Ernest Emerson

Reprinted with permission of Combat Knives Magazine

Ernest R. Emerson is the premier knifemaker of the '90s. No fewer than two dozen magazine articles have featured Emerson and his knives in the past few years. Emerson's prominence is evident every time another manufacturer copies his design. I lost count of the number of poorly made imports that have an Emerson designed chisel-ground blade.

What brought Emerson to the front of the pack? Well, whereas Lile had John Rambo cutting and slashing his way through a host of bad guys on the silver screen, Ernest Emerson has elite U.S. Navy SEALS, Army Green Berets, members of Army Delta Force, British SAS and German GSG9 and a host of other SpecOps (Special Operatives) using his knives in real life.

I believe part of what sets Ernest Emerson apart from many knifemakers is the fact that he talks the talk and walks the walk. He has spent approximately 25 years training in various martial arts. He holds instructor rankings in Jeet Kune Do (Bruce Lee's style), Filipino Kali and Escrima and is currently training in the Gracie jiu-jitsu style, which places emphasis on ground grappling techniques.

Emerson prefers to let his accomplishments speak for themselves, but he'll excitedly discuss his line of custom knives. Particularly, Emerson takes great pride in his new line of Raven tactical folders-as well he should. He's once again leading the pack with the Ravens, the new Commander and his SPECWAR models, with more designs forthcoming.

The hit TV show Soldier of Fortune Inc. has featured Emerson's Ravens being used by the good guys. Not only are the good guys using Emerson's knives, they are using them correctly! This is due, in no small part, to Emerson himself. Ernest acts as technical advisor (and trainer) to the show's stars. Harry Humpries, a former Navy SEAL, is the chief technical advisor on SOF Inc. Emerson is one of Humpries' instructors.

Emerson's line of custom knives is so popular that he is currently backordered three years on some models. The demand for his line of tactical folders has forced him to open a new knife-production facility where the Raven, Commander and SPECWAR models are produced. Ernie's custom knives are still created one at a time by Emerson.

Of course, like every successful man, there's a woman behind him. Emerson got his new company up and running with the help of his wife, Mary, who serves impeccably as his business partner. She answers the phones, opens the mail, sends out brochures and is even the driving force behind many of the Emerson knife designs. Mary and Ernie are also the proud parents of two girls.

Not only is Mary Emerson a business partner, mother and wife, she is a world-class martial artist in her own right. As one of the top female practitioners of jiu-jitsu in the world, she also teaches with Ernest in his knifefighting classes. Sometimes, a woman student can more easily relate to a female instructor.

Between running a one-man custom operation, working on the new Emerson Knives Inc. production line of knives, acting as a technical advisor to SOF Inc. and teaching combat knife classes, Emerson still finds time for a three-hour martial-arts workout each day. As an armed-unarmed self-defense instructor myself, I find it difficult to fit training into my own schedule on an easy day!

Getting my hands on some of Emerson's knives for this article proved no small task. Emerson is just a bit behind on his semi-custom knives, and he had to put a lot of effort into coming up with some samples for me to review in this article.

THE RAVENS

I received a Model El-A and a Model El -B Raven and immediately knew that they would not be going back to Emerson! They have found a place in my personal and using collection.

Both Ravens came with the Black-T coating, which is very attractive and extremely durable. This coating is used on many custom handguns. Both knives also sported partially serrated blades. This is an extremely useful design on a using knife. Most of the time, a knife is used as a tool, as opposed to a weapon. The serrated portion of the blade is terrific at cutting rope, fishing line, clothing and whatever else.

The difference between the two test Ravens is the blade design. The El-A sports a traditional clip-point

blade, and the El -B touts the chisel-ground blade that Emerson is famous for. All of Emerson's knives are sharpened only on one side, as Emerson feels this offers a sharper and more durable edge. I can't say that I disagree with his thoughts, either. The El -A is beveled on both sides of the blade, whereas the El -B is left flat on one side, much like a wood chisel.

In my "Tactical Combat Folders" feature in this issue, I gave the rundown on the specs of the Raven line, so there's no need to repeat myself here. I would, however, like to make mention of the Kydron handles on the Raven line, because they are the best-feeling handles I have ever felt on a folding knife.

The Kydron tends to "grip" you back, if you know what I mean. It's hard to put into words, but it's easily understood once you pick up a Raven. I purposely poured cooking oil over my hand, took a firm fencing-style grip on one of the Ravens and proceeded to slash and stab a seven-pound pot roast (so much for dinner). The Raven never once hinted of slipping out of my hand. That's gripping power! I predict other makers will start using Kydron for their knife handles.

Both the El-A and the El-B performed equally well on the pot roast. Both knives easily penetrated the roast up to the handle in the stabbing test. Both knives also slashed a wound in the roast about three inches deep, from one side of the roast to the other. This was using minimal effort on my part, too. I would have hated to have been a real piece of human meat on the receiving end of the Ravens.

My 18-year-old daughter has already laid claim to the El -A for a magazine article-yes, she also writes. She was informed that she has to purchase her own Raven from Emerson, 'cause the one she was using is mine!

The four-ounce Ravens sell for $179 each, plus $10 shipping and handling. This is an extremely good price for a near-custom-made tactical folding knife.

The SPECWAR knives Emerson sent me are essentially a higher-class version of the Ravens. The same two-blade designs are available, as is a satin or Black-T finish Oust like the Ravens). The difference is in the handles. The SPECWAR models have G-10 handle scales, which add a bit to their weight: 4.64 ounces for the E2-A (clip-point model) and 4.71 ounces for the E2-B (chisel-ground) model.

