What may seem to be an odd place for a knife company, Spyderco of Golden, CO, had a booth at the SIA show this year featuring most of their models. One knife in particular caught our eyes, not for any other reason than how it might help you or I our of a backcountry ‘situation’. On the surface, the Assist looks to be just a regular, single bladed knife, but it has so much more to offer.
The Assist overall has one job function, to get you out of a situation that might require more than a normal knife. Though this knife was designed for emergency and rescue professionals, it has features that backcountry skiers, snowshoers, hikers and mountain bikers will appreciate.
First and foremost if is an excellent knife, as demonstrated by the cut on my finger that occurred when I was examining this knife at the show. Beyond that it has these features:
- VG-10 blunt-tipped blade is a toothy eighty-percent SpyderEdged to allow the aggressive cutting of fibrous material like nylon straps (VG-10 is just one of over 35 different blade steels that Spyderco manufactures over their entire line)
– The last inch of the tip is left as a PlainEdge for detailed cutting
– At the tip of the blade, the hook is designed to allow the blade to “lift-and-pry” the blade underneath a strap that may be held tightly to the body that needs to be cut
– Perched above the Round Hole, a Cobra Hood positions the thumb (even while wearing gloves) directly over the hole for quick blade deployment, then doubles as a leveraging platform for the thumb
– The wavy pattern cut in the top edge of the blade (created by a fireman from Sweden) and along the inside of the handle let you place a piece of rope (between the half-open blade and handle) and scissor the blade shut
– The Fiberglass Reinforced Nylon) FRN handle is molded with Bi-Directional textured contours and bulges that ergonomically wrap around your palm
– Outlined in safety orange on the handle’s spine is a shrill and attention-pitched survival whistle
– Carries left/right handed, tip-up by means of a tension wire clip
– In the closed position, squeeze the blade deeper into the handle and a retractable carbide tip protrudes out from the base for breaking glass
The Assist knife seems to be very well manufactured. The blade flips open easily and feels firmly affixed to the FRN handle – closing the blade is just as easy. Spyderco knives are produced in multiple international factories and the Assist is made in a Japanese facility. The Assist Black and Assist Orange (C79 BK/OR) have a suggested retail price of $134.95, while the Assist Black Blade (C79 BBK) has a $149.95 price tag. Other than the differences in blade finishes, all of the Assist knives have the same specifications. The overall length while open is 8.38-inches with a 3.69-inch blade and the entire knife is just 4.88-inches in length while closed. They are fairly lightweight at 4-ounces or about one-quarter of a pound.
The hope is that a knife like this will never be needed during a backcountry adventure, but if a situation ever arises, having the Spyderco Assist in your pack may be the difference between walking out and being carried out.