Made in the USA

Spartan Blades Metis Review

Last Updated: September 7, 2019
Few companies have the pedigree that Spartan Blades does. I rarely hear them pop up in conversation among gear geeks, but that hasn’t stopped them from accumulating a small hoard of Blade Show awards. Between the aforementioned awards and the extensive Special Forces resumes of the two founders, I’m surprised they don’t get more chatter. Maybe they do, just not among folks I know.

Buy the Spartan Blades Metis at BladeHQ

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As Dan covered in his review of the Horkos, Spartan’s reputation is firmly grounded in its fixed blades and (though I hate the overuse of the term) “tactical” folders. This reputation was so entrenched that when I was offered a Metis in trade, I had to triple check the dimensions. There was no way Spartan made a sub-3” blade…right? Curiosity piqued, I went ahead with the trade. How would an everyday carry knife designed by former Special Forces handle mundane tasks? The short answer: better than I expected, given recent trends among overbuilt folders.

General Dimensions and Blade Details

The Spartan Blades Metis is close to my ideal size for a pocket folder. It features a 2.7” blade housed in a 4” handle, and the entire package (sans clip) weighs in at 2.79 ounces. Those numbers look pretty good, especially when you consider the all metal construction. A knife this size is well suited to a range of everyday tasks, from opening packages to light food preparation. It’s also legal to carry in a wide range of jurisdictions, as it falls under the common 3” blade limit.

If there is one aspect of the Metis that grabs my attention, it’s the blade shape. Most folks would probably call it a drop point, but the dip along the spine gives it something akin to a harpoon’s profile. Whatever the nomenclature, it’s fantastic. There’s enough belly for slicing cuts, but not so much that the edge slides out of the cutting medium during push cuts. The harpoon-ish profile – in addition to reinforcing the tip of the blade – leaves a dip in the rounded spine that’s a perfect resting place for a thumb.

For enthusiasts, Crucible’s S35VN is no longer news. In fact it pretty much serves as a benchmark against which we compare other steels. It has a proven track record as a “do-everything” steel: it chips less and is easier to sharpen than its predecessor S30V, with comparable or better edge retention and rust resistance. I didn’t strenuously test the steel in this case, but I was mostly using it as a gentleman’s folder, and it hasn’t needed any maintenance in the few months that I’ve had it.

When I did use the Metis, it outperformed my expectations. No, it didn’t pass the apple test, but it did well enough that my insensate pinky never started twitching nervously. It behaved similarly while breaking down cardboard boxes: not the best, but good enough to flex into the role. The old saying “jack of all trades, master of none” is appropriate here.

Handle, Ergonomics, and Carry

There’s not much that can be said about the handle of the Metis. Like so many of its competitors, it’s another slab-handled, titanium-on-titanium knife. So what makes the Metis stand out in a crowd? That’s difficult to answer. The show side of the Metis is beautifully simple; between the milled backspacer and the singular visible screw, it seems almost hewn from titanium. The lock side couldn’t be more different. Every screw that was hidden on the show side is plainly visible, and the milling for the lock bar in conjunction with the overtravel stop give it an aesthetic not far off from a circuit board. With that in mind, it’s arguable that Janus is as fitting a namesake as Metis.

Ergonomically, the Metis ranges from unoffensive to pleasant, depending on the task. It never stood out as being great, but neither did it stand out as being horrible – which surprised me given the odd placement of hard angles. If the knife is resting in your fingers, chances are you’re not gripping it so tightly that the angles will have an impact on the ergonomics. By contrast, if you’re gripping it so tightly that the angles would matter, you’re probably holding it farther back in your palm where the angles won’t cause any hot spots. At least, that was my experience. The generous chamfering and subtle curve of the handle are certainly factors here.

The best I can say about the pocket clip on the Metis is that I understand some of the design impulses behind it. It’s attractive and fits the overall aesthetic. The screws for the pocket clip are hidden (meaning they screw in from the interior), which is a nice touch, though it makes removal inconvenient. In slacks, dress pants, or particularly thin jeans, this pocket clip works fine. Beyond that, the news isn’t as nice. The clip doesn’t have much spring to it, so to compensate it doesn’t make contact with the handle scale. Ultimately, this restricts the number of ways to comfortably carry the Metis.

Problems with the clip aside, the Metis is a pretty quiet pocket companion. Most of the time I carried it in the leather slip I use for traditional knives, and while it was a bit of a tight fit, the slip ensured that the Metis didn’t slide out of my pocket or roll to the bottom and cause discomfort. I’d have preferred to carry this with a clip, but it wasn’t onerous to forego it. My CRK Mnandi has a great pocket clip, but I still carry it in a pocket slip more often than not.

Deployment and Lock-Up

The blade of the Metis is deployed solely by the flipper tab. As the entirety of the blade is housed within the handle, there is no pinch point which would facilitate two-handed opening. Though slightly disappointing – it’s always a feature I like to have on a “dress” knife – I can’t fairly complain, as a wider blade wouldn’t carry as well. This flipper is meant to be pulled (like a light switch) rather than pushed. Deployment is thoughtless, reliable, and doesn’t generate discomfort, even if you’re using the Metis as a fidget toy.

The ease of deployment is in part thanks to the caged bearings the blade rides on. I’m of two minds regarding the use of bearings in folding knives: on one hand, they allow for silky smooth pivots, but on the other they’re far more susceptible to grime and grit than traditional washers. (Addendum: I’ve been informed that I may be wrong on this account. More information is welcome in the comments.) On a knife like the Metis caged bearings are fine. A knife this size is clearly in the “EDC/gentlemen’s” category, and not intended for hard use.

At this point, there’s not much that can be said about a well-executed framelock, and the lock on the Metis certainly qualifies as such. The lock face consistently engages 50% of the blade tang, disengaging the lock is easy, and there’s only a fraction of a hair of wiggle in the lock, which vanishes in use. A steel lock insert could fix that, but the only titanium framelock I’ve ever handled that doesn’t have that slight amount of play is the Mnandi, and that knife certainly isn’t being flipped open like the Metis.

