Tread handle pattern. The micarta slabs are ground with grooves, or wide channels across the handle's width. Every other groove is a full-width channel, and the others meet in the center of the handle, creating a flat little "peak", hence, Rocky Mountain Tread. This pattern was created by a man named Leo Espinoza. I found out from the Tops website, that Leo "The Lion" Espinoza is a Tops Design Manager, and also an accomplished knife maker & designer in his own right. My hat goes off to Mr. Espinoza, the grip works, and passed my little "wet hands" test. I took it a step farther. With the bath faucet running and water in the tub (don't worry guys, I was fully clothed, kneeling out-side the tub!), I immersed my hand in the water. Good grip when wet. Next I went and got the liquid dish soap. I didn't think there would be ANY way the grip would work well with the slick mess. I expected the CUMA Evolution to shoot from my hand like a ketchup-saturated hot dog off of a tightly gripped bun. I figured if I was lucky, I wouldn't lose an eye when the knife hit the fiberglass tub wall & ricocheted into my head. Surprisingly, even with dish-soap slicked hands, the knife stayed nicely in place. I realized the reason for this, is because Leo's Rocky Mountain Treads serve as channels to drain away any sweat, mud, rain, blood or...dish soap! Ok, it far exceeded my expectations in the grip department.

An excellent, more artistic photo crafted by my great friend Eric Bauer, who did some gun writing early on when I launched this site in 2008. See more of Eric's fantastic HDR photography @ www.flickr.com/photos/mraeric/5197184829/

What about cold hands? Sportsmen during hunting season are certainly gong to face wet & cold hands, even if they're only using the CUMA Evolution as a camp cook knife. I have family that lives on a little Puget Sound saltwater bay. The water there is VERY cold, especially in November! The CUMA Evolution smelled as if it had been treated with Tuf-Cloth, or a similar rust-preventing product already from the factory. Just to be safe, I gave it a good coating of Sentry Solutions' Tuf-Glide, the stuff that they saturate their Tuf-Cloth with. After wiping the excess off & letting it dry, I ended up immersing my knife-gripping right hand in the freezing, shallow water until I couldn't stand it anymore.
I had lost a significant amount of feeling in that hand up to my wrist, I still had the dexterity to grasp the knife, but I was losing fine control because of the cold. Of course, this is nothing to the conditions that professional soldiers, outdoors-people & hunters might face, I just wanted to see what sort of a grip the RMT handle provided with cold, wet hands. I'm happy to say that I never lost control of the knife, not even while choking back on the handle, as you might for light chopping, with a 3 finger grip. Tops' Rocky Mountain Tread design works as intended, plus it looks really cool.

A better look at the micarta Rocky Mountain Tread handle slabs, which provide an excellent grip with dry or wet hands.

I'm confident that Johnny Tsai's design, as manufactured by Tops Knives USA, can take pretty much anything you can throw at it, I'll update readers as I have a chance to really let it perform. Right out of the box it was shipped in, the CUMA Evolution was hair-shaving sharp on both edges. I always emphasize this because on knives that are made from thick, beefy stock, as this one is, it can be harder to get that acute, scary sharpness, even straight from the factory. The back edge shaved, just as the primary edge did, but it took just a tad more pressure to make the arm-hairs fly. Still, the back edge sharpness is impressive, and way, way more than good. I'm pretty impressed when the secondary edge on a knife is sharper than the main edge on many other knives! As far as manufacturing executions goes, everything on my CUMA Evolution is perfect. Bevels and lines are clean, when held to a bright light source, there are no gaps or wide spots between the blade steel & the handle material. There are no uncomfortable areas or 'hot spots' anywhere on the handle that I could find, and I tried a wide variety of grips. Tops Knives gets an "A+" for manufacturing quality, the knife is clean, and looks & feels just about perfect.

