KA-BAR KB1245 Tanto Black W/Leather Sheath

This is my third knife I got so far, and my first real fixed blade. Part of the reason I bought this particular knife is that it is made by KA-BAR, a company synonymous with its battle-tested, and proven, combat/utility knives. I've researched on other knives that are just as good or better as KA-BAR's but none had the ideal mix of quality and affordability that KA-BAR offers. There were knives with exceptional quality but are just way out of budget even when marked down at retail prices, then there are those that are just simply cheap through and through. I do not claim to be an expert on knives nor its components, this review is primarily from what I've experienced with this knife. General Impressions: When I took it out of the black box, the size of the knife is imposing to say the least. I already have one of those Chinese knock-off survival knives that I got from a friend; that paled in comparison to the KA-BAR tanto. Holding it gingerly at first; having this "high" that is rather indescribable. I figured this is from the fact that, in my hands, is a knife made by skilled men and women who makes knives to those who are fighting for our freedom everyday. As I inspect the knife in its entirety it looks like it is built like a tank, no "soft spots", no loose ends. It looks and feels well-made as I expected from this company. The blade: Out of the box, it is very sharp. Not straight razor sharp but it will cut paper as clean as scissors. While the serrated edges have round points, it cuts just as well. I chose the American-style tanto blade primarily because it looks really cool to look at (I'm a sucker for futuristic-styled blades); yet it is still practical enough for camping and (heaven forbid) fighting off bears and what not. The grip: The grip on this knife is made of some sort of rubber-like polymer. It feels perfect holding it in my hand, almost like a custom-built knife. Even when moisture accumulates on the surface, there's no worry that the knife would slip. Also, the cutouts on the sides of the knife are a nice touch; providing some interesting gripping styles. The balance: Based on my experience with this knife, the balance (or rather weight distribution) is biased much more on the handle side, but it does not detract from it's overall handling. In fact, it is not tiring at all when swinging this knife in any direction. And the design almost lends itself for reverse grip use, it felt natural and not cumbersome at all. The sheath: Nothing much here, although I've read previous reviews about the issues of this sheath wearing way at the surface of the knife due to a partially exposed button rivet. It looks like KA-BAR corrected it and made it so the buttons are slightly recessed, preventing it from scratching the knife's surface. Other than that, it's just your typical plastic sheath with holes for MOLLE type vests and a belt loop. It comes with a locking system and two straps (kind of overkill to have two, but ok I guess) to keep the knife in place, however. For a knife that is made here in USA with quality steel (specifically in New York of all places), $60 retail is an amazing bargain. Again, there are better knives than this but cost a lot more and there are those that are cheap but have too many bells and whistles (like that survival knife I mentioned earlier), this knife is right in the middle. Simple, durable and affordable.

This is my first knife purchase and I'm extremely satisfied with this one in every way. I had a co-worker who was a Marine and he always gushed about his Ka-Bar which is what made me look into getting one for myself. Having the background knowledge of Ka-Bar, I was pretty set on knowing that whatever Ka-Bar I got, it would be of great quality which this knife is. The knife itself is freakin huge. The black coating and tanto point on this make this truly a nasty, nasty looking knife. Very menacing. The weight balance of this is nearly perfect and feels natural in your hand. The blade on mine was pretty sharp but definitely could use a little more sharpening. Just the sheer quality and craftsmanship of this knife is something to behold. The sheath itself is pretty heavy duty as well. It's hard plastic and has lots of holes/slots to wear your knife anyone you can think of. Only "issue" is with the sheath itself and the locking mechanism used to clip the knife in place. It takes a little while getting used to but certainly not a major issue. The button straps take a little time to stretch out. First time you snap them together takes awhile. Overall, I'm actually bubbling with enthusiasm with this knife. Now I can see why my co-worker praised his Ka-Bar so much. This is pure quality and an excellent knife for pretty anything you can think of. Highly recommend this one.