Spartan Blades Metis Review – Final Thoughts

Currently, it’s difficult to find a Metis in stock anywhere. My understanding is that this design hasn’t been discontinued, Spartan just hasn’t released any batches recently. Hopefully when Spartan comes back to it, they do so with an eye towards improvement, because there are a few changes that I’d like to see. The bones of a truly great knife are here, and it wouldn’t take much to flesh it out.

First, the pocket clip needs to be redesigned. A nondescript spring clip with outside accessible screws would be far more functional. Second, eliminate the overtravel stop by incorporating a steel lock face into the frame lock. This would eliminate the scant play there is and clean up the lock side of the knife. Those two changes would improve the function and form of the Metis, and (designing and retooling costs aside) I can’t imagine it costing more to produce than the current design. By moving away from a sculpted clip, it may actually cost less.

When they were available, the Metis sold for $340. That’s quite a bit of money – especially for a pocketknife – and the competition is stiff. The obvious comparison is the Small Sebenza. I can’t make a direct comparison (I’ve never owned a Sebenza) but I do own an Mnandi. The best way I can describe it is that if the Metis is practically flawless, the Mnandi is flawless. Of course, no Chris Reeve knife has a flipper, so Spartan is ahead of the game in that department.

Is the Metis still worth buying in the meantime? If you can find one, and if the design speaks to you, I’d say yes. It’s well made, attractive in its own right, and can flex into a number of different roles. If my complaints dissuade you, I’d recommend keeping an eye on Spartan Blades in the meantime.

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I recommend purchasing the Spartan Blades Metis at BladeHQ, KnifeArt, and Amazon. Please consider that purchasing anything through any of the links on this website helps support BladeReviews.com, and keeps the site going. As always, any and all support is greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.

Benchmade 560 Freek Review

by Dan Jackson 11 Comments

Last Updated: July 15, 2019

As much as I enjoy picking up the latest “gee whiz” must have knife of the moment, I get the most satisfaction in sharing a great knife that may have flown under the radar. This particular knife has flown so far under the radar, I would not have even heard about it if reader Darren hadn’t gone out of his way to send me a couple emails about the knife and how much he enjoyed it. Thank you, Darren.

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Enter the Benchmade 560 Freek. Like our friend the Bruised Forehead, the Freek didn’t win the knife name lottery. It also doesn’t benefit from being designed by a high profile knifemaker. And I don’t recall much in the way of fanfare from Benchmade or the knife collector community when the Freek arrived on the scene. It was quietly released. Rather than being a subject of media attention, the Freek has slowly earned a reputation for being a practical tool from those who have given this unassuming knife a chance.

I liken the Freek to the Benchmade Volli, another no-frills knife that didn’t get much attention, but may be be one of the best all-round EDC knives that Benchmade has released in the past 5 years. The Freek is cut from the same cloth. It’s another function over form design that is worth consideration if you are in the marketing for a largish EDC knife.

General Dimensions and Blade Details

The Freek has an overall length of 8.46″, a 3.6″ blade, and it weighs 3.72 ounces. This knife is made in America. As I mentioned earlier, I’d classify the 560 Freek as a large EDC knife. It could possibly be used as a hunting knife, as it has a good belly and shares the blade profile of their Saddle Mountain Skinner. Of course a knife of this size could also be used as a duty knife for a police officer, or perhaps pressed in to other self defense type applications. This is a versatile knife.

The drop point blade is distinguished by a curving thumb ramp and high flat grind. The blade is 2.9mm thick, and gets thin behind the edge thanks in part to that high flat grind. The edge has been neatly applied, and like on pretty much all the Benchmades I’ve owned over the years there, is a sharpening choil allowing you to sharpen the edge all the way down to the heel. The tip is fine, but the the deep belly keeps it out of the way. Again, this lends me to believe this could be a decent hunting knife, although frankly I’ve never been on a hunt in my life.

Benchmade has gone with tried and true S30V steel for the Freek. Although S30V has fallen slightly out of favor thanks to the widespread adoption of it’s more exotic cousin S35VN, I find that Benchmade does a particularly good job with their S30V. Case in point my Volli with its 2.5mm thick blade cuts like almost nothing else I own. That thing is a laser. The Freek is right up there. This knife is a phenomenal slicer, the S30V blade holds an excellent edge, and I found it to be an easy edge to maintain with strops and the ceramic rods from my Spyderco Sharpmaker.

This knife makes quick work of cardboard, laughs in the face of of your lunchtime apple, and will capably assist you with all those odd cutting tasks that crop up in our daily lives. Much like the Volli, the Freek is a knife that I looked forward to busting out when it came time to break down a box or open a package. It’s a performer and the S30V blade steel punches above its weight thanks to the heat treat and grind.

Handle, Ergonomics, and Pocket Clip

The handle is where things get interesting, and also where the knife is bound to alienate a significant section of the audience. Like the Griptilian, this is a plastic handled knife with partial stainless steel liners. Unlike the Griptilian, the Freek has a unique high density rubber (“Versaflex”) overmold that is bonded to the plastic. The end result is a lightweight grippy design that is unlike anything else in my collection.

Some will love the lightweight nature of the design and the non-slip feel to the handle. Others will dismiss it as being cheap and plasticy. If you couldn’t stand the feel of the handles of the original Griptilian, then my guess is you will want to skip the Freek. But if you don’t mind trading G10 for a large ultra light knife, then the Freek could be a winner for you.

The ergonomics of the Freek benefit from a streamlined handle design. There are few curves, and little reliance on jimping except for the thumb ramp. Although the handle is textured, it’s not an abrasive knife in the hand. The end result is a no-frills handle that is comfortable and secure in all kinds of conditions. The Freek easily accommodates my larger hand, and the handle is well suited for extended use and hard tasks.

This knife comes from the factory with Benchmade’s split arrow clip. I’ve long been a fan of this clip, and here it is situated for ambidextrous tip-up only carry. This is a discrete knife that and buries deeply in the pocket. Benchmade left part of the FRN endoskeleton exposed where the pocket clip meets the handle, and that makes for easy insertion and extraction of the knife from your pocket.

