Bear OPS Bold Action V Tanto Automatic Knife Review

Bear and Son has a rich family tradition in knife making. They have a skilled and experienced work force capable of performing many of the extra hand operations that go into the making of their products. The Bear & Son factory is unique: it is full self-contained. While some companies only assemble parts brought form various suppliers and put their names on the product, Bear & Son does everything in-house from building their own blanking dies to heat treating, grinding and assembly, and hand finishing their products. It is these steps that ensure that Bear & Son Cutlery is of excellent quality and a real value for both the dealer and consumer.

This commitment to excellence has just improved due to rich family tradition in knife making craftsmanship not only by management, but also their experienced work force. Their customers and consumers can look for even more new and exciting products as a result. Their ongoing commitment is to make them in America and make them affordable. They want everyone to be able to afford what they are proud to make.

Bear OPS Knives is a new subsidiary of Bear & Son Cutlery. Because they take their obligation of duty to our country very seriously; their goal is to manufacture the best tactical knives available for those who serve. Bear OPS knives are made with Operational Precision for Superior Tactical Knives, or OPS, that can be relied on for any situation.

Bear OPS only uses USA manufactured parts, material, and a dedicated workforce. Bear OPS uses only premium 154CM and CPM S30V steel for their blades and use their own heat treat, waterjet, and CNC grinders to finish the blades. Bear OPS is designed and engineered by the experts in their R&D and their in-house tool makers. You will always be proud to carry a knife from Bear OPS.

Bear & Son Cutlery has already and will continue to manufacture the “best knives made in the USA” that will now include tactical and military knives made in the USA. Come pick up your favorite Bear OPS knife today at BladeOps.

 

The Blade:

This blade is made out of Sandvik 14C28N steel. This steel is ideal for the manufacturing of knife blades. This grade of steel allows for the highest attainable hardness without the compromising of microstructure integrity. This steel is often used in high end knives by top shelf manufacturers. Sharpening this blade comes with ease. The steel also has high resistance to micro chipping, rolling, or folding of the edge. This steel can achieve a hardness of 55-62 HRC. Sandvik 14C28N has a high corrosion resistance than lends itself well to working well in humid environment. Overall, this steel has optimized chemistry for a top grade knife steel with a unique combination of excellent edge performance, high hardness, and good corrosion resistance. Stainless steels have at least 12% chromium which does two things for the blade: it makes the blade better able to resist rust and corrosion. Stainless steels are also tougher than high carbon blades, and they look good for a very long time.

The blade has been finished with a black coating. Not only does the black coating provide a sleek look, it cuts down on corrosion, and reflections and glares. One of the only drawbacks to a coated finish is that it will scratch off after continuous use or time.

The blade has been carved into a semi-recurve tanto blade shape. The traditional tanto blade shape has a high point with a flat grind, which leads to an extremely strong point that is perfect for stabbing into hard materials. The thick point of the tanto blade contains a lot of metal near the tip, so it is able to absorb the impact from repeated piercing that would cause most other knives to break. The front edge of the tanto knife meets the back edge at an angel, rather than a curve. This means that a tanto blade does not have a belly. The Bold Action V instead has a recurve on the belly. The tanto blade shape is not designed to be an all-purpose knife, it is designed to do one thing and do that one thing really well. This knife has been designed to excel at piercing through tough materials. This style of knife was originally designed for armor piercing, the tanto blade was popularized by Cold Steel and is similar in style to Japanese long and short swords. While this knife will not prepare you to take on any situation, if you are ever in one that requires you to pierce through something tough, if you have this knife with you, there is no way that you won’t be able to do it.

 

The Handle:

The handle on this knife is made out of black and green G-10. This material is a grade of Garolite that is a laminate composite made of fiberglass. This material has very similar properties to carbon fiber, but because it is slightly inferior, you can get it for a fraction of the cost. And while it is cheaper to produce than carbon fiber is, it still has to be cut and machined into shape which is not as economical as the injection molding process that is used in Zytel handles.

To make this material, the manufacturer takes layer so fiberglass cloth and soaks them in resin, then compresses them and bakes them under pressure. The material that results is extremely tough, hard, lightweight, and strong. G-10 is even considered to be the toughest of all the fiberglass resin laminates and stronger than Micarta.

