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What makes a knife "tactical?"
- Thread starter Windwhistler
- Start date
- Joined
- Aug 18, 2013
- Messages
- 281
I'm sure you are right A Justice!,
I am something of a dinosaur when it comes to these things. I have no idea why one tends to like what we like. I am at a stage in life where I am shedding "stuff" rather than adding to it. It is for me more an educational matter of determining what to keep and use rather than a horizon expanding adventure.
For some odd reason, exposed to every modern firearm design up until the 1990's at least, I decided that for my own use I liked heavy caliber single shots. I have no idea except that they make one aim more carefully and conserve ammo, are very easy to reload and can generally finish a job with one shot while offering you-can-drive-over-with-a-truck-and-still-use durability. Same thing for carry, just the old Colt 1911 Combat Commander. I know it is old fashioned but meets my needs and I am 40 years of comfortable with it. There was a time when if one wanted an unusual knife design, we went to a custom maker with a drawing and asked if he could build it. Today, there are so many thousands of designs out there at such low production run prices that I have no idea how custom makers can find enough work to go around.
It is I guess, cheap labor that has supplied this tremendous surge of designs. My wife and I were working on emptying my Grandparents home after they passed in 1998. They were 102 and 100 respectively and it was sort of amazing and enlightening just how little "stuff" they owned. They were from a generation before the Depression and before big box stores (had ceased doing their own shopping even before the Wal Mart proliferation) and they had in their desk, two pencils, one pen, a box of writing paper, a letter opener, one stapler, one box of staples and an eraser. That was about it. There was a time when a ballpoint pen cost about $5.00 in 1950's dollars. Pencils 10 cents a piece when haircuts were still 25 cents for men. So the notion that one would buy a box of 144 pencils or a case of Kleenex etc. was entirely beyond them. Granddad had been a sheriff in the 40's and for home defence and farm use had one Colt .38 revolver, one .22 single shot rifle and a double barreled 20 gauge shot gun. That was it! I jhave more stuff in one drawer of my desk than he had in his whole desk. And if I type in "tactical" on Amazon or somewhere else online, I can buy any number of knives for less than the cost of a ballpoint pen in the 50's (figuring in inflation). It is crazy. Hence, I am trying to determine what to save and use and what needs to go, be sold, given away or donated to some younger folks.
Thanks for the help!!
I am something of a dinosaur when it comes to these things. I have no idea why one tends to like what we like. I am at a stage in life where I am shedding "stuff" rather than adding to it. It is for me more an educational matter of determining what to keep and use rather than a horizon expanding adventure.
For some odd reason, exposed to every modern firearm design up until the 1990's at least, I decided that for my own use I liked heavy caliber single shots. I have no idea except that they make one aim more carefully and conserve ammo, are very easy to reload and can generally finish a job with one shot while offering you-can-drive-over-with-a-truck-and-still-use durability. Same thing for carry, just the old Colt 1911 Combat Commander. I know it is old fashioned but meets my needs and I am 40 years of comfortable with it. There was a time when if one wanted an unusual knife design, we went to a custom maker with a drawing and asked if he could build it. Today, there are so many thousands of designs out there at such low production run prices that I have no idea how custom makers can find enough work to go around.
It is I guess, cheap labor that has supplied this tremendous surge of designs. My wife and I were working on emptying my Grandparents home after they passed in 1998. They were 102 and 100 respectively and it was sort of amazing and enlightening just how little "stuff" they owned. They were from a generation before the Depression and before big box stores (had ceased doing their own shopping even before the Wal Mart proliferation) and they had in their desk, two pencils, one pen, a box of writing paper, a letter opener, one stapler, one box of staples and an eraser. That was about it. There was a time when a ballpoint pen cost about $5.00 in 1950's dollars. Pencils 10 cents a piece when haircuts were still 25 cents for men. So the notion that one would buy a box of 144 pencils or a case of Kleenex etc. was entirely beyond them. Granddad had been a sheriff in the 40's and for home defence and farm use had one Colt .38 revolver, one .22 single shot rifle and a double barreled 20 gauge shot gun. That was it! I jhave more stuff in one drawer of my desk than he had in his whole desk. And if I type in "tactical" on Amazon or somewhere else online, I can buy any number of knives for less than the cost of a ballpoint pen in the 50's (figuring in inflation). It is crazy. Hence, I am trying to determine what to save and use and what needs to go, be sold, given away or donated to some younger folks.
Thanks for the help!!
james terrio
Sharpest Knife in the Light Socket
- Joined
- Apr 15, 2010
- Messages
- 22,618
Just depends on whom you ask. Someone once said, "soldiers use toothbrushes, therefore toothbrushes are tactical" 
Whoa... that's just... whatever floats your boat, I guess
In seriousness though, when I think of a "tactical" knife, I think of a knife that's purposely overbuilt to withstand things that normal knives really shouldn't be asked to do, like prying stuff open and digging holes and jimmying locks and thumping on stuff that needs thumping. It doesn't even have to be particularly keen, it just has to be made of sturdy materials and have an extra-beefy lock if it's a folder. LEO's and military folks typically seem to use their knives for hand-to-hand fighting roughly .001% of the time...
They could have chosen a much better steel, and the ad copy is ridiculous... but that's honestly one of the best designs I've seen from them (which isn't saying much, but hey...).
