Ontario "tactical" knives

[Babelfish]

Hi guys! Has anyone owned one of the Ontario "tactical" diving knives? They are supposed to have been designed to USN specs.

The one I'm looking at has a 5" blade with serrations on top, straight blade on bottom, and a groove in the blade for cutting line.

Here is a link to a picture:
http://store.knifecenter.com/pgi-ProductSpec?ONSP24

Thanks,

Alexander

[David Evans]

A couple of things:

First, it's made (according to the website) of carbon steel, not stainless. So it's going to rust like crazy, I think.

Second, that's an awful big knife to have to carry underwater. Have you considered EMT shears instead? They'll cut through anything and are much more compact.

Yeah, that's a cool looking knife... but there's really no need for something like that on a dive, unless you think you might have to wrestle killer sharks with laser beams on their heads.... ;)

-d

[Bob3]

Been using one of these for years, stays put, easy to extract, & doesn't get in the way. Cuts nicely too.
http://store.knifecenter.com/pgi-ProductSpec?GB5640

[goatboy_k]

if you want a big dog knife get a next gen ka-bar.

it's stainless and has a sheath that clips the knife in so you don't have to use the straps if you want

it's what i carry when i wanna look like a badass

http://www.ka-bar.com/cgi-bin/product_detail.cgi?product_id=150&cat=2

pick it up off their dealer link page, some place in Texas had mine for $63 i think

kurt

[goatboy_k]

sorry it's the catalog house link

here's the one i used if your intrested

http://www.knivesplus.com/KABAR-NEXT-GENERATION-KNIVES.HTML

carefull, that blade is about 7 inches long

kurt

[Babelfish]

Thanks everybody for your input. I will check out those links.

I am signed up for a class where one of the requirements (from the diving instructor) is that we have a knife of some sort. I assume that is to cut kelp if we get tangled. Does anyone know how well EMT shears word for getting out of a kelp mess?

-Alexander


goatboy_k once bubbled...
if you want a big dog knife get a next gen ka-bar.

it's stainless and has a sheath that clips the knife in so you don't have to use the straps if you want

it's what i carry when i wanna look like a badass

http://www.ka-bar.com/cgi-bin/product_detail.cgi?product_id=150&cat=2

pick it up off their dealer link page, some place in Texas had mine for $63 i think

kurt

[Niko714]

I looked at the pic of the knife that you were takling about and to tell you the truth it looks more like a gimic knife I dont remember seeing anything like it when I was in. If you are into the military surplus thing like myself I use an SOG Navy Seal and you can get the Seal which is fairly large or the Seal Pup which is a lot smaller and managable to most.

[Babelfish]

Haha! Yeah, it does look a little Rambo-like. I just want something that will cut fishing line and get kelp off me. Another member posted and suggested the Gerber River Shorty. That seems like the way to go.

Also, this Omersub titanium looked pretty nice...
http://scubagear.leisurepro.com/Omersub_Dive_Knife.htm

Ack... can't decide...

;)

[randyp]

Seems to me, for what it's worth, a large clip pointed knife is a tad overkill. Not only do you have to find some place that it's accessible, but also some place it won't always be in the way.

Keep in mind that if you need to use it you now have to return it to the sheath, probably with poor and mask restricted vis. All this with out stabbing yourself with the pointed tip, or putting a hole in a drysuit.

I'm a public safety diver and I manage to find uses for a knife on almost every work dive...blunt tips are the way to go for me. I like the 4" blades simply because they have grips you can use with heavy gloves...if you're diving warm water I think you would find something small like a uk remora or one like bob3 pictured to be much more user friendly.

As mentioned before trauma shears rule!!!

Just what I've found works for me...your milage may vary!

[Chucky]

Myself and most of my dive buddies have a Wenoka Squeeze Lock knife:

http://www.deepseeinc.com/knivessqueezelock.htm

Perhaps a bit expensive, but it's compact, blunt-tipped (I'm against pointy knives, having been poked before), and has an easy-to-engage yet very secure sheath. My Black Diamond BCD even came with perfectly spaced holes for mounting the sheath.

C.

[Babelfish]

Wow, thanks for all the great input. The Squeeze Lock looks like a really good one. Thanks for making the point (so to speak) about pointed blades vs. blunt. Yeah, I can imagine sticking myself while trying to put the knife back in the sheath.

Since I will be diving north of San Francisco, I certainly don't want to attract any cold-water sharks with my own blood! (However, I hear that Homo Sapiens have a bad flavor and they usu. spit us back out...):out:

I have also been looking at the Underwater Kinetics web site. Looks like they have one similar to the Squeeze Lock and the Gerber Shorty.

http://www.uwkinetics.com/ProductDisplay_prmenbr=91&prrfnbr=5156.htm

The Remora is similar: 3" blade with serrations, and a blunt tip.

[ScubaToneDog]

ONSP24 Ontario Spec Plus USN-1 Clip Point With Line Cutter 5" Blade is a next generation knife based on the old Jet Pilot Survival knife.

heres a good knife....I have one just like it (a generic knock off actually). Takes a beating keeps on cutting...not that I cut much with it but when I do its there... I like the basic design. The Serrated end and the line cutter word great. I used it to cut my buddy out of kevlar fishing line on a Niagra River dive...if I had'nt had serrations I never could have done it. If I had had EMT shears I'd still be cutting her legs free. Shears have their place but not under water in my opinion either do straight hollow ground blades.

http://shop.diversdirect.com/scripts/ecatalogisapi.dll/Item?Item=34359&Template=9990000001000999&Group=75



I like the blunt tip myself...

Hope all these options help!