Howard Linett, Esq
Terrorism Expert, Tactical Instructor, Expert Witness, Author
Accepting The Israeli D2 Steel-Blade Combat Knife Challenge!!!
Testing Benchmade's D2 CSK, Ka-Bar's D2 Extreme and Cold Steel's Recon Scout
| By Howard Linett Product Notes January 2008 |
 |
Prologue
"Where is your permit," the Israeli Customs clerk
literally screamed at me. I did not have one, nor did I know I needed
one. The day before I had received a Custom's notice informing me that
a knife from Cold Steel had arrived and directing me to, invoice
in-hand, come ransom it (Israel has 16.5 % tax on imports). Dealing
with the personnel at the Jerusalem Regional Customs Office was not new to
me. It was more a matter of "Been there, done that." I
knew the drill. I had extracted knives from Customs several times in
the past.
|
"I do not have a permit. I never needed one before," I calmly
explained. "You can not remove the knife without a permit!
Show me your Israeli Edged Weapons Collectors Association membership card,"
demanded the still screaming clerk. The situation was getting
out-of-hand. I tried reason. I took out the copy of Tactical
Knives Magazine I had brought with me, "just in case."
The Magazine's cover featured DU**STAR's Model 1 ARAD
fixed blade D2 Steel Combat Knife. I showed the clerk the Magazine and
my feature story about Israel's first ever homemade combat blade.
"Sir, I am a journalist writing a follow-up story comparing America's
best combat knives to Israel's. The Cold Steel knife is one of the
knives being compared." I produced my Israeli Government issued
Press Card. "I do not belong the Knife Collectors Association,
but here is my official government press card. Will that do?"
"NO!" The clerk's screaming got louder.
OK, I gave in. "From who do I request a permit," I asked. "I do not know," the now semi-hysterical clerk screamed. "Then how do you know that any permit I bring you is from an acceptable source," I responded, my patience exhausted. My |
 |
| question pushed the clerk over-the-edge. I knew it would. I made a hasty exit. | |
There never being any parking available by the Customs Office, I had left my
wife sitting in our car, double-parked outside. This visit to Customs
should have been a simple 5-minute stop on the way to her work. I told
her what happened. Time to use my secret weapon. I deployed my
Israeli born wife. She called the Customs Office on her cellular
telephone. It was one native Hebrew speaking social worker verses one
native Hebrew speaking bureaucrat - a classic mismatch. By the time we
arrived at my wife's work (16 minute drive) she had the name and telephone
number of the person in the Ministry of Industry & Commerce who was
suppose to issue the necessary permit.
Turned out that both the name and the telephone number were incorrect, but
it was a start. Two days later we were downloading forms from the
Ministry's Office of Cold Weapons. Seems that now there were
regulations requiring one to obtain a permit for any sword or fixed blade
knife that either had a point or was sharp. The lady who ran the
"OCW" could not understand why I wanted to write about a knife,
since she just instinctively knew that no one would ever want to read about
a knife. I disagreed and forged ahead. Several different forms,
each filled out exactly the way Madam Clerk required, in triplicate, a copy
of my press card, a copy of the Model 1 ARAD article and a letter of
explanation, were all mailed to her, and unbelievable as it sounds, within a
few days I had the permit!
Triumphantly I returned to the Customs Office. The clerk scowled at
me. I handed him the permit and he began to stutter. He did not
know what to do. He had never before seen a permit for a knife.
I was asked to please wait while an emergency meeting of the Office's
management took place. After five minutes of heated discussion that I
could both hear and observe, I was asked into the Head Man's office, given a
seat and a cup of sweet Turkish coffee.
"How did you manage to get this permit? You are the first person in the
history of this office to obtain such a permit." The guys could
not figure out if I had super Protectziah (“Connections”),
or I had made-up the permit on my computer. They asked for the name,
title, address and telephone number of everyone involved in my being issued
the permit. I let the Head Man copy my entire file. It was like
a celebrity giving a fan a personally autographed photo of the two of them
together. I left with the Cold Steel Recon Scout.
Ah, the sweet taste of success. But it is a taste that doesn't last
long in Israel.
