Spartan Blades Harsey Fighter Fixed Blade Knife, Black Polymer, 6.1" Black

Impressive design. Good balance of weight, steel (1095), shape, grip, sheath. Feels natural in the hand, not heavy, but solid, substantial and balanced. The blades shape may seem a little narrow at first glace but it is solid and allows more rapid response and movement. Think a Kabar scalpel with heft. The grip is a compsite, injection molded and contoured that allows qick transition between grips and the jimping molded into the grip gives added security and does not impede a reverse grip. Would like to see a micarta option for the grip. The thumb lock is secure and quickly releasable should the need arise. Arrived sharp, you can feather a branch to start a back country fire right out of the box. The price was good and delivery was quick.

Everything they promised it would be. No sheath rattle and the thumb release is perfect. Razor sharp out of the box. I’ve always used ESEE but the ergos on the Spartan is far superior. Highly recommend.

It is well-made and affordable. The sheath is better than most and has a quick release lever/button. Easy out and easy back in the sheath. Definitely a well thought out design.

super sharp well balanced exceeded my expectations .

Love the knife, but two things combined means I had to take a star off. 1 - sheath is great if you carry traditionally on the belt. but any other carry option may put the other wise awesome locking sheath in a position that the lock can't be deactived if you need it in a hurry. 2- was dull as butter knife. fortunately the factory is going to take care of the edge and cover shipping costs both ways. Impossible to beat that service.

Blade material seems to be accurate and coating and sharpening grinds are even. I'm not comfortable with the handle material as it feels like a hard slippery plastic vs something like a G10 or rubberized grip thus would not be suitable for use without gloves IMHO. Just not quite as good as some other lower end models from Spartan.

I love this knife! Made very well and extremely sharp! You won't be disappointed.

My biggest problem is with the bottom of the handle. If your hand (or at least my hand, but I feel that anyone is susceptible) happens to slip, the handle is shaped such that the knife will fly away from you. And because it is curved, the knife is likely to go at 90 degrees (or more) from the direction you were applying the force. (Because the curve hooks the knife just enough for it to change the direction, but not enough for you to stop it.) While most curved handle knives are susceptible to this problem, to a small extent, I feel this handle in particular is worse than an average curved handle. It is not a problem if you are holding the knife tight, but if you happen to hold it in a loose grip, for example when chopping wood, or practicing knife combat drills, (After all, the word "fighter" is in this knife's name!) it can get very dangerous, in my opinion. Additionally, I believe this handle makes it much easier for an attacker to disarm you, if you are using the knife for self defense. Also, this shape makes it virtually impossible to hold the knife in a reverse grip - the edge towards you, because you will end up pointing the tip at yourself, rather than away from you. Lastly, the sheath release button is impossible to press unless you draw the knife strictly in a conventional grip. If your thumb can not reach the button as you are pulling on the knife, you will not be able to extract the knife. So you can not count on it in an emergency, when you do not have the luxury to get a hold of it using your ideal grip. To be fair, this knife does have a few pros: This grip does have two advantages: 1. It is comfortable when you are holding the knife tight. But that limits the knife's usability both in utility and combat roles. 2. If you really know what you are doing, in its combat role, this curve will make it easier to index the blade in the direction you want the edge to point, and it will provide extra leverage when needed. However, it is an advanced technique, and I feel that the curve is more of a liability than the asset for most people, including professionals - the military and police. I do love the blade geometry. I feel it’s a perfect compromise between the strength and function while being an excellent dual purpose utility/last ditch defense blade. Advantages over Ka-Bar/USN Mark II are as follows: 1. Pointier tip. 2. Thicker blade. 3. Sturdier tang/handle. (I don’t necessarily think that a full tang is always better. However, the Ka-Bar tang is so thin, that I can feel the flex in the handle - main reason I started looking for an alternative to the ka bar.) Fit and finish is immaculate, making it enjoyable to hold in your hands and look at it - as a part of a collection. I wish I could talk to Mr. Harsey - the designer of the knife, to find out the reasoning for such a design, but in the absence of his input, I have to give it two stars.