Checkering and other patterns add a texture to the handle, which provides for a solid, comfortable grip. The production process can utilize many layers of the same color, or varying different colors to achieve a unique look on the handle. The Bold Action V knife uses two different colors of G-10. The upper third of the handle is a black G-10 and the lower third is a green G-10.

Tactical folders benefit from the qualities of G-10 because it is durable and lightweight, non porous and can be made in a variety of different colors.

Unfortunately, this material is brittle, because all of the fibers are arranged in the same direction. This means that in that specific direction, the handle is going to be very strong. But if it is stressed in any other direction, or subjected to a hard or sharp impact, the material is going to break apart or crack. One of the other drawbacks to this knife handle material is that it does lack elegance because it does look plastic-y.

The handle on this knife is pretty simple. There are more angles than curves, although it still is very comfortable to hold, even if you are holding it for long periods of time. There is angled finger groove to allow you to get a better hold on this knife when you are using it to pierce through things. And of course, there is a finger guard to protect your fingers in case of slippage. There is also a rectangular lanyard hole on the butt of this handle.

 

The Pocket Clip:

The pocket clip is designed for tip up carry only; however, it is eligible for a left or right hand carry option, which helps to make this an ambidextrous knife. The clip is a deep carry clip, which means that it will be easier to conceal within your pocket. The clip has been finished with a lack coating and is being kept in place by two small black screws that match the rest of the hardware on this knife.

 

The Mechanism:

This is an automatic knife, or switchblade. Automatic knives fall under a strict set of laws in the United States, which means that it will not be legal to purchase, own, or carry in all states, cities, or areas. It is your responsibility as the user to know your local knife laws and obey them; BladeOps is not responsible for any consequences.

An automatic knife is a type of knife with a folding blade contained in the handle which is deployed automatically by a spring when a button on the handle is activated. The blade will pop open and lock into place until you choose to close your knife again.

There is an integrated safety on the handle. With this, you can lock your blade in the shut positon, so that you don’t have to worry about it deploying accidentally when it is in your pocket or any other situation. Plus, you can lock it open, so that you don’t have to worry about the blade closing on you when you are in the middle of using it.

One of the advantages to an automatic knife is that they will open more quickly and efficiently than a regular folding knife, so you are able to bring it into play more quickly.

 

The Specs:

The blade on this knife measures in at 4 inches long with a handle that measures in at 5 inches long. The overall length of this knife when it is opened is 9 inches. This knife does weigh in at 6 ounces, which is a little bit heavier of an everyday carry knife. The Bear OPS Bold Action V automatic knife is made in the United States of America.

 

The Pros of the Bear OPS Bold Action V Tanto Automatic Knife:

• The blade steel is easy to sharpen.
• The steel has a high hardness, but is not brittle.
• The steel has a good corrosion resistance.
• The blade has been finished with a black coating, which gives the knife a sleek black look.
• The coating also increases the corrosion resistance of this blade.
• The recurve tanto blade shape has a very strong tip that excels at piercing through things.
• The pocket clip is reversible for right or left hand carry, which helps make this an ambidextrous knife.
• The pocket clip is deep carry so it will be easier to conceal the knife.
• This Bear OPS knife has been made in the United States of America, so you can feel proud to own, carry, and use this knife.
• The G-10 handle is tough.
• The G-10 handle is light.
• The G-10 handle is durable and low maintenance.
• Finger groove and guard to give you a safe and secure hold on this knife.
• There is a rectangular lanyard hole on this knife.
• The automatic function will let you bring this knife into play quickly and efficiently.
• There is a safety toggle on the handle, so you can lock the blade open or closed.

 

The Cons of the Bear OPS Bold Action V Tanto Automatic Knife:

• Because the blade steel is a higher end blade steel, it does increase the cost of the knife.
• All coatings can and will scratch off after heavy use or long periods of use.
• The recurve tanto blade shape is not an all-purpose blade shape.
• The pocket clip is only designed for tip up carry.
• The G-10 handle is brittle.
• The G-10 handle does lack elegance.
• Because it is an automatic knife, it is not legal in all states, cities, or areas of the United States.

 

Conclusion:

The Bear OPS Bold Action V 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 ergonomic styling and a convenient slide safety to prevent accidental firing. This larger model, the AC-550-B4-B, features a green and black textured G-10 handle, stainless steel liners, a semi-recurve tanto blade in a black finish and the pocket clip is designed for tip up carry only but is eligible for a left or right hand carry option. Pick up this fantastic knife today at BladeOps.