A Benchmade D2 CSK and a Ka-Bar D2 Extreme
were waiting for me at my son's in Virginia. In a few weeks I would be
in the DC area to deliver a lecture. I planned on bringing the knives
back to Israel with me, in my checked luggage. I wanted permits to
take with me on my flight to the USA. So for each of the knives, the
required forms with attachments, in all seven different pieces of paper, in
triplicate, were mailed using Israeli Post Office Express Mail, guaranteed
next day delivery, to the "OCW." Because one of several
week-long holiday periods during which the entire Israeli government closes
was only a few days away, next day service was critical.
The Express Mail was not delivered for four (4) days, by then the employees
of the "OCW" were already on holiday leave. There was no one
to process my applications for permits until after "the holidays."
The Post Office Customer (dis)Service lady literally called me "Stupid"
when I complained about the critical envelope not being timely delivered.
I was told that I "should have known that in the week before a holiday
the Israeli Postal Service is unable to deliver the mail as promised."
Suffice to say securing the permits now fell squarely on my wife's
shoulders. I needed the permits in hand before, knives in suitcase, I
flew back to Israel. The fact that we had successfully completed the
permit application process once before meant nothing. My superwife got
it done. The permits were faxed to me at my son's office approximately
an hour before I had to leave for Dulles airport. The effort left my
wife a wreck. I'll leave it at that.
Now you understand why, when wearing my attorney's hat, I consistently
advise clients against opening a business in Israel, doing business in
Israel or with Israelis whose business is located in Israel. It simply
is not worth shortening your life or bringing on that stroke you are
guaranteed to get.
More Knife Abuse:
Before I left for the States, the Municipality of Jerusalem's
"Beautification Department" workers, mini-chainsaw in hand, did a major
pruning of an Olive Tree bordering our building's parking area. The
pile of tree limbs that the "gardeners" left, some as much as five
(5) inches in diameter, took up four parking spaces. The department's
and thereafter the mayor's office's response to requests to remove the
debris was, "when we get to it, it will get done" (that is to say,
You ungrateful people...you are never satisfied...didn't we prune your tree
for you, without even being asked?).
 |
The only "good" thing about having to deal with the Israeli government bureaucracy, almost always a frustrating experience, is that the experience fills one with enormous amounts of nervous energy. And a couple of hours of heavy cutting, slicing, chopping and hacking is just what the doctor ordered to release that pent-up agitation. It was with that "therapy" in mind that I decided to put the Cold Steel Recon Scout to work. I used it straight out-of-the-box, but before cutting semi-hard Olivewood I checked the blade's sharpness on a sheet of paper. The Recon Scout sliced through the paper a half dozen times. Never once did it drag, rip or tear the paper. It was shaving-sharp. |
Olivewood has a warm aroma as it burns. My goal was to
"harvest" what I could for use in my barbecue. I worked on
the tree limbs for a couple of hours. First I trimmed the limbs
removing all the side branches. Then I cut the limbs into lengths of no
longer than four feet. I angled my cuts as if I was using an axe.
Given the mass of the knife, it took a real bite out of the limbs with each
stroke. The work went smoothly. I had brought a pair of leather
work gloves, but the handle on the Recon Scout was comfortable
enough that I never put on the gloves. My neighbors were quite
intrigued by my effort. Before putting it away, I wiped-down the knife
with a "Wet-Ones." Except for a few scratches to its black
finish the Recon Scout looked brand new.
Serious Testing:
It was my intention to replicate the testing methodology I had employed
a year earlier in testing DU**STAR's Model #1 ARAD.
It being that same time of year, the Municipality put out fresh cut palm
fronds for the religiously observant to use as roofing material for the
temporary outdoor dwellings they construct for the Jewish holiday of
Succoth. I brought home two-dozen of the thickest stemmed fronds I
could find. I also brought home three wooden pallets constructed of
the heaviest, thickest boards I could locate. I still had a supply of
cinderblocks. All I lacked was ammo cans. I asked some friends
to rescue three cans for me from the trash. They did. I was
good-to-go, except that misery loves company and testing three fixed-blades
was much more demanding work than I could endure alone. I called good friend
and fellow knife enthusiast Moshe. He was happy to contribute some
elbow grease.
We would be evaluating the only production model D2 Steel combat knives
submitted to me from among the more than several companies producing fixed
blade knives of D2 Steel that I had contacted. Based upon my
experience, limited as it is, D2 Steel is my hands-down choice for blade
material in the knife I rely upon in life and death circumstances.
