A Non-Survivalist Survivalist, by L.F.

I enjoy a end-of-the-world movie just as well as the next guy and similarly to most of the “next guys”. I have no specific skills that any survivalist would find useful, such as making a fire with sticks, creating bio-diesel for fuel, or the ability to go stalk game to put on the supper table. I can shoot a gun, skin a squirrel, and fish. That is the extent of my quantifiable skill set. However, as a non-survivalist survivalist, I feel like I have many intangibles as far as ability to learn and am on the upside. I’ve learned over the past year how to operate a tractor, how to administer medicine intravenously to livestock, and how to change a radiator out on a car. Can I do any of these things now without assistance? Yes, but not very good. If you had your own survival group, I am not a first round draft pick. I’m probably not even a second through fifth round pick. Many other people interested in being a survivalist fall into this category. Did you know that Tom Brady was drafted in the 6th round? I feel like I am, and that many others, can be the Tom Brady of after the SHTF. I feel as though many people have qualities that are not necessarily quantified to survive individually and to help larger groups of people in an impeding disaster. However, some people have the ability to learn quickly, problem solve, negotiate, and are able to “keep peace” amongst others.

These non-quantifiable skills will be invaluable if a SHTF scenario takes place. For example, who wouldn’t want to have a quick-learner at their disposal? (I fall mostly into this category.) A person with the ability to learn a variety of useful skills in a short period of time would probably earn their keep. This person may not be able to perform as well as the expert, but within a few hours or days a person with this ability will find themselves invaluable to a group. Wouldn’t it be better for a group of survivors to have a person that is a functional replacement, as far as the ability to do a task for another person, after only minimal time investment by the expert of the group? What are the consequences of a group whose only trained medic, food preparer, or hunter dies or becomes injured? With a person that can easily be trained or taught to do these things, their loss would not seem as significant or devastating to the group.

How about a problem-solver? Individuals who are able to think outside the box will be worth their weight in gold during these rough times. People who can create machines or modify equipment and who have the ability to problem solve should not be taken lightly for hard-core survivalist. I am reminded of that scene in Apollo 13 where a group of scientist have to create an oxygen scrubber with only a limited supply of materials. A group of problem-solvers created a machine with limited materials and delivered very specific directions on how to create the machine to astronauts thousands of miles away via radio transmission. Sound like a problem that may arise between coordinating survival groups without easy access to each other? Doing a lot with few supplies will be a useful skill when new materials aren’t readily available or even being produced.

Ahh, let’s talk about the ability to negotiate. I sound like Donald Trump now; however, bartering will be one of the only few ways to acquire new items “morally” (without stealing or killing other people). I am talking about someone that will not rip people off during negotiation but will take advantage of people’s needs and wants in a society where not all items are readily available. This person would have the ability to make deals that would be mutually beneficial to both sides but just a little bit more beneficial to your group or party. Having a person that is a successful negotiator would give your group confidence in dealing with other groups, and it would give you the confidence that you will always have a leg-up when bartering. Could Steve from the used car lot be an valuable person, even though he doesn’t have much survival knowledge? Yes, if he has that intangible skill of always coming out on the good end of a deal. What about Martin from the Co-op? Definitely. His knowledge of products is good, and he’s probably pretty successful in the business area.

Lastly, a person that is able to moderate arguments within a group or outside of a group with success and empathy will be priceless. People who have this skill to moderate arguments without becoming involved in them themselves are a rare breed. In dealing with disputes during a time where law and order are probably non-existent or exist on a limited basis, a person that has a calming influence on people and that can diffuse a situation almost immediately, improve a groups quality of life and even save lives during tense negotiations or meetings. What would happen if hot-tempered Joe Survival met a few guys passing through their territory that were also hot-tempered? This situation could lead to multiple deaths or a feud between two groups of survivalists whose best interest would be to work together. This interaction might be a positive one if you have the right person meeting the other group. What if you have a split in your group about duties or the division of food within the group? A person who can see both sides of the argument and is trusted by the individuals of the group to make good decisions could probably solve both of these situations with little conflict and to a satisfactory resolution.

These unquantifiable traits are typically seen in survival movies accompanied by individuals who also have skill sets that are useful in a survival situation. When given a choice between the two, who would you like on your survival squad—Shane Walsh from ”The Walking Dead or Viggo Mortensen’s character from “The Road”? Many people automatically would declare Shane. Shane had many traits that would be useful in a survival situation—able to teach gun safety, makes tough decisions, loves his “family” dearly; but, he is a sociopath, almost kills his best friend, and is an overall bad person. In the movie “The Road”, Viggo Mortensen seems to have a few skills, but mostly he has survived by scavenging materials that he has found and wills himself to live because of his son. In my opinion, Viggo is the better survival mate even with additionally taking in his young son because of his intangibles. He has somehow provided for his son in a world of nothing, and his son still has a somewhat positive outlook about the future. Could Viggo have started eating people and robbing people to provide for his son? Yes, he very easily could have. Did he? No. Did it cross his mind? As a father, it most definitely did. He displayed traits that cannot be taught or learned, because they’re unquantifiable.

Many different personalities and people with unquantified social abilities will be invaluable during times of crisis. Now don’t get me wrong; a number of these individuals (probably me included) will die within the first few months because of their lack of preparedness. However, the people who have these traits and have survived for over a year in a hostile environment probably have proven their worth more than once. Plus, after a year of surviving on their own, they probably have acquired one or two useful skills on top of their intangible traits. These are people who have learned to survive and have used their intangible skills to maintain some sort of life after the SHTF.

Many survivalists focus on measurable items. How much food do I have stocked? How many bullets do I have? How much gas do I have? The non-survivalist survivalist asks different questions. How can help the group? How can I solve the food shortage problem? How can we be more efficient? What can I learn today? They know they are not as prepared as Joe Survival down in the hollow with 10 years worth of food stored. So, they will focus on how they can make themselves useful to people they are around. Is it worth Joe Survival to take in Nick No-supplies if Nick has some of these intangible qualities? If Joe Survival has never negotiated a contract, if he has a bad temper and is not a “people person”, if he is overwhelmed with all of his responsibilities, then it might just be worth it to take in another mouth to feed. I have always heard, “Never judge a book by its cover”. When the SHTF, just because an individual may be more prepared than you or me, it doesn’t mean that they will not have a use for individuals with great social skills and leadership qualities.

Letter Re: Safe Deposit Boxes

My mother was visiting me when she saw the post man deliver a certified mail gold coin delivery. She immediately said, “You should get a safe deposit box.” I tried to explain several things to her: 1) The Patriot Act from almost 14 or 15 years ago gives the federal government the legal right to open any safe deposit box and seize the contents, 2) FDR explained the rationale behind his 1933 bank holiday in the first fireside chat where the government seized precious metals, so “yes” it has happened here before, and 3) (here’s where my argument gets iffy.) Our impending financial collapse is a mathematical certainty. Once you raise interest rates on trillions of dollars of debt, the government will collapse on itself and the banks will bail themselves in, effectively helping themselves to your money. However, I can’t find the specific legislation that has been passed about that, if there’s any.

All she keeps saying is “It can’t happen here”, but she says it in a way like she can’t even entertain the idea.

HJL’s Comment: What your mother is expressing is called the “normalcy bias”. It’s basically a mental state people enter when facing disaster and the assumption is made that since the disaster has not happened before it won’t happen now, despite what the factual indicators are. You might call it “willful optimism”. One of the most egregious cases of this was in Nazi Germany, when the Jews (and others) were persecuted heavily. Because the gas chamber scenario was so horrifying, many believed that it could not happen to them; yet, it did. They held on to this belief all the way to the gas chamber itself.

In the case of banking issues, it has happened before here. People just tend to ignore that fact. If your mother will entertain reading this level of detail, here’s a good article entitled “Dodd-Frank Kills: How the U.S. Joined the International Bail-in Regime”. It might help her realize that it not only can happen here, it has been set up to happen here.

Economics and Investing:

Greece Is Not India? Hellenic Banks Plan “Tax On Cash Withdrawals” To Combat Black Economy – DSV

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Peak Silver & Continued Supply Deficits Warn Of Future Higher Prices

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Venezuela Braces for Runaway Inflation As Merchants Weigh “Mountains of Cash” Instead Of Counting It – G.P.

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Why It’s Important to Define Money Correctly

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SurvivalBlog and its editors are not paid investment counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos page for details.

JWR’s Recommendations of the Week:

Books:

Rodale’s Basic Organic Gardening: A Beginner’s Guide to Starting a Healthy Garden

Gunsmithing the AR-15, The Bench Manual, by Patrick Sweeney

Movies:

God’s Not Dead

Mary Poppins: 50th Anniversary Edition

Television:

Mossad 101 (In Hebrew, with English subtitles. Caution: Has some coarse language and immoral situations.) Available on Netflix.

Person of Interest (Aired for five seasons.) Available on Netflix and also on DVD, from Amazon.com.

Instructional Videos:

Living Off the Grid is Harder Than You Think

How To Butcher A Whole Loin Of Venison (Scott Rea)

Magazines:

Backwoods Home

Concealed Carry

Blogs:

The Survival Mom

Survival Cache

Podcasts:

The Courageous Life (a former Marine and his wife describe their back-to-the-land life in north Idaho.)

The Art of Manliness

Odds ‘n Sods:

California the New Redoubt of Secessionism?

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Dreams do come true… ENTIRE ROLL OF SILVER!!! | COIN ROLL HUNTING DREAM. (Skip forward to the 8-minute mark, if you don’t have time to watch the whole 18-minute video.)

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WorldNetDaily reports: What do they know? Mega-rich preparing for disaster

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How are teachers, school districts, and even the public at large supposed to deal with this? 85 languages spoken in Buffalo schools as ‘New Americans’ enter classrooms – Pat Cascio

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Home invasion and lessons learned. Grab a cup of coffee and read the first three postings. – P.S.

Notes for Tuesday – November 29, 2016

Today is the birthday of Clive Staples (“C.S.”) Lewis, who was born in 1898 and died 22 November 1963.

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The recent news about the death of former dictator Fidel Castro came as no surprise, since he had been in failing health for several years and his public appearances had become few and far between. Whenever I hear of the death of a totalitarian dictator, it always seems more fitting when they die at the hands of those that they’ve oppressed—as did Benito Mussolini, Nicolae Ceau?escu, and Muammar Gaddafi. Rightfully, brutal dictators should never die peacefully of geriatric diseases. They deserve only tall trees and short ropes! – JWR

Do-It-Yourself Ceramic Water Filter, by The Architect

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Years ago, while visiting the South American country of Peru, I was stunned to find that every drop of drinking water had to first be boiled, before it was considered safe to drink. In a country of 22 million people, I thought this an incredible waste of money and natural resources. There had to be a better way. On my return, I set out to design a cheap ceramic filter that could be easily constructed using simple components readily obtained from any hardware or box store.

(As a side note, on one of my trips to Peru, I was a bit careless. Suffice it to say that Montezuma has nothing on the Inca revenge.)

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Components

Components required to make the ceramic filter include the following:

  • 1 piece of 8” long 2” schedule 40 PVC pipe
  • 2” dia. Doulton ceramic filter candle (or similar)
  • 2” PVC rounded end cap
  • 2” dia. female connector – threaded
  • 2” PVC end cap – threaded
  • 3’ ¼” I.D. plastic icemaker tubing
  • ¼” I.D. Hose Bib connector
  • 3/8” icemaker line connector
  • 2” I.D. x 1/8” thick rubber “O” ring
  • 5/8” I.D. spacers or washers

Tools

Tools and other items that will be required include the following:

  • 3/8” power or cordless drill
  • Drill bit set and additional ½” drill bit
  • Crescent wrench
  • Round bastard file
  • PVC glue and thread tape
  • Medium grit sandpaper
  • Rubber mallet (optional)

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The Filter Candle

The Doulton or British Berkefeld ceramic water filter has been in use around the world since 1827. It has been proven reliable in over 150 countries to remove up to 99.99 percent of common bio-pathogens. It can also be a bit expensive, costing about $250. I was lucky enough to find an entire case of old, delaminated filters on Ebay for $5 each, but a new filter can be purchased for about $25.

