version of the 710) 3. Smith & Wesson: Homeland Security 4. Buck/ Strider 889 Military Folder (discontinued, was a Buck and Strider knives collaboration) 5. SOG Twitch 2 6. SOG Tomcat I (first generation Tomcat, named “Overall Knife of The Year” at the Blade show in 1988) 7. Cold Steel Kobun (discontinued) 8. SOG Pentagon (Seki Japan version) 9. SOG Sealpup Elite 10. Gerber Tac 2 (1980s commando knife) 11. SOG Seal 2000 (discontinued) 12. Pacific Cutlery (now known as Benchmade) Timba 771 13 …

What cool knives. You’ll first be struck by their super lightweight at 2.6 oz. Few tactical folders can match this weight while providing a decent sized, well designed blade. Fit and finish is top notch as in all Microtech knives. Deployment speed (a bit slower) and the small handle for grasping would be the downsides of this design. However for a knife that enjoys an almost perfect 1 to 1 handle to blade ratio I’ll take it. Sadly this knife is out of production and you’ll have to pursue it …

If your envisioned scenario might need a larger blade for defense and a fixed blade is too big, too heavy, look here. The BM 710 is a near perfectly executed large tactical folder. This model is in 154CM steel, current ones are produced in D2. Either way it will serve you well. Yes it’s over 4 ounces (4.8) in weight but compared to some other fixed blade alternatives, you’ll still come out way ahead. It has a beautifully shaped blade, wicked fast deployment, Benchmade-tight lockup, and …

Two of the coolest autos around. Both are ultra quality lightweight tactical autos featuring excellent blade steel, fast deployment, solid lock up, good ergonomics, and have that intangible cool factor making them so much fun to handle. Good luck finding the Microtech Amphibian auto as I think it’s bye bye. The ProTech TR3 is still available and remains one of my favorite, best-executed and tough tactical autos: great steel,solid lockup after lightning fast deployment, good handle, and light …