Meyerco Necklance Rescue

[JNieporte]

I've got quite a few rescue knives, and this is by fat the most inexpensive one I've ever owned. It's a meyerco Necklance with a rounded tip and full serrations, called the River Rescue knife. It costs around $5, and is made in China. It's a Blackie Collins design. The model number is 7940.
The rescue version of the Necklance is identical to the other versions, except for the blade and sheath.

Yes, the knife rides a little crooked when inserted in the sheath as shown (the edge is down in the photo).
I should add that the orange cordage shown is my addition and isn't included with the Necklance.

The Handle: The Necklance has a handle made of black glass-filled nylon. It's textured in a diamond pattern and is 3-1/16" long by 3/8" thick. The lanyard hole is 3/8" in diameter. There are choils on both sides of the handle, and the choils extend past the blade (on both sides) by about 1/8" to make semi-guards.
Next to a single-edged Necklance...

The handle is nice and hard, and feels like the tang goes all the way through. I haven't cut it open or anything, and the balance is right where the choils meet the "guards", but it just feels solid. Using the Necklance, at least in terms of the handle, was pleasant. The top of the handle also had the small guard, which I removed with a razor blade and sandpaper to give my thumb more comfort in use.

The handle is short, but effective enough...

With a Victorinox Camper for size comparison...

The Blade: The Necklance Rescue has a blade made of 400-series stainless steel. That's usually a mystery, but this (and my other Necklances) perform just like 440A or a soft 420HC. It will take a decent edge, but mine had to be resharpened after only a few cuts through some nylon cordage. The blade is 3-1/16" long with 2-1/2" of serrations, and is 1/8" thick. Compared to the other Necklances, it's only a tad thicker (the Rescue is on your left)...

The blade is ground on both sides, but only the left side is sharpened with the very scalloped serrations. It almost appears to be a chisle grind, but in reality, the blade is centered to the right. In these two photos, the left side (first) is shown to be ground deep...

And the right side (second) not as much...

I'm not sure if you can pick it up in the photos, but it's definitely there.

The blade markings and placement are identical to the other Necklance knives, but the blade is blasted to be more matte, as opposed to the polished finish of the other Necklances...

Using the blade was difficult due to the serrations; they're too far apart. I could cut nylon webbing and cord with it, but I really had to work for it. It was more of a sawing motion; I couldn't bear down because the serrations are too far apart and wouldn't slide back-and-forth. If the serrations weren't so large, they'd be a lot better. It's almost enough to keep me from buying another one of this model.
The rounded tip was thin enough (and pointed enough) that you could still injure someone by poking them. Perhaps when sliding the blade between their body and a seatbelt. Maybe not a full-fledged thrust-type injury, but they'll definitely be in some pain and will probably bleed a little bit. The tip is also not suited for prying due to the thinness, and forget about using it as an improvised flathead screwdriver.

Continued below...

 

[JNieporte]

The Sheath: The Necklance Rescue comes with a black glass-filled sheath, which is the same material and has the same texture as the handle. It comes with a black cord attached for neck carry, but the cord is so poor in quality that I immediately threw mine out; it's just too open of a weave and it unravels easily. The sheath itself is a one-piece plastic friction-fit sheath. With the exception of the clip added to the Rescue version, it's the same sheath used on the other Necklance knives.
Sheath fronts...

And backs, showing the clip on the Rescue version...

The sheath is 4-3/8" long and 1/2" wide at its widest point (not counting the clip). With the knife in place, it's 6-1/2" long. The knife simply clicks into place via two detents in the handle (one on each side). These detents click into protrusions on both sides of the sheath. Retention is good, but not great. I can turn the sheath upside down and rattle, and the knife won't come loose. Dropping it though, will pop the knife out.
The knife will fit (and lock) in the sheath with the edge facing either direction.
The clip is designed for a handle-down carry, and I've found that trying this on a belt results in a lost knife. The use I've found for it is to clip it, clip down, to the top of the visor in your car. Then all you have to do is pull it out (with the orange cord pictured) and deploy the knife. The clip is not removable, and allows 1/2" of the sheath to be exposed.
The very bottom (blade tip side) is made into a long hole to insert cordage, which can be handy in a variety of ways. The Necklances all come with a black cord, 26" long, made of very cheap material. It feels like thin polypropylene, and has a very open weave pattern. Mine fell apart quickly with my first Necklanc,e and I haven't bothered keeping any of them since. This is easily fixed with some 550 cord (orange on my rescue version) but is always the first thing to go on the Necklances that I acquire.

Overall, the Meyerco Necklance River Rescue isn't something I'd buy again. It seemed like a good idea; a very affordable fixed blade rescue knife. Cool. But the thing that ruined it for me was the serrations. If they were improved, this would be a winner, but they're so bad that I won't be buying this knife again. If you can get over that, or practice with it, the Rescue version of the Necklance would be a very good deal for you. I won't trust it to cut my seatbelt in a turn-over wreck. I have other rescue knives for that, and they work. Even with that, I've found a little soft spot for this $5 knife; mine lives clipped to the passenger visor of my car. It's used for pruning small limbs and sawing through rope.

Again, with the Victorinox Camper for size comparison...