CRKTHissatsu Fixed Blade Knife with Sheath: Law Enforcement, Survival, Black Dual Grind Tanto, Textured Rubber Grip, Molle Compatible Sheath 2907K

It's not too often that you come across a dagger-like defensive blade that, when thrust into the body, will penetrate like the dickens, but is also an effective slasher. If you're carrying a blade for serious business, then there are some serious issues you need to consider, and you can't be queasy about it.First, the single most dangerous thing you can do with a blade is stab with it. As the late, great Ernie Franco (a renowned knife-fighting expert and trainer said) "Slashes are ugly but it's the body-blows that kill." By 'body blow' he meant thrusts. Or stabs. That's how you dig deep and hurt vital organs that will take someone out of the fight the fastest. For that reason I've always been extremely partial to thin-bladed daggers exemplified by the Sykes-Fairbairn and, above all, the Case V-42. There isnt a single organ in the human body you can't reach with either of those with a single well-placed thrust. I've seen people cut or stabbed to death (I was a metro police officer) and the DOA I saw that died the fastest was a man who took a single thrust in the upper arm that went between bicep and tricep and severed the (if I'm remembering correctly) brachial artery. He went down like he'd been struck by lightning. Same for a kidney blow and a few other gruesome things I've seen that I will not go into.By contrast, I've seen people literally slashed to ribbons in the face, arms, and torso who nonetheless walked to the EMS truck and climbed up under their own power. Slashes are shockingly ugly, and they're scary, and they hurt, but unless you plan to fully flay your attacker it's not the fastest way to end an attack.So for my money, above all a defensive knife should be primarily good for the thrust. That's not to say slashing and cutting are not useful. They are, primarily defensively. As in to get someone off you, to back them away, and if you can hit their wrists and hands enough, or can cut their heads above their eyes, blood flow will make it difficult for them to keep up their attack. And may convince them to back away, GTFO, and leave you alone. The problem with knives like the V-42 is that those acute points that make them so great on the thrust can be a real problem in a slashing defense. Rather than just passing through the flesh there's always a very real risk that the point will dig in to bone or cartilage and snatch that knife right out of your hands.The Hissatsu is the best of both worlds. It's long, and thin, and has an acute point that will penetrate most tissue. But it has just enough of a swept-back edge to enable the user to slash with it without a huge risk of snagging and coming out of your hand. For my money, for most defensive purposes, the Hissatsu is the perfect blade. Now there's something to be said for having a heavy Bowie or other massive-bladed knife, because that brings another tactic into play that simply isn't possible with lighter knives: chopping. Believe me that one or two hard hits with a kukri in the right places will end a fight almost as fast as a kidney or heart thrust with a V-42. But that's another category and I don't know about anyone else, but I find a kukri or a big Bowie a bit hard to conceal on my person when I'm wearing my khakis for work or tooling about town.One thing that I was worried about with the Hissatsu was that the blade looked exceedingly fragile. I've noticed that in questions and comments other potential buyers were worried about the fragile-looking blade. Well, the first time you get your hands on one, you will dismiss that particular worry. The blade is actually quite thick, and that thickness carries quite close to the point. Not so thick that it interferes with cutting or slashing or penetration, but more than robust enough for any defensive purpose. I usually call people who use their knives for things like prying open wooden cases or opening tuna cans idiots who should be wearing a tool belt instead. But yeah, you could probably pry open a wooden crate with the Hissatsu, or cut open a tuna can, without damaging the blade. I feel confident that I could probably start punching holes in a car body or a steel oil drum with it without banging it up too bad. I'm sure the point would break eventually, but I have no doubt it would take ten or twenty thrusts before anything like that happens.I know that might be a little hard to believe just looking at the pictures of the knife. But if you get the chance to handle one you'll see for yourself. It's one tough mother. But still dainty enough to penetrate deep with little effort. As I said before, I can't think of another blade I own, and I own a lot of them, more suitable to the purpose of self-defense than my Hissatsu. I love the blasted thing.

