Hogue

The Hogue OTF | Self-Defense Slice and Dice

Hogue’s entry to knives has been a big splash. They seem to hit the market at the perfect time with their auto openers. Automatic knives are making a comeback, and knife laws around the country are beginning to modernize. In particular today we are talking about the Hogue OTF. OTF, or out the front, knives are popular for self-defense. While a ton of places may have gun free zones rarely do they mention knives. An OTF isn’t a replacement for a gun but is a still a force multiplier when you can’t carry a smoke wagon. The Hogue OTF happens to be a well made, and affordable OTF for self-defense and EDC.

The Hogue OTF Breakdown

This OTF is a great little knife, but before we dive into the review, let’s talk specs.

Blade Length – 3.375 inches
Overall Length – 8.5 inches
Weight – 5.16 ounces
Blade Type – Clip Point (Tanto Also available)
Steel – CPM-154

This is a big knife, but it is surprisingly lightweight. At only 5.16 ounces it barely weighs anything in your pocket. It’s easy to clip it on and forget it. The pocket clip can’t be moved, so lefties should take note. The Hogue OTF’s nice 3.375-inch blade is a decent length and gives it an excellent level of penetration and slashing ability while remaining short enough to be maneuverable. The clip point blade doesn’t penetrate like a tanto but is much easier to sharpen in my experience anyway.

The Grip

I want to note one thin the grip is fantastic. Hogue made their bones making gun grips, so they know how ergonomics work. The Hogue OTF features an overall outstanding little grip. The grip is curved just right to accommodate the hand and to support an aggressive forward grip. The rear is slightly curved to accommodate the double action switch. This allows your thumb to fall naturally to the blade deployment switch. A good flick of the thumb deploys or retracts the blade with ease.

The Blade

The CPM-154 steel is a tough tool steel. For knives, it’s corrosion-resistant, ultra hard and very tough to break or chip. As a sturdy steel, it takes a few extra swipes to bring it to that razor blade level of sharp. Once its there though the blade stays sharp for quite some time. I’ve been chopping through just about everything that I’ve needed to cut. Cardboard, tape, plastics, zip ties, and more. I’ve only sharpened it once, and it’s held on since then.

Everyday Use

As I mentioned before the Hogue OTF is a fantastic self-defense tool. In a fight, you can quickly deploy the knife in ultra close quarters without having to flick your wrist or rely on a folding mechanism. It’s easy to deploy regardless of the situation, and of course, its ultra fast. If you get in a pinch, a knife like this could mean the difference between a rough night and night in the morgue.

The OTF mechanism is strong, but it’s not a tool like an ordinary knife. In my review, I’ve been using it for everything, but that’s because I actively avoid trying to get into fights. The Hogue OTF is a fighting knife, a concealed, low profile knife, but its made to brawl. Don’t underestimate it, and when a gun isn’t an option, the Hogue OTF is.

Loadout Room Approved EDC Knives

As you know there are a ton of choices out there when shopping for EDC knives. We have the advantage of testing and evaluating a lot of these knives in order to give you the reader an educated decision, so we have a pretty good idea of what works and what doesn’t. I asked a few of the Loadout Room writers to give me their top picks were for EDC knives and why they choose what they did over all the others available on the market.

Spyderco Yojimbo2

Some knives are carried for their utility and some for self-defense. Individuals that are serious about self-defense will carry a dedicated fighting knife in their EDC. And you’ll never see them cutting open a box or prying something with that knife. A dedicated fighting knife should be kept in a pristine, sharpened condition as if your life depends on it. The Spyderco Yojimbo2 is one such knife. I’ve decided to take self-defense more seriously and the Yojimbo 2 is my new companion on this journey.

Kershaw Blur

The Kershaw Blur is the current “King of the Hill” when it comes to EDC blades for me. The well-balanced assisted open, aggressive texture on the handle and the scary sharp edge on the tanto blade keep this on me ahead of all others.

Hogue X5

Durability and craftsmanship are two of the things I look for in any knife I decide to put in my EDC lineup. These reasons are why I have chosen to carry my recently acquired Hogue X5 Folding Knife. With a name like Hogue, I know that a lot of time and effort have gone into designing a quality product. With a blade designed by Allen Elishewitz, I know that absolutely no corners were cut during its creation.

The smooth opening action allows me to get the knife into play quickly, no matter what the situation is. A spear point blade is perfect for just about any application, and the CPM154 steel is strong enough to withstand the daily use that I will be putting it through. Although I haven’t carried it for long, this great knife has quickly found itself in my short list of EDC knives.

Kershaw Dividend

Being situationally aware and resilient businessman these day, I usually wear one or two different clothing options for a variety of activities. During normal working hours, I am either wearing a suit or business casual attire (i.e., a sport coat with khakis) and when I get home or have a day off I am back in my low-visibility, low-profile normal wear. As part of my EDC load out my knife options have to be diverse due to the material of the pant type, and pocket design, and keeping with my low-vis mindset, no pocket clips showing. For my business suits I chose the Kershaw Dividend, the Dividend is extremely lightweight, has a very smooth finish, and thin handle that makes it perfect for silk or cotton front pockets. The Dividend can also be hidden in the waistband behind your belt if you find the knife is moving too much in your suit pants. The second knife I carry as part of my EDC as mentioned in either business casual or normal wear is the Kershaw Blur as it is in between a heavy utility knife like the Kershaw Cryo and heavier than the Dividend. The handle has a sure-grip that can be used in any weather with out slippage and is sturdy enough to be that medium weight EDC.

Emerson Commander

The Emerson Commander knife is a battle-tested blade and approved by the Navy SEAL Teams as an edged weapon. Originally this knife was developed with input from Navy SEAL Team 6 members, and later made available to the public beginning in 1998. The wave opening feature allows you to deploy the blade as its pulled from your pocket making it quicker than auto knives, and in some cases quicker than a concealed fixed blade.

I pocket this knife more than any other that I own due to its ruggedness and simplicity. The hardware used on the knife is all standard Phillips or flat head screws (no crazy torx or allen heads). The chisel ground blade makes honing the edge in the field extremely easy. Although this is a little heavier than most EDC knives, the weight is worth having a purpose driven tool on me everyday that may end up saving my life.

Hogue EX-AO3 Auto Knife

My newest knife addition is my Hogue Automatic knife. This side opening automatic is one of Hogue’s newest knives. This particular model is the Hogue EX-AO3. This knife sports a 3.5 inch blade and polymer grip. It uses a simple push button design and I chose the drop point style blade to keep sharpening easy. In my state I can conceal carry an auto knife with my CC permit and find one handy for my day job. It’s a tough design and the blade flies out with some real oomph to it. The blade can open in a standard or ice pick style grip. I like the ability to easy open the blade without using inertia, or a thumb screw. A simple button gives me instant access to a small and effective blade.

What is your favorite EDC knife to carry and why?

Hogue 15-degree AR-15 grip | Ultralight and on point

While in the midst of building up my ultralight AR-15, I came across the AR-15 Parts Weight Database (PWD). This wonderful little resource has compiled both advertised and user-verified weights for a vast multitude of AR parts and accessories which is great for planning out your build, as well as discovering products that you hadn’t heard of yet. Such is the case with Hogue’s 15-degree grip. I’m very familiar with Hogue products, like their handgun grips and overmolded rifle stocks, but their line-up of AR grips was new to me.

The whole premise of the 15-degree grip is when shooting with a compact “CQB” style stance, a more vertical grip is a more natural grip. This is the case when you’re shooting with a PDW stock or a tightly collapsed traditional stock. Given that the standard AR-15 grip is a 30-degree flavor, the Hogue grip is considerably more vertical.

On paper, it sounds nice. When you start shouldering the rifle, this grip feels great in the hand. It is pretty slim and low profile, featuring no finger grooves nor a beavertail. The angle of presentation is very comfortable for me, having been brought up in the early GWOT shooting stance with elbows in tight. While this grip is the lightest full-profile grip currently available anywhere on the market, it doesn’t feel weak or flimsy despite its scant 1.5-ounces weight. Wrapping both of my monkey mitts around the grip and squeezing as hard as I could yield no flex out of the polymer. Hogue may be best known for their rubberized stocks, but if they wanted to expand into the ultralight parts niche, the material they used here would be an excellent choice to manufacture a minimalist buttstock out of. Although it took a little bit to get used to the slim diameter, it has quickly become my favorite grip, and I have a box full of different ones.

Yes, a grip is a small part. It is an important one though, as it is the primary interface point between shooter and weapon during both firing and manipulation. Hogue’s polymer 15-degree vertical grip is an excellent choice for an Ar-15, ultralight or not. At $19.95, it is also an inexpensive choice, well worth checking out.

