Combat knife: black coating or not

Dan57 said:
While I have not served in the military, I believe that with my decades of experience as a Law Enforcement Officer working in one of America's largest and most dangerous shopping malls, I could provide valuable insight and advice (based on real-world experience from fighting in what has been referred to as the "Tombstone of the Modern Midwest,") to both the OP and any others who may be interested.
But you didn't say please, so too bad.
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This thread is gearin up to be a good one :D
 
Just to go off-topic briefly....from Wikipedia:

"Shinny (also shinney) is an informal type of hockey played on ice. It is also used as another term for street hockey. There are no formal rules or specific positions, and generally, there are no goaltenders. The goal areas at each end may be marked by nets, or simply by objects, such as blocks of snow, stones, etc. Bodychecking and lifting or "roofing/reefing/raising the puck" (shooting the puck or ball so it rises above the ice) are often forbidden because the players are not wearing protective equipment. It may also be called pick-up hockey, pond hockey, or "outdoor puck". Shinny is a game that all levels of hockey enthusiasts can play because it requires no rink, requires no skills except ability to hold a stick and at the very least to try to touch the puck or ball when it goes by. Shinny may be completely non-competitive and recreational - scoring irrelevant - or competitive and scores kept."

Uncoated knives are shiny.
 
Lol!! You guys are too funny!! I know The gophers up here are pretty alert and the slightest glint of steel will give away my position! Yes I know it's a silly question but what else am I supposed to do with my time!? Lol next time I will try to pick the right topic area to post in do sorry bout that...
In all the videos and reviews I watch I see so many people emphasizing a "tactical" blade has to fit into a certain parameter, and I can't help but think of it as a gimmick.. They all say it has to be black non reflective ect... But if I were ever to end up in that situation I am not thinking of using my knife as a weapon but as a tool..so the whole" your enemy will see your shiny blade whilst you sneak up from behind" is kinda a fantasy joke to me.. I'm Just wondering about how other people think about it..
To me.. I love the bravo 1 and think the 1.5 would be a perfect combat/survival knife.. Sure it doesn't look tactical but would you rather take the bravo 1.5 to combat/survival or the cool tactical benchmade nimravus? I don't even have to think about it I'm ordering the 1.5 in green canvas!!
 
In your SHTF scenario, will you be sneaking up to take out unwary sentries or will you be pulling the knife in some kind of SD situation?
If the former, then non-reflective surfaces might make you that fraction more undetectable. If the latter, then you want the person threatening you to pause and say to themselves "Sh*t, he's got a knife" and then freeze/panic/run. That's not gonna happen if they don't realise you've pulled a knife, because it's covered in non-reflective paint. That's also when you get to find out if all that knife training you did, has paid off.
 
I don't like paint on my knives. I just really don't see the point. The blade will be in its sheath most of the time anyway, and when it isn't, it's not like it's some big blaring strobe light. Unless you're planning on spending all day squatting in a hole, naked, with full body camo paint, it's really a non-issue.
 
Edirt said:
Lol!! You guys are too funny!! I know The gophers up here are pretty alert and the slightest glint of steel will give away my position! Yes I know it's a silly question but what else am I supposed to do with my time!? Lol next time I will try to pick the right topic area to post in do sorry bout that...
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No worries...to me this was the right topic area. The Bravo 1.5 is a decently enough designed general use knife. Like any knife, in a combat situation, you can poke somebody with it, and, like any knife, if you are ill-prepared and stupid enough to get into a "survival" situation, it might help (probably not).

Enjoy it...but don't stick it in some BOB someplace...that's a waste of money. Play with the darn thing. Find an excuse to use it.
 
You should have as matte of a blade as possible, it should be black like the night. I test this by going into the woods and putting my blade in a spot it would likely be in if I was infiltrating an enemy camp or preparing to attack a group of rebel outlaws. I then take a few paces back and make sure I can't see the blade at all. Make sure to use the brightest glowing scales you can find and reflective paracord so you can find it after this test, or if you drop it while army crawling to your next checkpoint. Good luck in the field. Tango 3 out.

In all seriousness, if you're in a position where you immediately need to use a knife for defense, it won't matter what color your blade is. If you're trying to whittle a spear near a zone filled with hostile snipers, it might matter.
 
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withanx said:
You should have as matte of a blade as possible, it should be black like the night. I test this by going into the woods and putting my blade in a spot it would likely be in if I was infiltrating an enemy camp or preparing to attack a group of rebel outlaws. I then take a few paces back and make sure I can't see the blade at all. Make sure to use the brightest glowing scales you can find and reflective paracord so you can find it after this test, or if you drop it while army crawling to your next checkpoint. Good luck in the field. Tango 3 out.
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Yeah! Those people with "blacked out" knives are total "ninjas"! :D

withanx said:
I was told they would have the black/black version I ordered by the last week of March.
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Ew. :o
 
I'm not against blacked out blades, just the idea that some day it will be used for some super stealthy tactical mission. I just get what I think looks cool. Then again, those cardboard boxes will never see me coming.
 
People give you crap to appear wise to the elders - meanwhile they bust out that new $300 knife when nobody is looking and shadow-box to ACDC "Thunderstruck" or pet it while watching an old action movie.

You keep on having fun bro
 
to the OP

welcome to BF fellow prepper :cool:

here is what you should consider:

if SHTF a survival blade will come much more handy than offensive blade
if SHTF a it is not likely that you will be moving around spec-op super stealth style & kill people
if SHTF zombies do not care if your knife is coated
if SHTF your knife will be used mostly to process game. wood, and cut stuff
if SHTF Bark River Bravo 1 or 1.5 (in your case will be a very nice option) it will excel at cutting stuff, processing game, shelter building, wood prep and it can be used as a defensive weapon

Bark River Bravo has a satin finish but I do not see it as disadvantage

here is what you should consider about coated blades

pros:
provide protection from corrosion (you can get Bravo in stainless steel or 3v(which is fairly corrosion resistant))
makes the knife less reflective (but unless you plan to go on commando spec op killing spree you do not need it)

cons:
majority of coatings (ie baked on epoxy) will make it impossible to throw off sparks of the fero road (a huge disadvantage in SHTF scenario)
majority of coatings (ie rough ones) will diminish knife slicing ability (will suck at game and food prep)
adds in weight
comes off easily and exposes unpolished surface full of micro pits that facilitate faster rusting
 
I like a nice bright, shiny blade when camping/hiking. It's easier to keep clean and IF I happen to get lost and misplace my map and compass, I can use the shiny side to signal searching airplanes and not have to add the weight of a mirror (don't shave while camping any way). 8-)

In a SHTF scenario, I don't care. I just want it to be sharp, do what I need it to, etc. I can always temporarily smear a little mud on the blade for the occasional "raid at midnight" on other nearby survivors. 8-)
 
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