At well under 4 ounces I found the Freek to be an easy knife to tote around. It’s about as thick as the Griptilian and carries comparably. On that note, it’s worth stating that the Freek is actually almost half an inch longer than the Griptilian but weighs .16 ounces less.

Deployment and Lockup

There isn’t a whole heck of a lot new here to say in this section. This is a thumb stud axis lock knife. A tried and true design. Here the thumb studs and phosphor bronze washers work just as great as they did on my original Griptilian. While bearings are all the rage, I think something needs to be said for bronze washers. Especially for a thumb stud equipped user knife like the Freek. Bronze washers are still exceptionally smooth and are ideal for working knives like this.

I continue to appreciate the axis lock for it’s simple and intuitive design. Plus I always appreciate that this is a fully ambidextrous knife. Lockup is secure, but as you would expect from a plastic handled partial liner axis lock knife, there is a little side to side blade play. Nothing to get upset about, just a trade off in the design. Personally, I’m happy to exchange a modicum of side to side blade play for all the practicality and utility that this design offers. Your mileage may vary.

Blade centering is pretty good. It slightly favors the pocket clip side of my knife, and is far from rubbing.

Benchmade 560 Freek Review – Final Thoughts

For those wanting a premium lightweight work knife with an over 3.5″ blade, I think the Freek is a no-brainer. Benchmade has been refining this type of knife for years. It’s like a Griptilian but it is leaner and meaner, yet also slightly larger. Perhaps it’s oriented slightly more towards the lightweight camping and hunting ground. Benchmade doesn’t offer much insight in their product descriptions, but for some reason I keep going back to hunting when I consider the Freek.

Those that can’t stand the plastic scales on the original Griptilian would be well served to steer clear of the Freek. Instead check out the Volli or the G-10 Griptilian. Those models will also provide you with great cutting performance and ergonomics, but will also be a little stouter than the Freek.

I am glad Darren called this model to my attention. I hope in writing this review I have turned at least a couple people on to an excellent “sleeper” knife from Benchmade.

Benchmade - Freek 560, Drop-Point Blade, Plain Edge, Satin Finish, Black/Grey Versaflex Handle, Made in the USA

HIGH-QUALITY: The CPM-S30V stainless steel blade is extremely well-balanced, offering superb edge qualities and rust resistance. The Grivory and Versaflex dual durometer handle offers strength, comfort, and grip.
WELL-DESIGNED: Benchmade's AXIS lock is exceptionally strong and fully ambidextrous. The Freek 560 is a manual knife that can be opened and closed with either hand.
ALWAYS READY: The 560's quick, one-handed opening makes it easy to hold and use. The reversible pocket clip offers ultimate accessibility.
VERSATILE: The Freek 560's drop-point, utility blade style and all-around functionality make it ideal for everyday carry.

I recommend purchasing the Benchmade 560 Freek at Amazon or BladeHQ. Please consider that purchasing anything through any of the links on this website helps support BladeReviews.com, and keeps the site going. As always, any and all support is greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.

Spartan Blades Horkos Review

by Dan Jackson 3 Comments

Spartan Blades has a reputation of producing a premium product geared towards military applications. Founded by a duo of retired Special Forces operatives, I always considered Spartan Blades to have a unique position in the market. Their approach is simple: manufacture high end fixed blade combat knives in the USA out of premium materials.

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The only other company that shares this approach and readily comes to mind is Chris Reeve, and CRK is best known for their folding knives. Spartan Blades has since branched out into high end folders, but I will always associate Spartan Blades with high end fixed blades.

And the Horkos is arguably Spartan Blade’s flagship fixed blade knife. It may not be the most expensive, but it strikes me as their most approachable model and emblematic of their lineup as a whole. This knife was apparently commissioned by the Combat Weapons Team of the United States Military Academy in West Point, NY and is given to graduates of their elite program. A review of a Spartan Blades knife is long overdue, and given its pedigree the Horkos almost begs for evaluation.

This knife was provided to me for review by Spartan Blades.

General Dimensions and Blade Details

The Horkos has an overall length of 10-7/8″, a 5-11/16″ blade, and weighs 9 ounces. Like all Spartan Blades the Horkos is made in the USA. This is a combat / utility knife. Versatility is the name of the game with a combat knife. Obviously it needs to be capable in a defensive role, but most of the time the knife will be used for utility work. So it needs to be a practical knife, but still capable in a defensive role. I consider the Horkos to be an evolved Ka-Bar USMC knife.

Of course I’m a mild mannered suburbanite, so my experience with the Horkos has been purely as a utility knife. And thankfully the Horkos is a practical enough tool that I could effectively test it.

The Horkos sports a modified drop point blade with a dramatic harpoon tip. Spartan Blades has incorporated the harpoon tip on a number of their designs. It’s a nice aesthetic touch and lends a nod to the Spartan warriors that the company was named after. Beyond the harpoon tip you have a fairly typical partial flat grind and swedge. There is a little bit of belly, a nice strong tip, and plenty of cutting edge. The grinds on this knife are beautiful. In fact, all the machining is top notch. My favorite feature of the knife is that all the edges have been chamferred. This detail provides a premium feel and distinguishes the Horkos from all the other knives in my collection.

The Horkos is made from a single piece of S35VN steel. Although I have tested dozens of folders with S35VN blades before, this was my first experience with a fixed blade in S35VN. At 3/16″ (~4.75mm) thick, this is a substantial knife. I have come to appreciate S35VN in folding knives, but was unsure how it would hold up in a knife like the Horkos. After all, a blade of this size will need to hold up to the rigors of chopping, prying, and perhaps even batoning.

Spartan Blades offers the Horkos in a black DLC coating or a tan Zirconium Nitride (ZrN) coating shown here. Although the ZrN coating is described by Spartan as a “flat dark earth” color it seems to me more like a metallic brown gold. It has an almost etheral sheen to it. It’s subtle, but also totally different from something like a flat brown powder coat.

I was curious to see how this ZrN coating and the S35VN blade would hold up under use. I first used the knife on some cardboard. This is a thicker grind, and thick stock, but the keen edge cleaved through cardboard as you would expect it to. You will never mistake the Horkos for a kitchen knife, but it cuts cleanly and gets the job done. The coating and edge both held up fine.

