updates inevitable for those who care

Ok, it's only really been a month or two since I had anything to write here. I just got so used to updating and writing so frequently that it feels like I've been neglecting this project for months, not mere weeks.

I've been doing some stuff for the company I work for (online) which has cut into my usual need to blog like mad on here and elsewhere. I've also turned much of the money I would spend on knives and gear toward guitar-stuff purchases again lately. But I do have several new-ish knives to write up. I've been making my usual form of sloppily recorded music-noise, among other things. The sick fire that burns within me when it comes to knives, guns, tools and related things continues to burn, I'm just busier, and more broke than usual. To those that read regularly, have read, or will read....thanks, Eric and I will not let this blog die easily.

We'll be back shortly.
-Aaron

RAT Cutlery, tools for real world survival

RAT Cutlery's new 2009 Model 5:


So, I've written briefly about my fantastic RAT (Randall's Adventure Training) Cutlery Izula knife. It's bulletproof, cool looking and built for real world hard use like all of RAT's knives. Jeff Randall and Mike Perrin have been teaching people 3rd world and wilderness survival skills for a very long time, and this experience extends into the realm of hard use knife design. The guys have their designs manufactured to very high standards by Rowen Manufacturing, here in America. The fit, finish and quality of my RAT Izula is second to none. That being said, I'm looking forward to RAT's Model 5 Pilot Survival Knife. It's a SERE (Survival, Evasion, Resistance, Escape) knife. It'd be an all around great general outdoor knife, and features a pointed pommel spike for breaking glass, and a bow-drill divot in the handle to make the old-school fire starting method a bit easier. I love small to medium fixed blade knives, and I've found RAT's stuff to be of high quality and thoughtful design. The best thing about RAT though, is that they offer a very generous warranty on products which are made in the USA at very fair prices. RAT also has an upcoming collaboration with survival journalist and world adventurer Robert Young Pelton, of "World's Most Dangerous Places" fame. The RAT/Pelton H.E.S.T. knife promises to be outstanding as well, and should be available this summer.


This is one of those posts where I can't help but sound like a commercial! Aside from my personal experiences with RAT, Tactical Knives Magazine has given RAT's blades very high marks as well. I feel that TK magazine is back on a good and interesting path that reminds me of some of the writing being done there 10 years ago. Sure these guys are given lots of sample blades to test and keep, but reviewers like John Larsen, Joe Flowers, Terrill Hoffman and editor Steven Dick are all very experienced and generally very honest about their impressions of various knives. I trust their opinions, I've been reading that magazine a long time.

Here's RAT's Model 3 knife which has become a classic in a short time:


Randall and Perrin routinely take groups into the jungles of South America. I think it'd be a great adventure to sign on for one of these trips. You learn all about jungle survival by actually doing it. They eat crocodile and strange exotic fish, participants are taught several ways to make fire in the wet environment and how to find shelter. There's a nice article by a guy named Reuben Bolieu in the new TK magazine, he covers some of the blades that were brought along on a recent trip. RAT also just came out with a Fire Kit that is a Misch Metal Flint attached to a watertight capsule for survival uses.

You can throw a lanyard on it and attach it to a pack or even the butt of your survival knife. No cheesy Taiwan-made Rambo junk here! RAT Cutlery is hardcore, quality American made gear.

The Izula is a good "entry-level" RAT Cutlery knife that I'd be comfortable having as the *only* blade on a light camping trip, or even a trip alone into an unsavory urban area. The Izula (knife and sheath *without* the survival kit) can be found at Knifeworks.com for under $50.



Knifecenter.com and Knifeworks.com are the only 2 online cutlery shops that I feel 100% comfortable recommending to others. I'm sure there are other great knife retail shops online, but I've been ordering from these two for many years, a decade actually, and both are known for their reliability, and they both actually stock the items they advertise, instead of using shady "drop ship" methods of getting orders to customers. I recently got screwed over by an online retailer whose link used to be on our list here. My order was placed 2.5 weeks ago and I've gotten nothing, the original knife was not in stock, I had to find out for myself that the company went out of business 4 years ago. So, this nameless retailer gave me the option of picking another item, to my knowledge, it still hasn't been shipped. If you need to know what site this was, email me. Meantime...take my word that both Knifeworks and Knifecenter are excellent retailers with expert owners and staff who will get your order to you quickly and at a fair price. They would both be good sources for RAT Cutlery knives. For more info though, check out RAT Cutlery's site


Here are a couple photos from RAT's website, showing the larger RC6 in action:



Here's an amusing RAT ad that you'll see in cutlery magazines lately. I'm pretty sure the Pink Izula was created for high visibility if dropped on the floor of the jungle. But I've read some forum posts lately that some young women saw the pink Izula and demanded one from their husband or boyfriend when he ordered his in black, tan or green. I prefer the desert tan myself.


