Shortly before the Boomershoot I found myself in need of a new daily wear knife and with a few bucks still left over from buying supplies for the gathering.
I had put my eye on this Benchmade Rant DPT designed by Mel Pardue a couple months earlier and decided that now was as good a time as any to place my order.
I had hoped that it would arrive before the event so as to give me a good test bed for it and I was pleasantly surprised to receive it on the Monday before I took off for Idaho.
I always have my Gerber Pocket Tool on my hip, and that has a blade in it, but I seriously doubt its use beyond cutting cord or twine. Even then it would still take two hands to get the blade out safely and that means letting go of whatever I am cutting.
I am also not a big fan of clip knives, although I do own my fair share of them. My main gripes with them are that I don’t trust the blade locking mechanisms, no matter who made or designed them, that they are always in need of sharpening, again no matter who made or designed them and also that I have a tendency to misplace them since they are, by design, compact. That is why I own a number of them, so that I can usually find one lying about.
I also doubt their effectiveness in a conflict. Sure, they’re sharp on one side and pointy on the end, but even the old school Spyderco I have owned for years is questionable in its usefulness in a fight, in my mind. Basically, I see them as very work-a-day/utilitarian, but that is about it.
And that is where the Rant DPT comes in. After putting this new blade through its paces over the long weekend I am having a hard time finding something it cannot do. It is weighty but not heavy, the grip interface is excellent in both its size and sturdiness and holds its weight in the handle and not the blade so as to make it quick and agile.
It cut everything I asked it to without so much as a click and kept its edge. When I was up on the hillside helping band boomers to the stakes I found a couple of the stakes that were not facing towards the firing line. I pulled them out and pounded them back into the ground facing the proper way using the hilt butt. This activity didn’t even leave a mark.
About the only complaint I have with the item isn’t even with the knife, but with the sheath. If you grab and pull the handle at an angle the sheath doesn’t approve of, it will not release. Also, the snap closure will need some serious working in. But that can be taken care of rather easily and can almost be expected in a brand new knife.
And that is my review of this very excellent edged tool. You’d be smart to go here and buy one for yourself today.