I've been struggling for weeks to find something to gripe about! Alas, I think the only way this knife might not be perfect for an individual depends entirely upon the specific needs of that individual. This goes for any knife or tool. If you want a "fishing knife", you should probably peruse the Tops website and pick something a bit smaller, if you are going for concealment, they (Tops Knives) do offer a ton of personal sized knives specifically for concealment. I absolutely think our soldiers in the Middle East would really love this knife because it offers them all of the utility of a more conventional fixed blade knife, plus a secondary, fully sharpened edge in a package that moves quick & gracefully. There's no doubt that the CUMA Evolution would rule the day in properly trained hands if used to defend life & limb. Certainly just from the knife's full USA pedigree, and the involved parties that made it a reality, you could probably guess that this is a knife that will excel in a combat role. I say combat, in its purest sense, man against man, but I know from talking to servicemen that combat is not simply about "fighting". A "combat knife" should be capable of being useful in many aspects of a combat zone. I have to reinforce once more, if you have any preconceived notions that the CUMA Evolution is simply "just a fighting knife", you should take another look. Bushcraft, survival, military, hiking, camping, I could go on, but realize that this is very much an all-purpose knife that happens to have been designed by a man to whom personal combat is his bread & butter.

The CUMA Evolution comes standard in a ballistic nylon sheath, with a hard polymer insert that carries the blade. There are 2 very high quality hook & loop (Velcro) straps that secure the handle, and they work very well. The sheath is MOLLE/PALS webbing compatible and the only real limit to attachment styles is probably your imagination & your other gear. The sheath also comes with a long length of OD paracord, to use as a thigh tie, I'm assuming, or for the user to use however they find it most useful. There's a nice pouch built into the sheath that will fit a wide range of multi-tools, a folder, or a pocket stone. Some people may want to have a Kydex rig custom made, but for my needs, and for many of us, the ballistic nylon sheath included with the knife is more than adequate.

The CUMA Evolution's ballistic nylon sheath is a basic affair, but does its job well. It has a hard polymer insert that holds the blade, and a front pocket for a stone or additional folder or multi-tool. It comes with a long length of OD paracord that can be used as a leg tie down, or be woven into a lanyard.

I'm very impressed overall with the design and manufacture of the CUMA Evolution. Johnny Tsai is a very interesting, multi-talented guy who definitely knows his way around a knife. Both his lifetime of martial arts experience and his calm intelligence serve him well whether he is teaching, or designing knives & self defense tools. Check out my review of Johnny's fantastic CUMA Ram Tactical Pen, if you missed it a couple months back, it's one of the most well-made items I saw in 2010, as far as overall quality, toughness & design. Speaking of "best of" items, I'm going to come right out and say that the CUMA Evolution knife by Tops & Johnny Tsai is also one of the overall best items I have reviewed this year. If the CUMA Evolution is on your list, you can get it straight from Tops Knives, mine was shipped very quickly, and exceeded all expectations, right out of the box. For more info on Waysun Johnny Tsai, check out his site, Tsai's Kung-Fu, and seriously, no bullshit, his CUMA Ram Pen is the best tactical pen I have used yet, and fits my needs perfectly, check out the CUMA Ram.
I'm really excited to see what projects Johnny Tsai is working on for 2011. I'm willing to bet they'll be smartly designed and multi-purposeful, in addition to being manufactured with very high standards.

The tool/accessory pocket on the sheath's front.

The sheath's reverse with PALS webbing.

Another great shot by my great friend Eric Bauer, who did some gun writing early on when I launched this site in 2008. See more of Eric's fantastic HDR photography @ www.flickr.com/photos/mraeric/5197184829/

Photo courtesy of blog supporter and friend, Alexander Wood, in New York.

Another awesome shot of the Tops/Tsai CUMA Evolution at home in nature. Photo courtesy of my friend Alexander Wood, aka: Urban Lex in NY

Review Inbound...I Love This Thing.

2010-12-01T02:40:00.000-08:00

This is one bad mahmma jahmma! A BIG, yet graceful hunk of carbon steel ready for anything.

More on the Way...

2010-11-29T13:33:00.000-08:00

Power outages, real life, and the holiday season have kept me from going full bore the last several weeks. I'm still here, and I'll be back with more soon. At lease 4 new written reviews in the works, and I'm still gonna come through with the video reviews, for the first time in a long time, time has been harder to find.

Stay warm.

-A

Tactical Nylon Companies Contracting Seattle Area Sweatshop Labor?