I'll definitely be keeping an eye on future releases from RAT Cutlery.

United Cutlery Undercover Karambit, under $15.00 USD!?

I felt like kind of a D-Bag buying a United Cutlery product. They are an American manufacturer/importer based in the South, everything being made in China or Taiwan. United is the company responsible for the ubiquitous and ridiculous Gil Hibben Fantasy knives, and countless poorly made movie replica swords. They are the responsible party for the original Rambo movie knives. When I worked in retail cutlery, United products sold well to people who don't know a functional knife from their a**hole. That being said, I'm a big fan of the general karambit knife concept, and $11.95 felt like a great deal. I thought if the Undercover Karambit really sucked, I'd give it away, or modify the grind and/or throw some Krylon spraypaint tiger stripes on it.

Much to my surprise, I opened the Knifecenter UPS box to find a very well designed weapon. United, like 99% of manufacturers who utilize Chinese factories, uses 420J stainless steel for nearly everything they make. It's cheap, and while not outstanding, it's not a terrible steel, and it least it has a name, no "Surgical Stainless Steel" here. Over the last 5 to maybe 8 years, we've seen numerous karambit designs pop up here and there, and they were the flavor of the month in the industry for a bit. Emerson makes some great karambit designs, and you'll find karambit-inspired custom knives all over the web. I guess I had karambit fever recently, because in addition to the UC Undercover Karambit, I obtained (and paid too much) for the Smith & Wesson folding Extreme Ops Karambit. You can find the thing online for well under $25.00 USD, but I did a "PJIB" (Poor-Judgement-Impulse-Buy) at a branch of my former employer's shop and paid full retail, around $35.00. But that's a karambit, and a tale for another day....

So the United Cutlery Undercover Karambit can be comfortably held in reverse or standard grips. I have large hands with inflated knuckles and the UC UK still felt nice in my hand. The sheath is Kydex-esque plastic, probably not even FRN or Zytel, but a cheap black plastic with a slightly abrasive texture. There is a belt-clip style attachment which can also have a belt threaded through it. All in all not the worst carry-system for a knife of this type, but not fantastic either. The UK is difficult to remove and reinsert into the sheath with any sort of speed. The unique signature karambit blade shape and the sheath don't allow for any super-smooth action. Not a big deal, though functional, to me this knife is more of a novelty, it's unlikely I'll ever need to "dispatch" an armed "sentry" in Stealth Mall Ninja fashion.

In either grip mode, there is a nice kind of treaded section of jimping where your thumb ends up resting, providing a secure grip. The primary inner curve portion of the blade was almost shaving sharp out of the box, and it should be mentioned that this knife was literally dripping with oil when I removed it from the plastic bag in its box. It's no secret that knives with gray bead blasted finishes are rust magnets. Basically, it's my understanding that bead blasting almost "opens the pores" of even stainless steels and allows pre-rust to form easily. Every knife I've owned with a gray bead blast finish has acquired spots of pre-rust very quickly. I take care to never carry such a blade during summer or vigorous activity, as I sweat profusely.

The Undercover Karambit has the typical finger hole at the butt, but also one up front positioned for the index finger, when held in a standard grip. It's surprisingly comfortable either way, and the outer curve "back" of the blade is also sharpened, but not really sharp, because of the width/thickness of the grind. It could be made sharper, but I'm not going to mess with it. I do think this little K-Bit would look cool with some sort of coating applied, if only for aesthetic purposes. I may tape it up with various stripey designs and trick it out with flat black spraypaint, or apply some glow-in-the-dark powder covered by a clear nail polish, to give it a creepy and tactical night-mode look.

So, after shipping, this knife still ran well under $20.00 and I'm pretty impressed. A company known for its dorky, cheaply made, hype-driven wall hangers has turned out something that approaches a usable and user friendly self-defense design at an unbelievably low price. I'm sort of embarrassed to admit it, but I actually just ordered another United Cutlery piece, the Elite Forces Recon Push Dagger, which was even cheaper than the karambit! I'll give my impressions on that Chinese-made gem when it arrives on my doorstep.



Check out some of United's cooler stuff at KnifeCenter.com

the Glow Cobra lanyard I added to the rear ring is my favorite design from Scott at The Lanyard Zone. It's a high quality Cobra Stitch lanyard with a super bright glow in the dark zipper pull fob woven into the tip. Scott's lanyards are the best I have ever seen or used, and he hand crafts them all up in Canada. He's known for his unique trademark Skull Lanyards with glowing eyes. Very cool stuff, just what this cheap knife needed to make it look like it's in a class above its pedigree.

