Gerber Gear LMF II Infantry Survival Knife, Military Grade Tactical Fixed Blade with Serrated Edge, Shock Absorbing Handle, Molle Sheath and Sharpener, Black

3 reviews for Gerber Gear LMF II Infantry Survival Knife, Military Grade Tactical Fixed Blade with Serrated Edge, Shock Absorbing Handle, Molle Sheath and Sharpener, Black

1. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   D. Edwards – September 18, 2008

   
   For those not interested in details: “It’s a great knife.”For those interested in details: The blade steel Gerber uses has changed. My original review was based on the original design that used 12C27; the current design uses 420HC. 12C27 was comparable in toughness (durability in rough use) and hardness (edge retention) to 440A and was a very good steel choice by Gerber. 420HC, when treated right, can be a very good steel too (e.g. “Buck knives”); however, it generally will be not be as good at keeping an edge as 12C27 or other, harder stainless steels, as well as most any carbon steel. It will be a very tough blade (less-likely/very uniikely to chip or crack in half), meaning it should handle hard-use and abuse quite well. All in all, it’s still a good choice in steel – might have to sharpen a little more often, but it’s got an integrated sharpener after all.The construction is not full tang but push tang; however, this does not appear to affect its structural integrity. The LMF II is constructed in this manner in order to give this particular knife an insulated handle. This means that you can cut an electrically “live” wire without fear of injury. The story you might have heard already about this knife is a true one – this is the knife that allowed an advanced marksman team to cut a live electrical line in Afghanistan powering insurgent search lights that would have given their position away.Since 420HC is a stainless steel, maintenance is minimal as is the probability of corrosion. The older 12C27 blade took a good edge and showed good edge retention. As a matter of fact, I was quite surprised at the edge retention of the older model. I would expect noticeably less edge-retention from the current 420HC model but not enough to negate the value of this design. Just expect to sharpen the blade a bit more often. The blade coating of the model I used also held up very well and showed no flaking, chipping, scratching, or dusting. I do not believe the coating has changed at all.As to sharpening, Gerber’s 420HC is very easy to sharpen, and it takes a good edge too. Actually, you can expect it to take a better, sharper edge than the original 12C27 design would. The sharpener built into the sheath works very well on the blade. NOTE: Since part of the blade is serrated, this sharpener is limited in its ability – it can only sharpen the non-serrated part of the blade. Sharpening the serrations should be done using a diamond rod or a similar sharpening tool.The handle design looked funny to me a first – didn’t seem like a good design, but, thankfully, it’s only looks. For starters, the grip is made of Kraton (rubber-like) and offers a very secure and solid grip. As to comfort, my hand only started hurting after the first two hours of cutting, and that was minimal pain… but I’ll admit after three, it was plum tuckered out. 🙂 In other words, it was a very comfortable handle.The “skull-crusher” butt (steel projection below the handle) is also insulated, so don’t worry about getting shocked through there either. It is also designed to function as a make-shift hammer by using the top side of the butt as a hammer head (Hint: You probably want to use it this way while the blade is sheathed).The three holes in the knife (two in the guard, one in the butt) are intended for lashing the knife to a rod for use as a spear. The hollows or concave indents/depressions in the handle are also designed for this purpose and allow a lashed pole to fit snugly against the knife handle.The blade performs well at light chopping (provided you make contact with the non-serrated part of the blade). Light chopping accounts for a large portion of outdoor/survival work with a knife. Heavy wood cutting should be done with a saw of some kind (wire saw, folding saw) or an axe. The serrations also function very well and are useful in many ways – cutting rope being a big one. The serrations do seem a bit more “aggressive” than some other knives and seemed to make the work go faster.As was already mentioned, the sheath has a built-in sharpener that works well and is easy to use. All you have to do is stick the blade in and pull it back out a couple times – you don’t have to worry about the blade angle, because it’s all taken care of for you. Overall, the sheath is very well made. The different carrying options are very nice and allow you to carry the knife on your thigh (using the leg straps – “drop-leg” style), on your belt (disconnect the leg straps), or on a MOLLE vest or pack.This is a great knife for utility/survival purposes at an affordable price. Though I would love to buy a Fallkniven A1 or Odin or a Busse or a Randall, etc., the Gerber LMF II is a much more budget friendly knife, and it still exudes quality, while serving its purpose very well. You really can’t go wrong with this knife. EDIT: I now own a couple Fallknivens (S1 & NL2 – Odin), and this is still a great knife. I still keep it on my pack at all times.Another note of import, Gerber’s customer service has a good reputation overall. I have heard numerous accounts of professionalism in regards to their customer service – paying for shipping, replacing an item, etc. EDIT: I have since had some contact with Gerber regarding a Mark II purchase I made, and their customer service is very good.All in all, it’s still a sound purchase.

2. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   J. M. Hartberger – December 5, 2010

   
   I got the opportunity to volunteer for a year of fun & sun in beautiful Baghdad, and decided I needed a manly-man knife to carry around with me. I call it “Plan B” because the duties I perform (gate guard) render my M-16 largely useless, as any… “interactions” would be taking place at close range. Unfortunately, I haven’t had a chance to rack up any knife kills yet (this place is totally not at all like COD), but what I did discover is that this knife is AWESOME.First things first: This knife weighs a ton. Its blade is a full 3/16″ thick. You will never snap it. It does not bend, it does not flex. It is a short, stout blade. If I had to draw an analogy, it’d be the little Scottish dwarf guy from LOTR. And his axe. One might think that this blade is too thick to be sharp, and although the knife on my Leatherman is better suited for delicate work, this blade is more than capable of taking an edge sharp enough to cut straight through a 1 liter bottle of water, of which there are billions out here. It is also hard enough to retain that edge for a good long while.The knife isn’t very well balanced for throwing, but if thrown with care it will embed its blade a few inches deep into wood, concrete, solid diamond, etc. It’s so heavy that even if you don’t hit something with the blade, it’ll still really, really hurt. Which brings me to the Skull Cr… er, “window breaker” on the butt. So far, it’s been most useful for breaking up large blocks of ice, a task at which it excels. However, I have absolutely no doubt that you could crush no small number of hard objects with it. Again, its considerable heft comes into play here, and it is possible to (totally accidentally) gouge a good chunk out of a concrete T-wall with it without damaging the knife.Its handle is electrically insulated to either 600 or 6,000 volts or something like that. I know for a fact that you can cut (and by cut I mean tomahawk chop) through a fallen 400v power line safely in order to keep it from further electrocuting a vehicle. Boy, you should’ve seen the looks on their faces when I was about to make the first chop! I’m fairly certain I sold a few of these knives that day. In related news, 400v power lines make hella sparks when you cut through them.The sheath. Yes, well, it’s rather cumbersome. And it’s huge. But it’s for a huge knife, so it rather comes with the territory. I don’t normally wear a MOLLE vest (which is my armor) so I couldn’t use that, but by cutting the top strap off, you can hook it through your favorite 2″ (or larger, or smaller, whatever) belt and strap the bottom part around your leg. This has worked satisfactorily for 11 months now, and you get used to it sort of cutting circulation off of your leg. Honest. You have to strap it pretty tight in order to keep the sheath in place while inserting/removing the knife, but the knife will not accidentally come out.There is a sharpener built into the sheath. It’s moderately useful. It will put a medium edge on the blade if no other sharpener is around. This would be most useful in remote situations, but using it requires removing the sheath from its strap/harness, which is somewhat annoying. Really, just get a whetstone and you’ll be fine. I use a sharpening kit by Smith’s:Smith’s® Diamond Field Sharpening Kit (that I have also reviewed) and it works wonderfully – enough to put a shaving edge on a pig-sticker.There are holes in the knife that are supposed to be used to lash it to a pole or branch in order to form a spear. I have 550 cord in one of my pockets, and access to palm frond branches, but have not tried this out. I don’t see why it wouldn’t work, but mostly it just creates places for dust to get into that I have to use pipe cleaners to remove.If you wear this strapped to your leg, be prepared to get a lot of funny looks. Even in VBC, where everybody has a knife, this is a HUGE KNIFE. I have been called “Rambo” on more than one occasion. Even with an M-16 strapped to my chest, this knife intimidates people far more. Questionable contact with questionable locals is almost more effectively broken off by me resting my hand on the butt of the knife than by gesturing with the rifle, as they all know the rifle’s pretty much only useful as a large cumbersome club inside of 10 yards. It takes a bit of dedication to wear a knife this ridiculously huge on a daily basis, but its mere presence speaks volumes. It says you ain’t ****ing kidding around.Don’t buy this knife because it’s a miniature sword; it isn’t. A big ol’ Ka-Bar will serve you better. This isn’t a miniature sword; it’s a miniature hatchet. A hatchet with a serrated edge, and a mauler on the other end. It might as well have big spikes on it, à la Dk’Tagh. This is a knife that dispenses all pretense and gets straight down to business. This knife is Winston Wolf from Pulp Fiction. This is a knife that you can do darn near anything with. You can hunt, fish, kill, shave, crush, not-electrocute, and even pry-bar stuff. The blade is that thick.So if you’re tired of your cute little SOG Seal Pups and your flimsy little Ka-Bars, get this knife. It won’t let you down. You just have to be brave and strong enough to handle it. It’s not for the faint of heart (or leg circulation).

3. 

   Rated 5 out of 5

   Joshua whitelaw – December 9, 2024

   Love it
   Only dislike is it was only available in 1 colour but still a badass knife