2010-11-18T13:38:00.000-08:00

It should be noted that much of what is written here is my own personal reaction to the King 5 news story, and my outrage at this happening so close to home. The entire first part of this post was written before King 5 had done their follow-up piece, and before either company had publicly responded to any allegations. I invite anybody affiliated with Tactical Tailor or JL Darling/Rite in the Rain to contact me, I'll give you space both here on the blog, and on the SB&T Facebook page to tell your side, and give customers and fans a reason to continue supporting those companies. Now that more info has become available, it does look as if this was likely a case of the guilty party, Hao's Sewing taking advantage of the trust of both companies which were affected by their despicable practices. Again, feel free to leave comments (everything should be working properly now), or contact me at 1fed1dead@gmail.com, or see the Sharp, Bright & Tactical Facebook page and drop me a note on the wall.

Rite in the Rain is a well known company that makes water resistant paper products like notebooks for military & outdoor use. They are sold at places like REI, and their tactical notebook covers are popular with soldiers all over the world. I found this new video from one of our local news stations about a suburban sweatshop in the Seattle area (Burien, WA, by Sea-Tac airport). If you pause the video with 3:08 remaining, you can CLEARLY see the same above ACU camo notebook cover being manufactured in this garage by a Viet Namese woman. Hao's Sewing is violating all sorts of state and local business laws, in addition to paying these women mere cents an hour. Reports tell of employees beaten for insubordination. This is unacceptable, this is America, we can't let this take place in our backyard! There is NO ARGUING that the logo seen in the video at the point where 3:08 is remaining is the same Rite in the Rain logo you see on the identical notebook above. See the video HERE. Meanwhile I'm going to see if I can contact Rite in the Rain for comment. It's obviously their notebook covers being produced in this Burien neighborhood by women who are paid PENNIES by the hour and treated more than unfairly. I posted the web address to the video on Rite in the Rain's facebook page to see if they have anything to say. See for yourself, google search Rite in the Rain's logo, then watch the video at http://www.king5.com/news/investigators/Suburban-sweatshop-reveals-regions-labor-underground-108772619.html?ref=nf
It cannot be any other company.

Go to http://www.riteintherain.com/ to contact Rite in the Rain, maybe if enough of us contact them, they'll have something to say. In all fairness, it is theoretically possible that the people @ Rite in the Rain had or have no idea where their notebook covers are being made. It appears that notebook covers are one of the only items being made in the sweatshop, not Rite in the Rain papers (obviously), still, watch the video & compare Rite in the Rain's logo, and it becomes clear that their tactical nylon notebook covers are being produced by sweatshop labor IN OUR OWN COUNTRY.

http://www.riteintherain.com/

Rite in the Rain's Tacoma, WA offices:
Office Hours: M-F 8:00am-5:00pm PT, Tacoma, WA

Phone: (253) 922-5000
FAX: (253) 922-5300

It begs the question, "How much other tactical nylon gear is being made with sweatshop labor around the world, and in our own country?"

I'll update as details become available and King 5 news does their followup, announcing the products found in the Seattle sweatshop, and where they are sold. This is a shameful business practice whether the folks at Rite in the Rain know about it or not.

Update - evening of 11-18-2010:
A detail-oriented reader made a good point in the comments for this post, for the sake of specifics, 'Rite in the Rain' is the brand name, the actual company responsible for their products is J.L. Darling Corporation, their full contact info is as follows;
J. L. DARLING CORPORATION - 2614 PACIFIC HWY. E. - TACOMA, WA - 98424 - USA - (253) 922-5000 - FAX (253) 922-5300

Again, I obviously don't know any more than my local news channel. I know that the alleged sweatshop contained an employee (in the video) who was stitching what was obviously a Rite in the Rain notebook cover, and that the brand logo was plainly visible, at the point where there is 3:08 left in the video. It is not known if J.L. Darling or 'Rite in the Rain' had or have certain knowledge of this weird little neighborhood garage operation where human rights are allegedly violated. Seattle's King 5 News is supposedly doing their follow-up piece tonight. I'll keep up to date on any new developments.