My Strider WP from Plaza Cutlery

This is my brand spanking new Strider WP, a newer version with what Strider refers to as a "rail edge". It's got a full-thickness tip and an unsharpened swedge grind. I personally don't have a use for this feature, I just thought it looked cool.

Quick Specs:
Blade Length- 3 1/2"
Overall Length- 7 3/4"
Made of- S30V stainless, and heat treated by proprietary Paul Bos heat treating process
Handle- Olive Drab paracord wrap
Sheath- Kydex with Blade-Tech Tek Lock mechanism for easy attachment to belt or gear




The following is taken from Plaza Cutlery's page on the knife I ordered from them:
"Notes: This is a new grind on the back spine. Heavy chisel edge on the back spine for any heavy splitting that maybe needed. Hence the term rail for heavy work with strength like a rail road tie.
Has a great feel and with the thicker blade with a false edge that is ground and beveled so it does look double edged. The stock is 3/16" so is very strong. Also includes a kydex sheath!"

Plaza Cutlery is in Costa Mesa, CA and should be well known to cutlery aficionados or folks who attend West Coast knife shows. Dan Delavan's shop is said to be the largest knife shop on our coast. All it took to order my Strider was a phone call to their retail location. I spoke with a very nice dude named Chris who took my order and verified all of my shipping and card info. I'll definitely be doing business with Plaza in the future. They stock stuff that just isn't available too many other places, particularly semi-custom lines like Chris Reeve and Strider, plus an impressive selection of true custom blades and full handmades. Plaza is also an influential enough dealer that often custom makers or production knife companies do Plaza Cutlery exclusive edition knives that are available nowhere else. Case in point is Jon's new carbon fiber limited Benchmade Rift, which was made as a Plaza exclusive.

I wanted to do an in-depth post on my new knife, but there's not that much to say! It's ground from a single piece of S30V stainless, the handle is wrapped with OD paracord, and I paid close to $200 for it, after shipping. A snug kydex sheath with a Blade-Tech Tek-Lock was included. I'm very happy with my purchase. If I think of any revolutionary info, I'll amend this post.


Do I think Strider knives are overrated? Maybe. Do I think they are badass? Most definitely. They are pricey for a line of knives that aren't "true" customs, but Mick Strider and Duane Dwyer's respective true custom pieces make the general Strider knife line look inexpensive, like bargains for that matter!
I'm satisfied for now, though I would like to own the Strider ED, for its badass skeleton cutout design!



Check out Plaza Cutlery

It should be noted that "WP" is more of a size/general style category designation among Strider's lineup, not a specific model per se. The "WP" is offered in a ton of different blade grinds; tantos, spearpoints, clip points etc, along with "rail edge", like the one I got.

Spartan Blades

Everyone is anticipating some disposable income from their tax return right? The economy sucks. It's been awhile since you had some cash to blow on something cool for yourself right?

Well, I found my gift to myself for making it through 2008 alive.

Spartan Blades is a new knife company founded by two special ops veterans; Curtis Iovito and Mark Carey. If you got ahold of the current issue of Tactical Knives magazine, you'll know what I'm talking about. John Larsen reviewed the three Spartan Blades fixed blade knives and gave them all high marks for performance and stain resistance. I don't own any of these knives yet, as they are pretty pricey, base prices, depending on blade color/coating are $308.00 or $310.00 USD, and that's just for the knife alone. Adding a sheath to your Spartan blades purchase will run about $25 to $53 extra. So, I'll spare you any babble or tech-specs, but I leave you with pretty pictures and a link to the Spartan Blades website.
Nyx:

Ares:

Erebus:


For detailed info on these badass and pricey gems go to the Spartan Blades site Or check out the current issue of Tactical Knives magazine


And Eric, you're going to shit yourself and call me insane when I do my writeup on my brand new Strider fixed blade that I ordered from Plaza Cutlery in Costa Mesa. It was way more than even a knife-buff should pay for a knife, though nowhere near as pricey as one of these Spartan Blades. It will indeed be one of the most expensive knives in my collection, until of course I blow upwards of $350 on one of these fine Spartan Blades!

Look for an in depth review, probably of the Ares, or Nyx here at S, B & T in the coming months. And also stay tuned for pix and info on my Strider WP fixed blade, with the new "rail edge" blade style by the end of the week. I'll also have a post up ASAP about a very cool one-piece, stainless, fixed blade karambit design that can be had for under $15.00.

