Professional Documents
Culture Documents
3 February 2011
By: Sal Palma
pocket, but on the few occasions when he The 3800SBK NTK™ was designed first and
did misplace it you could hear him foremost to be a fully automatic knife, and
grumbling “dónde carajo' puse mi cuchillo,” firing the blade is accomplished by
A phrase in Spanish, which sums up the life depressing a recess just behind the axis
of a folding knife – where the hell did I put point.
it.
Folding knives have evolved in impressive
ways and today they are ubiquitous in
everyday life; nowhere is this more evident
than in tactical application, whether military
or law enforcement.
A folding knife will never replace a stout
fixed blade knife but they do supplement
them, and quite often end up with the bulk
of the day-to-day work, so they need to be
capable.
Unlike other auto designs, the 3800’s
Benchmade Knife Company, Oregon City,
actuation button is not exposed, instead it
OR is a global leader in the design,
manufacture and sales of high quality
1
cutlery; their military products have won No doubt influenced by visions of Sal Minio
awards and a loyal following in armed flicking his switchblade and sticking someone –
forces and law enforcement circles. Hollywood makes millions by misleading
people.
Copyright 2011, Sal Palma, dba Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved.
FOG HORN a Twobirds Flying Publication
is located under the handle’s Kraton® cover. The significance of that notion is highlighted
Although not intuitively obvious, the by the fact that you may suffer an injury or
reasoning behind the design decision was have a trapped arm or hand. You may even
operator safety and elimination of a have a weapon retention condition where
separate safety mechanism to keep the your strong hand is struggling to maintain
blade from firing accidentally. If you’re like control of your sidearm.
me, I often find myself forgetting that I have In these probable and reasonably real
a safety engaged so I have to fumble scenarios, the operator needs to have a
around to disengage it – a practice that is in folder that supports single-handed
an by itself hazardous. ambidextrous opening of the blade, and
In this Harsey design, the blade can only be Benchmade’s 3800SBK NTK™ does just that
deployed with a firm press at the actuation with its dual action design.
point; simply touching that area with a Locking the blade securely so that it doesn’t
finger or bumping it won’t fire the blade. fold back on you, severing a finger or two, is
Firing the 3800’s blade, as a right-handed every bit as essential as the ability to
individual, was quite natural. Simply hold quickly deploy it. Here, the Harsey design
the knife using a saber or palm supported incorporates a very solid liner lock made of
grip and with your thumb press on the 420J stainless steel.
actuating button found in the recess just
behind the axis.
Lefties may have to develop a technique
that involves firing the blade using the index
finger, so I don’t see the 3800’s being
“truly” ambidextrous – at least when using
automatic opening.
I tried deploying the blade using my left
hand and found myself gritting teeth to
work up enough strength in my index finger
to fire the blade 2 . After several attempts, I
F F
Copyright 2011, Sal Palma, dba Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved.
FOG HORN a Twobirds Flying Publication
when selecting a tactical knife, and Harsey and gloved hand with the tenacity of Krazy
and Benchmade knocked it right out of the Glue® and insulates the hand from shocks.
ballpark.
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The production models will use a similar
material called Unisoft®
Copyright 2011, Sal Palma, dba Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved.
FOG HORN a Twobirds Flying Publication
I also like to see a tactical design offer some thumb studs are there and ever
sort of a pummel and a lanyard attachment present for stealth or as backup.
point; the former is handy for breaking glass • Liner locking: provides a rock-solid
or redirecting Neolithic behavior. lockup capable of as much abuse as
Here too the 3800 NTK™ is accommodating you could give it.
and the 420J liner extends just beyond the • Blade profile: flat grind, drop point
nylon handle to fill that role. deliver fix-blade strength and
provides an excellent compromise
between slicing and puncturing.
• The handle: a slightly curved, nylon
handle with a Kraton® cover that
adheres to your hand wet / dry or
otherwise.
• Nice touches: gimping at all contact
points to keep your hand from
slipping regardless of grip used.
Awesome!
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I tested the Kraton® for cold temperature by placing
the knife in the freezer for a two hour period. I did
observe some stiffing of the material making firing the
blade, with the actuating button, more difficult – it
required slightly greater pressure; however, I don’t see
it as a significant issue.
Copyright 2011, Sal Palma, dba Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved.