Knife for a Soldier

Just got off the phone with him. He's stationed in 29 palms until November and the he goes to Japan or Korea. He's not sure which one (or both) as of yet. He said there's no blade length requirement on base and he can carry fixed or folding at the moment. Not sure about Japan. He also said he uses knives all the time but they didn't issue him one to keep so I'm stocked to be able to get him a knife of his own. His position is "rifleman", I'm not sure if that's the correct term but that's what he said. Luckily he's stationed close enough for me to go visit him on the weekend so that's what I'm going to do and bring him a couple gifts.
 
MOS 0311 is the United States Marine Corps (USMC) Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) code for Rifleman. It is the primary infantry MOS for the Marine Corps
 
I'll toot my own horn here...

[video=youtube;husPHpNF4xE]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=husPHpNF4xE[/video]

Rifleman means infantry... 0300
 
Tell him not to miss Joshua Tree National Park while he's there.

It's right down the road, and it is wonderful to explore there. Petroglyphs, awesome rock climbing, views galore.

Gonna get hot there in a couple months.
 
Cold Steel AK47 Field Knife. CPM3V blade with DLC coating ans metal pommel at the rear to crush heads or hammer stuff
 
AusLoX said:
Just got off the phone with him. He's stationed in 29 palms until November and the he goes to Japan or Korea. He's not sure which one (or both) as of yet. He said there's no blade length requirement on base and he can carry fixed or folding at the moment. Not sure about Japan. He also said he uses knives all the time but they didn't issue him one to keep so I'm stocked to be able to get him a knife of his own. His position is "rifleman", I'm not sure if that's the correct term but that's what he said. Luckily he's stationed close enough for me to go visit him on the weekend so that's what I'm going to do and bring him a couple gifts.
Click to expand...

Good info, as " rifleman" he's a grunt. Good for him.
Another option here I might suggest is, get him a good multitool, (again the leathermab MUT or less exoensive Real Avid AR15 come to mind, for basic rifle maintenance support tools incorporated that will greatly enhance his basic rifle cleaning set they issue), then maybe a good fixed blade you already own, like the kabar fighting knife (a military classic), and then get him a nice gift certificate to one of the larger knife retailers so he can pick his own poison!? Being a marine, whitty at usamadeblades comes to mind, since it's all made in America selection. While It's not a huge deal to me these days, post military, it does still matter to a degree, but while in the military It does mean quite a bit more to carry American made while defending American ideals.
 
Last edited:
He better check on Japan, as when i was there in 85-88 you could be arrested for just bringing a fixed bladed knife into country, and that was by US Military Customs types. John
 
strategy9 said:
Good info, as " rifleman" he's a grunt. Good for him.
Another option here I might suggest is, get him a good multitool, (again the leathermab MUT or less exoensive Real Avid AR15 come to mind, for basic rifle maintenance support tools incorporated that will greatly enhance his basic rifle cleaning set they issue), then maybe a good fixed blade you already own, like the kabar fighting knife (a military classic), and then get him a nice gift certificate to one of the larger knife retailers so he can pick his own poison!? Being a marine, whitty at usamadeblades comes to mind, since it's all made in America selection. While It's not a huge deal to me these days, post military, it does still matter to a degree, but while in the military It does mean quite a bit more to carry American made while defending American ideals.
Click to expand...

So today I ordered him a KA-BAR with synthetic handle and the plastic sheath. 1095 Cro Van

I also got the Leatherman EOD with USA made brown sheath.

Picked up some TUF Glide, cloth, and a DMT handheld double sided diamond sharpener with course and Fine. Small, light, and easy to carry.

On Thursday I'm going to Emerson to pick out a folder...leaning towards the CQC-8

As a bonus I bought a Fenix PD35 Tactical. 1000 Lumens.

And will most likely give him my Mini HK Axis made by Benchmade. Just incase there are blade size limits when he travels to Japan or Korea. He can leave his other stuff at home or ship it back if there's some sort of blade length restrictions.
 
During my 4 years in, i really never got to use my fixed blade. I had the Benchmade Adamas on my IOTV one day out at the range. My top looked at me and started yelling at me for having such a large knife on my IOTV. Lesson learned. In my opinion, and based off of what i used most, a good multi-tool will do him better than any fixed blade. He'll be able to carry it almost anywhere and he'll actually use it. Get him a leatherman MUT or a Charge. I had a charge, but the mut would have been handy for cleaning the carbon buildup on my m4.
 
FWIW don't ever call a marine a soldier. Soldiers are in the army. A marine is just that a marine :)
 
AusLoX said:
So today I ordered him a KA-BAR with synthetic handle and the plastic sheath. 1095 Cro Van

I also got the Leatherman EOD with USA made brown sheath.

Picked up some TUF Glide, cloth, and a DMT handheld double sided diamond sharpener with course and Fine. Small, light, and easy to carry.

On Thursday I'm going to Emerson to pick out a folder...leaning towards the CQC-8

As a bonus I bought a Fenix PD35 Tactical. 1000 Lumens.

And will most likely give him my Mini HK Axis made by Benchmade. Just incase there are blade size limits when he travels to Japan or Korea. He can leave his other stuff at home or ship it back if there's some sort of blade length restrictions.
Click to expand...

That sounds like quite the haul. I think he will be well set with knives and tools for using, and for ogling. And if he ends up somewhere where he needs a real fixed blade, you got him a very good option. And for the rest of the time you got him the kind of knives and tools that he can carry and use in a number of situations.

Nice choices.
 
I would be went with the regular MUT over the EOD model, more rifle specific with the hammer and punch, but definitely still a nice selection overall.
 
Last edited:
I saw someone note about blade length, this is a very valid point. I make knives for military members on a regular basis, and they all have various rules regarding size of the blade. Definitely check on that before purchasing something he'll have to leave at home.
 
DFCustomKnives said:
I saw someone note about blade length, this is a very valid point. I make knives for military members on a regular basis, and they all have various rules regarding size of the blade. Definitely check on that before purchasing something he'll have to leave at home.
Click to expand...

Definitely. Thanks man. I spoke with him and he's based in CA as of now and there's no rules on length, folding or fixed is OK. But not sure about when he goes to Japan or Korea.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top