Taken, starring Liam Neeson

This movie cements Liam Neeson's place in the halls of BadAssery. This movie doesn't pretend to be anything but what it is; an action revenge movie. Lost's Maggie Grace plays a 17 year old, and that's kind of dumb, considering she's in her mid 20's, but she does it well. Neeson proves he's not too old to kick ass when his daughter is kidnapped by a group of sleazy Albanians intent on delivering her to a bigtime jerkoff who's intent on auctioning her sweet virgin ass off to the highest bidder. Liam plays Brian Mills, a man who used to work for the US government as a "preventer", implying he was CIA/Spec Ops type with some very high quality training and a lifetime of experience. Neeson's hand to hand fighting is very raw and looks to be based on some style of Arnis/Eskrima. You can tell the man obviously trained and learned for this film, as the camera work and editing looks pretty gritty and fight scenes realistic. My nephew and I regretted we didn't take the time to do a kill-count for this film, but that's why I'll be going to see it again at some point before it leaves theaters. I didn't even really want to like this movie, but it so honestly tries to be nothing more than the story of a very dangerous man slaughtering sickos who stole his daughter. That's it, no real character development, no needless plot elements. Just one man hunting and killing anybody who gets in his way in his attempt to find and secure his teenage daughter. For that, I give it props. Not to mention there's a badass fight with Neeson vs. a karambit wielding Frenchman. A pretty impressive feat for a PG-13 film.

Ontario Ranger series; Shiv

Ontario Knives is a knife company with 100+ year old roots, in New York state. They have held a number of military contracts and are known primarily for their relatively inexpensive, US made fixed blade knives. It's my understanding that Ranger Knives went under, and Ontario purchased the rights to manufacture most of the knives the defunct company used to offer. Knifecenter began carrying these Ranger knives last month. It's odd though, Ontario's site looks very outdated, the new Ranger knives are nowhere to be found, as of this writing, and there are models listed that I know that they no longer produce. Oh well, maybe having a web presence is not high on the company's list of priorities. Anyhow, although I've heard lots of knife industry buzz about how Ontario screwed over Jeff Randall, and his company Randall's Adventure Training in past business dealings, I could not resist their new Ranger Shiv. I got mine for about $46.00 USD, and it took about a week to get here from Knifecenter.

The Ontario/Ranger Shiv and Shank knives are each available in either cordwrap or micarta handle slabs in various colors. I didn't think that the micarta handles looked that cool, and they were a bit more expensive, so I opted for cordwrap, in desert tan. The larger Shank series sports 6.5" blades, while the Shivs have 4.5" blades. These knives are close to a hefty quarter of an inch thick, made of 1095 carbon steel. I like 1095, it's an excellent choice for impact resistance and ease of sharpening, it's incredibly tough, but not stainless. I have found that carbon steel blades don't really tend to rust any easier than certain stainlesses, discolor, yes, but not rust. Especially true if they are cared for, and worst case scenario, from my experience with 1095 carbon steel, all that's needed to remove oxidation from a cutting edge is a bit of metal polish rubbed on with a soft cloth, I then wipe the blade down with a light coat of Breakfree or something and call it good. Either way, I like 1095, and had this knife been made of a stainless steel, I probably wouldn't have purchased it.

The Shiv is coated with some sort of baked-on black powder coat which should do an adequate job of protecting the blade. The word "ONTARIO" is etched on the back side and there is a lightning-bolt-inside-a-diamond logo etched on the front, underneath it, the word "SHIV" is printed. There is a basic, but functional area of jimping for thumb-purchase on top of the spine, making the grip pretty secure. I also like the cord wrapped handle because if I wanted to, I could rewrap it with any paracord color I wanted; from neon green to multi-cam. The included sheath is a very basic ballistic nylon affair, with a velcro collar which wraps around one of the slight finger grooves in the handle to prevent the knife from sliding out. It's a pretty cheesy sheath, but it works for the intended use of keeping you from getting cut, there's a hard composite insert to keep the thing rigid. It is by no means a "carry system", but I'm sure you could either make your own kydex sheath for it, or have one made fairly easily. I'm not concerned, I recently bought a Bark River/Sharpshooter Sheath Systems black leather pocket sheath which happens to coincidentally fit the Shiv perfectly. Said sheath also is a good fit for my RAT Izula, and several other smallish fixed blades I own.

