Bear claw knives have curved blades like the claw of a bear or like the claw of most other animals and most of them have a finger-sized hole on the blade handle.
When you put your forefinger in that hole and with a grip on the handle, it’s hard to lose the knife or have it taken away from you even in wet and slippery conditions. It’s as if the knife is an extension to your hand.
They’re great for quickly cutting rope, webbing or netting, seat-belts, zip-ties and as a self-defence knife for both men and women. Bear claw knives are used by Firemen, Policemen and the Army.
Sometimes this type of knife is called karambit knife, raptor claw knife or tiger claw knife but it’s all the same to me except that the hole of the karambit knife is placed at the bottom of the handle.
Here are some of the best bear claw knives around:
NRS CRKT Bear Claw Knife
The Bear Claw Knife from Columbia River Knife and Tool is one of the most popular. It comes in different types of blades: sharp tip-plain-edge, sharp tip-serrated edge, blunt tip-serrated edge.
The blades are full tang, taper ground AUS 4 stainless steel with a fine bead blast finish. On the blade spine and choil(the end of a knife’s cutting edge that is nearer to the handle) are friction grooves for maximum blade control and safety.
Comes with a neat sheath that keeps the blade in place in whatever position you put it in.
Smith and Wesson
Smith & Wesson takes their precision craftsmanship in gun making into the HRT Neck Badge Serrated Bear Knife. It looks good and a quality feel to it.
The zytel handle allows for a firm grip and the blade is made of high-chromium stainless steel which has a terrific balance of good hardness and corrosion resistance and takes a nice edge and fairly easy to resharpen.
Like the NRS, it also comes with a neat sheath that allows the knife to be worn on your belt or as a neck badge.
Video Reviews
NRS CRKT
Smith & Wesson
