Customer Reviews

United Cutlery® Pathfinder Tactical Knife

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Ok this wasn't what I expected. First the good: I've only just recieved this but it seems to be well built. No loose parts or flimsy construct.
However...
This is a much heavier knife then I thought. It is not practical for combat use. But it would make a hell of a heavy duty kitchen knife.
There are no rubber inserts, or if the inserts are rubber, its a very hard rubber that doesn't help at all with the grip. So keep in mind that the grip isnt so great (not terrible, do to the shape, but not especially comfortable or slip proof).
The knife did not arrive very sharp, though with some work I'm sure it'll be just fine.
About the sheath, besides for being cheaply made (I'm sure it'll fall apart after some use), it has a 'safety' latch that keeps the knife in, but makes it very hard to unsheath.
So bottom line; It is a heavy duty knife that is not badly made. The sheath is junk though. It's a decent price, but not if you want it for army use. I would not take it into combat with me. It may be good for hunting though since I'm not a hunter, I don't know for sure.

First let me say that I bought 2 knives from two different retailers and this knife from United Cutlery showed up 3 or 4 days after I ordered it, and the other hasn't even left yet. United Cutlery was awesome. The knife is very well built and solid throughout the entire blade. Like most, it could use a bit of sharpening to fine tune it. All in all a very useful and durable knife with good balance. Well worth the $$$$

However; it does not come particularly sharp. This is the only reason it would not get a 5 star review from me. Sharpening, however, is rather easy, or if you wish to get it done professionally, rather cheap.

I would give this product more of a 4.5 star review than 5, but I decided to round it up.

It's surprisingly large, even from the description. I remember, receiving this as a Christmas gift, how startlingly long it actually is. After some time of getting used to it, the initial surprise will wear off.

If sharpened a bit more, this knife is an excellent tool; capable, if the need should arise, of defensive properties rivaling that of more expensive, Military grade combat knives.

I would recommend this knife even if it cost twice as much, since sharpening is not expensive in the slightest.

I own a pretty large collection of knives, ranging from very cheap to a couple hundred dollars. If I am not happy with a blade, it gets given away. This knife is definitely one I will keep. I bought it to be a diving/camping knife. It should serve these purposes well. It is definitely heavier than I expected since it did mention the "lightweight" aluminum handle. It also is a pretty impressive knife as far as size is concerned. The blade is very thick and feels quite sturdy. It is not particularly sharp out of the box, but just a few minutes with a Lansky-style sharpener got it shaving sharp. I cut up some carrots and celery right after sharpening it, and it was still just as sharp, so I think that it may hold it's edge fairly well. The knife is full tang, and feels unbreakable with its very thick blade. I would not hesitate to use the knife as a pry-bar if I needed to, as the tanto profile makes it very strong. The grip material is great. It feels a lot like a cat's tongue; slightly rough and very grippy without being uncomfortable. The rubber grip insets are nice, but not really necessary given the texture on the aluminum parts of the grip. Wet hands are not a problem either. The grip surface is just very very good. I have pretty large hands and I find the grip size to be roomy. Smaller or larger hands should be fine with this knife. Unlike many others, I find the sheath to be very good. It has water drainage holes at the bottom, and it holds the knife in very securely. At first, the draw from the sheath is very tight, but after some use it is just right on the resistance level. The holster is also a low-ride type, so when you sit down or lean over, the handle never jabs you in the hip or abdomen. If I had paid $60 for this knife, I would still be satisfied. The included compass is somewhat cheap compared to my tritium military compass, but it works just as well as any compass of this style, and is very lightweight for those who are trying to stay light on their feet, like hikers. Also, I paid more for my tritium compass than I did for this knife and accessories. The holster for the compass is good quality as well. I have been using it to keep handy my magnum cylinder for my convertible heritage rough ryder.

If I were to say that there was a con to this knife, it would be that the sheath does leave a little bit of marking on the blade after a lot of draws. Because this is no show piece, that doesn't bother me in the slightest. In fact, it makes it look "broken in", and helps the draw become smoother. Another con might be that it is fairly heavy. For light packers this may make it a poor choice, but there are two places I will not skimp when hiking. Those are 1) my sleeping pad, and 2) my knife. The weight doesn't bother me much, because I bought this knife as mainly a dive knife. It just cuts down on the lead I need to carry to sink at low buoyancy, and its weight will be even more unnoticed underwater.

In short, buy this knife. It handles abuse well, and looks pretty awesome too.

This is a great knife. Solid handle, strong blade (1/4" thick), and overall solid, heavy feel. The sheath is cheap and crappy, but it does come with a nylon belt and leg strap, which is good. It comes with a compass that is cheap but functional.

The knife and straps are great, sheath leaves something to be desired.

I received this blade yesterday(08-25) and as usual I found the product to be as good as expected. Sharpened to a perfect edge, size and weight are great. I find over all this knive itself was a good product but the sheath is a bit cheap, probably based on the price of the knife. After removing and inserting the knife in the sheath the rivits holding the plastic to the nylon loop broke away making it hard to wear the knife around the waist. I would recommend this product because of the knife only. The sheath needs work.