Ranger Knives R.A.K.
Review by Phil Elmore
The Ranger Knives Ranger Assault Knife (R.A.K.) is a light- to medium-duty fixed blade styled like a fighter. With a six inch blade and an overall length of one foot, and sporting the same epoxy-polyester power coat that my RD6 has, the knife makes a formiddable-looking package. The R.A.K. is listed as having a paracord-wrapped handle, standard, on the Ranger Knives website, though my sample comes to me with a blue canvas Micarta handle. The steel is not specified; it is probably 1095. The blade of the R.A.K. is of 3/16-inch stock, 1.5 inches wide, and exhibits a nice broad grind. It was nicely sharp from the "factory" (wherever it is that Justin Gingrich makes these) and holds an edge reasonably well. Resharpening has proven easy enough with a diamond rod.
The R.A.K. is heavy enough for light chopping. Knife and sheath together weigh in at 1 pound, 2.3 ounces. The point of balance is right at the rear of the choil (or just ahead of the integral guard.
The nice, deep choil provides great leverage for choking up to perform close work. The handle is quite comfortable, too, though the glossy finish of the Micarta makes it a bit slippery when wet. There are, thankfully, nice deep thumb grooves on the spine (something I always prefer to have). The butt of the knife has a lanyard hole drilled through it and tapers to a "skull crusher" tip that leaves deep craters in wood and drywall.
The knife ships with a Nylon sheath that contains a plastic insert and incorporates appropriate lashing strips. It is a bit crude but perfectly serviceable, with built-in straps and grommets for lashing and a hook-and-loop retention strap on the belt loop. There is a pouch built in for carrying a smaller knife, sharpening stone, or other gear (I usually tuck a multitool in there).
The R.A.K.'s spear point penetrates reasonably well (as did that of the RD6, which is the heavier field knife of the two) and, despite its weight, the knife handles adequately for use as a self-defense blade. Clearly the styling, coupled with the name, invoke the notion of a military field knife that could conceivably be used for combat.
This is a well made, moderately "tactical" blade that will make a
good medium-duty field knife. The maker, Justin Gingrich, is
a very personable fellow who is (last I knew) active-duty military.
He makes a good product, and supporting him doesn't seem to me to
be a bad thing at all. >>