Impressive knife. Very well made with perfect alignment and build. I've owned the standard version of this knife almost all my life and I wanted to see what the tanto blade model was like and I'm actually more impressed with this version. The balance feels better with the tanto but that is likely only personal preference. Blades are about as personal as you can get so blade design is subjective. I happen to like it. It was a nice touch by Ka-Bar to bevel the spine of the knife so if you desire to add a second edge they've facilitated that for you. Or you can keep the blunt spine edge and use the knife to baton small wood branches. I love the leather handles on the older models of this knife but I have to say the newer synthetic grip is impressive even in wet conditions. I may eventually end up getting a custom sheath, maybe not... but I feel a few words are needed here. The sheath it comes with is well designed with multiple straps/buttons. But you need to know how to use the sheath and why it's designed the way it is. It's designed so your blade will not fall out of your sheath if your knife - or you - fall or somehow the knife gets turned upside down (I believe it's jump qualified for you paranutters who like to jump out of planes in mid flight) while in the sheath. More importantly if - God forbid - someone attempted to grab your knife out of your sheath it won't easily be removed because of the locking design. Nota Bene, you do NOT need to press the little plastic ridges on the sheath which secure the knife in order to remove your knife, as some have whined. Simply grab your knife by the handle as you normally would. This will create the space needed at the handle to remove the knife from the sheath. This is not a poor design. It's a brilliant design if you have the patience to learn why it's made the way it is, it's a safety feature that doesn't slow down your knife draw if - if - you take the time to learn this simple function instead of crying that it's a poor design when really it's user error - a person who doesn't understand what they're holding in their hand or how to properly use it. I have not noticed any dulling of the blade as a result of using the glass reinforced sheath but I suppose if you purposefully rub the sharp edge of your kife against the inside of the sheath as you insert or remove the knife it's possible but again, I haven't experienced this. For this price point this knife is tough to beat.

Superb fighting knives. I now have two KA1245-BRK black Tantos, and one Foliage Green 02-5012 Clip Point. All three eclipse my other fixed blade knives. No, they are not the most expensive, but rather, amongst the best value knives I've owned in my 68 years. Light, yet robust, durable, well balanced, with a great grip/handle that few others can equal. In other words, superb. Fit, finish, design, and manufacture- all are the best quality. A little word to those that don't like the retaining strap that further anchors the knife, going above and over the cross guard... The wonderful folks at KABAR told me that, yes, you can cut it off. HOWEVER, it will void the warranty of the sheath/scabbard. Me? I'll just use some electrician's tap, securing it to the back of the seath/scabbard, and do the same for the snap/attachement that would/does further anchor the knife within the sheath/scabbard. If I need my blades, they'll need fewer steps to draw and use... For quiet carriage, the strap does end any possibility of vibration and noise- at the cost of speed... All in all, price wise, the KABAR can't be beat. Likewise, as an adjunct to my Sig 226 TACOPS pistols, these blades do represent battle proven qualtiy, dependability, and reliability. You won't be disappointed when you need the best, and they're at hand, ready to go... Five out of Five Stars, and no, these are mine, and you can't have them...

Ok, I've been a knife fanatic and collector since I was 8. A lot of stuff that I've bought have fallen apart or not lived up to their name. That is not at all the case with this knife. I've wanted a tanto for a long time, and I did my research in what makes a great knife, and this one pulls everything off! Fresh out of the box, the knife is perfect. At first I thought that the sharpness wasn't sufficient, but after shaving a small patch of hair off my hand, and a deep cut on my thumb, I was so wrong. The knife is sturdy, reliable and sharp as hell! I have already attempted to check its reliablity, I cut through some different materials, and with the softer ones, including a picnic chair, it cut through with hardly even a push of my finger. Not only is the knife badass, the sheath is also kick ass! I holds the knife perfectly with 2 snaps that hold around the handle, as well as across the front of the grip that connects to the sheath itself. And with the bendable notch lock that still keeps it sheathed simply by placing the knife inside it, you can wear this knife anywhere on your person, and unless you want it taken out, it won't unless you want it to. No regrets with this knife. I know this is definitly the most tactical utility and combat knife I have in my collection. Aboslutly satisfied!

