Fallkniven S1, A1, or Kabar D2?

[Alex7600]

Hi all, my name is Alex and I'm new to this forum. I came here to ask for advice because my son, who is currently deployed in Iraq, has lost his knife and has asked me to buy him another one. His old knife was a USMC Kabar but he said he wanted an upgrade, so I researched and found these 3 knives which I think are better. I was thinking of the Fallkniven S1 because it's the lightest of the 3 at 6 ounce but the blade seemed a bit small for combat use. Which do you think is suitable as a combat knife, or do you guys have other suggestions? I'm thinking of spending under $175.

Thanks,
Alex

 

[avidknifeusersf]

Alex I'm sure lots of people will be happy to help you answer this question.

You can do a search function as well, this topic comes up fairly often.

I dont like the Kabar D2's because they can chip fairly easily.

I like Fallkniven's. I'd get one thicker/bigger than the S1.
You should take a look at ScrapYard and SwampRat knives too.
Also Ranger knives get great reviews time and time again.
The Gerber LMF seems to perform well for a mere $60.00.

 

[jonnyt16]

I would recommend a few Striders but you won't find any for under $175. However, both TOPS and SOG offer outstanding selections for that price range. Here are just a few of my favorites:

TOPS Apache Dawn

TOPS CQT 6.5

TOPS Operation Badger

SOG Bowie

SOG Seal Pup Elite

 

[raindog101]

+1 on Ranger knives, Justin is a great guy to deal with.
Also, the next model up from the Fallkniven S1, the A1, may be better suited to combat. The A2 is even beefier, and may be a good choice.
Ontario makes some great knives, the RAT-7 might work for him.
I personally love my Becker BK-7, but they are currently not in production, and can be hard to find.

 

[mete]

Of all the comments about Iraq and knife use from people who have been there. Rarely is a knife used for combat ,almost always it's used for multi-purpose. A BK-7 would certainly be a good choice.Of the three mentioned I'd pick an A-1.

 

[Danno4017]

Welcome to the Forum Alex.
I am sure you will enjoy your stay.
How about something from Bark River?

 

[crustaceanmick]

Hey Alex, all the best of hopes and dreams to your son.
I have handled all three of those knives. I have medium size hands and felt the Kabar's handle was too short. I'm not a big fan of D2 either. For real down and dirty actual hand to hand combat I'd rather have a 3 foot long, pointed stick than the S1. Its just too small. The A1, now there's your huckelberry! One of my favorite knives. Simple elegance, great steel, and excellent grip. The kydex sheath requires vitually no maintainance and you should be able to find one in your price range. The TOPS Apache Dawn would be an excellent choice also, but personally I prefer the VG-10 steel of the Fallkniven A1.
Some Native American wisdom for your son: THE REASON WOLVES HOWL IS BECAUSE THERE ARE NO WORDS FOR THE WAY THEY FEEL.

KNIFEWORKS: Fallkniven A1 $149.95
toll free: 888-225-9775
help@knifeworks.com

 

[Wabajack]

Fallkniven A1 hands down, I have abused (excuse the language) the crap out of it, and it still looks like the day I bought it, I have used Busses and such, and this knife is a real winner, very tough, but because of the convex grind cut's very effectively. Plus, it's stainless so you have little to worry about maintenance wise.

 

[Wabajack]

Here are some good pictures of the A1:

 

[Alex7600]

I just ordered a Fallkniven A1 in black for my son. I just talked to a guy from a knife shop, and he highly recommended the Fallkniven A1 and said I can't go wrong with it. I also bought a commemorative Kabar knife for his return. Anybody know who makes custom macarta or carbon fiber handles? If the knife comes fast enough, and if it can be done in time, I might do it for him. He really likes macarta/carbon fiber like his dad .

Thanks for all the help guys. My son would thank you if he could.


Alex

 

[Elen]

Of the Fällknivens, I would seriously consider the Fällkniven A1. It has a 6" blade, and makes for an excellent combat knife - cuts extremely well for something of its size, also chops well for its size, and can take a lot of punishment. It's also stainless, so it doesn't need much in the way of maintenance. It's much stronger than the USMC Ka-Bar, and clearly a better cutter - just plain better overall.

I would also recommend Ranger Knives RD6 and perhaps RD7, if your son is looking for a knife to handle very serious abuse like heavy prying and chopping into things you shouldn't chop into in the first place. The Ranger Knives RD knives are great value. And those knives are tanks - 1/4" thick 5160 spring steel, tough as hell. They're not the best slicers or cutters in the universe, but will survive things that many other knives would just snap in half doing. The owner of Ranger Knives is Justin Gingrich, formerly of the US Army Rangers, and a great guy to deal with.

 

[brianNH]

I just ordered a Fallkniven A1 in black for my son. I just talked to a guy from a knife shop, and he highly recommended the Fallkniven A1 and said I can't go wrong with it. I also bought a commemorative Kabar knife for his return. Anybody know who makes custom macarta or carbon fiber handles? If the knife comes fast enough, and if it can be done in time, I might do it for him. He really likes macarta/carbon fiber like his dad .

Thanks for all the help guys. My son would thank you if he could.


Alex

Excellent choice with the A1. Also, FWIW, the A1 fits nicely in the smaller Spec Ops sheaths which your son may like better than the standard sheath.

As far as the custom handles, Mike Stewart at Bark River does custom work although this may have changed recently due to his current production schedule. Give him a call.

Bark River Knife & Tool
6911 County Road 426 • Escanaba, MI 49829
906-789-1801

 

[DrIndianaJones]

I was reading all the suggestions people were offering this man to help him select a quality combat kinfe for his son. He was already on the right track himself as far as KABAR and especially Fallkniven were concerned. I agree Bark River was a good suggestion, however as many are carbon blades they rust and require maintenence, a burden for a soldier.

Stay away from cheap offerings like Gerber LMF II. This not a nine lives knife. While it may stand up to one beating, it rarely handles a subsequent one. It is not full tang and is worse than KABAR. My only suggestion is Fallkniven. They are the strongest commercial knifes in the world. My persoanl suggestion is the S1. Why? Its full tang, A1 is not, so S1 is (proportionally) stronger than A1. S1 (190g) is lighter than A1 (305g), the latter of which some have described as like 'carring around a sharpened crowbar.' S1 performs adequetly in survival situations including battoning and light chopping. S1 is 5mm thick, A1 is 6mm thick making it awkward for utility tasks like food preparation. A Royal Marine once described trying to extract a jammed round from a 20cal. as almost impossible using the A1, because it was too thick. Now the S1 has an decent tip for penetration A1 does not, and the A2 is even worse in this department, and or for the former gun jam task forget it as well. A2 is too heavy at almost half a kilo, and Fallkniven does not categorised it as a military knife.

In conclusion A1 has the reach at 6.3" where S1 is 5.1". KABAR has a 7" reach and its blade is thinner than both although I am not a fan of its penetration ability or durability in comparison to the S1 and A1. Don't missunderstand me A1 is a very, very strong knife indeed, more so than KABAR and if you want the longer reach over an S1 choose the A1. If you want somthing shorter, but lighter, faster and pointier- with good penetration thats still way strong choose the S1. He should have a standard issue bayonett to fit his M16 A2 Rifle, so my recommendation would have been the S1 based on its lightweight, strength and winning penetration ability for combat.

 

[AKC]

A very eloquent and long answer to a 5 year-old question. I think they decided by now. Maybe.