ESEE5P Black Tactical Survival Knife w/ Sheath

Purchased this knife awhile back and after some months of having it I have nothing but positive things to say. Bear in mind that I am new to knives or knife collecting. This was my first big purchase as well as my first fixed blade. After weeks of watching YouTube videos review the esee 5 and it's competitors (usually pitted against the Becker bk2 but also compared to other 5" fixed knives) I decided to throw down the money for this knife.I cannot think of anything I don't like about this knife. This seems like the pinnacle of what a survival nice should be. One video review said it's more of a sharpened pry bar and when held in the hand that 1lb of weight really backs that statement up. It actually feels more like a multi use tool rather than just a knife once held.On to specifics; the blade came razor sharp upon arrival. It was popping hairs from my arm. It's amazing how a 1/4" thick piece of steel comes to a such a fine edge. The canvas micarta scales fit my medium hands nicely. They did have a burnt odor the first few days but it wore off. Just something to note but nothing bad. The glass breaker pommel comes to a fine point that I have since dulled by being stupid and trying to break a mirror that's laying flat on the ground. Even with the pommel dulled I have no worries it wouldn't do the job when needed. The coating on this blade is very very durable. I have batoned, stabbed wood and pryed, made feather sticks, chopped, and the only real degradation of the coating is some smoothing of the texture along the blade and some negligible bits at the tip. It is a very good coating.As stated earlier I am new to knives and am not experienced at using a whet stone so the one time I have sharpened it was with a Blade Medic. It's not as sharp as it once was when it came but getting it sharp again was easy. I've read and heard 1095 is easy to sharpen and this blade shows that's true. 1095 steel will also rust very easily. I learned this when I took it on an overnight trip to lost coast trail in California. It began to rain heavily as the knife was hanging from my hip. I can't remember if I covered it with my shirt but when I pulled it out to use it it was dry. After using it I quickly wiped it down and put it back in the sheath. Later I found rust on it still. So the blade requires care in wet/damp conditions. Keep it coated with some sort of lube and keep it very dry.The sheath just seems like top quality. The kydex is scratch resistant and durable. It has been dragged along dirt and rocks from hiking trips and there's no damage worth noting. The knife clicks into this sheath with authority and holds it in very well. The locking screw makes it difficult to pull out. I find this to be a very important safety feature. Without the lock on there's no risk of this knife falling out. You can shake it upside down it will not come out. I think the lock is a great safety feature in the event someone might try to pull it out of the sheath and steal it or even worse use it on you to take it. I imagine the only thing that might happen is it would pull the whole sheath up pulling on your belt. Which brings me to the clip. The belt clip holds very tight and is even a little hard to get off sometimes but I like this because it means it's secure.The esee 5 was designed as a tool to help downed pilots in South America. That being said this is a survival knife. This is not a bushcraft knife. Understand that if you purchase this knife it will not be the best bushcraft knife. It will not be the best chopper or have the sharpest edge possible on a knife or be the best tactical knife or whatever you can think of. However, this knife will do anything you could ask from a knife well enough to get the job done and not likely break. It is a hard use survival tool.About the warranty; this knife may be expensive but the warranty is so attractive you almost have to buy them. You can deliberately break this knife, send it back, and they will replace it. It can be sold 10 times and the warranty still transfers. A no questions asked warranty? Where else do you find that? This speaks volumes to how much Esee and Randall stands behind their knives.Overall this tank is a knife. I say it that way because this thing is just so robust, sturdy, and dependable. I feel, even as I continue to collect more knives, this knife will always be one I would unquestioningly think of first in any emergency. I trust this knife with my life. Guess that makes me an Esee fan boy now.

The ESEE 5 is not a knife for the faint of heart. It's a quarter-inch thick, tough as a Russian wrestler on steroids (is there any other kind?), and weighs a full pound. If the swiss army knife is a multitool, the ESEE 5 is a wrecking ball.But that's OK, because the ESEE 5 not designed to be an everyday carry blade. (If it were your everyday carry knife, it'd be like making the Taurus Judge your pocket pistol). It's designed to be a survival knife. According to the ESEE Knives web site, it's "Designed By Military SERE Instructors As A Hard-Use Downed Pilot’s Survival Knife," and that's exactly what it feels like in your hand.Ninety-nine percent of the time I reach for a knife, it's because I need to cut something, but if you unsheathe the ESEE 5, you have a lot more options; you can also chop, break, pound, shatter, shear, split, cleave, peel, and probably more. With the factory edge you can even shave, if you don't mind a rash. It might feel a little short and stubby for its weight, but you'll get used to it.A Kydex sheath is included, along with a belt clip and mounting hardware. The sheath has an adjustable tensioning screw licensed from Blind Horse Knife Co., MOLLE compatible hole spacing, and a weep hole at the tip. The tensioner slides toward the handle to lock the knife into its sheath, or down to the tip to reduce the force needed to snap the knife out of its sheath. Retention is excellent. At the tightest setting I was still able, with some determination, to pop the knife out of the sheath, but I'm not worried about it falling out. I guess I could screw that tensioner down more and fully lock it, but it's not necessary.Features of the ESEE 5The ESEE 5 is 11" long overall, and has a blade 5 1/4'' long, 1.56" wide, and 1/4" thick. It sports a robust pair of canvas micarta scales, one of which features a divot for a fire-drill. I know some people think that's a gimmicky feature, and you might not need it much, but if you ever do need it, you'll be glad to have it.It has jimping on the spine, but lacks a finger choil like the one on the ESEE 3. This is a nice feature whenever you need to choke up on the blade for precise carving or feathering, but again, the ESEE 5 is not primarily designed to do anything delicately. And in fact you can choke up if you need to; the choil it has does give your index finger a purchase, just not one as deep as the ESEE 3.A glass-breaker pommel is a nice feature, but you should wrap your hand before trying it.The blade is made from 1095 carbon steel tempered to 55 to 57 Rc. It's flexible enough to roll the edge instead of chipping it; soft enough to sharpen it yourself; and hard enough to maintain that edge for a reasonable amount of cutting. I think it's a very good balance of characteristics.It will be more difficult to get a fine cutting edge on this knife than on the thinner ESEE offerings (even the ESEE 6 is thinner). Not only does this knife start out as a 1/4-inch slab, but the saber grind makes the blade profile even more obtuse than if they had used a flat grind. Again, it's all about selecting your features. The saber grind gives the knife more weight and toughness than a flat grind. If you want a fine edge, go for one of the thinner blades, but if it's a survival knife you're after, this is the one.High carbon steel like this will rust, however, so a little attention to the cutting edge is in order; wipe it dry with every use, and oil it when you can. The rest of the blade is protected with a powder coat.The Rowen powder coat is phenomenally durable. A great deal of batoning has beaten the coat off the spine of my ESEE 3, but there is merely moderate wear along the side of the blade. Be ye not deceived; this is remarkably little wear in light of the abuse the ESEE 3 has taken. While I have been respectful of the cutting edge, I have otherwise been deliberately brutal so that I could report just how tough it is. If the ESEE 5 follows suit, you'll never be disappointed.However, if the knife should ever fail, ESEE Knives has your back; it comes with a lifetime transferable warranty. No matter how often it has been traded or sold, your ESEE is covered by this warranty, no proof of purchase required. There are certain exclusions such as rust and normal wear and tear, and a very few others, but nothing you'll find objectionable.I'm pretty sure this is the very best of many "survival" knives I own.