I’m always keeping my eye on the knife industry to see where innovation and design are going. Fixed blades for EDC and personal defense have become extremely popular in the past 2 years. There are many different designs available depending on your personal preferences and how fat your wallet is. The higher end knives in this category are nice, but carrying a $300+ knife can hurt if you get it stolen, lose it or have to ditch it somewhere. The cheaper options usually come with less than ideal sheaths that just don’t cut it.
The FirstEdge HR1 fighting knife is middle of the road price wise and looks to come with a decent sheath. The sheath appears to have a quality IWB clip with a clothing catch to prevent the sheath from coming off when you draw the knife. Having a clothing catch built into the clip allows me to wear this blade on my gym shorts and running shorts when I’m not wearing a belt.
The overall length of the blade is 7.125″ which is the ideal length for concealed carry (in my honest opinion). The blade length is just under 3″ which means you have a good length on the handle for retention of the knife in a violent confrontation.
Specifications courtesy of the FirstEdge website:
- Modified Tanto Fixed Blade
- ELMAX® Stainless Steel Blade – .110” Thick / 7.125” Overall Length
- Blade Edge Lengths – Bottom edge 1.75″ / Tanto tip edge – 0.875″
- Hardened to 60-61 HRC
- Flat Ground blade
- Striking Pommel
- Black Oxide Finish on Blade
- Molded Kydex Sheath with IWB pocket clip
- 3.0 oz.Packaged Weight / 2.3 oz. Knife Only
- MSRP $129.99
You can also purchase the HR1 as a training package that comes with a blunt tip trainer blade for only $179.99. Having a trainer blade identical to the live blade will only make you more proficient when the time comes for you to ‘go to work’.
