Thinking about a smallerSwamp Rat...

reconseed

reconseed

Joined
Sep 23, 2006
Messages
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I am new to swamp rat knives but i have heard that they are among some of the toughest fixed blades on the market today so I thought that I would give em a spin and buy one. The owner sent me an email about the new line that are available... I was wondering, could someone recommend me a smaller swamp rat that is just as tough as the other larger ones for EDC yet still be used in a military environment.. I am looking for a good duty knife that is smaller for a few reasons. I would like to carry my knife aside from being on base or at an FTX, but i still want one that is tough as nails that can stand-to in the environment of Iraq when I am deployed... Any suggestions? I was looking at the bandicoot baby. Any others I need to look at? pics are very welcomed.:thumbup:
 
Rat_Shaker2.jpg


Rat Shaker II... i love this knife. is it still available or is it one of the discontinued ones?
 
The Rat Shakers are discontinued knives, but they have been known to pop up on the secondary market from time to time. You might give the sale threads a look to see if there is on listed. ;)

Good luck in your search! I carry mine daily. :D
 
Rat Shaker is nice for concealed carrying but as a belt knife a bit on the small side IMO. A Bandicoot or Howling rat will be a better choose. They aren’t producing either of those knifes but they pop-up at the exchange forum quite sometimes.

If you want something fast buy the M6 at the company store or wait for the producing of the new howling rat.
 
The Bandicoot is a great blade. So is the Howling Rat. It's good to have choices.

Thank you for your service to our country, it means a lot to us. If, after all your looking, you still have your heart set on a Bandicoot, shoot me an email. I might know where to find one...
 
Howling Rat or SAR rat would be the best choices of rat edc, imho. Great for combat environments, great for camping. Not great for Longhorn Steakhouse. Here you'd be better off with the Rat Shaker or Rat Tail.

If you're shipping out for Afghanistan or Iraq, consider taking an M6 with you, or look at the Scrapper6 from sister company ScrapYard knives.

Back to the HR and SAR though,
The HR is better for making things, the SAR is better for breaking things. The HR is about 3/16" thick, and has a very nice blade shape and design for slicing and dicing, while the SAR is closer to 1/4" thick with a much thicker tip making it superior for stabbing and prying.
Except on foot patrol you should have a breaching kit or pioneer tools handy inthe Humvee/Bradley/Stryker/Abrams/Toyota. If that's the case you should never need a whole lot more than a pocket knife, so you're carrying that badass knife for that "Murphy's Law" moment when you need to stab/break/pry/drill RIGHT NOW! and those tools are 90 seconds away.
Don't be convinced to leave your good knife behind because you have tools in your humvee, but you don't need to carry a short-sword when you have a 3/4"x3' wrecking bar in your pioneer kit.
 
I am going to look into the M6... How long is the blade on the M6? I feel like I am asking questions that are already documented but the Swamp Rat site i have been to is just a rat chat and welcome note. I am interested to find out about this knife.
 
Yea it might be hard to tote that baby around the city, huh? Especially concealed!!!!! :)
 
Hello Reconseed. Looks like you have some great recommendations already so I'll just thank you for your service to our country. Keep your head down over there man and come home safe.

Bill
 
reconseed said:
I am going to look into the M6... How long is the blade on the M6? I feel like I am asking questions that are already documented but the Swamp Rat site i have been to is just a rat chat and welcome note. I am interested to find out about this knife.
Click to expand...

www.ratknives.com is the website for sales of Swamp Rats . . . maybe they should put a link on the old site.
 
I strongly recomend a Howling Rat if you can find one, the Res-C handles are relly nice in the hand and will take whatever the sands of Iraq can dish out.

imo the rat shaker was too small in my hands
 
hey bro, howling rat or howling fat is the way to go ...and god bless you for serving our great country.:thumbup:

besides the HR pick up a multi tool as well, and you'll be fine, godspeed on your deployment.
thank you for your service!:thumbup:
 
Lenny_Goofoff said:
nicely put! what do you say about 'Coot?
Click to expand...

I just don't know where to put the 'Coot. I gave mine to a friend and haven't seen it in months. Almost forgot about it!
I consider it a bird&trout knife on steroids. Before handing it off I was planning to use it on deep country fishing trips. It would probably be a capable and very safe skinning knife, if pressed into that duty. Probably not as all-encompassing as a Howling Rat at camping tasks and food prep, but much better than trying to get by with just a folder. I think some people really appreciate a minimalist approach, and for them it's gotta be one of the best knives ever.
I hope my friend doesn't forget it's a loaner!

Well, one more thing: a Bandicoot would make a fine war-fighting knife for anyone going overseas. Especially if it's comfortable enough to wear every mission, and never left back at the hooch. It'll get the job done, and be comfortable to cart around all day.
 
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