KNIVES IN SERVICES OF INTELLIGENCE AGENCIES

BladeCollector99 said:
BladeCollector99 said:
... believe there were particular makers/models designed for these operatives and in reality also used by them in certain deployments at certain times...
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covert para/mil individuals obviously carried actual knives.
www.sofmag.com

OSS, CIA Survival, Killer Knives - Soldier of Fortune Magazine

www.sofmag.com www.sofmag.com

ww2 saw numerous hidden last ditch stuff revolving around singularly built offensive capability.
www.thesun.co.uk/news/3984839/world-war-two-spies-gadget-weapons-real-james-bond/amp/
there was even that soe escape pliertool...
www.thesun.co.uk/news/2805353/secret-weapons-carried-by-ww2-spies-including-a-garotte-dagger-disguised-as-a-badge-and-a-poison-key-emerge-after-70-years/amp/
but way i see it,
anybody can confidently play
spy operative with the humble sak.
Victorinox Tinker Small
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This will only be a rumour or hearsay data: how about SOG Pentagon/ SOG Agency/ Cold Steel Master Tanto (USA brands) - KYZLIAR / Melita / A&R Zlatoust brand models in Russia? Can anyone find any links to these being traced to use within Intelligence Services and particular models ?
 
JeremiahWeaver09 said:
the only thing i can think of off the top of my head that comes close was the benchmade bedlam which was made for the king of jordans security detail
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JeremiahWeaver09 said:
actually there is also the ox forge black knife automatic that was carried by us special forces
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....neither example are an "intelligence agency" (spy by definition I guess). Lots of specialised military units have purchased specific blades that were either issue or "quasi issue". Any agency (either intelligence or Law Enforcement) who maintain a covert role will shy away from anything "standardised" simply as it may act as a tell, I believe even the US DEA issued a number of different handguns concurrently in the 80s/90s to avoid this. Certainly my experience of UC is that whatever is standard (be it firearm, phone or underwear ;) ) will be avoided at all costs. I will stay out of current times but here in the late 80s and early 90s when S&W revolvers were the most common LE firearms, UCs used a number of very different arms (Beretta .32, Walther .380 and the like) so as not to be seen with a "Cop Gun". The stakes for an intelligence officer abroad are even higher.
 
And if for example you are a US Intelligence Officer working in Eastern Europe in the 80s are a going to stay the hell away for almost ANY US made product and buy "local". I think that Paramilitary Arms of IAs (CIA's GRS for example) are worth considering differently as they are not working specifically as an IO where anonymity is much more important.
 
Knife "Vitiaz"... Never being interested and don't remember details about it but it was associated with some of their special forces.
Russians have large number of special knives for their military and other gov services. I was asked to purchase this knife, because it was not available for purchase in actual Russia.
I don't know why, but the website I was directed to, sold the knife only to outside Russia, mailed it to me here in US, and I mailed it back to Europe, to it's final destination.
It was apparently for a gift, for some government guy who retired from the special service in this undisclosed country... :cool: 🤣

I don't find it to be anything special but maybe some of our Russian friends can add some info about it ?

Dv75Wq.jpg
 
Russian documentary about the "Deadliest knives of the special services"... Kind of funny video, but they are few interesting Russian knives.
Sorry, no English captions but it's understandable in the most part...

 
Andy the Aussie said:
And if for example you are a US Intelligence Officer working in Eastern Europe in the 80s are a going to stay the hell away for almost ANY US made product and buy "local". I think that Paramilitary Arms of IAs (CIA's GRS for example) are worth considering differently as they are not working specifically as an IO where anonymity is much more important.
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Very valid remark imo,,,operatives will most likely use domestic and common market in land they operate in however some specific designes might leak over periods of decades from past,,, of course take it or leave it all objects of daily use can be turned into effective weapon but i still believe some sort of blades could be just made to be favourite ones over most of others,,,hence all topic idea...
 
POCEH KOCEB said:
Russian documentary about the "Deadliest knives of the special services"... Kind of funny video, but they are few interesting Russian knives.
Sorry, no English captions but it's understandable in the most part...

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Very nice documentary shot many thanks 😊 I believe knife you posted is made by Russian Melita brand specialists for knives designed for Military and Counter- Terrorism units deployment (not sure but looks like Melita to me)
 
Andy the Aussie said:
And if for example you are a US Intelligence Officer working in Eastern Europe in the 80s are a going to stay the hell away for almost ANY US made product and buy "local". I think that Paramilitary Arms of IAs (CIA's GRS for example) are worth considering differently as they are not working specifically as an IO where anonymity is much more important.
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False. They all wore Oakley Blades and had mullets. That way they could recognize fellow agents.
 
Andy the Aussie said:
I will stay out of current times but here in the late 80s and early 90s when S&W revolvers were the most common LE firearms, UCs used a number of very different arms (Beretta .32, Walther .380 and the like) so as not to be seen with a "Cop Gun". The stakes for an intelligence officer abroad are even higher.
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LEOs doing plainclothes work continue to out themselves by their footwear.
 
The CIA doesn't really have many, and a lot were common stuff. I remember seeing paperwork requesting Hoffritz (large cutlery importer) send various samples of off the shelf hunting knives. They've also supposedly bought heavy YAX brand butcher style hunting knives from Japan, and of course there's the CIA Hackman folder story. And there was a short commercial machete called a Stecher Haxit that supposedly saw some use.

Of course, they'll also be a handful of custom knives - Randalls, etc.....

Here's the CIA twitter account showing off an agent's Cold Steel Kobun -
https://twitter.com/x/status/1219608318622281728
.

Harry Archer, who was a CIA agent, worked off a three knife system - short machete, a mid sized utility knife, and a SAK. The midsized utility later turned into the Archer/Loveless Chute knife.

There's also the handful of various MACV SOG knives and non military presentation knives.
 
AbjectTestament said:
Remaining incognito is life-or-death for the people I assume you're talking about. Cover stories and backup cover stories and so on. Being able to identify someone by a piece of equipment they're carrying, in this case an issued knife, would compromise them very quickly.
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Agree with this. If I'm A spy the last thing I want to do is carry gadgetry that identifies me as a spy.
 
Triton said:
Agree with this. If I'm A spy the last thing I want to do is carry gadgetry that identifies me as a spy.
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Spies also aren't covered under the Geneva Convention, countries may be more inclined to kill a captured spy than give them back.



What you will find sometimes is that companies make something for <insert name> for marketing reasons. Some personality types buy products because someone famous/popular owns them.

Green Berets are given a Chris Reeve Yarborough knife when they pass their Q-course (an ironically named Green Beret knife is the version available to civilians). When you do see pictures of green berets in operations you won't find many sporting this knife.
 
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