I then worked with the Horkos on some seasoned oak logs that I keep for camp fires and grilling. The grind on this knife is pretty stout, but it handled the oak capably, shaving away the bark and and then peeling off thick curls of wood. I chopped quite a bit, performed some light batoning, and then moved to a large stump of grapefruit wood. Grapefruit is much softer than oak, but it allowed me to drive the tip of the Horkos deeply into the stump and test the tip strength. There was no edge deformation and the tip held up perfectly.

I have since used the Horkos on several other occasions. Mostly breaking down boxes and prepping wood for fires. It continues to be a capable tool.

The ZrN coating also held up well. There is some light surface scratching (perhaps from rubbing up against bits of sand on some of the wood), but the coating remained largely intact. It didn’t peel off like a teflon coating or flatten out like a powder coating. ZrN is a premium coating and I’d say it performs close to DLC. I also like how this coating does not bind up or effect the cutting ability of the knife.

I am keeping this knife for long term testing and will update the review as I gain more experience with this knife.

Handle and Ergonomics

The Horkos is a full tang knife overlayed with textured micarta handle scales. Once again everything has been thoughtfully designed and meticulously executed. I cannot find fault with the material selection or the fit and finish of this knife.

The scales on this knife have a large diamond pattern texture to it. I was concerned that this would make the knife uncomfortable to use. In fact the number of ergonomic features on this knife had me concerned: the beak of the pommel, the finger groove on the handle, and the saw cut jimping on the thumb ramp, and this aggressive diamond texture. I was pleasantly surprised to not develop any hot spots after extended use. While this won’t handle like a purpose built bushcraft knife, it still handles well. All the ergonomic features aided in the grip rather than getting in the way and I walked away from my testing sessions appreciating the Horkos more.

Sheath

The Horkos comes with your choice of a Kydex or Nylon sheath. My particular knife came with a nylon sheath in multi-cam. This is one of the most robust nylon sheathes I have owned. This is high denier nylon, triple stitched, molle capable, and threaded with paracord. The retention strip is adjustable and backed with velcro. This is a high quality sheath and strong departure from the bargain bin cloth sheathes you get with budget knives.

The plastic insert is lined with what appears to be the loop side of velcro. This gives the knife a secure friction fit, even if you don’t use the retention strap. There is a velcro lined belt loop at the top of the sheath, and a thick plastic D-ring at the bottom, so you can carry this knife in a number of different ways.

The kydex sheath is a $30 option and is probably worth the extra money, but I think as far as nylon sheathes go this is about as good as it gets.

Spartan Blades Horkos Review – Final Thoughts

The Horkos is an impressive combat knife. At over $300, this is a high-end product. The materials are top notch, every detail has been considered, and the knife performs. I think this is an instance where you get what you pay for. It’s overkill for a backyard bushwacker like myself, but if I needed to carry a combat knife on a daily basis I think the expense is easily justified. You certainly get something more for your money over a $100 knife.

I have enjoyed experimenting with a 10″ S35VN fixed blade. I continue to be impressed by the qualities of this steel. The combination of good edge retention and easy sharpening make it tough to beat. And I was also pleasantly surprised by the mild nature of the handle.

If I had to pick apart the Horkos, I think my approach would be more of a general commentary on combat knives. Combat knives ride that precarious line between utility and defensive use. It’s an exercise in compromise, and compromise by it’s very definition won’t leave everyone 100% happy. If you are looking for a pure utility knife to split wood all day I might suggest an axe or a Fallkniven A1. If you are looking for a straight up fighting knife, then the something like a ROSarms Kisten would probably be a better option.

But the Horkos still does a good job of riding that line between practical and tactical. There is no compromise in the materials, and the design is refined enough to get all manner of jobs done. If you need a tough, do it all utility / combat knife then you will be hard pressed to find a finer tool than the Spartan Blades Horkos.

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I recommend buying the Horkos at Amazon or BladeHQ. Please consider that purchasing anything through any of the links on this website helps support BladeReviews.com, and keeps the site going. As always, any and all support is greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.

Zero Tolerance ZT 0450 Review

by Benjamin Schwartz 3 Comments

Despite positioning itself as a maker of hard use tools for hardcore individuals, Zero Tolerance has always had more universal appeal than its marketing would suggest – and I don’t think the company’s appeal has ever been wider than it is today.

Unlike sister brand Kershaw, there isn’t any internal division between ZT products: there aren’t ‘cheap’ and ‘expensive’ ZTs in the sense that there are cheap and expensive Kershaws; everything they make falls within the same general bracket of impressive machining and high-end materials; the price differences just indicate which high materials you’re getting and how much impressive machining you see.

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And while ZTs may have been considered pretty pricey back in the day, as the market has shifted upwards their prices have remained relatively consistent, so that they seem more reasonable now than they did five years ago. So as the knife world has shifted into its current strata of price brackets, Zero Tolerance has found itself in a sweet spot between accessibility and quality.

All of this combines to put ZT pretty much at the center of current knife enthusiast culture. I’m sure there are soldiers, cops, and first responders who carry and use Zero Tolerence knives, but I would bet there are a lot more ZTs in the pockets of enthusiasts and on the shelves of collectors. That being said there has never been a ZT knife that really spoke to me.

I couldn’t find one that was ‘just right;’ this knife had a great design but is assisted, that one was the right size but inordinately heavy. It is this way for me with every knife ZT releases. Eventually, waiting for the Perfect Zero Tolerance became a kind of mania. Perfect design, perfect size, perfect price: I figured if I waited long enough such a ZT would come out.

But it never did, and eventually I got tired of waiting and picked up the knife that came closest to that ephemeral, unrealized Perfect ZT I have in my mind: the Dmitry Sinkevich-designed ZT 0450. It can’t possibly be perfect, but is it any good? Let’s take a look.

General Dimensions and Blade Details

The 0450 has a blade length of 3 3/16”, a handle length of 4 1/8”, and an overall length of 7 3/8”. It weighs 3.04 oz. and is made in the USA. I want to mention here that this is a damn good looking knife. It comes up later and I don’t want to keep repeating myself in the interim, so just keep in mind that almost every inch of this knife is nice to look at.