For a thick knife of carbon tool steel, the Shiv carries very light. It can't be more than a few ounces, and it's comfortable on my 5.11 Tactical TDU belt, or simply carried in its sheath in my front right pocket. This knife is every maximum security prisoner's wet dream, it's basically a sharpened pry bar. The Shiv came packaged in a heat sealed poly bag, inside its sheath, with nothing more than a barcode sticker on the bag, no frills here. I'm not even sure if Ontario offers a warranty on anything they make, but there aren't too many ways to break a sharpened hunk of 1095 carbon steel, so I don't care either way. I bought this thing with some reluctance at first, thinking that it wouldn't have too many real utility uses, the thing is obviously meant to be a simple weapon. But now that I realize how lightly it carries, I can see it having potential as a camp kitchen knife, in spite of its thick blade. The Shiv and Shank series all feature generous lanyard holes, as you can see I've added a Lanyard Zone 4-skull twist lanyard in black and desert camo. I think it's a good look, adding to the blade's already threatening appearance.
Time will tell if this is a knife I will actually use and carry, but as a fan of smaller fixed blade knives, I can tell it'd make a decent light camping knife, and the lightly grooved handle and its paracord clothing should make it plenty comfortable to work with. Don't bother going to Ontario's site, it sucks. If you want to check out the Shanks and Shivs, go to KnifeCenter of the Internet

Here's my Shiv, next to a Sharpie, for size reference:


I would recommend the Ontario Ranger series Shiv to anyone looking for a basic and rugged no-frills small fixed blade. It is essentially a weapon, but I believe it has potential for utility. I actually like mine enough that I'm considering ordering its larger brother, the Shank, also in tan cordwrap, so I have a matching set.

If Shanks and Shivs aren't your thing, Ontario has some other burly fixed blades in the Ranger series, like the RAK, I particularly like the serrations, and the skullsmasher pommel spike on this baby:

New Build (10/22)

Because I am obsessed with Ruger's 10/22 platform, on top of the fact that their rifle in .22LR is generally what I'm interested in writing about, not to mention shoot, as promised I've gathered some photos of the current build of my most recently purchased (you might recall from November) 10/22.
As I stated in my previous post here, the barrel is the newest ad-on, and it arrived from Gunkings yesterday evening. As it's a modified factory barrel and not fully aftermarket, it dropped in with no issues at all. The blueing is a little iffy in a few places, though I'm not going to be picky about that, and my only other real complaint is that it doesn't fully jive with the glossy receivier. Other than that it's hot, 16 inches of which 5.5 are included in the length of the flash hider at the end of the barrel. Tacticool as hell and scary looking to boot.While I haven't yet had an opportunity to take the new barrel out to the range, I was able to get some time with the Blackhawk Knoxx Axiom stock. The 6-position buttstock makes the gun comfortable for just about any shooter, also helping with adjusting eye relief depending on how far out you've got the scope zoom. The pistol grip is amazingly ergonomic and comfortable as well, feeling exceptionally natural in how one grips the weapon. And I love the fact that with this stock the barrel is completely free-floating. My groups were extremely tight using the Butler Creek barrel with the Knoxx stock, and I'm hoping for similar results with the Gunkings barrel as well.
I'm extremely pleased with this gun at this point. It looks mean as hell and about as far from a plinker as you can get, but I'm also looking forward to shooting this for accuracy at the range. I will likely be making a few more modifications to this gun, granted they won't be visible changes. Namely swapping out the hammer and bolt buffer, and maybe adding a match grade trigger in there as well. No doubt any changes I do make I will be sure to post about here once I do. Keep your eyes out for Sunday's range report where I'll be able to detail how the gun performs. Until then, keep bustin caps.

Ka-Bar/LaserLyte Pistol Bayonet

Speaking in today's previous post about American manufacturing...Kabar teamed up with LaserLyte to produce their American made pistol bayonet, which supposedly works on any pistol with an accessory rail.

Good Looking Spyderco Auto and a short rant on "buying American"

So, I've mentioned in the past that I'm not a huge fan of automatic knives. My thinking is that there are thousands of knives now, in 2009, that open just as fast and have less parts to malfunction. That being said, I do like the look of Spyderco's Citadel series. This pic was "borrowed" from Knifecenter.com.

Here's Spyderco's specs:
Features
Right-hand automatic blade-opening deployment
Hard anodized, machined aluminum handle with Bi-Directional Texturing™
Black steel clip positions folder left/right hand tip-up (three screw attachment)
Back-up safety switch positioned adjacent to automatic-open button
Screw together construction
Trademark Spyderco Round Hole
Flat saber-ground CPM S30V
Spine jimping
Swedge grind reduces weight
Lanyard Hole
Specifications
Overall Length: 7-3/4" 197mm
Handle Length: 4-9/16" 116mm
Cutting Edge Length: 3-5/32" 80mm
Blade Length: 3-1/4" 83mm
Weight: 4.8oz 137mm
Blade Material: CPM S30V
Blade Hardness: Rc 59-60
Scale Material: Aluminum
Made in USA

