crkt m16-14zlek. Carried for a decade as a secondary, like a ring... always there. strap cutter, glass smasher... heavy use knife, well engineered unit. Other six... not for me. Good video, for those who have interest.
And I've never given one a thumbs down faster. Videos like this are what's wrong with RU-vid, and largely what's going wrong in this country. Such videos only impress people trying to sell knives, and people who can't grow up and stop living little boy fantasies.
I have both blade versions of the Cold Steel Recon 1 and they are super tough. They have an awesome handle/grip. They do, when new, wear the pocket away. That doesn’t detract from how simplistic and durable they are.
@@Apex_grind562 I agree I've come across knifes that are beautifully made and are worth the money, I totally respect that as a craftsman myself. But I don't quite get $400 tacticool knifes and that's just my opinion. But that's just my personal prefrence.
@@Apex_grind562 you sound like a typical rich Fuck who over spends on everything then tries to justify it. Most Americans can't afford a $400 emergency even tho they bust their asses working everyday
Tactical is a look, not a function. I’m a police officer and had a call a few years back where a man stabbed another man to death with a Kershaw Leek during a home invasion robbery. Having a “scary” blade shape or aggressively designed handle doesn’t make it any more deadly than other “less tactical” looking knives.
The most mortifying death possible for a knife aficionado. His friends were probably constantly shushed during his funeral for constantly erupting in laughter from the back row like children
I appreciate everyone who serves their communities and their nation. As someone who is in the military I agree that it is a function but that doesn't mean that there isn't a certain look to tactical blades as well. You know it, I know it, the knife designer/marketing department knows it and the media knows it. :)
Bryan Townsend Thank you for your service sir. I think if we’re talking “tacticool”, it’s often 100% form over function. As you point out, any knife can kill you and should be respected, but I do think there are manufacturers and design elements that lend themselves to tactical use, self-defense, EDC, etc. Firstly, fixed blades will always be safer and more reliable. But if they’re not an option, certain balde shapes, grips, lock systems, and raw materials can definitely make one knife better suited than others for certain applications. With that said, people should obey their local laws, train with anything they carry, and always be thinking about their environment, avoiding situations if possible. Be safe out their sir and best wishes for the holidays.
The Spyderco Manix 2XL is my favorite EDC & is a very "tactical" knife in my opinion. I always wonder why it doesn't get talked about in tactical knife discussions?
Great video. I live in California, which naturally has some of the worst knife/self-defense laws in the country. We’re not allowed to carry any fixed knife concealed no matter how short the blade, which rules out my 2” Clinch Pick. I carry a Shield 9 for EDC, but if I’m somewhere that prohibits CCW’s (government property, schools, etc), I have to rely on a folding knife, and I’ve been having trouble finding one I like. Definitely gonna give some of these ones a try!
Hey dude, I was wondering if you could do a video on oiling \sharpening\ overall knife maintenance, if you could, that would be very helpful, thank you.
I got my CKRT M-16 when it first came out. The black one you have on the table. It's still kickin! I don't think it's nearly large enough for a dedicated Tactical knife, but it bridges a gap between pocket EDC utility and defending yourself.
The so called safety lock is not so safe because it will prevent the user from deploying his or her knife quickly in a self defense situation. It’s more appropriate to call it blue-state compliant lock.
Yeah I edc Spyderco Bug.. Pretty tactical and bad ass blade. Have it attached to my keys, so I won't leave home without my defense tool. Really recommend it. I also carry Benchmade Adamas for light tasks like opening letters.
I just bought this knife yesterday. It's huge and feels solid. Easily destroyed cardboard and other routine tasks around the house. Trying to decide if I need something this big or a touch smaller.
When I'm at work, I edc the Cold Steel Spartan. All other times, I'm edcing the Cold Steel 4Max. Love these two knives. I trust them to be reliable, especially the 4Max with it's super rugged build and it's CPM-20CV steel. 4Max is currently my favorite knife of all time.
My favorite is the M16-01s Spear Point design. It is very skinny and is just as good as the one you showed but so much easier to handle. I do like tanto blades like others have stated but the spear point is nice because it can pierce most knife proof armor. Obviously not bullet proof plates but fabric armor is no match, most of the time.
