Cutler Of Fortune

Reprinted with permission of BLADE Magazine

The media teaser for the new Soldier Of Fortune Inc. television show capsulizes a program that takes you inside the world of special military operatives. With former U.S. Navy SEAL Harry Humphries as chief technical advisor, the show prides itself on the fact that all its firearms and other gear-including the knives-are "situationally correct."

That's where the services of Ernest Emerson come in to play.

Emerson's status as one of the leading makers of tactical folders (for more on him, see his profile in the January BLADE), as well as being a top instructor in hand-to-hand combat for Humphries' Global Studies Group, Inc., made him the logical choice to teach the show's stars hand-to-hand-combat techniques and to supply most of the knives for same,

According to Emerson, he and the show's cast-including Brad Johnson (team leader Matt Shepherd); Melinda Clarke (intelligence expert Margo Vincent); and Tim Abell (sniper and weapons specialist Benny Ray Riddle), as well as producer Jerry Bruckheimer-all bit it off immediately. What's more, almost everybody involved with the show agreed that Emerson's knives had to be included in the series.

"They were all saying how cool my knives were and how they wanted one," Ernest smiled, "which was just fine with me." And well it should be in an age where the appearance of a maker's knives in just the right movie or television show can take him/her to the next level, if not several levels up. Just ask Marilyn Lile of Lile Knives, wife of the late Jimmy Life (who made the blades for the first Rambo movie and Rambo II), and Gil Hibben (who made the knives for Rambo III).

According to Ernest, Emerson pieces will appear in several episodes, with cast members saying such things as, "Do you have your Emerson?" or "I see you're in your Emerson fighting stance." In addition, he said some cast members will be shown wearing T-shirts with the Emerson logo.

Catch The wave

As for the pieces that appear on the show, they include some of Emerson's existing models, such as his production Ravens and custom-made Emerson SPECWAR knives. As the series progresses, other Emerson blades appear, such as a new, patent-pending piece Ernest is developing for the Navy SEALs that he calls "the wave shaped feature."

A big tactical folder with a G-10 handle and ATS-34 blade, the "wave shaped feature" is what Ernest calls the fastest-opening folder ever. He had the knife under lock and key at the recent California Custom Knife Show and showed it to this writer in a private screening. Without giving too much away, suffice it to say that this knife is lightning on the draw-and it's all manual! Moreover, you can pull it from your pocket with the blade closed or deployed open-it's all up to how you operate it. It will be available to military personnel and law enforcement only, at least at the beginning.

"We're developing a sheath system that will automatically deploy it because a lot of military personnel will carry it between their body armor and load-bearing vests," Ernest said. "It's a high-speed, low-drag lifestyle that (the SEALs) live, and they went absolutely bananas when they saw this knife."

As with many clever creations, the "wave shaped feature" came about by accident. Emerson designed one of the knife’s features to do one thing (we can’t tell you what that one thing is because, as noted, the design is patent pending). Not only does it do that one thing but it also resulted in the fast-opening feature, a feature he said he plans to adapt to other models in his line.

The "wave shaped feature" appears in an episode where one of the "bad guys" attacks one of the-shows stars. After the star blocks the attack-in a move taught by Emerson-the star pulls the "wave shaped feature" from his pocket and the knife is open before anybody knows what's happening. "It's like, 'How did he do that? It's a folder-did you see open it?"' Ernest grinned. "It's the impact of it all that makes it so special."

In addition to its quick-opening feature, the "wave shaped feature" boasts a reverse curve blade that Emerson said is a cutting sensation. "As popular as the chisel-ground blade is, the reverse curve cuts much better," he observed. "And the reason is the curve. If you really want to get down to basics, the reverse curve is why the Samurai sword is curved-it cuts better."

He said the large straight blade such as that of the old European swords was meant to cleave instead of cut, which made sense against the heavy armor worn in the Middle Ages. The curved blade of the Samurai sword, on the other hand, went against either light armor or no armor at all, where actual cutting was more important. "It's like anything else," he said. "History is the true barometer for what’s real and what's not. If the curved blades didn't work, they wouldn't have been used on the Samurai swords. They stood the test of time."

Of course, the reverse-curve blade curves the opposite way from the Samurai sword but it's still a curve, though it works on the different principle of gathering the material to be cut into its belly. "Once the material falls into the curve, the curve starts to cut it as the material rides down the belly so it takes less and less force to make the cut," Emerson explained.

He will debut the "wave shaped feature" under the flag his production knife company, Emerson Knives Inc., at the Shooting, Hunting, Outdoor Trade Show Jan. 27-30, 1998, a retailer-only event, at the Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas. It will be available to the military and law enforcement communities some time after that.

Other SOF Knives

Additional Emerson knives that appear on the show include several fixed blades that were in the process of being built as BLADE went to press, including a kabar-type piece and several necklace knives, "actually, the kinds of knives that are akin to what (special operatives) use in real life.

"To be honest," Ernest continued, "things like this actually do exist. If (SEALs and other such specialists) are in situations where they need to be armed, they'll have two firearms and at least two knives on them. we outfit them as they really would be outfitted. I've worked with (specialops) groups that get the same knives I've given to the TV series people."

Among those pieces are wafer-thin, razor-blade-like knives designed to be sewn into the operatives clothing. If the operative's captured, he/she can access the piece to aid in escaping. "We're making some of these knives for the TV show. There are several scene where the guys get captured and they have these pieces, little half-moon-type things that they work out from

their clothing," he said. "The knives are just spring-tempered deals and are reflective of some of the stuff (special operatives) really use."

having spent most of his adult life either working in top-secret venues-he spent 15 years on such projects for Hughes Aircraft-or catering to those who do. Emerson relishes his role as

the knifemaker to the special operations community.

"I love the knife shows and stuff but, when it comes to the bottom line, (making special operations knives) is what I really enjoy," he stressed. "This is the stuff that's really helped 'The Cause.' For me, that's an extreme honor, not only to be able to do it but to be recognized (by such specialists) as the guy to come to. It's fun. I get to see a lot of cool stuff.

"There's a big weapon center that I've been working with lately on certain things like that,

non-magnetic knives and stuff, strictly onesy-twosy pieces, and I get to play with all these items that are in the 'things-that-don't-exist-type' arena," he continued. "I'm privileged to be able to make these knives."

Emerson is a true patriot and outstanding cutler, and it would be difficult to find a more

qualified and deserving individual to represent the blade community on the tube. If for no other reason than that, here's hoping SOF Inc.'s run-and Ernest's-is long and successful.

SOF Inc. appears weekly on the UPN Network. Check your local TV listings for days and times. For more on the Knives in SOF Inc. and other Emerson blades, contact Ernest Emerson, P.O. Box 4325, Redondo Beach, CA 9027 9998 (310) 542-3050. For more on GSGI, contact it c/o POB 1006, attn: H. Humphries, Dept. BL, Huntington Beach, CA 92605 (310) 637-7166.