Growing up in Chicago, many in my neighborhood carried Italian stiletto folding knives, except they didn’t work. Oh sure, it had that button that you’d push, but it didn’t work…it was there for looks only, but those knives looked mean. Only problem was, they were pure junk, I never owned one that even had an edge on it – and odds were good if you dropped it or threw it, it would break. But still, a lot of us kids owned them. I will admit to being involved in a couple knife “incidents” that ended just as quickly as they started – first blood and the fight was over.
Even today, you can still find these Italian Stiletto folders in knife shops and other stores – they aren’t worth the money you’ll pay, but they look bad to the bone. The real deal – from Italy – next to impossible to find – you see, automatic folders – switch blades – can’t be imported into the United States, by Federal law. Some times it is skirted, when these knives come into the country, and then a company or individual will add the internal components, making them into an automatic folder. But those knives are still junk.
Many states and locales restrict the ownership of automatic folders for some stupid reason – most believe that a “switchblade” knife is some how more deadly than a manual opening folder, or an assisted opening folder – ignorance is bliss when it comes to politicians and the stupid laws they pass. There are several well-known knife companies in Oregon – where it is legal to own and carry an automatic folder, and even many police officers in my home state ignorantly believe an automatic folder is illegal to own, except by law enforcement.
Kershaw Knives recently released their version of the Italian Stiletto, called the Launch 8, and it is made right here in Oregon. This folder was designed by well-known custom knife maker Matt Diskin, and he did a great job on this “stiletto” if you ask me. I wasn’t familiar with Diskin’s work, so I did some checking around on the Internet, and found his custom knives are sure to my liking – every last one that I looked at, on-line.
The first thing you will notice, when you pick-up the Kershaw Launch 8 folder is that, it is very lightweight – it only weighs-in at 2.4-ounces, yet it is a good sized folder with its 3.5-inch CPM 154 stainless steel blade. The blade is stonewashed, and it looks good on this folder. The handle material is anodized gray Aluminum, with a carbon fiber insert in the handle for a great grip on this folder. Of course, there is “that” push button, and needless to say, it works, and the blade comes out of the handle with some authority, and I opened and closed the blade many hundreds of times and it remained locked open and closed without getting loose. The button releases the open blade, so you can manually close it back into the handle. There is also a reversible pocket clip, for carrying in the right or left front pocket, with the knife tip up. There is a cross guard on the front of the handle, and this prevents your thumb from slipping onto the open blade.Continue reading“Kershaw Launch 8, by Pat Cascio”
