Bear OPS Bold Action III (Cali-Legal Auto Knife) Knife Review

Bear OPS Knives is a new subsidiary of Bear & Son Cutlery, which is a family owned company that was started in 1991. Their mission was to design and manufacture the “best knives made in the USA”. They proudly introduced Bear Ops because they take their obligation of duty to our country very seriously. Their goal with this subsidiary is to manufacture the best tactical knives that are available for those who serve. Bear OPS are made with the OPS (Operation Precision for Superior Tactical Knives) that can be relied on for any situation.

With a Bear OPS knife, you are going to find only USA manufactured parts, material, and a dedicated workforce. They make sure to only use supreme materials so that these knives can stand up to anything. Some of these premium materials that they choose to use are 154CM and CPM S30v steel for their blades, with their own heat treatment, waterjet, and CNC grinders to finish the blades.
Bear OPS knives are designed and engineered by the experts in their R&D and their in-house tool maker. With every Bear OPS knives, you will find a Lifetime Limited Warranty. While Bear & Son is continuing to manufacture the “best knives that are made in the USA,” you can find the “best tactical and military knives made in the USA” at Bear OPS. Because of the dedication, premium materials, and extreme detail that go into all of Bear OPS knives, you will always be proud to carry their knives.

Bear OPS products are definitely not your every-day knives. They are tough, well-made, and able to tear through just about anything that is unfortunate to be in your path. You can remain confident with these knives, because they are not going to let you down when you need them most.

Today, we will be talking about one of their bolder knives, the Bear Ops AC-325-AIBk-B Bold Action II, which is a California Legal Auto Knife.

 

The Blade:

The blade on this knife is made out of Sandvik 14C28N Stainless Steel. This steel is especially known for manufacturing knife blades because it encompasses a wide variety of characteristics that people search for in their knives. That being said, this is a premium steel, usually used for high end knives, so it is going to raise the cost of your blade a little bit. This steel has the capability to attain the highest hardness possible without compromising the micro-structure integrity. This means that it can get to HRC 55-62 while still having a resistance to micro chipping, rolling, or folding with the edge. This steel also features a high corrosion resistance which is especially useful in kitchen or survival knives. This knife will be able to resist most moisture or residue that it encounters throughout all of its messy jobs. This blade is also easy to get a fine edge on, again and again. This steel is an upgraded version of 1428CN, but this version has a little more chromium and a little less carbon, but you’ll also find the addition of Nitrogen, which is where you get the exceptional corrosion resistance. The biggest advantage that this steel sports is how crazy sharp you are able to get it, time and time again.

The blade on this Bear OPS knife has been finished with a black coating. While coatings do provide corrosion resistance, the coating will eventually scratch off. Coatings are matte, which means that the glares and reflections will be virtually non-existent off of this blade. However, once your coating has scratched off (usually after time or heavy use), the blade will have to be re-coated to maintain the protective qualities that you desire from this finish. This is a black powder coated finish. The powder is applied with an electrostatic spray gun. But before the powder is sent to the gun, it is fluidized to spate the individual grains of powder and improve the electrostatic charge that can be applied to the powder so that the powder flows more easily to the gun. The powder wraps around the back of the blade as it passes by toward the air off-take system. Then, the blade is placed in an oven and heated to a temperature that ranges from 160-210 degrees Celsius.  Because the coating is black, the blade and handle match, giving you a sleek, tough looking blade, although not particularly eye-catching.

The blade is a single-edge spear point blade style. This blade shape got its name because this is the blade shape that you are going to find on spears throughout all of history. This shape is a symmetrically pointed blade that sports a tip that is in line with the center line of the blade’s axis. You will find this blade shape on many throwing knives and daggers, although on those knives it will probably sport a dual edge. This blade shape has often been compared to a needle-point blade because they are both good for piercing. However, the spear point blade does feature a much stronger point than a needle point blade and the spear point also contains a small belly, which makes this blade shape a little more versatile. The spear point blade also features a lowered point, which means that this knife is going to be more controllable and useful for fine tip work, unlike a spear point. Often when you think of a knife having a belly, a drop point or clip point blade shape is the first to pop into your head. When comparing a spear point to either of those other blade shapes, the belly can seem especially small, but this belly does stand its own and can be used for some cutting and slicing applications. The spear point blade shape is considered a hybrid blade design and because of that, it becomes very versatile. The spear point has a great balance between its piercing and slicing capabilities, this is because it combines the sharp point of a dagger with the strength of a drop point blade, but it does still hold on to some of the belly that is required for lots of slicing. The blade sports a plain edge, which enables it to take almost any task that you can think up.