John Stitt, KA-BAR Knives VP of Sales and Marketing sent me a D2
Extreme Fighting/Utility Knife. It is the updated, but fully
faithful version of the company's legendary KA-BAR. Greg Mooney, Benchmade
Knives VP of Marketing and Sales (now President) sent me his company's
new 156 CSK Combat/Survival Bowie. I had also contacted Cold
Steel and asked if the company had a D2 Steel fixed blade. Lynn
Thompson, Company President sent me his Recon Scout,
unhesitating matching its Carbon V Steel to D2 Steel. "Let the
Games Begin!"
Cutting Palm Fronds and Pallets
Before starting to use them, I wanted to check the out-of-the-box edge
on our D2 Steel test knives. Both Benchmade and Ka-Bar
were razor-sharp. Moshe easily sliced-up a sheet of paper with each
knife. To work!
|
Using the Recon Scout, Moshe started cutting through the
sinewy, inch and one-half thick palm frond stems. One “chop” was
all that was needed to sever the stem. In about three minutes two-inch
sized pieces of a half dozen fronds, including “leaves,” littered the
porch. My experience using the Ka-Bar D2 and then
CSK to turn a dozen fronds into two-inch pieces mirrored my
friend’s. Thought lighter and smaller than the Recon Scout
both knives severed the stems, seldom needing more than a single stroke.
All in all the exercise was too easy, but it really was just the warm-up; on
to the pallets.
They were about 4x4 foot. The bottom layer consisted of four, 4-inch wide, ¾-inch thick boards. The upper cross-layer consisted of six, 3½-inch wide, ¾-inch thick boards. Moshe began with the Cold Steel Recon Scout. Cutting through the |
 |
| first board took about a minute’s worth of effort. Chunks of woods shot out of the growing “V.” Using the same cutting/chopping technique employed by Moshe, I cut through the “top” board of another pallet with the Ka-Bar Extreme. Its cuts were not as deep as those made by the Recon Scout. I used about 10 percent more strokes to make my first “V.” It was warm out, but neither Moshe nor I broke a sweat. | |
 |
Next Moshe started cutting through a third pallet using the Benchmade
CSK. Within a half-dozen stroke he discovered that if he
employed a slashing stroke, the CSK went through the hard wood
as if it was butter. The smallest and lightest of the trio formed its
“V” faster and with fewer strokes than either of the two larger, heavier
knives. Damn we were impressed.
An hour later both Moshe and I were sweating. We had cut, hacked, chopped and slashed eighty percent |
| of the way through the three pallets’ ten boards. Neither of us had reached for a pair of the leather work gloves I had brought along. Our hands were no worse for wear. I took a break. Moshe tested the edge of each knife. Both D2 Steel knives continued to neatly slice-up a sheet of paper. The Recon Scout snagged once and more ripped than sliced through the paper. But then it had cut-up its share of Olivewood. | |
Twenty minutes after we resume our attack on the pallets the dismemberment
was accomplished. I cannot say we were not getting a bit tired. We
rested our forearms by sweeping up the angle-high deep remains of pallets
and palm fronds on my porch. I got out my hammer. Time to attack
the ammo cans.
Ammo Can Destruction
Three knives, three ammo cans. Moshe plunged the Cold Steel
Recon Scout into the side of one of them. The length and
mass of the knife allowed it to be worked, prying and scissoring its way
down the can’s sides, the long way around. The Recon Scout
made one hell of a can-opener! It cut the can in half in record time
and appeared no worse for wear, be it a bit less sharp than when it began.
|
Next up, I attacked an ammo can with the Ka-Bar Extreme. I used
a series of straight down hammer stokes to dissect one side of the can.
Next I plunged the knife into the can and worked it in a back-and-forth,
up-and-down prying motion. In this manner I pretty much finished-off
the can. I did use my hammer, striking the butt of the Ka-Bar
D2 to drive it into the can’s heavier, reinforced lid-closure
and striking several times the back of the blade driving it through the
metal like a wedge. The Ka-Bar held-up better than did
my hammer. Its blade was no longer shaving-sharp, but other than wear
on its black finish it was pretty much good as new.