-Rex Nanorum

These 31 New Tactical Knives Are Built for Hard Use

Courtesy of Tactical Life

Every year, the cutlery industry debuts a ton of new models, and as in every past year for the last several decades, I have once more discovered that the death of the tactical knife “fad” is just more wishful thinking by certain traditionalists. If anything, it is picking up speed rather than dying. Why? Because these tactical knives are actually useful for a wide range of chores.

Among the trends, both automatic and “flipper”-opening folders are appearing in ever greater numbers. You know push-button folders have entered the mainstream when you see that Buck Knives is producing an auto version of its legendary 110 lock-back! Spine-mounted flippers are a little more controversial, but I have found them to be very practical.

Other trends include more push daggers, machetes, tomahawks, karambit-based fighters and one cleaver turned all-purpose outdoor knife. In other words, there’s something for practically every taste. In the gallery above, I’ll try to cover some of the best new tactical knives out there right now.

Continue reading on Tactical Life

Photo courtesy of Tactical Life

Hogue EX-F02 Fixed Blade Knife | A Workhorse

As I write this review I have a J-Frame holstered with a grip from Hogue, since I began shooting in my teens I have trusted the grip Hogue has given me. Now from Hogue you can have a fine knife to match.

The Hogue EX-F02 fixed blade is 9” overall and has a 4.5” clip point blade with a durable Cerekote finish. Initially I found myself un-happy with the looks of the grip on this knife, however, once it was in my hand I was confident this would be a good grip. With gloves on or not, the rubber back on the handle provided a solid platform for my work. Typically I prefer removable scales on a knife for easy cleaning and re-painting, although with the quality finish and no gap between the handle and the blade I don’t see myself having to worry about that. If removable scales are still your thing Hogue offers another version of the knife with hollowed out scales that you can stash away small survival items in.

The sheath has an ambidextrous locking mechanism that allows for positive retention and a quick draw. The nylon belt loops are non removable so I might cut them off to mount it horizontally onto a plate carrier. In my opinion the sheath could be re thought, though I am happy that I don’t have to worry about it falling out compared to a tension sheath.

You should get this knife if you work on or near salt water, compared to my Cold Steel SRK this has been a dream to maintain while out in the field, the 154 CM stainless steel with its finish have not become rusted or pitted despite being out on the water with them.

Author – William Hoyt is a former Army Ranger of 1/75. He is now pursuing his bachelors in psychology and coaching swimming.

Hogue Auto Knife | First Look

Hogue is mostly known for their well-made series of firearms grips. They make grips and stocks for rifles, shotguns, and handguns of all kinds. Hogue is branching off into knives, and they made a big showing at Shot Show 2017. Hogue has dived headfirst into the knife and blade realm in general with tomahawks, fixed blade knives, folders, and to me most importantly automatic knives. Since Shot Show I’ve really had the desire for an automatic knife. I didn’t have a particular brand in mind, but the Hogue auto knife series was the first to show up with the options I wanted.

The Hogue Auto Knife EX-AO3

My needs were for a smooth, non-serrated drop point blade with a simple set of black grips. My options were limited largely because of an inane and ridiculous switchblade laws I can’t really order what I want online. Luckily my gun store is also my knife store and they ordered a wide variety of Hogue Auto knives. The model that fit my needs was the EX-AO3. This particular Hogue Auto knife is a side opening blade and comes in a variety of different colors. I like keeping things simple, so the black grips are best for me. The drop point straight blade ensures easy sharpening and simple and reliable blade design.

This particular Hogue auto knife fits my needs, however, Hogue is offering plenty of options for the picky knife enthusiast. There is tanto, serrated, and swept back options available. The Hogue Auto knife line is quite broad and they are really trying to take the knife industry by storm.

Ergos

I’ve only had my EX-AO3 for a week now but I’m already a huge fan, Hogue’s controls are simple but effective. The knife features a locking safety system. With the lock pulled to the rear this Hogue auto knife isn’t moving an inch. Push the button and the blade stays put. Remove the safety and the blade is in your hand and ready to rock and roll. Push the safety into position and the blade is locked into position until the safety is released the blade cannot be put away.

The blade is ready and in your hand via the push of a button, regardless of how busy your off-hand is. To put the blade away, push the safety downward, and press the release button. You can then fold the knife away, re-engage the lock and be safe and secure in carrying any Hogue auto knife. I’m looking forward to seeing just what the Hogue EX-AO3 can do. Look for a review coming up soon.