TRC Knives M-1SL Stonewashed M390, Black G10, survival knife

Monday, April 7, 2025

Knife came very sharp from the factory. Scored 125g on the Bess test. Excellent fit and finish. Custom standard on both the knife and the sheath. Very impressive for a factory knife. The kydex sheath has an excellent “snap” fitting which is secure but still enables the knife to be withdrawn quickly. There are two places on the spine which provide sharp right angles for ferro rod use. Just behind the tip and at the separation point between the thumb rest on the spine and the tapered spine section. You can use either to throw very effective sparks. The knife batons very well. The high sabre grind has a wedge effect which pops wood apart. The grip is wide and has strong diamond checkering but has a curved smooth taper from the ricasso. This is an ideal thumb placement area for feather sticking or you can use the spine section for carving. The design is well thought through and gives excellent control. Excellent bushcraft/survival/wood processing capability. The pinnacles on the diamond checkering are a bit aggressive for prolonged use and may benefit from some smoothing with wet and dry paper. Probably designed like this for use with gloves in cold climates? The blade can be choked up on the spine to use the forefinger to shroud the tip for hunting use on an abdomen cut. The curved section from the ricasso enables the ring and little finger to push the front of the grip into the heel of the palm. The kydex sheath has a drain hole for easy cleaning and hygiene and would pass any health and safety regulations for meat processing. The knife is therefore equally able to cover hunting use. As a military knife it is an excellent choice. Very robustly made. It could do small chopping tasks with a lanyard using the rear swell in the grip to give longer reach and momentum. The sheath would benefit from a ferro rod kydex loop holder which TRC do supply on other knives. The belt loop is large enough for any webbing belt but would also benefit from a belt loop secure snap detachment option to transfer the knife quickly to other equipment. The knife is perfect for scuba or kayak use and would not be removed quickly from belt webbing as it would be carried behind magazine pouches and most webbing would be threaded with paracord and cinched up to prevent flapping and banging when running. There are custom kydex sheath makers in the USA who can supply these options as the belt loop is detachable from the sheath and a double Velcro inside and outside loop could be added which could be peeled apart without difficulty. You could then transfer the knife to a PFD or boyancy jacket for scuba and kayak use. TRC ought to have asked for military feedback on deployment of the knife as it is an excellent design for these options and instead of threading elastic through the holes of the sheath, supply the knife with a proper scuba extendable elastic safety line to prevent loss. All these things can be done once you bought the knife and M390 is an excellent stainless steel for these uses.

Thursday, November 7, 2024