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Construction

Before you begin, center drill a ½” hole in the threaded end cap. (This hole will have to be widened with a file to fit the filter post.) Also drill a 3/8” hole in the rounded end cap. Attach the Hose Bib and 3/8” connectors to the icemaker line (Photo 1).

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  1. With the sandpaper, roughen any PVC surface that will receive glue (interior of end caps, and both exterior ends of 2” PVC pipe). Apply glue and immediately attach end cap. Seat securely. (You may use a rubber mallet, if one is available.) Glue and attach the remaining end cap. Let stand for 30 minutes to cure.
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  2. Slip rubber “O” ring around the filter barrel and work it upwards as far as it will go. (Note: Do not forget the “O” ring, as it is a crucial part of the assembly.)
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  3. Slide the filter candle (with “O” ring in place) into the finished PVC pipe assembly. Position spacers and/or washers onto the filter post, which should equal about 3/8” or more. Attach threaded end cap to PVC filter assembly. The end cap must be tight enough to apply sufficient pressure on the “O” ring to prevent infiltration of contaminated water. (To test the seal, shake the completed filter from side to side; if you hear the ceramic filter moving, you will need to add a washer or tighten the cap further.)
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  4. Apply thread tape to 3/8 connector, and then insert and secure it to the rounded end cap. (In the event that the filter seems to be blocked, you may need to back the 3/8” connector out a bit.)

Filter Use And Care

In my case, the carbon layer inside the filter had begun to delaminate, so this design reverses the intended flow direction of the filter candle. Upon first use, I needed to run water through the filter to flush out the powdered carbon that was inside. The filter will serve nicely without the carbon pre-filter and will be effective at filtering out pathogens without it. Mine is not the only design that will work. There are multiple ways to do this. Be creative, and use a little common sense. After use, it is best to let the filter drain to remove as much water as possible.

(Important note: In the event that you need to filter pond or contaminated water, you must pre-filter the water with cloth or coffee filters to remove sediment, et cetera. Failure to do so will result in the filter becoming clogged and requiring that it be disassembled for cleaning.)

Conclusion

Some readers may rightly question the tested effectiveness of this filter. To those, I am happy to report that I did send a few of these filters down to friends in Peru, where they were used for many years, and they never had to boil their water ever again.

And finally, as we all know, the bottled water industry is a scam. Bottled water is merely municipal tap water that has been carbon filtered to improve the taste, or at best, run through a reverse osmosis system. Stop buying bottled water, and this filter will pay for itself in a matter of months, not to mention all the plastic bottles that you will no longer have to recycle or throw away.

Letter Re: What is Your (HJL and JWR) Take on the Dakota Access Issue?

I’m having difficulty understanding the Dakota Access issue. What is your take on the situation? The reporting that I’ve seen has been scarce and one-sided.

I thought I read that the initial proposed route was outside of sacred land, but the proposal was rejected. This prompted the police to intervene.

Recently I saw the new route would go right through a large watershed area. Understandably the Indigenous People are concerned.

Is this truly police overstepping their bounds and once again violating trust with Indigenous Peoples yet again?

I’ve been in and out of the hospital recently, so if you covered this already, I’m sorry to ask again. – Eric X.

HJL’s Comment: As usual, there is more than meets the eye, especially when the mainstream media is involved. In addition to the media promoting the violence that is taking place, I am hearing concerns that the Indian groups involved are basically trying to renegotiate the agreements for much higher payments. At this point, it is difficult to know the real truth, but doubting what you hear is always a good policy when it’s coming from the media.

News From The American Redoubt:

American Redoubt: Preparing for a societal storm (news television segment) One of the businesses mentioned in that news segment is Redoubt Surplus and Tactical, in Dalton Gardens, Idaho.

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Here is another news segment, with the same theme: Preparing for the end of times in the Northwest—American Redoubt movement inspiring survivalists to buy property in remote areas.

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And here is a follow-up interview with a back-to-the-land couple: New age homesteaders find freedom off the grid. Here is their web site: ThePreparedHomestead.org. (It includes a blog.)