The ZT 0450’s racy drop point is a good EDC cutter. It has much more straight edge than belly, which I don’t necessarily mind, and a very sharp tip. A chunky grind means two things: 1) both the tip and cutting edge are hardy enough to beat on, however 2) it isn’t as good of a slicer as you would hope for. Given the fast, futuristic, aggressive styling I was hoping for equally aggressive cutting performance but that isn’t what you get here.

However, trading some sliciness for durability isn’t exactly Faustian as long as cutting performance is still the favored attribute to some degree, and the 0450 meets this criterion. It’s best-suited for medium-duty tasks like cutting through cardboard or plastic, but you aren’t going to hate slicing food with it either. It works.

When Zero Tolerance began using Elmax a few years ago accusations of improper heat treating and burnt edges were leveled at them from the enthusiast quarter. The 0450 is made from S35VN, not Elmax, but there is a small portion near the tip of my 0450’s blade that looks burned:

From what I understand, this occurs during the edge grinding portion of manufacturing, and is localized to the burned area – in other words, if it is burned, it shouldn’t affect the performance of the edge in general – and my experience bears this out.

S35VN is great. I would almost say it’s boring, because it doesn’t have the epic abilities and tragic flaws of a steel like M4, but for the average user (and most enthusiasts are average users AT BEST) that is a good thing. I’m convinced that you could sharpen S35VN with even a rudimentary setup and some patience. The S35VN here performed just as well as I expected it to, and if there were any problems in the burned portion I didn’t notice.

Handle, Ergonomics, and Pocket Clip

One of my biggest ergonomic pet peeves is when a knife has a beak or a scoop at the butt end of its handle that either doesn’t accommodate all four fingers ahead of it, or that makes my fingers feel crammed because it ushers them too close together. I really want this issue to become the Too Many Finger Grooves of 2017, because it nearly ruined the Para 3 for me and designers need to stop doing it.

By all accounts it looked like the 0450 would have this problem, and even now I’m not sure that it doesn’t. I can get all my fingers between the finger groove and the beginning of the beak, but not easily, comfortably, or without premeditation; my fingers would never fall across the handle this way naturally.

But the way I think you’re supposed to hold the knife is how I ended up holding the Para 3: with my index finger in the groove, my middle and ring in the “valley,” and my pinky landing on the far side of the beak. This feels natural, but, again, it isn’t the natural way my hand wants to hold the knife.

If I just grab the knife without thinking, my pinky lands right on the tip of the beak. This doesn’t sound like it would be comfortable, but thanks to the big chamfer around the scales, the tip of the beak isn’t too pointy and it works. And even during hard cuts this wasn’t that uncomfortable because most of the pressure is focused on the portion of the knife between your thumb and forefinger.

So I don’t know where I come down on this. The way it appears the knife is designed to be held isn’t natural, and the way it seems natural to hold it doesn’t feel right, even if it isn’t intolerable. At the end of the day I guess I’m okay with this handle, because it allows for a very slim and stylish profile, and going into it you know the 0450 isn’t going to be an ergonomic masterpiece.

The 0450 itself is so very narrow that it would be a pretty decent carry regardless of what kind of clip it had. This is one of very few flipper knives whose flipper tab doesn’t annoy me in the pocket, and I think that’s a function of the knife’s extreme narrowness. The 0450 would be a great carry even with a bad pocket clip, but hey: the clip here is anguish free. The same clip seen on the Kershaw Dividend, and in that review I expressed a little anxiety about its stability over time, but I’ve had no issues here.

Deployment and Lockup

I’m going to grouse a lot in this section so I’ll say this up front: The ZT 0450’s action is fast, sure, very snappy, addicting, and fun. The flipper tab is well designed. It is a great example of why flippers are so hot right now. Okay, grousing starts now.

I was prepared for the lock bar issue, and it is definitely present: if your fingers are on anywhere on the lock bar, the detent is such that the knife will not open – it feels almost like you have a secondary safety feature engaged. When I first got the knife I had a couple attempted deployments where the blade refused to budge.

However, if you align your fingers with the clip it keeps them off the bar; now that’s where my fingers naturally goes when I flip open this knife. Still, not cool, and from what I’ve seen it’s present on newer models as well. I’d like to see ZT put this issue to bed.

I think ball bearing pivots are bad. I hope the recent issues with the Advocate will precipate a move back to traditional washers, which are more durable, have no moving parts, are easier to maintain, and don’t cause as much unnecessary wear. Ball bearings against naked titanium (as we have on the 0450) is probably asking for trouble in the long term – albeit in the long, long term that most of us won’t see, as we trade and swap knives and carry different ones on different days. But still.

I also think that the ZT 0450’s fall shut action is dangerous and not to be desired. I’ve cut myself more times on the ZT 0450 than any other knife I’ve owned, either because it rolled shut so fast I didn’t have time to get my knuckles out of the way, or I pushed it a little bit and it gained enough momentum to keep rolling when I didn’t want or expect it to. Not necessary.

Lockup via titanium frame lock with a steel insert, is good however. If you look at the knife from the side, it doesn’t seem that a lot of the blade tang actually makes contact with the lock face, and disengagement has no feedback or friction whatsoever, but there is no blade play and the lock has never been other than stable and reliable. The double over-travel stop provided by the insert and by the clip is a nice touch as well.

Zero Tolerance 0450 Review – Final Thoughts

There is no meaningful area in which the Zero Tolerance 0450 excels other than carry. It isn’t a great cutter. Ergonomically, it’s kind of a mess. The deployment is problematic. But I still like it.

As much as I hate to say it it comes down to the look. Sinkevich has one of the strongest aesthetics around and the 0450 benefits greatly from that. It isn’t my style necessarily, but we don’t see a lot of knives that are this visually confident, and I think I responded to that. If you showed me a less interesting design that had all of these quirks and problems, I would never even think of buying it.

Not exactly the resounding praise, but praise nonetheless. I can’t not like this knife, even if there are so many things about it that I don’t like. It stops just short of brilliance but looks stunning doing it.

