Spyderco Knives ( www.spyderco.com ) recently sent us a "Fred Perrin Street Beat" in for review. When I first picked this knife up my initial thoughts were, "this handle is tiny", "I'm gonna cut my fingers off if I have to do any real stabbing with this thing", and "the grip is way too slick"... Well, after carrying this knife and really taking the time to get a feel for it, I discovered my harsh initial impressions were more misinformed and jaded than CNN. First off, I know the designer Fred Perrin personally. The knifemaking community is a small one, and smaller still those who know what they're doing. He is an ex-French commando who knows how to make an elegantly simple and utterly effective blade. This Spyderco collaboration is no exception.
As a fellow martial artist I have grown fond of this variation of the age old Bowie blade type that does two things and does them well... Slashing and stabbing. It doesn't fill the palm or sit well in a choked up grip for carving, shaving, and whittling like a bushcraft knife should. It doesn't have sharp, eye-catching angles, an exotic finish from factory, or custom serrations like you'll find on a lot of new popular new fixed blades hitting the market. This knife has a very specific purpose that it serves it extremely well. A smaller version of Mr. Perrin's full size fighting knife the street Bowie with a blade length of three and a half inches, and a cutting edge of three and a quarter this is close to the smallest "combat effective" blade I will carry. It was designed for concealed carry and covert operations as a back up weapon or a deep cover CQB tool.
There's no sharp edges on the handle or a finger guard because they tend to get stuck on clothing when drawing from concealment. The pommel is rounded and smooth and lends well to a quick palm strike when a little extra leverage is needed to puncture dense objects like bone or Kevlar. VG-10 Japanese steel, properly heat treated as this knife is, has always and will always be one of my favorite non-american blade steels. I was already on board with the steel, and this knife came sharp from the factory as is usual with Spyderco knives. The finger choil is huge, and rightfully so because it and the jimping on the spine are the only thing allowing for a firm purchase. My only complaint is the smooth Micarta scales but I have already ground a "frag pattern" into mine for added traction when "wet". What the handle lacks in grip texture it more than makes up for in sheer beauty and aesthetics. The kydex sheath and Spyderco G clip are great, and I have found a concealed IWB cross draw to take less than a second for full employment with proper training and attire. This knife is perfect for deep cover concealed carry, or as an addition to your concealed carry firearm. It is employable much faster than a folding knife, has no moving parts that can fail, doesn't take up any pocket space, and weighs less than 100 grams! The strong points of this knife are its small size, light weight, concealability, simplicity of design, and ease of use. The only negative I have found is the very smooth Micarta grip, although this does allow for easier carry and faster draw. If you're looking for an EDC (every day carry) fixed blade the search stops here.
Rating: 9 out of 10 Bones.
Specs:
length overall: 7.188" (183mm)
blade length: 3.5" (89mm)
blade steel: VG-10
cutting edge: 3.25" (83mm
weight: 3.2oz (92g)
blade thickness: .156" (4mm)
handle material: Micarta
