The Martialist: The Magazine For Those Who Fight Unfairly

“Stay ‘unreasonable.’  If you
don’t like the solutions [available to you], come up with your
own.” 
Dan Webre

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Copyright © Phil Elmore,
all rights
reserved.

“Combat Ready” Budget Kerambit

A Product Review by Phil Elmore

As of this writing, the popularity of kerambits shows no
signs of abating.  Even Cold Steel, whose own Lynn Thompson wrote
publicly of his disdain for the fad surrounding the Indonesian weapon, has
released a non-metallic fixed kerambit of its own.  An extremely
effective infighting weapon that excels as a slashing tool and can be used
for hooking thrusts, the kerambit is available at prices ranging from
budget-friendly to uncomfortably expensive. 

The inexpensive “Combat Ready” kerambit, made in
China.

It was because there exists a demand for cheap, “live”
practice kerambits that I obtained the Chinese-made “Combat Ready” fixed-blade
model.  It costs little, has no moving parts, and will get the job done. 
Its primary liabilities (the trade-off for the asking price) are a blade of
unspecified but undoubtedly low-grade stainless alloy (the heat treat of which
is unknown) and a fairly chintzy black composition (plastic) sheath.

The black composition sheath will cover the blade,
but that’s about all.

The kerambit is seven and five-eighths inches overall and
has a black cast metal handle screwed onto its full tang.  There are
holes in the handle that lessen its weight.  The index finger hole is
oversized and should fit just about anyone.  Workmanship is adequate but
crude overall, with anomalies in the black painted finish and some rough edges
at the screw holes.

The blade was quite sharp out of the box and I almost
immediately cut a thin line across two of my fingers by accident.  It is
slightly curved and tapers to an effective point, dulls easily, and resharpens
easily (at least insofar as it is relatively soft steel – the curve may give
some users trouble).

The “Combat Ready” kerambit has a cast metal handle.

The kerambit feels fairly heavy overall, but not too heavy
to be wielded to good effect.  The contour of the handle is intended to
be ergonomic, but the bulge is large enough that some with smaller hands may
find it uncomfortable.  The knife is roughly a quarter inch thick at the
handle, with a blade of just under one eighth inch stock.

The kerambit is barely retained by its plastic
sheath.

The plastic sheath fits the knife loosely and cannot be
retained by friction.  It has holes for mounting and curved slots that
could be used with a belt (if awkwardly).  The metal belt/boot clip
includes an elongated spoon that is intended to mate with a hole in the
kerambit’s handle to retain the knife, but this works only barely.

The metal spoon extending from the pocket clip (which
is screwed
into the composition sheath) mates with a hole in the handle.

It is possible to bend the spoon slightly to increase
retention, but be warned:  if you bend it too much, it will snap in half. 
I did this on the third attempt to adjust my sheath’s retention.  The
knife can still serve me, however.  The holes in the sheath will allowed
me to screw it to the side of a piece of furniture (it could also be attached
to a wall with a spacing block), making the knife one of those concealed
at-home or in-office tools that come in handy from time to time.

Bend the spoon too hard and it will snap in half. 
It’s not very flexible.

The curve of the kerambit makes it a natural slasher and I
enjoyed practicing with it.  As a low-cost alternative for live blade
training, the “Combat Ready” kerambit is a real sleeper.  You can afford
to buy a couple of them and leave them with your training gear without
worrying about neglecting them.

Drawing and practicing with the “Combat Ready”
kerambit.

If you’re a fan of the kerambit I imagine you already have
better, more expensive knives.  There may, however, be a place for this
one in a drawer or a gear bag.  Mine’s mounted to a table in my workshop.

Where will you keep yours?