Economics and Investing:

Who’s behind the war on cash? – DSV

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November FOMC Minutes And Gold Price

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Suckered Again: How Likely Is A OPEC Production Cut? The upcoming OPEC oil production meeting is once again moving markets, but investors would do well to remember the cartel’s history.

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Wells Fargo Hit With Class Action Over Target-Date Funds

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SurvivalBlog and its editors are not paid investment counselors or advisers. Please see our Provisos page for details.

Notes for Monday – November 28, 2016

On November 28th, 1520, Magellan finally reached the Pacific Ocean after navigating the dangerous straits on the southern tip of South America that now bear his name. He became the first European explorer to reach the Pacific from the Atlantic.

Zero Tolerance 0804CF, by Pat Cascio

A famous gun writer once said “only accurate guns are interesting…”, and I certain concur with that statement. If a gun isn’t accurate and reliable, I lose interest and get rid of it. It can similarly be said that “only sharp knives are interesting…”. I have no use for junk knives. If a knife isn’t up to my high standards, I won’t waste my time testing or writing about it.

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For quite a few years, I collected (and designed) custom-made knives, and I really enjoyed it. Even though it was an expensive hobby, it was still fun. When we moved from Colorado back to Oregon, I sold off all my custom knives, even the ones I designed, to make ends meet for the long move. I certainly regret selling the knives I designed and had made. However, these days I’m still designing some knives, so my hidden talent, if you can call it that, is still active to a small degree.

I used to believe that, only custom, hand-made knives were worth owning, and perhaps twenty years ago that might have been true to a certain extent. However, today’s modern knife factories are turning out custom-quality knives in the factories at prices that are a bargain for what you are getting. Enter Zero Tolerance knives. They are producing custom-quality, hard-use folding and fixed blade knives that anyone would be proud to own. Also, on the boxes their knives come in, it says on the side “Proudly Overbuilt In The USA”. They’re actually built right here in my home state of Oregon, I might add. Zero Tolerance knives are made by Kershaw knives right in the same plant. However, as stated, the ZT line-up are all produced for hard-use, and many of their customers are military and law enforcement– those who use knives on a daily basis and demand the best.

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The folder under review today is the Model 0804CF, which was designed by Todd Rexford, who is one of the hottest custom knife makers around these days. His knives are always in demand. The 0804CF is based on his Gamma folder, and it is a simple design with nothing complicated or “fancy” about it, and I like simple. Simple works for me. Yeah, I still like fancy designs on knives for collecting, but for use give me a simple design made with quality materials backed by a lifetime warranty, too.

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The 0804CF has a 3.9-inch blade made out of CTS-204P steel with a tungsten DLC coating to help protect the blade from the elements. CTS-204P is a powdered metallurgy steel. For the life of me I can’t understand how you can take a powder and compress it into a knife blade, but it is being done, and it works. The blade is opened, using a flipper, and it is on KVT ball-bearings for the opening system. It is smooth, very smooth opening and very fast. It doesn’t take a lot of effort to open the blade, just some pressure on the flipper and the blade opens. It is also securely locked in the handle as well. The backspacer is made out of aluminum, which also helps keep the weight down a little bit.

This is a frame-lock blade, and the one side is manufactured out of super-tough titanium, while the opposite side is very cool-looking and tough carbon fiber. There is also a reversible pocket/clothing clip on the handle for right or left hand carry in your pants pocket, and the knife sits low in the pocket. The clip itself is slim but might be one of the thickest clips I’ve ever encountered. There is a lanyard hold on the butt of the blade, and the blade sits in the pocket, tip-up. Closed length of the knife is 4.9 inches, and opened it is 8.9 inches. For a large folder, it only weighs 5.1 oz; the carbon fiber on the handle helps keep the weight down.

