Built for the Firefighter or the FF in all of us.

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Back when I helped out at a large cutlery store in the NY area, the largest sellers to firefighters were smaller dive knives, particularly the Gerber line, and the River Shorty model -

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Short, cheap, useful shape, easy to put anywhere, and easy to get a positive grip on. The gloved hand test (followed by the sheath attachment test) was usually the make or break one on the sale.
 
I could use a sharpened pry bar on the farm. Not so much for cutting things, but to make it easier to get the edge into a tight space between the two things I need to pry apart. This problem came up last week when I was trying to get the lid off a protein tub, and I could not get any of my half dozen pry bars of various sizes under the lid. I eventually got it open with couple demo screwdrivers.

But I expect that Nathan's admirable work is out of my price range.
 
ferider said:
F Fir Na Tine - do you know how the design came to be ? Did you guys give Nathan the Machinist Nathan the Machinist input ? Just wondering. Thanks !
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From Nathan:

Nathan the Machinist said:
This is the new Breaching tool pattern designed by and for firemen to open holes in things.

6" Blade, .350" thick, Delta CPM 3V, HRC 60.5, sharpened 45 degrees on one side

12 3/16" total length

1 pound, 9 oz

Total lateral strength (cantilevered one side unsupported lateral strength) 1,500 lbs (provides 6:1 safety margin for a 250 pound load)

Can be used as a cold chisel, used with a "cheater bar" and also hammered upon.
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Pair it with a Halligan bar for greater leverage and it would seem a great combo for a firefighter.

I've used the Halligan for entries / breaches on our warrant team, but never had anything near the quality of this offering from CPK for the various other tasks it would be useful for.
 
More info from Nathan:

Nathan the Machinist said:
...there is a collaboration we're doing with a fireman for a breaching tool knife that's basically a sharpened pry bar. It is single bevel and designed like a chisel. 3/8" stock. It will be able to pry open windows and doors that are not designed to be opened, and also support the full dynamic weight of a fully laden fireman.
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Should have a natural gas shut off wrench as part of it.

IMHO. trying to make a knife do other things never works out. Carry a good knife, and a separate tool. A large adjustable, Channel locks, or linesman pliers.
 
Fir Na Tine said:
The proverbial sharpened pry bar. But not just any sharpened pry bar. This form follows function design is 3/8” thick and not just thick but made with the dare I say the legendary Delta 3V heat treat alchemy from the genius Nathan “The Machinist” Carothers. This design was optimized for the rescue/breaching needs of first responders and military and to take the literal abuse from sledge hammers. It’s thick enough to not need add on handles but my suggestion is to wrap the handle in kevlar cordage for grip and potential needs for rescue. If desired, add some of that cordage between the guards to secure this beast even further. The generous handle is optimized for use with the likes of structural firefighting gloves. This is the knife designed to bet your life on for those who do put their lives on the line. A big thick thank you to Nathan Carothers for making this an incredible realty. I hope this tool gets tested and adopted by those who commit their lives in service to others.
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Very cool and I have no doubt useful. But at what point is it no longer a knife but a chisel? Looks more like a beast of a chisel to me. It would be awesome to hand that to someone asking for a chisel, lol.
 
We collaborated on the design. I have shown it to firefighters and swat leaders and the universal response was “I want one” The size and weight and superior materials lets us use it with our existing tools. You can use it as a wedge and to get a bite in tight gaps that you can’t get a Haligan in. It’s an added tool for the toolbox that we use. You can cut a car in half with this if you wanted to but the jaws of life are obviously better. Next phase is real world testing and seeing how well it works with our existing tools to develop skills that we can pass on. Swat input has been that they could use this to pop interior locked doors without having to go back out and get another tool. Things like this will show the real life use for different agencies.
 
It is both. You can cut but also use it like a cold chisel. If you have seen Nathan’s torture testing you can see how this will hold up. You can chop anything you would need to in a rescue/breach but obviously use the right tool but the best tool is the one you have with you.
 
It would be strapped to the “irons” (Haligan and flat head axe) and you can remove it to take interior by attaching to your gear. It’s a complimentary tool and not made to replace them. This is the first run and I have other flavors of this in my head that you all could probably figure out but this is the purest beast mode version that I could not ask for a better steel/heat treat, quality and manufacturing partner.
 
Fir Na Tine said:
It would be strapped to the “irons” (Haligan and flat head axe) and you can remove it to take interior by attaching to your gear. It’s a complimentary tool and not made to replace them. This is the first run and I have other flavors of this in my head that you all could probably figure out but this is the purest beast mode version that I could not ask for a better steel/heat treat, quality and manufacturing partner.
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Were You personally involed?

Almost comes off that way..... I'm sure there are some good stories behind the scene.
 
There's a German company called Schmiedeglut that produces a breaching tool appropriately called "Breacher" - look it up maybe, it's the first thing came to mind when I read the thread title 😊
 
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