Pretty sweet knife. It seems many production knife companies are well aware of the increasing consumer demand for USA-Made products. It's nice to know that the bulk of Benchmade's line, many of Spyderco's high end knives, along with some Kershaw and all ZeroTolerance knives, are made here by Americans with American jobs and American craftsmanship. There are many other companies manufacturing here in The States. The once great Buck Knives is also producing a large number of their knives in a new Idaho facility. I used to think that the whole "buy American" thing was somehow nationalistic or racist. As an adult, I now know better. It's about keeping jobs here, and employing our American brothers and sisters, no matter what language they speak or what shade their skin is. Not to mention the fact that many knives made in China and Taiwan are garbage. There are exceptions, like CRKT and Mantis, don't get me wrong, and American manufacture doesn't always mean quality. Shit, look at our domestic automotive industry! My point is, American manufacturing, and "buying American" is good for our nose-diving economy. It's also obvious that many times, when we buy products made in countries like China, that we are indirectly supporting gross violations of human rights, and sketchy child labor. I must applaud many knife and tactical gear companies for either continuing to employ Americans, or increase the number of products in their lineup which are made here.

Benchmade Rift 2009 Edition

Here's the original handle scale color pattern for the Rift since its debut:


Just a quickie here...I've talked to a few people who like the Benchmade Osborne Rift in concept, but who thought the combo stripe black and gray G10 was a little too much. I personally like it, as every Rift produced with the combo color G10 is a little different. But some people have complained it almost looks too stylized. Well, Benchmade must have heard this too, as for 2009, all Rift blade/coating variations are available in a more traditional plain black G10 handle.



The combo edge Rift, BK1 coated, has been my primary edc knife since August 2008, I mean, I carry plenty of other knives, but the Rift offers me the perfect combination of light weight and low-profile. I like the Benchmade Rift enough, that I might just have to get a plain edge satin finish version with the new plain black G10 handle scales. These new variations of the Rift should be available nearly everywhere within the month. These knives, like most factory-made knives, have a marked-up MSRP, for instance, the suggested retail of the new black handled Rift with an uncoated plain blade is $180.00 USD, though like all Benchmade knives, and most other production knives, you can find them significantly cheaper. I got my Rift for about $100, and I've seen the new models for about $125.00 at better online retail knife shops.

Busted 10/22 (Did Ruger just do me Like That?)

The 10/22 is pretty much my favorite rifle platform available to consumers. Show me another gun almost as modular as an AR15 at a fraction of the cost that performs even close to the rate with which Ruger's .22LR standard does, and I'll tell you I'm impressed... so imagine my disappointment with my newest Ruger 10/22 (of which I have written a bit about on here some time back) pretty much failing on every level imaginable. Okay, granted I embellish a bit; it's not failing on every level, as the receiver appears to work all right. Primarily the problem is with the barrel, a Butler Creek feather-weight carbon fiber bull barrel. It's hella pretty to look at but won't chamber ammunition for shit, and I have tried everything from cheapo Walmart Xpert 22 bulk, to expensive as hell Wolf, Eley, and SK. The barrel chamber is just too friggin tight, which results in me have to slam the bolt forward with every shot I try to take.

The problem above is actually not a problem with Ruger, since the only part of the gun that's stock at this point is the receiver and it's internals, rather with Butler Creek. Now owned by Bushnell, I can say that I have nothing but disgust for their customer service. Upon calling their 800 number, the representative's first response was that I take it to a gunsmith and foot the bill myself. I restated the fact that the problem was with the barrel and how it had been manufactured, so he began to detail their warranty process. Basically I pay shipping and a flat $10 fee for the to take it into their repair center, then give them 6-8 weeks turnaround time at which point, if they found anything wromng with the barrel they either ship it back, or replace it... AKA a fancy way for them to tell customers to fuck right off.

So, as impatient as I am, and not wanting to have a gun sitting around collecting dust, I decided to take it upon myself to fix the issue and put together a rifle that isn't jacked up. Being somewhat unhappy with the .920 diameter Butler Creek stock that the gun came with, I looked into more tactical interpretations of the 10/22 stock. Tapco makes one that's sweet, but suited only for factory contoured barrels. Christie & Christie makes one for both factory contoured barrels as well as the .920 bull barrels, but they're expensive as hell and a little bit bulky. Choate makes a sick Dragunov styled stock for both barrel dimensions as well as a folding stock for only the factory contoured dimension. However none of those were really up to spec as far as what I was looking for. But after browsing Cabela's website I came across what I wanted by complete mistake...
Not only does it feature a tacticool 6 position adjustable stock, but there is no barrel channel, making the entire setup fully free-floating which means that it is compatible with any size barrel the user chooses to pair with the receiver. It's modeled after the more expensive Knoxx stocks for large bore rifles and shotguns, and is designed to absorb all feedback the weapon experiences upon firing. Not a lot given the weapon in question is firing .22LR, but it's sick as hell looking, will support a bipod, and allow me to utilize whichever barrel I choose.

