- Joined
- Mar 5, 2003
- Messages
- 3,196
Hey all,
I have been using tactical/combat bladeware for a significant period of time now, and I have some observations that I thought you all might be interested in. As you read this, keep in mind that the vast majority of my tactical experiences have been earned in the Army and I am addressing this issue from that perspective. Also, none of this assessment should be construed as a criticism. Simply as an opinion based on real world observations.
Combat field gear (knives included) must meet certain requirements to be considered combat effective and field worthy in my eyes. It must be durable in the extreme, must be low maintenance in a wide variety of climatic conditions, and must be colored in such a way as to blend with it's surroundings so as to be nearly invisble.
With regard to knives, I have found that Busse knives fit the bill, hands down, for the first two of the three criteria outlined above. That said, I'd like to address the coloration issue primarily.
Most knife makers offer very few, if any coating options and colors. The vast majority of "tactical" knife makers out there offer "steel" colored blades to the exclusion of everything else. While I understand the rational behind this, I find it a little short sighted in light of the realities of blade protection and camouflaging qualities of the new generation of coatings available.
That said, Busse knives, as we all know have the CG option where the blade is coated with a black crinkle coat in order to eliminate reflection and to maximize the resistance of the blade to the elements and the abrasion of use. And we all know that while black is the prevalent crinkle coat color, there have been some other colors utilized by Busse in order to accomodate some special environmental needs. For example, a white crinkle coat on the Arctic Team 1 (in order to blend with snow and ice of northern climes) and the recent Desert coat with an eye on the current conflict in the Middle East/Southwest Asia and the preponderance of "sand" colored surrondings there. As an ex-soldier and as an avid outdoorsman, I appreciate these nods to the users special needs based colorations based on intended regional uses.
Now, on to the meat of the post... Black, as stated, is the predominant "tactical" color. Why?!?
Black is not a "naturally occuring" color. Any soldier or outdoorsman worth his salt knows that minimizing colors that stand out in nature, black among them, is preferable where concealment and camouflage is concerned. Niether dirt or wood, the two most commonly occuring materials in nature, are black. Natural colors consist of "earth tones", i.e. browns and greens and varying shades thereof. Even in "pitch dark" urban environments, black objects most often stand out as darker spots amongst the rest of the shadows. Good snipers do not wear black boots and even the legendary ninja did not cloak themselves in black, regardless of what legends would have you believe. In all honesty a good brown, green, grey, or even a muted dark red are better and more versatile concealment colors than black. So, again, why black?
At long last, even the U.S. military is finally starting to realize that they can maximize the usefulness and versatility of a single camouflage pattern if they incorporate more universal color (tan/brown) combinations. So shouldn't the tactical knife making community do something similar? Or, at the very least, shouldn't one of the more innovative knife makers (ahem.... Jerry) look seriously at this?
All that said, wouldn't it be a better idea for standard tactical coloration to be more along the lines of the current Desert Coat? From my military/outdoorsy perspective, I think so. Jerry, is this possible? And if not, what are the reasons for staying with basic black over and above the fact that black is chic and "SWAT" popular?
Any and all thoughts welcome.
I have been using tactical/combat bladeware for a significant period of time now, and I have some observations that I thought you all might be interested in. As you read this, keep in mind that the vast majority of my tactical experiences have been earned in the Army and I am addressing this issue from that perspective. Also, none of this assessment should be construed as a criticism. Simply as an opinion based on real world observations.
Combat field gear (knives included) must meet certain requirements to be considered combat effective and field worthy in my eyes. It must be durable in the extreme, must be low maintenance in a wide variety of climatic conditions, and must be colored in such a way as to blend with it's surroundings so as to be nearly invisble.
With regard to knives, I have found that Busse knives fit the bill, hands down, for the first two of the three criteria outlined above. That said, I'd like to address the coloration issue primarily.
Most knife makers offer very few, if any coating options and colors. The vast majority of "tactical" knife makers out there offer "steel" colored blades to the exclusion of everything else. While I understand the rational behind this, I find it a little short sighted in light of the realities of blade protection and camouflaging qualities of the new generation of coatings available.
That said, Busse knives, as we all know have the CG option where the blade is coated with a black crinkle coat in order to eliminate reflection and to maximize the resistance of the blade to the elements and the abrasion of use. And we all know that while black is the prevalent crinkle coat color, there have been some other colors utilized by Busse in order to accomodate some special environmental needs. For example, a white crinkle coat on the Arctic Team 1 (in order to blend with snow and ice of northern climes) and the recent Desert coat with an eye on the current conflict in the Middle East/Southwest Asia and the preponderance of "sand" colored surrondings there. As an ex-soldier and as an avid outdoorsman, I appreciate these nods to the users special needs based colorations based on intended regional uses.
Now, on to the meat of the post... Black, as stated, is the predominant "tactical" color. Why?!?
Black is not a "naturally occuring" color. Any soldier or outdoorsman worth his salt knows that minimizing colors that stand out in nature, black among them, is preferable where concealment and camouflage is concerned. Niether dirt or wood, the two most commonly occuring materials in nature, are black. Natural colors consist of "earth tones", i.e. browns and greens and varying shades thereof. Even in "pitch dark" urban environments, black objects most often stand out as darker spots amongst the rest of the shadows. Good snipers do not wear black boots and even the legendary ninja did not cloak themselves in black, regardless of what legends would have you believe. In all honesty a good brown, green, grey, or even a muted dark red are better and more versatile concealment colors than black. So, again, why black?
At long last, even the U.S. military is finally starting to realize that they can maximize the usefulness and versatility of a single camouflage pattern if they incorporate more universal color (tan/brown) combinations. So shouldn't the tactical knife making community do something similar? Or, at the very least, shouldn't one of the more innovative knife makers (ahem.... Jerry) look seriously at this?
All that said, wouldn't it be a better idea for standard tactical coloration to be more along the lines of the current Desert Coat? From my military/outdoorsy perspective, I think so. Jerry, is this possible? And if not, what are the reasons for staying with basic black over and above the fact that black is chic and "SWAT" popular?
Any and all thoughts welcome.
.