Like the Ravens, the SPECWAR models sport 3 ½ -inch blades, with a 1/8-inch blade thickness. ATS-34 steel is used for the blades, with a Rockwell of 57 to 59. The overall length of the open knife is 8.625 inches, and the handle length is five inches. Titanium completes the locking liners.

It's interesting that neither my wife nor my oldest daughter liked the feel of the SPECWAR series; they both preferred the Raven line. Both commented on how they like the lighter Raven and the better-feeling handle scales. Interesting, to say the least.

Both SPECWAR models also feature a partially serrated blade and a lanyard hole at the butt of the handles-just like the Ravens. The models Ernest sent me are satin-finished, but Black-T is an option.

The SPECWAR models cost $189 with the satin finish and $199 with the Black-T finish. Add another $10 for shipping and handling.

Emerson made a mistake with the Commander in that he will not be able to keep up with orders for it! Like all of Emerson's knives, the Commander is purpose-driven, and Emerson is producing a version of the Commander under contract for the Navy SEALS.

The Commander is the Model E3A, with a blade length of 3¾, inches and an overall opened length of 8¾ inches. The total weight is 5.53 ounces.

The blade does have a different shape to it: It is curved and, again, sharpened only on one side. This is a stout using knife, and I don't think it will let you down under any conditions.

The unique "wave shaped " device on the Commander makes it the fastest-opening manual knife in the world! The knife can be deployed from your front pocket in the open or closed position.

Cost on the Commander is $199 with the satin finish and $209 with the Black-T finish. Add another 10 bucks for shipping and handling-and get your order in now!

Overall, all of Emerson's knives performed extremely well. The Commander slashed deeper into the pot roast than the Ravens or the SPECWAR models. It took very little effort on my part to slice a huge gash into the pot roast. If you want a heavy-duty slashing knife, the Commander is the one!

The stabbing test in the pot roast proved no challenge. The Ravens and the SPECWARs penetrated all the way up to the handle-with ease. The Commander also penetrated all the way up to the handle, but it took a bit more effort.

Cutting paracord was a breeze with the serrated portion of the blades as well as the unserrated blade. I even tried some poly rope as part of my cutting tests. Anyone who has tried to cut the slick surface of poly rope knows how difficult it can be. Oftentimes, even the sharpest knife blade will slip off the slick surface. Emerson's blades all preformed well with the plain edge as well as the serrations. I was impressed!

Cotton rope, hemp rope and whittling on wood all proved that they were no challenge for the Emersons. Despite all my cutting, none of the blades required sharpening afterward.

I didn't subject any of the knives to any sort of prying test; knives are not made for that. If you're using a knife to pry something loose, you're using the wrong tool!

I was also sent three other knives that I haven't yet mentioned: the Tiger Claw, a SPECWAR model with a tanto blade made out of titanium and a "training" folder. None of the knives are advertised in the Emerson catalog.

The "training" knife (with a desert tan handle) is something really new and exciting. I'm not aware of any other knife company producing an actual working training folding knife. There's a ton of rubber and wooden training knives on the market, but this is the first time I've seen something so useful in training for real-life knife-fighting techniques. The knife has a blunt tip and no edge, so you can't get cut. Ernie uses these knives in his knife-fighting classes. As of yet, he has not decided whether he will offer this model for sale to the general public.

The Tiger Claw is a really wicked blade, and Emerson has thus far offered it only to SpecOps personnel for good reason. This blade shape is designed for one thing and one thing only! If you can't figure it out, you don't need one. The Tiger Claw is a collaboration between Emerson and Frederick Perrin (Paris, France).

I believe this little blade is worth having as a last-ditch weapon for law enforcement, regular military personnel and knowledgeable civilians. However, if there's enough interest, I think Emerson will make this design available to the general buying public.

The SPECWAR model with the titanium blade was a real trickster. I immediately knew that this was not a steel-blade knife-it was extremely too lightweight. A call to Emerson verified my suspicion that the blade was indeed titanium.

The titanium blade is coated with blue tantalum carbide. At first, I thought the titanium blade was du][, then I thought I was losing my mind, cause I thought the blade was getting sharper the more I used it.

Another call to Emerson cleared things up. The tantalum carbide coating process is something that Ernest was turned onto by fellow custom knifemaker Wayne Goddard. The titanium blade is coated with the tantalum carbide, and it tends to get more "abrasive" (read sharper) as you use it.

The titanium blade really grabbed and ripped into rope, meat and cloth during the various tests I performed. This knife isn't a regular production version-yet! Ernest tells me he has been sending out various test samples to folks for over a year to see how the knife would perform. To date, there has been no negative feedback. The nonmagnetic qualities of a titanium blade are extremely useful under certain conditions. Some people won't be able to (literally) live without one.

Does it sound like I'm sold on Emerson knives? You'd better believe it! I rarely endorse any products that I test and write about, but in this case, I feel so strongly about Emerson's knives, I have adopted the Raven line as the "official" knife for my school-Combat Martial Arts Academy and will recommend it to my martial-arts students at my seminars.

One last note about Ernest Emerson: He's not content to sit back and rest on his past accomplishments. Over the next year or so, Emerson wants to train a hand-picked cadre of instructors in his knife-fighting techniques and send them out to instruct classes.

In addition, a book and perhaps a video will be forthcoming on the knife-fighting techniques that Emerson uses. Where Emerson finds the time (and energy) to do all the things he does is beyond me.