Given that the barrel was the original source of the problem, I scoured the web for various after-market accessories sellers to find a new barrel. While MidwayUSA has a huge amount of supplies for the 10/22 is my usual go-to source, nothing they were offering jived with what I was looking for, either in appearance or in price. CheaperThanDirt also had nothing too stellar looking, so I branched out to some more obscure sights. Tactical Inc has a nice finned barrel but is a little pricy for what it is, and their shipping times are currently extended due to being bogged down with orders. I ended up coming across Gunkings, who have a fairly great selection, though at least half of what they offer was listed as sold out. However, give that I want this build to look fairly outstanding, I found this:
This is a modified 10/22 barrel tricked out with a 5.5 inch flash suppressor and .720 diameter sleeve, making it a bit fatter than the factory taper, but not as bulky as the .920 diamter bull barrels. It's modeled after an AR15 varmint barrel and because it's a modification of the original factory barrel will fire anything you put in it, from crummy Winchester Xpert ammunition to CCI Stingers. Even fancy-pants rounds like Wolf/SK, Eley, or Fiocchi should be no problem out of the final build, which if shipping all goes well, I should have put together by Friday or Saturday. I'll keep you all posted on the final build with details and photos, and until then happy cappin y'all.

Better pix of Benchmade 2K9 knives

Knifecenter has begun stocking many of the 2009 Benchmade line, or at least accepting pre-orders for when they arrive. After taking a long look, I'm actually kind of glad there's not a whole lot that immediately appeals to me, as I need to save money, and 2009 promises to be a year full of awesome new knives from my favorite production companies.


I am down with the new pen series, like the 1150, and the "gentleman's pen" below.




And I really like this new knife from the late, great Bob Lum, it's a fitting tribute to one of the makers who changed the industry.


I really like the looks of the Marc Lee Glory knife, designed by Eddie Killian, who I'm not familiar with. It's unlikely this will be on my 2009 'to buy' list, as it's expensive, and I have plenty of nice fixed blades.


Benchmade's Elishewitz designed Nimravus, and Nimravus cub was the first Benchmade fixed knife I owned, way back in 1998 or so, when it debuted, and it's still a favorite. Elishewitz is no longer working with Benchmade, but many of his designs live on in benchmade's line, like the Stryker series, and their new incarnation of the Nim Cub, which promises to be a great all-purpose outdoor knife.


And here are a couple of revised Benchmade automatics. I'm not a huge fan of most automatic knives, as I believe there are plenty of tougher knives on the market that open just as quickly, but these are pretty cool.


So, seems Benchmade still has the ability to create some really good stuff. I look forward to being able to play around with these knives in person, particularly the Barrage, with its Axis lock and assist mechanism.


-A

5.11 Tactical gear, 6x6 med pouch

I found myself in Lakewood Friday night with part of a paycheck burning a hole in my pocket. I avoided Tactical Tailor's factory store, as I've spen a bunch of dough there this winter and there's nothing else I need from them. I did hit up their neighbors, Quantico Tactical. I looked at 5.11 shirts, and picked up a 5.11 1.75" TDU belt and some Blackhawk! belt keepers, as my old leather belt is just about done. I also picked up the 5.11 Tactical 6x6 med pouch.

This pouch will be the starting point for my FAK, that's 'first aid kit'. I'll add my daily meds, a white chem light stick [which I also got at QT], self-stick vet wrap aka: 3M Coban, band aids and some other "WTSHTF" essentials. My 5.11 PUSH shoulder bag is awesome, and despite some negative reviews of 5.11 products, I now have the bag, the med pouch and a belt, and I have found their stuff to be of really good quality.

I like the fact that this pouch is molle compatible, making it easy to attach to any other item [like my PUSH bag] or a backpack with the included SlickSticks, which are like 5.11's button-snap version of mAlice clips. The 6.6 Med Pouch has a mesh internal pocket on both sides and the zippers open all the way around so you can fully open and inspect...and get to the contents of the pouch in a true emergency. I have the feeling this pouch will even be good as an edc gear-organizer dropped into a pack or messenger bag. It measures 6in.x6in but holds a lot more gear than you'd think. In a preliminary test, I threw in 2 SureFire G2 lights, a box of 12 CR123 lithium batteries, 2 folding knives, a roll of vetwrap, a sharpening stone and a bottle of pills. I fully intend to actually create an FAK using the 6.6 pouch as the container. I'll keep you posted. So far, i'm really digging my gear from 5.11 Tactical
-A