 

The Handle:

The handle on the Bold Action III is made out of the 6061-T6 aluminum alloy. This aluminum handle has been anodized black. Aluminum handles are very common and very respected in the knife world because aluminum is a low density metal that is extremely corrosion resistant. Because it is a softer metal, it is primarily used in knife handles and is often finished with anodization to improve the look, wear, and corrosion resistance of the blade. The most common aluminum alloy used in knife making is the 6061-T6 alloy, which means the type of aluminum is 6061 and it has been T6 tempered. This alloy has the highest yield and tensile strengths of aluminum alloys. This alloy is also often referred to as “aircraft aluminum”, because it is used extensively in aircraft. However, that is sometimes seen as a gimmick, because giving it that name makes it sound a little tougher than it actually is. Aluminum is inferior to its older brother, Titanium, but does have a few advantages over Titanium. For starters, aluminum is cheaper to machine and produce than Titanium and it is also more lightweight. However, this does mean that it is weaker and a little less resistant to wear.

This knife handle has been finished with an anodization process, which is the process of creating a protective oxide coating and achieving it electrolytically. The aluminum is first submerged in an electrolytic solution bath along with a cathode. When a current is passed through the acid solution, hydrogen is released form the cathode and oxygen forms on the surface of an anode. This results in a metal oxide film growing on the surface of the aluminum handle. This makes the aluminum more corrosion and wear resistant, giving the handle a longer life span than it would have if it hadn’t been anodized.

The handle is rectangular, with the portion near the blade flaring slightly. The butt of the handle is squared off and there are two finger guards near the blade to keep your fingers safe. Although the handle is more edges than curves, it is still comfortable to hold. To help provide you with a secure grip, there have been some grooves etched into the handle to give a little bit of texture.

 

The Pocket Clip:

The pocket clip on this knife is a deep carry pocket clip, which means that the clip is much longer than a traditional one. This also means that it is going to sit deeper in your pocket, keeping it more secure, and concealing your knife better than a traditional pocket clip. The clip is black, just like the blade and the handle of this knife and is statically designed for tip up carry only on the traditional side of the handle. In the center of this clip, Bear OPS and their logo have been stamped in silver. Most of the hardware on this knife is black, except for the button to deploy the knife and the center screw near the blade, which are both traditional silver.

 

The Mechanism:
This is a side-open automatic knife. Automatic knives in the United States have a handful of strict laws surrounding them. They are not legal in all states, areas, or cities of our country, so you need to know your local knife laws before purchasing and carrying this knife. Cali-Legal is a term that refers to the blade length that must be at or below the 2” mark while utilizing an automatic function and is by no means legal advice or a legal definition.

An automatic knife, commonly referred to as a switchblade, is a type of knife with a folding blade that is contained in the handle. On this knife, the blade is opened automatically by a spring when a button on the handle is pushed. The blade is unlocked by manually operating a mechanism that unlocks the blade and allows it to be folded and locked in the closed positon.

This knife features a plunge lock, which a knife with a push button lock that rest within a notch of the lade locking it into place. To unlock the knife, you manually dislodge the blade from the notch and then close it into place.

 

The Specs:

The blade on this knife measures in at 1.9 inches long, with a handle measuring in at 2.8 inches long. The overall length of the knife is 4.7 inches long. The knife weighs in at a mere 1.5 ounces, making it a very small automatic knife. This knife was made in the United States of America.

 

Conclusion:

The Bear OPS Bold Action III knife is one of several new knives released by Bear & Son Cutlery this year. Offered in 2 different sizes, this line of push-button side-open automatic knives feature an entire arsenal of knives that offer a more tactical look and feel. Offered in a wide variety of sizes, colors and finishes, these knives showcase classic symmetrical stiletto styling and a convenient slide safety to prevent accidental firing. This “Cali-Legal” model, the AC-325-AlBK-B, features a black anodized aluminum handle, stainless steel liners, a single-edged spear point style blade in a black powder coated finish and the deep carry pocket clip is statically designed for tip up carry only on the traditional side of the handle. The stainless steel that was chosen resists wear and rust effortlessly and the already durable and corrosion resistant aluminum handle is enhanced by the anodization process. The spear point blade is the perfect combination of strength, versatility, and sharpness. Pick up this tough knife today at BladeOps, so that you have a knife that is going to stand by you and never let you down.