BORELLI CONSULTING: Tactical Equipment Reviews

SOG Knives Scuba Demo Knife
21 November 2005

So, what does it take for something to be considered "rare"? I don't mean as in undercooked, but as in not very many of them around. Recently I received a SOG Knives Scuba Demo Knife in response to a request I put in to them. Why? Because I had read about the knife's history in Vietnam and I wanted to learn even more about it. Now, the first thing I learned is that "SOG" originally stood for Studies and Observation Group, which was an elite joint services military group designed for covert operations. Sanctioned to develop and purchase their own equipment, the original SOG created a knife for use in one of the harshest environments in the world.

According to the information released by SOG Specialty Knives, only 39 of the original SCUBA/Demo knives were manufactured, and only one is known to still be in existence. 38 of the originals were reportedly delivered to the Naval Advisory Detachment, which were then issued to OPLAN 37 ALPHA in 1964. 36 were lost in operations and two have disappeared. Due to the truly unique nature of this particular knife design, SOG Specialty Knives revived it and sells it today in honor of the original. Let's take a closer look...

Made of AUS-8 Stainless Steel, with a Rockwell Hardness of 57-58, the full tang blade measures 7.25" and is not quite one-quarter of an inch thick. There is about 1.25" of choil (that unsharpened part of blade directly in front of the hilt), leaving six inches of cutting edge. The spine is serrated and the serrations are sharp... The blade design could be referred to as drop point, but just as accurately referred to as a spear tip. In front of the serrated back edge, there is about an inch of false edge, but the fact that it isn't sharpened doesn't affect penetration as far as I could tell. Overall length of the knife is 12.25" which means you get five inches of handle. There is an appreciable full length hilt and hard round butt cap that is useful for hammering. The hilt and buttcap both appear to be made of brass, but I couldn't confirm that in time for this review. The grip is made from leather washers - and that means that although this knife has "scuba" in its name, you shouldn't really use it for scuba diving. Eventually the saturation will ruin the grip. We have to remember that this is a reproduction of a Vietnam-era combat knife. What was cutting edge (no pun intended) then is far from contemporary.

The knife is delivered with a leather sheath, a small sharpening stone (1"x3") and a leather thong that can be used as a lanyard for the knife, or a tie-down for the sheath. The leather sheath fits the blade tight, and the additional security of a thumb-snap strap is present. There is an appropriately sized pocket on the face of the sheath for carrying the sharpening stone. The sheath is both stitched and riveted though there is no rivet at the bottom tip. Then again, given the presence of the other rivets, there's no way you can push the knife that far down.

As much as I hated to do it to this beautiful cutting tool, I took it out into the environment to use and abuse it. True to form I headed out to my shed where I tested the blade's ability to cut everything I had at hand. String, fishing line, rope, twine, etc. The blade easily cut it all. The spine serrations made easy work of 7/16" rope and nicely shaved chunks off of a 5-gallon plastic bucket I was getting ready to trash.

The knife weighs 13 ounces - a little more than 3/4 pound - and that came in handy with penetration tests. Holding the knife so as to maximize protection to my hand by the hilt, I overhanded it into a 1/4" piece of plywood. Penetration was easy about three inches in. Wiggling the blade some, withdrawal wasn't hard either. Another overhand strike with a little more umph behind it punched the knife in about five inches deep. I can't say it was comfortable on my hand, but in it went. It was also a little more work to get it out.

I was unsuccessful in my attempts to punch it through a 1/2" sheet of plywood. But the hammer still works and hammer it in I did. I had to wiggle and pull to get it out because I simply couldn't bring myself to hammer on the tip of this knife. I finally got the knife out, wiped it clean and took a look at the blade and edge. I had to use a toothbrush to get the wood dust out of the serrations on the spine, but other than that, it looked pristine.

This is an exceptional blade given that it's a reproduction of a 30+ year old design. I am happy to be adding it to my collection and promise not to abuse it this way again. In the future, should SOG decide to make a contemporary version of it - with G10 grips (or something similar) and a kydex (or something similar) sheath, I'll be writing a check for one pretty quick. I consider the knife perfect in size; with an exceptionally designed blade and two excellent cutting edges. The buttcap is good for hammering, but I hate to do that to brass; perhaps titanium? If it ever happens, I'll be sure to let you know!!

Be safe!

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Also, don't forget to read the new Recreational Equipment Evaluations:

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Check out this week's Highlighted Training Article about minimum policy and requirements for a law enforcement agency to regulate officer use of folding lockblade knives.

For a listing of reviews in chronological order, GO HERE.

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