ERT 1

I feel there is nothing better than being prepared when your life may be at stake. Every day people spend hours in cars, in buildings or homes and at any minute the building can collapse, there can be an earth quake and your house can be in shambles with you and your family stuck inside, you can lose control of your car and end up in a stream upside down or stuck inside your car when it has caught on fire after an accident.
When seconds and minutes count and your life or your loved ones' lives are on the line, all it takes are a few simple tools to help keep you alive or even to help you get out of a situation. In my car I carry a Benchmade ERT 1 Rescue Tool. The Benchmade ERT1 is equipped with a Hook Tool for cutting seat belts, a spring loaded glass breaker and a submersible LED light. I don’t ever see myself getting caught in any situation that I would need to use my Benchmade ERT 1 but if I ever flip my van and land in one of the many creeks, lakes or rivers we have here in Washington, then I can safely release my family from their seat belts, break a window and get them to safety. Seconds count, especially when your automobile is submerged and it could take rescuers thirty, forty minutes...or never to get to you. A Benchmade ERT 1 runs about $40 and that is a small price to pay even if it only gets pulled out of its sheath to practice using the glass breaker on a junk yard car's window.


Editor's note:
Benchmade now markets the ERT1 tool as the "Houdini Pro". Benchmade has even taken the signature Benchmade Butterfly logo and company name off of these tools, and they are advertising "Houdini Inc." as if it's a seperate company...though these tools are still listed on the Benchmade website. I'm still wondering why Benchmade has opted to re-market some of their rescue tools as a whole different product line. The ERT1/Houdini Pro can be found at knifecenter for about $28.00 USD
Click HERE for more info
or check out the Houdini Inc. Site
-A

ZT 0500 Mudd Knife

I've been hearing great things about Zero Tolerance knives for awhile now, but it wasn't until shortly after Xmas that I had the opportunity to play with them at a local gunshop. ZT is a division of KAI, Kershaw Knives' parent company. From my research, I believe that all ZT knives are made in Kershaw's Oregon facility. Most are designed by Ken Onion. The exception is the 0500 Mudd folding knife designed by Oregon's own father/son team Grant and Gavin Hawk. I remember seeing pix of their custom Mudd line on a custom knife site, and I was excited last month to have some spare cash to blow on the ZT version of this awesome folder. MSRP is around $180, but I paid about $150, more than fair for a knife of this quality.

It's a massive aluminum and G10 handle with a blade of 154CM, a great steel for any knife. The blade is coated with black DLC, or DiamondLike Carbon, a hard and hearty coating indeed. Grant and Gavin Hawk have a patent on the unique lock, I believe they call it a RAM lock, which is also used on this Hawk folder design that is produced under Kershaw's banner as well:

I have yet to really take advantage of this knife, as i now have so many favorites, it's hard to pick my EDC knife!
The Zero Tolerance 0500 is unique, I'm not aware of another knife that has such unique features. The pivot and lock are covered by neoprene seals which block dirt, grime, and er...mud from entering the locking mechanism. With the knife open, all one must do to fold it away, is pull back on the lock button, it's not a linerlock, the lock is contained and protected inside the pivot and handle. Steven Dick, editor of Tactical Knives did a short article on the Mudd in the current Feb. 2009 issue. Mr. Dick buried the 0500 in the sandy bank of a creek near his home after soaking the knife in creek water. He proceeded to dig it up and open the knife into a locked position without so much as shaking any grime off the knife.

Pretty impressive. Lockbacks,linerlocks and many other knives would not be able to lock up after being coated in sand or crud. I remember Steven Dick writing about the original Benchmade McHenry and Williams Axis lock, the very first axis lock. In his TK article back then, he gave Benchmade's Axis mechanism high marks for locking up solidly regardless of the amount of dust or debris entered the lock channel. I've found this to be true as well, as my Axis locking knives are among the few folders I own that I rarely clean. However, I don't think the Axis lock can compete with the 0500 Mudd's crazy sealed pivot and lock button. The following is a video I found on YouTube, of somebody performing the same experiment. I'm willing to bet this folder has found a home in the kits of many Spec Ops types, divers and other folks who use their knives in unsavory environments. Now, if only somebody would mate this sealed folding knife system with Spyderco's rust-proof H1 steel....then we might see the perfect knife for waterborne missions and combat divers....



Some additional phone-pix of my ZT 0500 sporting a LanyardZone mini-cobra lanyard with a pewter day of the dead skull:



I'm happy with the ZT 0500 and I like the extremely deep pocket carry clip, the beast, with its nearly 4" blade just seems to disappear once it's on my person.
For further info, check out the Zero Tolerance SITE