Smith & Wesson SWVIP Viper Serrated Knife
January 1, 2010 | Posted by admin 
- Stainless steel blade
- Black aluminum handle
- Spear serrated blade
- Comes with a pocket clip
Product Description
We must warn you to use caution when operating this fast opening-folding knife. It is very dangerous and requires skill to operate. Equipped with a 4″ blade constructed from 440 stainless steel with partial serrations. The black composite handle includes a pocket clip. Simply pull the bottom and flick your wrist and the blade swings into the open position. 4 1/2″ closed
Smith & Wesson SWVIP Viper Serrated Knife
Categories: Hot Pick | 
Tags: Knife, Serrated, Smith, SWVIP, Viper, Wesson | 
2 Comments »
This knife is really useful. Instantly opens and locks in place using pressure. I use it all the time to open packages. Very sharp. The only reason why I gave it 4 stars is because it is a little thick at the handle. They needed enough room to fit the pressurized spring mechanism and also cradle the blade. I am still very happy with this purchase and might buy its smaller brother for snowboarding. Its always good to keep a knife with you in case you need to cut yourself loose from the board.
Rating: 4 / 5
Once you’ve used a knife that opens one-handed, there’s no turning back. And this knife is remarkable in that respect. Slide the catch, flick your wrist ever so slightly, and it’s locked open and ready to use. (Mine took a few times to break in. Before that, it might not fully lock open without pressing the side of the blade against something.) So efficiency and ease of use gets it the 3 stars.
Why not 5?
First, because only one side of the blade is honed, if that’s the right word. Thus, all the sharpeners I have that consist of a V-shaped arrangement of, say, ceramic rods or steel edges, are useless. I’d like to have known that. Gotta go buy a sharpener I don’t already own.
Second, because the serrations *seem* to cut much better when pushing rather than when pulling. Opening a package entails pushing the knife into the box under pressure. (Not good if there is something inside you’d rather not puncture.) I’d appreciate hearing if others have different experience with this.
Third, because unlike just about every other knife that closes one-handed, this one has no spring to force the blade closed. I admit that I had become accustomed to closing my other knives without actually looking at them. The sound of the blade snapping into place was evidence that it could safely be slipped into a pocket. Not so this one. It can bounce back out of the handle before you release the catch. The blade can then be pressed closed, but it may be partially open until then. If you buy it, I urge you to *see* that it is securely closed before you put it away, at least until the locking mechanism is thoroughly broken in. Otherwise you may be sliding a 2/3 closed knife into your pocket. It has a very sharp point. I’m not saying we shouldn’t always verify visually that every knife is closed. I’m just saying that it’s a habit you may need to relearn.
It seems to me that much of the functionality depends on the weight of the blade. This knife’s little brother might (and I emphasize “might”) not have the weight to open and close as securely as the large one. So I’d be even more cautious with it.
Rating: 3 / 5