VTAC Assault. Close to perfect.

**Doublefeed** · 04-04-2011, 20:46

http://www.vikingtactics.com/prod_assault_knife.html

At 3 1/2 inches its not a large blade, but pretty much just the right size for the field. At first glance it might appear to be more form than function with it's curves, but every aspect of this knife has purpose. At even closer inspection you can see milling marks in places which are testament to the emphasis on function instead of looks. It was designed specifically for VTAC by Mike Vellekamp- a Brit, I think, who does a lot of work for FOX Knives, among others and who I'm told is a heavy hitter in the blade world.

Other than the grip panels the entire knife is one solid piece of tungsten coated, vanadium steel. It's thicker and beefier than average and the blade tapers off dramatically at the tip, but it still retains sleekness for stabbing. I had to disabled a couple vehicles with mine once and it went through tire walls like they were paper. It comes very sharp and holds an edge really, really well. There is a thumb-groove at the rear of the blade on the top which is ridged for traction when applying downward pressure for slicing. Similarly, there is another at the pommel for locking down your thumb when holding reverse grip. The coating is extremely durable. This is one tough knife. The couple inches of aggressive serration is always useful.

The grip is bead-textured for the most part. It's very ergonomic and feels right at home when gripped. There is a separate groove for the index finger that comes in real handy for purchase when you need to whip it out quick and locks it into your hand even when they're wet, muddy or greasy. I'm not sure exactly what their made of, but the grips themselves appear to some sort of lay-up material fashioned like Kevlar or fiberglass- its plastic-based but feels like stone. They're sandwiched onto the blade w/torques screws.

The sheath is paddle-type and reversible with 2 rigid, MOLLE-compatible fasteners. To switch it, you just remove the 4 Phillips-head screws joining the 2 MOLLE fasteners to the actual sheath, flip it, and replace the screws(I used a little thread-lock for safe measure). This comes in handy for lefties obviously. I reversed mine and keep it on the right side of my vest toward the back, so its out of the way and oriented properly for me to reach back with my right hand and grab it in a pinch.

I guess the pommel could be used for "manipulating pressure points" as advertised, but you're more likely to use it as an ad-hoc hammer or for breaking glass... or possibly giving some choad-stain a good tap on the head w/it when he really deserves it. It's hollow so you can secure a length of braided 550 to it or attach a key ring. In my opinion they should've made it bottle opener -capable.

The only other thing I would change on this blade is possibly lengthening it maybe 1/2 an inch, that's a tough call though. I'd also lose the word "ASSAULT" it has engraved on one side- its kinda gay. At $150, I think it pretty reasonable considering its quality and versatility- AND its still cheap enough to bash the hell out of it if need be and not worry about wear and tear to much.

VTAC is a real-deal outfitter near Ft Bragg in the States w/decades of SOCOM experience. Kyle Lamb, the owner is ex-SFOD-D and somewhat of a legend. I'm pretty certain they'll ship to ZA and they'll do APO's for anyone in The Box. These knives go QUICK and there is usually quite a lag before stocking back up, so if you're interested, keep checking the website. I'm trying to get a 2d one for my bug-out bag and they've been sold out for nearly a month.

http://www.vikingtactics.com/prod_assault_knife.html

Happy Hacking! Df

**Teufel Hund** · 05-04-2011, 00:36

Thanx for the review Df, the knife looks a lot like the 5.11 Tanto surge (also designed by Mike), just with a spear point instead of a tanto blade. http://www.511tactical.com/All-Produ...nto-Surge.html

**Doublefeed** · 05-04-2011, 02:14

Exact same sheath concept too.You can see the screws for reversing it on 5.11's 3d and 4th addition pic.

**Doublefeed** · 03-02-2012, 16:54

Looks like Viking has discontinued them.

**F a n i e** · 19-04-2012, 00:15

I'm almost sure I saw a very similar knife at the chinese shop a few days ago.

Now before you discard these chinese knives, and I agree they may not be as good, but I bought a folding knife called 'AK47' (talk about sounding gay) from them, a big bloody thing that can apparently be used as a bayonette for an AK. I paid R150 for it.

Last hunting trip we had to carve up four blue wild beasts and two rooibok. Guess which knive didn't go blunt !