Zero Tolerance (0450); With 3.25” DLC-Coated S35VN Stainless Steel Blade, All-Black Carbon Fiber and Titanium Handle Scales, KVT Ball-Bearing Opening, Frame Lock Reversible Pocketclip; 2.45 OZ., Silver, Small

Titanium frame lock houses hardened steel lockbar; frame lock secures blade in position so it does not close accidentally
Flipper works for left- and right-handed users; assists blade’s manual release with one-handed convenience
Finger guard, jimping and choil protect fingers during rigorous use while slicing, cutting, chopping, scaling, slashing, piercing or digging in any environment, in any conditions
Drop-point tip provides extra strength and chip resistance and eliminates pitch momentum
Overall length: 7.4 inches; closed length: 4.1 inches; blade thickness: 0.121 inches; weight: 2.9 ounces

I recommend purchasing the Zero Tolerance 0450 at Amazon and BladeHQ. Please consider that purchasing anything through any of the links on this website helps support BladeReviews.com, and keeps the site going. As always, any and all support is greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.

Emerson Sheepdog Review

by Dan Jackson 10 Comments

Last Updated: July 30, 2019
Having reviewed many Emerson knives over the years, and reaching largely the same conclusions, you would think I am a glutton for punishment in selecting the Emerson Sheep Dog for review. However, the Sheepdog brings something new to the table. This is the first Emerson flipper I have reviewed, and it features their new ball bearing system. Plus the handle has been drilled and tapped for ambidextrous carry. This is big news from a company that is very much set in their ways.

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This isn’t the only flipper Emerson has done. They also released the CQC-7 flipper. The CQC-7 flipper seems interesting on paper, as flippers have been in vogue for years now and the CQC-7 is the knife that put Emerson on the map, but the design is uninspired and the end result is literally a CQC-7 with a gigantic shark fin flipper pasted onto it. I can understand the appeal to some, but personally I wasn’t interested.

In contrast the Sheepdog isn’t a model where the flipper was an afterthought. The knife was designed to be a flipper, per the specifications of Lt. Col. David Grossman, the man who approached Ernest Emerson about collaborating on a knife and designing something for David’s company Sheepdog Knife and Gun.

David Grossman is the author of On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society, a seminal text on the psychology of the act of killing, how most men are reluctant to kill, and how law enforcement and military have trained people to overcome this reluctance. I’m sure On Killing makes for stimulating beach reading, but I didn’t pick up the Sheepdog to write a book report.

General Dimensions and Blade Details

The Sheepdog has an overall length of 8.4″, a 3.5″ blade, and it weighs 5.54 ounces. This knife is made in the USA. This is a purpose built utility and self defense knife geared towards law enforcement (hence the name). Grossman wanted something functional for a Police officer’s daily work, yet relatively non-threatening. The handle is generous, while the blade is big enough to get work done without being over the top. As usual this won’t be practical for your average urban or suburban EDC, but no Emerson is. I have carried my knife primarily on evenings and weekends.

The Sheepdog comes with your choice of a clip point or spear point blade. Personally, I like the look of the spear point a little more. I think that visually the spear point blade it balances out the handle a little better. It’s also a little less aggressive looking than the clip point. Both designs provide good all round utility and come with partial flat grinds. Both blade shapes are cut from 1/8″ thick blade stock.

As usual the blade on this Emerson is immaculate. Crisp lines, beautiful satin grinds, a generous sharpening choil, and sparkling stonewashed flats. The tip on my clip point is needle fine, while the spear point version appears to have a little more meat behind it. The primary grind is “V” ground, while the edge is only applied to the show side.

Like all the other Emerson’s I have reviewed, the Sheepdog comes in 154CM. At this point the 154CM stainless steel is a known quality. It comes sharp and stays sharp for a good while. Maintenance is easy. You sharpen the bevel side as you normally would, and that quickly raises a prominent burr. I then knock the burr off with a single swipe on a ceramic rod, and the blade is good to go. I have a suspicion that Emerson heat treats their 154CM on the softer side. It makes it an easy knife to sharpen, but you lose a little edge retention and the blade shows wear without much effort.

The Sheepdog takes a nice toothy edge, and has no problem with boxes, and I broke down plenty in the wake of assembling furniture and appliances for my rental house. I also used the knife on wood and for some mild food prep. The clip point is a practical blade shape, although it’s a little aggressive for use in public. It slices well, but also offers excellent penetration ability. Corrosion resistance is pretty good, but 154CM will stain if you aren’t careful with it.

Handle, Ergonomics, and Pocket Clip

The handle is classic Emerson: coarse peel-ply black G10 scales over a stainless steel non-locking liner, a titanium locking liner, black stand offs, Phillips head body screws, and a slotted pivot. Fit and finish is good on my knife. Emerson got a bad rap for their knives a few years ago for off-centered blades, tooling marks on the liners, late lockups, etc. These days those issues have largely disappeared. All the parts line up, the body screws are counter sunk, the edges are chamferred, and the pocket clip screws don’t stick out past the liners. If I had to nit-pick, I’d say that one of my liners is about .1 mm proud on one spot of the handle, but beyond that I can’t complain. This is a solid knife and it isn’t horrible to look at either.

The ergonomics of the Sheepdog may be inspired by Grossman, but they are pure Emerson. Like most of his designs the handle has an almost orthotic quality to it. The simple shape comes with decades of experience and the end result works great. Your index finger sinks into a deep finger groove while the flared pommel catches your pinky perfectly and the gently sloping spine supports your palm. This handle design would keep your hand in place work without excessive handle texturing, but of course Emerson offers the knife with sandpaper like G-10, and a broad thumb ramp with mild jimping. The end result is an undeniably comfortable and functional handle, but the G-10 will shred your pockets if you aren’t careful.

I know not everyone will share in my excitement, but I think the craziest feature on this knife is the fact that the handle has been drilled and tapped to accept a pocket clip on either side of the handle. Holy shit, what a concept. Some people may be less enthusiastic about this great advance in technology, after all these days you can get a $5 gas station knife that is drilled and tapped for ambidextrous carry, but for Emerson this is a big freaking deal. I’m glad Grossman got more than his company logo on this knife. Congratulations on getting this thing to come ready for ambidextrous placement of the pocket clip.

