Triumph Folder
Review by Phil Elmore
"That," said the SWAT trainer instructing a class in close-quarter combatives, "is a Klingon knife."
I had brought my Columbia River Knife and Tool
Triumph folder with me to the class, just as my daily carry
blade. I showed it to the instructor after one of the other
students suggested I do so. "You have got to see the knife Phil
is carrying," he said. The Triumph was a big hit with all who
looked at it. While its appearance is decidedly aggressive, it
has many features that make it an excellent tactical folder. It
has style, yes, but its substance is what makes it noteworthy.
The knife was designed by Pat Crawford, an Arkansas knifesmith who
offers a custom version of the blade. As it does with so many
great custom knives, CRKT brings the masses this production version at
an affordable price.
This is a big, heavy tactical folder. It has a 3.5-inch blade of AUS 8
steel, very subtly recurved in a modified and Americanized tanto
pattern. A version boasting Tom Veff's vicious shark-tooth
serrations is also available, and the knife can be had in tiger stripe
coating with black handles as well as the green-handled model that is
in most of these photos). It is a liner lock incorporating the
AutoLAWKS safety. The liners are of 420J2 steel and the deeply
grooved handle scales are G10.
With a flick of the relatively small, ambidextrous thumb studs, the
blade springs open eagerly thanks to CRKT's "Outburst" assisted-opening
technology. There is no play in the locked blade. The liner
engages the blade tang fully, with plenty of room for wear.
The long, thin, Teflon-coated metal pocket clip is removable but not
reversible (at least, the clips on my samples are not; the CRKT website
claims the knife features a reversible clip for right or left hand
use). The Triumph (per my samples) is configured for right-hand,
tip-down carry only. While it rides in the pocket reasonably well
and the clip had good tension out of the box, the deeply grooved
handles will catch on the fabric of your pocket and rough up the fabric
of your pants. This is the tradeoff for the texture of the
handles.
Where those handle scales are most appreciated is in simply wielding
the knife. The grip offered by the deeply cut G10 scales is
superb, better than most knives I have handled. One of my
personal preferences is for deep grooves for my thumb, and this knife
offers both grooves on the back of the top of the blade, and in the
liners at the appropriate spot on the frame. I cannot say enough
good things about how well this knife handles or how secure is the grip
it offers.
As a heavy pocket or palm-stick, the handle is also shaped properly for
blunt striking. The blade can then be opened and closed with one
hand, if needed. All that is necessary is to disengage the liner
and the AutoLAWKS with different fingers before startin the knife
closed.
The blade cut reasonably well, though with Americanized Tantos that secondary point sometimes gets in the way. It's great for scoring and for up-close cutting tasks. Mine was nicely sharp out of the box and retained its edge fairly well as I stabbed stacked coardboard and cut plastic barrels. As I cut each test medium, I was repeatedly impressed by how secure my grip was through these chores.
This is a big, aggressive tactical folder that will never be
mistaken for a work knife. It can perform utility chores well,
though, and is a good choice for all-around carry if your primary
concern is the security of your grip. >>