Gear Reviews

TOPS Serves Up the Bartender Defender XL

If you love blades and beer, the new Bartender Defender XL might just be your knife. The neck knife/bottle opener combo is the sequel to the Bartender Defender. Bartenders are known for being good listeners. But in this case it was TOPS who listened to their suggestions. Amateurs and Pros loved the concept but wanted changes to improve the design. TOPS […]

Bally Viller | The Perfect All Around Boot?

Previously, I wrote about my preference for Smartwool socks and the importance of choosing a sock that meets your individual form and function requirements. Now we will turn our attention to footwear, which is another critical element of foot protection and performance. Much of what I wrote about sock selection applies to footwear. So, if […]

SOG Baton Series Reinvents Multitool for the Urban Jungle

In an exclusive sneak peek for KnifeNews readers, SOG is introducing the Baton series which reinvents the multitool from the ground up. SOG is known as an innovator that isn’t afraid to flex its creative muscles, but they completely tore up the multitool rulebook this time. “We’ve created a multitool with aesthetics unlike anything in this space,” SOG […]

Navy SEAL Kills Pirate with a Knife

I recently attended a shooting course taught by a former Navy SEAL. A small portion of that course covered some basic combatives (7 yards and in). When you’re 7 yards or closer to the bad guy you are considered to be within combatives range. Within this close distance things happen fast, really fast. You may […]

North American Rescue Belt Trauma Kit

At first glance, the relatively few contents of this belt mounted trauma kit may seem to be too limited to be effective. Once you understand the reasoning behind the components selected for this kit, you’ll realize just how powerful the kit really is. The first thing you’ll notice is that this is built to address […]

GERBER STRONG ARM FIXED BLADE COYOTE BROWN SE

A big thanks to Gerber for sending us this item to review. There are a lot of good things to say about the Gerber Strong Arm Fixed Blade knife. So let’s just get that out of the way. Many knives are priced well above an Army private’s weekly paycheck yet worth little when it comes to […]

Darn Tough Hunter Boot Socks

I’m a huge fan of wearing wool socks for any outdoor activity. In the warmer months I tend to wear a high ankle wool sock designed for hiking. When the temperatures drop below freezing I generally move into a boot sock. I’ve used several brands of wool socks over the years and have my opinions […]

Nyx: Spartan Blades’ Special Forces Warrior

(Courtesy of Tactical Life) If you don’t think about it too much, constructing a knife should be simple. It’s only two planes of steel meeting at an extremely acute angle. Sure, it sounds simple. But there are as many shapes and sizes of blades as there are tasks for them to perform, from the delicate […]

SOG Gambit | Concealable Personal Protection Weapon

One of the top items to have on your person for personal protection is a knife. Whether that is a folding knife or fixed blade, carry one. After some training and trial & error I personally prefer to carry a concealable fixed blade. The SOG Gambit is first and foremost a fixed blade. The blade […]

Benchmade 2017 New Knives Unveiled

Benchmade has just unveiled their entire new for 2017 catalog. The 12 product lineup plays to the strength of the company’s iterative design philosophy and its Axis lock platform. The new knives benefit from increased machining prowess and enhanced material quality. It appears that Benchmade converted from its tried and true 154CM to S30V as its […]