The clip is the same black parkerized stainless steel spring clip that you will find on every other standard Emerson. It’s a nice functional clip. Here it has been placed on the high on the handle for relatively deep carry. It’s not super deep carry, but you can easily retrieve the knife. The Sheepdog carries pretty well. It’s a relatively big knife, and it is thick, but it’s not going anywhere with this pants-shredding G-10. It carries as you would expect it to.

Deployment and Lockup

While the three extra holes in the handle are a big step forward, the flipper is what truly sells the Sheepdog. Since this is one of Emerson’s first flipper I wasn’t sure how successful of a flipper this would be. I was pleasantly surprised with what arrived. The Sheepdog flips well thanks in part to a large flipper tab, relatively heavy blade, and GTC bearing system. The detent doesn’t feel an stronger than your typical Emerson, and you can use the thumb disk or wave if you want, but it still provides enough resistance for the blade to flip open every time. The blade doesn’t pop like a Zero Tolerance flipper, but it isn’t a wet noodle either. I’d say it’s a solid 6 on a 1-10 scale, with a 5 being a Spyderco Domino, and a 10 being a ZT 454.

The GTC bearing system is worth another paragraph. Regular readers know I am not a fan of the teflon washers found in the regular Emersons. These bearings are like night and day in comparison. While the teflon washers are slow and gritty, these bearings are fast, smooth, and a pleasure to operate. This is is a caged bearing system designed by Brazilian custom knifemaker Gustavo Cecchini of GTC Knives. Gus knows what he is doing, and Emerson has done a great job implementing this bearing system into their knives.

Here is a parting size comparison with my Spyderco Paramilitary 2:

For lockup we have your typical titanium liner lock. As usual I found my lock was sticky out of the box. I applied a little Sharpie marker to the tang of the knife, and it helped tremendously in alleviating the lock stick. I have to re-apply the Sharpie every couple weeks but it makes the knife much more pleasurable to operate.

Blade centering is perfect on my knife.

Emerson Sheepdog Review – Final Thoughts

I think this is the Emerson knife a lot of people have been waiting for. While the company has made minor incremental improvements to their products over the years, the knives have remained largely unchanged. This Sheepdog is still very much a traditional Emerson, but the inclusion of bearings and an ambidextrous pocket clip are big steps. The flipper is successful as well. This isn’t the sleekest flipper design, and the action won’t rival a ZT, but the flipper is functional and less clumsy looking than the CQC-7 flipper. I think they did a good job with it.

I find little to complain about here. I am ecstatic about the switch to bearings. I wish they did this for all their knives. The extra pocket clip holes are nice too. The liner lock still sticks but there is a workaround if you are willing to periodically apply Sharpie marker to the tang of the knife.

I suppose the biggest hangup for me is the bulkiness of this knife. That shouldn’t come as a surprise as Emerson knives are always big and thick. You notice them in the pocket and people will notice you if you use the knife in a public setting. If you already realize that going into the purchase, then I think you will find a lot to like with the Sheepdog. It features significant improvements over past Emerson knives.

I easily recommend the Sheepdog for Emerson fans. But I also recommend it for someone seeking a large folding “tactical” knife. This is my favorite Emerson to date, and is a successful collaboration with Lt. Col. Grossman. I hope it inspires the company to try more new things.

Emerson Sheep Dog - Spear Point Blade - Folding Knife with Wave SF

I recommend purchasing the Emerson Sheepdog at Amazon, and BladeHQ. Please consider that purchasing anything through any of the links on this website helps support BladeReviews.com, and keeps the site going. As always, any and all support is greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.

Kershaw Dividend Review

by Benjamin Schwartz 19 Comments

Kershaw’s slew of new releases is always some of the biggest news out of SHOT Show. Each year the company unveils more than a dozen designs, including high-profile collaborations as well as compelling offerings from the talented in-house crew. Everything they make is accessible, with even the most lavish releases rarely going over $100. There’s bound to be something that appeals to your taste and budget in Kershaw’s yearly SHOT barrage.

Buy the Kershaw Dividend at BladeHQ

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For me, that something this year was the Dividend. In fact, it stuck in my mind as one of the most exciting knives of SHOT, full stop. Ostensibly a shorter and slimmer version of the Link, to me the Dividend seemed much more closely related to the Leek: a slim, small, lightweight, US-made SpeedSafe EDC knife with an accessible price point. Before I even had one of my own I was sure I loved it.

But then I got my own Dividend in hand and – well, I didn’t hate it, but it did, strangely, seem like a different knife than the one I handled earlier this year. Not a terrible knife, just a much less inspiring one.

The news isn’t bad so much as complicated. There’s a lot to think about with the Dividend if you’re considering picking one up, so let’s take a look.

General Dimensions and Blade Details

The Dividend has a cutting edge of 3” and a blade length of 3-3/16”-ish depending on where you measure from. It has a handle length of 4 3/16”, an overall length of 7-1/4”, and weighs 2.94 oz. It is made in the USA.

We say a blade shape is “modified” when it deviates so much from one of the standards that we’re not really sure what to call it. So the Dividend’s hollow-ground blade is a modified wharncliffe or drop point, depending on how you look at it. It’s a good blade, basically one continuous, gently curved edge. I generally like a mix of straight edge and belly, but the curve here is so gradual in places that, functionally, it’s straight. Cutting threads, breaking down boxes, slicing up an apple – these are the kind of things you’re going to want to use the Dividend for, and in these tasks it will do just fine.

Blade steel is 420HC – bad stuff. This isn’t an entry-level steel, it’s an outdated one. The blade geometry makes for an effective cutter, but after working through just a little cardboard the edge was drastically reduced. Not impressive. It doesn’t even have the good grace to maintain a clean edge; after that initial cut test it became really toothy. The more I use knives the more I like accessible, easy sharpen steels. 420HC is definitely easy to sharpen, but there’s a baseline for edge retention that it failed to clear as implemented on the Dividend.