Moshe snatched up the Benchmade CSK. With growing admiration, again and again he plunged it into the side of the only ammo can that remained intact. The knife easily penetrated and sliced through the side of the can. Employing the same scissoring technique I had employed, Moshe finished off the ammo can. He barely broke a sweat. The CSK, be it somewhat less sharp than before it began the can-destruction, was little worse for wear. Its finish was no longer blemish-free. |
 |
Don’t Forget the Cinderblocks
Fashioning loopholes in concrete and cinderblock walls (basically
clandestine holes through which to shoot) is a standard operating procedure
for snipers plying their trade in the Middle East. And of course one
comes to rely upon Brother Murphy’s forgetting the hole-making tools in
the deployment vehicle ... until one is in position, ready to begin chipping
and scraping, only to discover that the driver of the vehicle decided to
returned to base and did. So one must improvise and use whatever is at
hand. What is most immediately at hand is one’s combat knife.
Experience teaches that one can start by softly (there is always the need
for quiet) chipping out a hole or scraping out a hole by twisting the
knife’s point around and around. It is abuse. No knife was
intended to be so employed, but sometimes no alternative exists. In
which case the knife one carries had better be up to the task.
Moshe continued our evaluation of the Recon Scout.
Holding it, two hands wrapped around its handle, he began poking it downward
into the side of a cinderblock. As one hole began to take shape Moshe
would begin a second an inch away from the first, then a third and a fourth.
Alternating between chipping-out the sides of each hole and twisting the
knife blade around-and-around ever deeper inside, the four smallish holes
gradually merged into one large hole. It is a tedious task, but then
snipers are known for the patience. To relieve the tediousness Moshe
periodically chopped up a surplus cinderblock just like he had chopped up
the pallet’s first board. The tip of the Recon Scout’s
blade held-up to the abuse as did the blade’s belly. The blade did
need to be sharpened. That task was accomplished in about four minutes
of leisurely working with my Spyderco Tri-Angle Sharpmaker
ceramic sharpening tool.
Following our now traditional order of work, I began repeating Moshe’s
technique using the Ka-Bar D2 Extreme. It performed up
to its well-deserved reputation. Making loopholes and chopping
cinderblock left the knife in need of sharpening, but it held-up fine
especially the tip of the blade. Last, (actually, at last thank
goodness) Moshe used the Benchmade CSK to chip
and twist a loophole in the last cinderblock and then chop a “V” in the
top of another. The D2 CSK held up better than we did.
It simply needed sharpening. We needed the remainder of the day to
rest and recuperate.
The Bottom Line
Moshe and I agree. When your life may depend on the knife you
carry, all three of the fixed blade combat knives we tested are lifesavers!
You can carry any of them confident in the knowledge
that even when you abuse them they will not let you down.
Cold Steel’s Recon Scout is the bruiser of the
trio. It reminds me of many of the “Russian” Israeli Border Police
snipers I instruct. These gentlemen are big, strong, heavy, forceful
and determined. They would rather not bother opening a door if they
can smash through it. If you are after maximum size, heft and momentum
this knife is an excellent choice. Get one!
Cold Steel, Inc.
3036-A Seaborg Avenue, Ventura, CA93003
(805) 650-8481 / (800) 255-4716 / (Fax)(805) 642-9727
www.coldsteel.com
If you are a traditionalist, someone who honors the past and our American
heritage, KA-BAR’s D2 Extreme is the knife you want to carry
and not be afraid to use. Build a shelter, skin a deer or take-out a
sentry; this knife will do it all. Producing the Ka-Bar in D2
Steel has turned a legend into a modern-day Best of the Best.
Ka-Bar Knives, Inc.
200 Homer Street
Olean, NY 14760
(716) 372-5952 / (800) 282-0130 / (Fax)(716) 790-7188
www.ka-bar.com
Looking for a smaller, lighter, close-to-indestructible utility/combat
blade? Your search is over. The fixed-blade D2 Steel CSK
is every bit what you would expect from Benchmade, innovation, total
functionality merged with eye-pleasing design and shaving-sharp right out of
the box.
Benchmade Knife Company, Inc.
300 Beavercreek Road, Oregon City, OR 97045-4142
(503) 655-6004 / (800) 800-7427 / (Fax)(503) 655-6223
www.benchmade.com
