Just did a new Review on My Blog leipersforkfirearms.blogspot.com on the Benchmade SOCP Dagger. Thought it may be of some interest, enjoy! (the images dont line up as well as they do on the blog)
Benchmade SOCP Dagger Review
The Benchmade SOCP Dagger arrived in the mail today and I couldn't wait to tear into the review. Lets start off with some background.
SOCP or Special Operations Combatives Program was designed by Greg Thompson and is the official Combatives program for the U.S. Special forces. Greg Thompson in coordination with our operators overseas realized the need for a low profile defensive knife for the unique situations of modern combat operations. Currently in Afghanistan the military's roll has put soldiers inside homes and confined spaces of the battlefield often weighted down by heavy load-outs. Soldiers in confined spaces encumbered by their gear inevitably leads to restricted mobility and the bad guys have reacted accordingly, often resulting to "wrestling matches" or attacking soldiers from behind in order to use their limited movement against them. These and other actual incidents were studied by Greg Thompson and the Benchmade SOCP Dagger is the resulting problem solver.
This Dagger (and yes it is a Dagger) was designed as a Close Combat Weapon that would be low profile, lightweight, effective, and allow the operator to swiftly transition to a firearm (they have succeeded in all categories)
The first thing you notice on the knife is the skeleton design making this dagger lightweight and fast. Adding the SOCP dagger to a MOLLE vest is a barely noticed addition. This is a HUGE deal when you can be dragging 100+ pounds of gear around, the last thing you need is a 2lb survival knife that is too bulky to do any good.
The Next unique addition to this blade is the key ring style finger loop on the end of the handle. Not only does this loop allow for an extremely quick draw (with either hand) but it also allows for an ergonomic feel to wielding the knife with a "Hammer Grip" ( the index finger goes through the loop.)
This is the Hammer Grip except picture the pointer finger through the loop and the point angled down slightly, This picture was to show the relative size of the knife in hand.
The finger loop in combination with the way the dagger sits in the sheath (very low profile) provides a low visibility profile and also makes this weapon extremely hard for an assailant to grab or use against the owner.
With an overall length of 7.25" the blade itself takes up 3.22". The handle in addition the the well fitting handle makes this small slim dagger fit your hand extremely well. If you still have concerns of you hand slipping down the blade (as is a valid concern with some dagger designs) you don't have to worry with this design. The end of the dagger (1.37" by my measure) is the only sharpened surface. This knife is purpose designed, its meant for stabbing, penetrating, and overall being a nasty little knife (not for opening boxes or doing your holiday wrapping). The Extreme point is also needle sharp
The Sheath that goes with the knife is as slim and purposed as the blade. Designed to slip easily into MOLLE webbing (and it does) or fit discretely inside of a waistband. Many people who carry this knife use it as a neck or boot knife but, as slim as the blade is, I find the 7.25" length to be a hair much for those categories and more useful on a vest or inside a waistband.
As always, Benchmade has produced a high quality product. This Dagger is from Benchmade's BLACK Class which is designed specifically for military and law enforcement use and stands up to those qualities. If your line of work places you in a possible close combat situation (Swat, LE, active duty, Civilian Sheep dog) I highly suggest looking into the Benchmade SOCP Dagger as a last resort weapon.
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Originally Posted by Failure2Stop
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