The obvious response to this criticism is the price: the Dividend is designed as an affordable knife, and costs needs to be kept down with affordable steel. But the Dividend isn’t that cheap. I paid north of $40 for mine. Everyone’s value scale is calibrated differently, but a $40 purchase is not one I personally make lightly. At the consumer’s end of the equation, it’s hard to say for sure why a certain decision was made on a knife. But whatever the reason, it’s unfortunate that Kershaw chose to go with 420HC steel on the Divdend.

Handle, Ergonomics, and Pocket Clip

There’s this one handle shape that KAI’s in-house designers return to over and over again. We’ve seen it on the Link, the Rove, the ZT 0095BW, 0770, and of course the Tilt and 0777. It’s a good shape: simple, slightly hump-backed, grip neutral. It’s back again on the Dividend, available in two different material choices: a GRN configuration that is slightly cheaper but makes the knife more rotund, or the slim, sleek, Leek-like aluminum that I opted for. There is a decorative GRN backspacer as well – not really a pro or a con, I guess, unless the idea of lint getting caught in there really gets to you.

I’ve already posited that the Dividend is a secret sequel to the Leek (a Leekquel, if you will) and that really comes through in the aluminum model. The Leek managed to be very thin without feeling overly narrow, and Kershaw pulled off the same trick with the Dividend. It is a rare flipper knife that doesn’t butt your knuckle right up against the tab, too, so that’s all to the good.

Remember when Kershaw had some of the worst clips in the biz? Go look at the nightmare clown clip on the Zing or the Tyrade. Those days seem to be behind us. The clips they’ve been using in recent years are so much better. On the Dividend we see that same standard, almost nondescript clip that has appeared on the Link and some ZTs. I like it. My one worry is that the vertical screw orientation will be prone to wiggle over time. That being said I’ve had no problems with it so far with the Dividend. It has remained secure, doesn’t interfere with any grip, and is adequately deep.

Deployment and Lockup

Ah, SpeedSafe: the 8Cr13MoV of deployment methods: on so many knives, what is there left to say about it? The Dividend debuted alongside a few manual knives and I would have liked that setup here as well, but there is no denying the SpeedSafe deployment works great. Also, there’s a definite synergy between flippers and SpeedSafe, because they eliminate the possibility of misfires. The Dividend will deploy safely and surely every single time (unless the spring breaks or wears out, at least).

Worth noting is that, compared to the Link as well as other SpeedSafe knives I’ve owned, the Dividend seems less snappy. There’s a kind of softness to its deployment. It might be imperceptibly slower than other SpeedSafe knives but it also circumvents that problem of too much kick: you won’t have any problem holding on to the Dividend when you open it.

The liner lock on the Dividend is so squared away and familiar I have qualms about wasting more than a sentence or two discussing it. Rock solid, and exceedingly strong for all reasonable use of this EDC knife. Kershaw left just enough of it exposed to make sure you get good purchase on it for disengagement. Good stuff.

Dividend or Link (or Leek?)

The Dividend is positioned by Kershaw as the smaller follow-up to the Link. The relationship is certainly valid: the knives have material, mechanics, and that KAI handle shape in common. But they feel very different in use: the Link is much thicker, it fills the hand and feels like it’s meant to be used hard. The Dividend, while undeniably durable, is slender and elegant, keyed into a more EDC centric philosophy.

I bounced off the Link. I wasn’t interested in it when it was announced and have never been tempted to pick one up since. Dan sent me his to compare in this review, and some hands-on time confirmed what I already suspected: I prefer the Dividend in every way. The Dividend is much slimmer, with a better blade shape, and weighs nearly two ounces less. The size difference isn’t so pronounced that there are tasks the Link can do that the Dividend can’t. It is just a better knife.

The real competition in the Kershaw catalog, of course, comes from the Leek. And how does the Dividend compare to the Kershaw’s most iconic knife? Pretty favorably. I like the Dividend’s larger handle and less doofy pocket clip much better. Its blade shape has some of the sinuous character of the Leek without the fragility. It would be a straight upgrade were it not for the steel. 420HC is bad, there’s no two ways around it. Ultimately, I’d probably still give the nod to the Dividend, but until we see one with better steel (and I suspect we will) this matchup isn’t cut and dry as it otherwise would be.

Kershaw Dividend Review – Final Thoughts

In the intro I alluded to my disenchantment with the Dividend. There’s a lot of good to be found here: I like the slim profile, blade shape, weight, and pocket clip very much. I can even get behind the SpeedSafe mechanism. But I keep stopping just short of enthusiasm. Why is that?

The overall design is deeply competent, but also fails to stand out compared to classic in-house Kershaws like the Skyline and Knockout, as well as their more characterful collaborations and competition outside the Kershaw family. And over time the price thing really got to me. The aluminum version of the Dividend will probably cost you just under $50 – not what I consider a value knife, and not offering much compared to other knives you can get for the same price or less.

But although my initial enthusiasm eroded away, the Dividend isn’t bad. Carrying it was never a chore, even if it was boring and the steel was not so good. Sometimes you get a knife in your head and you just want that knife, even if it’s not mathematically the best choice. If the Dividend is such a knife for you, I say go for it. Otherwise, grab a Skyline or a save up for a Delica instead.

Kershaw Dividend Assisted Opening Knife Gray Aluminum (3" Stonewash) 1812GRY

Premium quality 420HC stainless steel, elegant, drop-point blade with a stonewashed finish offers outstanding edge holding capability, strength, hardness and corrosion resistance; roughened, scuffed look hides scratches, dirt and fingerprints
Anodized aluminum handle in matte grey curves gently to fit the hand comfortably
4-position pocketclip for all users, tip-up or tip-down carry
Ideal, essential EDC—slicing, survival tool, cutting boxes, self-defense, tactical use, food preparation or the perfect gift edit
High quality, general all-purpose knife great for EDC or use when camping, fishing, hunting, working, utility or outdoor activities

I recommend purchasing the Kershaw Dividend at Amazon or BladeHQ. Please consider that purchasing anything through any of the links on this website helps support BladeReviews.com, and keeps the site going. As always, any and all support is greatly appreciated. Thank you very much.