This one is the real deal. I am both a collector and user of blades regularly, and i an very picky about them. I grabbed a couple off of the shelf to show size comparison in one of the pictures. As far as i can tell, it is full tang, or near enough to be considered so for structural integrity purposes. The knife is larger in person than it appears in the factory pictures, which was nice for a change. There are no parts because the handle is molded, it is extremely solid and sturdy. I was worried about the blade being too thin based off of the pictures, but again my expectations were exceeded when i felt and saw how thick the blade is. The lines and angles on it are functional and beautiful simultaneously. The handle offers the perfect amount of grip, and the pommel is strong enough to take whatever kind of realistic abuse you can throw at it, while remaining smooth so that it does not cut or snag when using it. From a combat standpoint, this knife is an epic deal for the price. The emperor nodes on the handle are not too much, they are just right, for any professional, this knife is going to put a huge smile on your face as soon as you open the box. It is a perfect functional tanto, and the kydex sheath is on point as well. The belt clip was a bit hard to attach, and i would have preferred to have four sets of hardware instead of two to secure it, but i fugured it out pretty quickly and it works fine. The edge could have been a bit sharper for my taste, but one can only hope for so much and id say my hopes were exceeded in every area other than the edge. Again, most professionals will hone any factory edge to their liking, as i plan to anyway, so i gave the knife 5 stars. Let me tell you, coming from me, thats high praise..

I own a lot of knives and have been using them for over 30 years. I carry a Kershaw Blur SV-30 as an EDC for daily cutting chores.Carrying a tool for self defense here in California has gotten more difficult recently with the State's banning of the open "unloaded" carry of handguns. This marxist state has effectively made law abiding citizens of good moral character felons; prohibited from carrying a handgun for self defense (the actual felons are now the only people who still carry guns... go figure!). The only practical, legal tool for self defense now, aside from pepper spray and a Taser, is a knife (well, and an unloaded gun in a locked container in the vehicle, but that is way to slow to get into play most of the time if you are the target of a violent criminal).If you are going to use a knife as a primary deadly force tool for self defense, you gotta go big. A 3.5" EDC blade just doesn't cut it. I have a 4.5" Applegate-Fairbairn Combat Folder, a 5" SOG Spec Elete II Folder, and a 5.5" Cuda Max Folder... all great folding knives with reasonable combat capability, but in the end, they are all much weaker and more complex than a fixed blade. The problem with most fixed bladed knife/sheath combos is that they are heavy, bulky, and have limited carry configuration options. These are all critical considerations when selecting a daily carry fixed blade knife. My observation, after decades of carrying knives, is that if the knife and sheath are over 14oz, I'm going to start leaving it at home or in the truck sooner than later. The Hissatsu with sheath weighs in at 10.5oz, and that is with a few yards of 550 Paracord wrapped around it for attachment points. This is a light knife/sheath combo... 3oz under a USMC Kabar with a Kydex sheath (and 2oz under a loaded Keltec P3AT in a Superfly holster... a common CCW gun/holster combo)The Hissatsu has a thin, almost dagger-like, single edge blade profile, but the top spine is a monstrous 1/4" thick. This makes it overall a thin blade (but not too thin), light (but not too light), and strong (plenty strong!); very few knifes can tout these features. The sheath, while just a simple Kydex, dispenses with the usual hanging belt sheath attachment that no one seems to be able to get right anyway; shaving a few critical oz. off the sheath, which also results in a very compact and ergonomic sheath.. bravo! I don't think a custom Kydex guy could design a better, low profile sheath for this knife. Good sheath design is critical for self defense carry, and this one is perfect... just add a bit of 550 cord, or a large TecLok, and you are good to go. I own two of these knives (Black and Tan). The sheath of the tan knife retains the knife perfectly... plenty of retention, but will release with what I consider to be the perfect amount of force. The black sheath...not so much. It's release is way to easy and probably wouldn't retain during a tumble or scuffle. I took a heat gun to it and was able to get it to match the tan sheaths retention properties, so it's not enough of a problem that I took a star off from my rating, but you should know about this in case you buy one and it's retention is too light.As for daily carry: Using a Teclock or 550 cord, you can easily and comfortably carry this on a belt... it carries high, like a pistol, which is perfect for car seating, etc. The only problem with that is, if my shirt or jacket cover it, it's a State felony (any fixed blade knife, concealed). So... I carry it on the shoulder strap of my Maxpedition Versipack (it's not a purse!). See my posted photo above... sure, it looks a bit menacing... </rant-on> blame it on the statists of CA who won't issue law abiding citizens CCW permits, not the victims of those laws who have to dance around their totalitarianism to have the means of defending themselves from violent criminals!!! </rant-off>Bottom Line: For the price, it just doesn't get any better than this for a daily carry, fixed blade knife for self defense!