It might be too much grip for normal day to day but you add in blood or anything else that could make your hands slippery you will be glad you had the extra grip.
I'm from the philippines. The knife laws here are not well defined but most of us carry BALISONG. The blade length is about 4 inches. Those knives you have are expensive here. I edc a knock off STRIDER 313b and swiss army knife to open stubborn packages.
alwaysprepared247 they do search you when you go to any government building or major mall. It is more thorough when you go to any public terminal. It is normsl here.
The knives in this video are nice, some good choices. I use the SOG Escape as an ever day carry (EDC) Its a great knife. It came pretty sharp right out of the box. It’s more then just a knife it’s a tool. It comes with a glass breaker, wire strippers, a seat belt cutter and a spare blade inside the handle.
Good video, but I feel like you could have replaced the CRKT Homefront with the Spyderco Matriarch 2 with the Emerson wave. They're around the same price, and the Matriarch is literally designed for self defense. The Cold Steel Black Talon also has a wave. Another option would be the Spyderco Yojimbo 2. It's literally made for self defense as well.
I wish there was more slip joint knifes with a sprinkle or tactical I.E like a nub for opening and a heavy spring to keep it open when deployed as the laws in the UK are strict and most slip joint knifes just don't stay open after they have been worn in
In a tactical knife I look for of course durability so if you pay a lot you get a lot. With that being said I enjoy serrated knives for some reason they catch my attention then a design that is not too shiny because of deployment it will alarm your attacker if any. I recently saw some knives made by Two Suns coming out of China and they are beautiful!
I have some folding knives which I primarily have as collector's items and don't use them every day. I love the look of those knives you showed, but many are too expensive for my budget.
You failed to mention which model of the m16 so I bought the wrong one. Now that I actually found the model from your newer video I’m going to buy 2...
When I was a soldier, I carried a Swiss Army Knife in the old days and a multitool in more recent times. The other carry tool many had was the P38, for opening C Rations. Many would stab themselves with those little things since they would swing open when carried with dog tags, and they rusted. I also carried fixed blade knives, but often, I had them in my pack. We did not have all those pockets soldiers now have. Today, I am a Cold Steel fan and my pockets all show the damage. I realize a small knife will do most everything, so I go with a big and small combination. I still carry a multitool, but its blade rarely gets used.
Good video and solid points. However i disagree on the autolawks and the safety’s on assisted/auto knives. Why? Because in a self defense scenario i really coulndt care less how fast i can CLOSE it. Thats an afterthought right? How fast you can open it is very important. So comparing the two is useless
Knives for self defense require more training than 90 percent of folks are ever gonna get. I trained with some very good blade guys and it’s a dangerous proposition to pull a knife without expert training
Absolutely. Craig Douglas of Shiv Works had some outstanding knife training videos through Warrior Poet Society Network. Videos are no substitute for physical instruction, but Craig’s videos do a good job demonstrating how dangerous a knife fight can be in real life.
I think the Hotwire by Kershaw is the perfect always carry knife. I carry a Gerber air ranger when I need something bigger ...I have a few expensive knives but never carry them when I find a good low cost knife I usually buy multiple.
Picking a folding knife for self defense is tricky. If self defense is a priority, carry a fixed blade if at all possible. If you have to carry a folder, wave opening knives are at the top of my list. They are the fastest out of pocket, that’s huge when fine motor skills go out the window, and a split second is the difference between you walking to the ambulance, or being carried on a stretcher lol. Whether that’s a zip tied spyderco, Emerson, or a thumb plate cold steel. Blade length close to 4” is ideal imo. Most importantly, TRAIN WITH YOUR STUFF. if you don’t know what you’re doing, and you introduce a knife during an altercation, you’re liable to lose your life. If at all possible, buy a trainer version, or buy a duplicate and grind the edge off to make it training safe. You don’t necessarily need to go pay big bucks for some karate guy to teach you Krav Maga, have a buddy help you. Practice getting the knife out of pocket and deployed while your partner is grabbing on you putting you under duress. Or have him put on some gloves and practice deploying the blade while simultaneously defending against strikes. A little training goes a long way
If I were to want one feature in a folding fighting knife it would be that the company selling it also has a 1/1 blunt trainer available to practice deployment, grip changes, and even light sparing with someone. Same goes for certain fixed blades, unless the knife is downright idiot proof like a Kabar.