On King 5's page where this video is found, representatives from the J.L. Darling Corporation responded with the following comment, copied & pasted exactly as it appears on King 5's comments to the video:

"rite_in_the_rain said on November 18, 2010 at 4:12 PM

The J L Darling Corporation is a 50 year old Tacoma firm that manufactures Rite in the Rain products. We can assure you this was a total surprise to us. We would never knowingly allow any of our products to be made in a shop like this. We've been told this was the result of our Tacoma sewing subcontractor outsourcing a small portion of our work when they fell behind. They've informed us that they have stopped all outsourcing and assure us that this company had signed a fair wage agreement. J L Darling Corp is heartbroken to learn that any of our products were produced under such conditions and will do our utmost to make certain it never happens again. Scott Silver & Todd Silver Co-Presidents"

They are to be applauded for at least responding in some fashion, the video was only posted yesterday. It's not known if their comment was prompted by King 5's investigation, or possibly comments from people on Rite in the Rain's Facebook page. If the above statement is true (and I believe it could possibly be) then they were truly unaware of this. I won't say anything more until I hear more details, but props to the company for at least trying to make a statement, even if the full or whole truth is as yet unknown

-A

UPDATE: 11-19-2010:

I'm not sure why some reader comments are not showing up in the comments section, but a man named Neal who works for JL Darling wrote an extremely good comment to me regarding the incidents mentioned, and my posting of King 5's coverage. It sounds like both Rite in the Rain and Tactical Tailor were fooled by this company, Hao's sewing. In fairness to all parties affected by Hao's sewing, the following is Neal's comment (Neal if you wish me to remove this after you have seen it please let me know, I don't have an email address for you). Again, I don't know why Neal's initial comment is not showing up here, I have the blog set so anybody can comment, Neal's comment did however come through in my blogger alerts. The following is Neal's comment, unedited, as he was trying to post it:

Neal has left a new comment on your post "Rite in the Rain Contracting Seattle Area Sweatsho...":

Hi Aaron,

I work for J L Darling and we make all-weather paper products here in our Tacoma facility. The production of our sewn book covers has been done for years by Tactical Tailor, a large, veteran-owned sewing company near Fort Lewis. We pay a premium price for “Sewn in the USA” products and know we could save 50% by going offshore but we don’t. It’s a matter of principal to us. It turns out Tactical Tailor occasionally sub contracts overflow work to this Hao Sewing Company. (Who they say also does work for many large NW firms including REI). This was a total surprise to us and definitely saddens us to learn that they are a poor employer. We pay Tactical Tailor the same high per piece rate and so there was no economic advantage to us and we immediately told them to cease and desist. It stinks that we were tagged as the company who benefits from a sweat shop… there was no benefit to us and we are sickened to be innocently implicated. Tactical Tailor has issued an apology to us and says we were victimized. Incidentally, they have a signed Fair Wage document and Business License from this sewing subcontractor so they were fooled as well.

It's very upsetting to learn that people were treated this way. We are shocked that this had gone on beyond our knowledge. At our company, our owners make special efforts to take great care of us. It's quite the opposite here in reality, the integrity is very apparent. Even our production process utilizes renewable wood fiber, produces zero pollution, minimal waste and we recycle as much as possible. The only by-product is steam and we only have a small dumpster! Responsibility is a key virtue for sure. I've personally heard comments from companies that our benefits are some of the most generous they've seen in their industry. That goes for all of our employees. It's incredible that our owners work so hard to be a great example, and then learn how these people were treating their workers. We are taking action to ensure this doesn't happen again. We'd like to trust our subcontractors, but it appears we will have to be more vigilant.

I am only an employee here. I am working on our updated Web site and run our Facebook page. I'm the one that banned you, NOT for your initial comment, but because you spammed our community and commenters with unsolicited messages before getting all the facts. That's just not cool, not to mention it violates Facebook policy. I asked around here and no one said an Aaron Lee had contacted us. Maybe you can leave contact information next time? I know you have good intentions, and I completely understand being upset at the matter, as we feel the same way. I also understand you wanting to get the word out, if a company was behaving irresponsibly—we would also agree with you on that. Just please do so responsibly and without spamming people. If you have any questions or would like to visit our facility, I personally invite you to see for yourself. You're only 15 mins away (according to Google http://bit.ly/a2shF8 )

Take care,

Neal Castelo
neal@riteintherain.com

SORRY! 12/3/2010 UPDATE:

I FORGOT TO POST THE LINK TO KING 5'S FOLLOWUP:

SEATTLE'S KING 5 News Follow-up piece, video & article is here.

I still invite anybody from Tactical Tailor or JL Darling/Rite in the Rain to comment here, I'll dedicate an entire post if somebody wants to allow me to publish their email comments.

-A

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Tactical Nylon Companies Contracting Seattle Area Sweatshop Labor?