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Okay, I’m gonna admit something here; when I first took the 0804CF out of the box, it just didn’t rattle my bones. It was kind of like “ho-hum” to my way of thinking. Then again, as I stated, I like simple in a knife designed for everyday carry and use. However, in very short order, the 0804CF really grew on me. It feels great in the hand, just fantastic. For a large folder, it could also be considered a Gent’s folder. It is that nice. The carbon fiber really sets off the look on this big knife. It’s very eye-catching. Needless to say, the blade came out of the box, scary sharp! I’ve toured the Kershaw plant a couple of times in the past, and it just amazes me how fast those technicians sharpen knives, and they use newspaper to test for sharpness. The knives easily slice through the newspaper.

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I’ve been carrying the 0804CF for well over a month now and using it for all manner of chores on my small homestead. One of the toughest things to cut are blackberry vines, and it takes a very sharp knife to cut through a blackberry vine with a single swipe. Also, the shorter the blade the harder it is to cut. Many fixed blade knives have a tough time cutting through these vines. The 0804CF easily severed the vines with a single swipe; it was not a problem at all. My wife does tend to get a bit miffed at me when I “trim” her rose bushes in front of our living room window with a knife, but it needs to be done and what better way to do it than with a knife I have for testing, right?

Almost daily, I receive boxes from FedEx, UPS, or USPS, and I use whatever knife I happen to be carrying in my pocket to open the boxes. Cardboard is pretty tough stuff and will dull a knife in short order, believe it or not. The knife was also used in the kitchen for cutting meat and veggies, and even though this is a folding knife, meant for other chores, it worked great around the kitchen. I also stabbed the knife into stacked cardboard, and it easily went all the way to the handle. It was nice!

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I always show new knives I get for testing to the guys at the local gun shop I haunt, and they had nothing but praise for this folder, and more than one of ‘em just stuck the knife in their pants pocket, like I didn’t see that? To be sure, when there are some other regular customers in the shop that I know, I also let them handle a knife I’m carrying. Everyone loved the 0804CF as well.

Many folding knives are just too fragile, in my humble opinion, to be used for self defense or for actually military combat. They’re not knives you can trust to save your bacon, if it comes down to hand-to-hand combat and all you have is a folding knife. However, the 0804CF is one tough folder, and it wouldn’t surprise me in the least if this design isn’t already in the hands of some of our Special Forces troops– guys who operate behind enemy lines all of the time (that is, if there is such a thing as “enemy lines” these days).

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As I always say, quality never comes cheap, and if you buy junk, you buy it over and over again because it doesn’t stand up to your everyday needs. However, when you spend your hard-earned money on quality products, you can expect the best for your money. The 0804CF doesn’t come cheap with full-retail at $350. Yeah, that’s a lot of money. However, if you check around at what hand-made Rexford Gamma folders are selling for (if you can even find one), you’ll certainly appreciate what ZT has done with the design. It is a lot of knife for the money.

Kershaw/Emerson CQC-9K Folder…

As an aside, many of us can’t afford to spend a lot of money on a knife, and I can certainly stand in that crowd. In the past, I’ve tested some of the Kershaw knives, Ernest Emerson designs, and I don’t want to rehash that here. They are a lot of knife for very little money. If you check the Emerson Knives website, you will more often than not find that they are out-of-stock on many models; they are always in demand. So, Emerson and Kershaw agreed to a collaboration, and Emerson is designing folders for Kershaw. The latest is the CQC-9K, and this is one of the bigger Emerson designs that Kershaw is producing.

The CQC-9K has a 3.6-inch blade made out of 8Cr13MoV– stainless steel, and it is made in China. Don’t let that scare you away. The knives I’ve seen from China that Kershaw is having made over there are outstanding in quality. This blade has a recurve quality to it, and it makes cutting rope and similar things easier. It really grabs and digs into material when cutting. The handle is black coated steel on one side and G-10 on the front side, and G-10 is some tough stuff.

The best thing about the CQC-9K is that it has not only a thumb stud for easy opening, it also has the Emerson patented “Wave” that allows you to draw the knife from your pocket, and its blade will be fully opened once the knife clears your pocket, if you want it that way.

Check out the CQC-9K. It is a lot of knife for $69.99, and if you shop around you can find it deeply discounted in some of the big box stores or on the Internet. You are getting an Emerson-designed folder that is very well made for very little money. I think you’ll like it, a lot!