I’ll stick with my cold steel Espota. I’ve only had to use it in a defensive situation one time. The guy took one look at the blade, peed his pants, and proceeded to walk away at a fast pace.
I get that why you like bigger blades but anything over 8cm (3 inch) blade is illegal in EU, and in many other countries.. and besides the larger it is the harder it is to carry and conceal... so I'm curious to see such knives around 2-2.5 inch blade instead
The problem with the Emerson, is that, yes it opens when you remove from the pocket. But you grab the knife with your finger tips, then you have to halter the grip. This can take to long. For self defence, you want a knife that when you grab it and pull out it is already in your hand.
I have the recon xl tanto. definitely not edc but great for a bug out bag. easily flips open with weight of blade no thumb needed, has a 3 position handle and lowest postition will give about nine inches of reach and good chopping ability but if you choke up on handle it is fairly balanced and dexterous.
That's what I think: I mostly disagree, although I agree that Emerson knives are good tactical knives. How can a perfect tactical knife not have a proper guard (flipper or handle that does a double duty of guard)? In my opinion half of the knives you recommend barely qualify as tactical knives, let alone perfect. However, the Cold Steel Recon 1 and Emerson knives definitely qualify and are close to being perfect tactical knives. Another such example is the ZT0560. Tactical knives should not be too heavy, should have a proper reach and jimping on the handle but the most important part of the tactical knife is some sort of guard. I mean half of the perfect tactical folders in your recommendation don't even qualify in terms of the guard, e.g., the Spyderco Military and Paramilitary have no guard and cannot be used in penetrating thrusts. Plus they have brittle steels, and you can break the tip or chip the blade just by opening a tin can! What's tactical about it? When they use words like _military_ , etc., it's no more than a gimmick. The same holds for Strider knives: they don't have guards. Such knives are a poor choice in emergency situations when you don't wear gloves (and even if you have gloves on), as you might cut yourself when trying to penetrate through something. In other words half of the knives in your recommendation are not tactical. They are only good for cutting. they are not good for thrusting and penetrating an object or hitting on it with a lot of force. Nor are they good for self-defense for the same reason. What's more, real tactical knives should not have blades made of brittle steels: CV20, M390, S30V, Aus10A, S90V, CTS-204P, S45VN, etc. They should be made out of tougher steels: Elmax, S35VN, Aus8, 8Cr13MoV.
mate a personal question towards recon 1. can u make a vid jsut about this knife ? how do you find opening it how do you feel about the speed of opening this knife
Biggest thing is if its a true scandi grind with no micro bevel. You can never get micro bevel scandi grind knives razor sharp. Ive had to mod my knives to true scandi it takes alot of work
In my opinion one of the most important specs you failed to evaluate is the lock up on the knife and the mechanism to close the blade. One of the thing sI have noticed on many "tactical" knives is that the machanism to close the blade is often right next to where your hand or fingers are when gripping the knife. In a tactical situation this could be potentially dangerous as you can accidently close the blade on yourelf. To me this is one of the most important features to look at when deciding on a tactical knife.
So you could carry a ten inch Bowie on your hip? I live in Texas. Most days I have a buck 119 on my hip, I’m 15 and nobody cares lmao. Only time people talk about my knife is to tell me I got a damn good knife
If it's speed you're after then the important thing is how fast it can be deployed from a pocket, vest, belt or other before one even thinks about opening it. It's no good if it gets caught up on webbing, clothing etc. the flipper bar accidentally engages the knife via your body and or clothing and you end up stabbing yourself LOL.
I feel like most people choose a knife that is too long. The thinking is that longer is better because of the additional reach and penetration potential. The problem is that a knife in use is a lever and the longer the blade is the more strength you need to hold on to it when force is applied to the tip of the blade. A large easy to grip handle and a reasonable length blade that offers little resistance in penetration and slicing is ideal. The average person would be better served by a knife that can be easily controlled and held on to than a big scarry knife that can be knocked out of their hands more easily.
Well I like your top seven, and agree of your pros and cons, I’m buying the Emerson mini CQC-15 and CRKT M-16. Yeah big is to combersome for me, thank you, Leo U.S.M.C.
