I was packing to leave for a trip to work. I went through my usual checklist – Helmet, Night Vision, Gerber Multi-tool (I wrote a review on that as well, you can see that here), clothing, Gore-tex, MultiCam this – MultiCam that, boots, plate carrier, etc. Long story short, I thought I had everything. I throw my stuff into my contractor bag, throw it in the back of my truck to make the half hour drive down to the Amphib Base. I get there, throw my stuff onboard the ship (we were launching the RHIBs off a ship) and my boss let me know we have about 3 hours before we are getting underway. The guys decide to go eat while I decided to stay back and run through my gear one last time, I had a gut feeling I was missing something. I soon realized I didn’t have my knife and I ran to go check my truck for it because boat operations and no knife? That’s no Bueno. I soon realized its not in there, so I get into my truck and run to the Wal-Mart about 15 minutes down the road. There’s got to be something decent in Wal Mart to last a week at work right? I grabbed the SOG Ace and I bought it. Didn’t even look at it truthfully. Just grabbed it, paid for it, and drove back to base. $34 for a SOG? What can go wrong? Did I waste $34 or its a decent knife?
I get back to base, we start running through our gear and through our RHIB’s up on the deck and a mooring line we use on our RHIBs needs to be cut. The SOG Ace cuts through that 1-inch mooring line like a hot knife through butter – it’s passed its first test. An hour later we find out our week-long training deployment got canceled and now I’m stuck with a knife I don’t really need. Well, lets put it in the knife rotation and see what the durability is.
The SOG Ace features a 3.8″ straight blade made out of 7CR17MOV steel. What is 7CR17MOV steel? 7CR17MOV steel is a budget steel used for budget knives. For more clarity, it is 440A stainless steel that has more Vanadium than other steels. The added Vanadium is for durability and strength and to keep that edge as sharp as possible for the longest amount of time. The SOG Ace has an overall length of 8.6 inches with a handle made out of TPR which is a comfortable material to hold. My only complaint with the SOG Ace is the handle cut. Not a big fan but for $34 I can work with it. The spine is straight and the blade thickness is 0.12″ bringing the weight to 4.0 0z. It also comes with a belt clip sheath (it has a notch for cutting 550 paracord or a seatbelt.) It works really well on paracord, but I have not tried it on a seat belt.
Cutting with the SOG Ace is extremely easy. In the 3 months I have had it, it has not failed me nor have I had to sharpen it. Now, it is a budget knife, so I’m sure it won’t last forever but through maritime operation, after maritime operation (I now leave the good knives at home) it has not done me wrong. From cutting lines that get tangled in the props, to saltwater exposure, to everyday life, I feel comfortable carrying this knife. It’s okay to spend a months pay on a knife… but before you do that take a look at the SOG Ace. From rugged durability to blade strength, for $34 you can’t beat the price or the quality of the SOG Ace.