One of my all-time favorite tactical knife designs... not exactly a laser-like cutter, but very sturdy...
Those that are any good stay pretty busy. It's not a get-rich-quick kinda field, but there are enough people who don't want goofy marketing stuff and will pay a bit more for very high quality and excellent materials to make it worthwhile.
Whoa... that's just... whatever floats your boat, I guess
In seriousness though, when I think of a "tactical" knife, I think of a knife that's purposely overbuilt to withstand things that normal knives really shouldn't be asked to do, like prying stuff open and digging holes and jimmying locks and thumping on stuff that needs thumping. It doesn't even have to be particularly keen, it just has to be made of sturdy materials and have an extra-beefy lock if it's a folder. LEO's and military folks typically seem to use their knives for hand-to-hand fighting roughly .001% of the time...
They could have chosen a much better steel, and the ad copy is ridiculous... but that's honestly one of the best designs I've seen from them (which isn't saying much, but hey...).
One of my all-time favorite tactical knife designs... not exactly a laser-like cutter, but very sturdy...
Those that are any good stay pretty busy. It's not a get-rich-quick kinda field, but there are enough people who don't want goofy marketing stuff and will pay a bit more for very high quality and excellent materials to make it worthwhile.
Last edited:
Sonnydaze
Gold Member
- Joined
- Jul 6, 2009
- Messages
- 11,692
I kinda liked what A Justice had to say. There are many versions of "tactical usefulness" in the field. A good knife meets the requirements of the mission. There is a lot of cross-over between various tactical knives, but a good CRK fixed-blade tanto is vastly different from a Fairburn-Sykes.
- Joined
- Aug 18, 2013
- Messages
- 281
James Terrio,
I love your avatar! Could be me in 1960. I did exactly that with one of my sister's hair pins. Two ends, two holes....hmmmmmZZZZZZZZZZ!!! Learned all kinds of stuff in one moment!
I love your avatar! Could be me in 1960. I did exactly that with one of my sister's hair pins. Two ends, two holes....hmmmmmZZZZZZZZZZ!!! Learned all kinds of stuff in one moment!
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2013
- Messages
- 273
i dont feel tactical is just a marketing ploy.. i think a lot of what would be considered tactical has become a main stream flagship for knives..tactical in my mind would be..
1: quick deploy
2: concealable or easily accessible depending on how you want to be tactical
3: non reflective markings (blackened blade etc etc)
4: have self defense/offense tools..(blood groves, kubotan, second as a bayonet perhaps)
a hunting bushcraft or even survival knife would not need most of these..same aspect with a gut hook useful for a hunting knife but not needed much on a tactical knife..
1: quick deploy
2: concealable or easily accessible depending on how you want to be tactical
3: non reflective markings (blackened blade etc etc)
4: have self defense/offense tools..(blood groves, kubotan, second as a bayonet perhaps)
a hunting bushcraft or even survival knife would not need most of these..same aspect with a gut hook useful for a hunting knife but not needed much on a tactical knife..
Non-reflective markings? Is that so it doesn't glint in the moonlight when one clutches it in his teeth as he low crawls under the enemy's wire at night?
And what about the "blood groove"? And all this time I thought a fuller was to lighten a blade without sacrificing strength.
And what about the "blood groove"? And all this time I thought a fuller was to lighten a blade without sacrificing strength.
Best laugh so far today! THANKS! Seriously.
- Joined
- Feb 27, 2013
- Messages
- 273
ANSWER: yes basically, a reflection in the sunlight or as you so hollywood stated moonlight..is VERY distinct when it is in a place where reflections should not be.
ANSWER:again google has served you well..this is exactly what it is for..anyone that practices survival skills or has been in the military will tell you weight is evil. every ounce counts! on top of the a lighter knife is faster, less exhausting to use in a "tactical" situation.and EVERYONE here will agree a stronger tool is always better.
- Joined
- Jan 17, 2014
- Messages
- 129
If you look at tactical blades, many have foolish or gimmicky design features. For example, an integrated seatbelt cutter in the handle, YOU ARE HOLDING A KNIFE! Remember that most knifemakers are in the business of making money...
Extrema ratio has their designs featured in battlefield 4 video games, but will that knife do anything my esee 6 won't? You can take a pot steel chinese mass produced blade and market it as tactical, and it will sell. Look at cold steel, they have a home defence baseball bat...because a louisville slugger isn't tactical.
I will make the distinction between a fighting knife, and a "tactical" blade. I collect fighting knives, and not one of them has an intigrated seatbelt cutter and auto assist blade...
Extrema ratio has their designs featured in battlefield 4 video games, but will that knife do anything my esee 6 won't? You can take a pot steel chinese mass produced blade and market it as tactical, and it will sell. Look at cold steel, they have a home defence baseball bat...because a louisville slugger isn't tactical.
I will make the distinction between a fighting knife, and a "tactical" blade. I collect fighting knives, and not one of them has an intigrated seatbelt cutter and auto assist blade...
I've been in the military. Army. A couple of decades. The non-reflective blood grooved blade is ridiculous regarding "tactical. A knife is a tool in the Army. Short of a bayonet, it isn't a weapon, and the bayonet as a weapon is going the way of the dodo.
Tactical/tacticool regarding knives is simply a marketing ploy designed to separate you from your money.
