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Gear up with these 5 amazing tools suggested by Tim Setzer and boost your EDC list:
1. Hogue K320
Do you have a SIG P320 handgun and want a knife to match? Or do you want a P320 and can’t swing it yet? Either way, you can get a new K320 from Hogue Knives that uses the same black or FDE Cerakote finish that’s used on SIG’s firearms.
The K320 has a blade of premium S30V stainless steel with a high grind profile and keen factory edge. A blade choil allows you to choke up for fine detail work. Blades are available in both drop point and tanto patterns and plain edge or partially serrated edges. Lockup is via Hogue’s ambidextrous ABLE Lock.
Handles are made of glass-fiber-reinforced polymer with the same texture as the P320 pistol grip. The K320 has a deep-carry pocket clip that can be positioned for tip up or down and right- or left-handed carry.
If you’re a SIG fan and want an EDC folder that matches your favorite pistol, or just want a good solid EDC folder with some SIG touches, then take a look at the new K320 line gear from Hogue.
Specs:
Hogue K320
- Style: Drop point or tanto
- Blade Thickness: 0.125 inch
- Blade Length: 3.5 inches
- Closed /Overall Length: 4.5 / 8 inches
- Weight: 4.18 ounces
- Material: CPM S30V stainless steel
- Finish: Black Cerakote, Coyote PVD
- SIG Sauer Firearm Match: P320 Nitron
- Locking Mechanism: Ambidextrous ABLE Lock
- Frame: Black, Coyote Tan or Grey polyamide nylon 12 (glass-fiber-reinforced polymer) with P320 texture
- Louvred Pocket Clip: Stainless steel ambidextrous, tip up, or deep carry
- Origin: USA
- MSRP: $169.95-$189.95
2. Work Sharp Ceramic Honing Rod
A lot of folks assume that because I’m a “knife guy,” I’m a sharpening expert. I am not. I just grab another knife when one gets dull. Still, I do have favorites that I need to touch up and kitchen knives especially see a lot of work and need constant tuning.
I recently took on my mom’s kitchen knives, which were last sharpened probably never. I used Work Sharp’s Electric Kitchen Knife Sharpener then polished things off with their Ceramic Honing Rod seen here.
The rod does a nice job of deburring and polishing the edge and is perfect for maintenance and touch-up work if you don’t let your knives get super dull in the first place. The integral 20-degree knife guides keep things straight, too, and make honing pretty effortless.
At a retail price of only $29.95, I’m probably just going to buy a second one to leave out at my mom’s for her to use, or at least for me to use when I’m visiting and touching up her knives.
SPECS:
Work Sharp Ceramic Honing Rod
Weight: 17.6 ounces
Product Type: Hone
Sharpening Angles: 20 degrees
Included Abrasives: Fine ceramic
Abrasive Size: ½ x 9 inches
MSRP: $29.95
3. Bawidamann Tommy Spike
I have a thing for retro designs. There’s a lot to learn from history in both styling and function, and Andrew Bawidamann is very often operating on my same wavelength in that regard—except unlike me, he’s actually talented. I was a big fan of the Doughboy knuckles when he released those with their nod to the classic WWI trench knife, and just as I’ve been on a Fairbairn Sykes commando dagger kick, here he comes with the Tommy Spike.
The Tommy Spike takes the classic and instantly recognizable lines of the Fairbairn Sykes dagger and morphs it into a smaller, easier to carry package in the form of a titanium spike.
The cruciform spike will do a heck of a job on ice blocks, or anyone intending you harm. The handle retains that ridged Coke bottle of the original dagger and should provide a secure grip for thrusts and stabs. The Tommy gear comes with a very high-quality leather scabbard from Chattanooga Leather.
Keep an eye out for drops on his webpage and Instagram, but don’t get in my way. I need one and may not be above trampling someone to get it.
Specs:
Bawidamann Tommy Spike
- Overall Length: 8 inches
- Spike Length: 4.25 inches
- Handle Length: 3.75 inches
- Material: 6AL4V titanium
- Scabbard: IWB/OWB Chattanooga leather with centerline discreet-carry concept gear clip
- Finish: Black Cerakote
- Origin: USA
- MSRP: $325
4. Rogan EOD Tool
If you carry a quality fixed or folding knife, you probably shouldn’t be using it to dig and pry. Rogan has you covered, though, with its American-made pry tools, like the EOD tool shown here. Rogan Tools were tested in Afghanistan and Iraq by folks whose job it is to break things, and these tools survived the trial. They’ve also seen a lot of use back home with first responders, trade workers and regular folks using them for camping and EDC.
I grabbed an EOD Tool on a recent sale, and I have to say, it’s nice. It fits into MOLLE webbing, has a solid, nicely wrapped grip, and I like the signature welded-on “bar guard” on the EOD model. If you need to chop, pry, dig or chisel away at something, do yourself a favor: save your favorite knife and get yourself a dedicated pry tool.
Rogan also makes a couple of smaller sizes suitable for EDC or even pocket carry gear as well. Rogan Tools are made in Florida and the company offers military and professional discounts.
Specs: >
Rogan EOD Tool
- Thickness: ¼ inch
- Width: 1 inch
- Length: 9.25 inches
- Weight: 10.5 ounces
- Material: Carbon steel
- Sheath: Sold separately
- Origin: USA
- MSRP: $54.99
5. County Comm Survival Tin
If you’ve been anywhere around the bushcraft field over the past couple of decades, you know that the metal Altoids tin is the pocket storage container of choice for first-aid kits, survival kits, or any other small items that you don’t want crushed. Well, County Comm took that love of the Altoids tin and souped it up so that you don’t have to buy those curiously strong mints just to get the tin.
County Comm’s Gen 2 Industrial Strength Survival Food Grade Tin is about the same size as a commercial Altoids tin but has a stronger latch, much stronger and thicker walls and a cool topo etching on the lid.
Tins are only $3.95, and for an additional $3.95, you can add a silicone divider in Zombie
Green, Orange or Glow in the Dark. So, for a couple bucks more than buying the mints for the tin, you can get a substantially tougher box for all your small gear needs.
MSRP: $3.95
CountyComm.com
A version of this article first appeared in the Nov/Dec 2022 print issue of Knives Illustrated.