I purchased the KA-BAR 2-1245-1 Black Tanto and the Cold Steel Leatherneck Tanto at the same time to compare the two. Through Amazon Prime, the Cold Steel sold for $53.30 and the KA-BAR for $61.67, which I though was a tad overpriced, earning it only 4 stars instead of 5. Since I am not qualified to discuss the relative merits of the steel in both knives, I will stick to what I see. The KA-BAR Black Tanto is blacked out, knife and sheath, except for the sharpened edge on the blade. It has an 8" blade, the rear two inches of which are serrated. The spine measures 5/32" at the hilt, out two inches, where it presents a dull, false edge out to the tanto point. The hilt goes all the way through the handle and measures 13/32" deep and 5/32" wide where it exits the pinned, flat metal butt. The knife has a flat guard measuring 2.5" by 1/8". the handle is of man-made material and is oval, measuring 4 and 5/16" between the guard and butt. The grip surface is grooved at 3/4" intervals and has a rough surface that provides sufficient grip although not as good as the Cold Steel handle. The knife weighs 11.75 ounces without the sheath and measures 12 and 13/16" in length. The sheath appears to have been designed to fit several models of the KA-BAR knife, in that it is not molded to fit the tanto blade. It is made of molded and riveted plastic with integral nylon belt loop and two handle straps, one that snaps across the guard to the front of the hilt and the other snaps just below the butt. This design holds the knife in the sheath more securely than a single strap would but increases the time and effort to withdraw the knife. The sheath does not have MOLLE attachments but there are adequate openings along the edges to allow it to be either laced or strapped into web gear. The knife rattles somewhat in the sheath due in part to the fact that is was not molded specifically for this knife. The sheath has two large protrusions that retain the knife in the sheath once it is fully "snapped" in, and requires that the sheath be pushed back, away from the guard when withdrawing the knife. This design will probably outlast the smaller protrusions inside the Cold Steel sheath but may be a bit more clumsy to withdraw. The process of withdrawing the knife is somewhat stealthy but like the Cold Steel, the KA-BAR makes some noise as the blade comes out of the plastic sheath. The knife and sheath combined weigh 16.8 ounces and measure a long 14.75 inches. The KA-BAR also cut paper out of the box but the edge was just a bit courser than the Cold Steel blade, and will benefit from some medium then fine stone and strop work. As a battle knife, this is also a fine, well-made tool that should last a lifetime with proper care and use. On a personal note, I am 63 years old and I still carry my father's WWII Marine KA-BAR that is over 60 years old. Quality lasts...the knife, not me... The Cold Steel knife is blacked out, knife and sheath, except for the white lettering (which I thought was a tad ill conceived) on the blade, and along the bare, sharpened edge. It has a 7" blade with a spine that measures a full 3/16" thick all the way out to the beveled tanto point. The hilt goes all the way through the handle and measures 13/16" deep and 3/16" wide where it exits the pinned, flat steel butt. The knife has a slightly forward-curved guard measuring 2.5" by 1/8". The handle is of man-made material that is flattened and concave on the sides for a narrower profile than a rounded or oval grip, and measures 4 and 5/16" between the guard and butt. The grip surface is knobbed and ridged and provides a sufficient gripping surface when wet with blood, water, oil, ect. The knife weighs 12.25 ounces without the sheath and is 11.75" in length. The sheath is made for the tanto designed blade and is made of molded and riveted plastic with a screw-on attachment that appears to be able to be removed from the sheath, comprised of a nylon belt loop with hook and loop fastener as well as a snap, and knife handle nylon strap with snap. The sheath does not have MOLLE attachments but there are adequate openings along the edges to allow it to be either laced or strapped into web gear. The knife fits the sheath without rattling and two small raised areas in the sheath allow the knife to be "snapped" in and retained by the guard. Moderate thumb pressure on the sheath allows the knife to be withdrawn quickly and fairly silently although there is some noise created by the knife drawing out against plastic, so it's not 100% stealthy. The knife and sheath combined weight 16.15 ounces and measure 12 and 5/8 inches. The knife cuts paper out of the box but will benefit from additional work on a fine stone and strop. As a battle knife, this is an excellent, well made tool that should last a lifetime with proper care and use. I'm keeping both of these fine knives for my personal use...the KA-BAR in my bug-out bag and the Cold Steel a bit closer to hand. Neither of my son-in-laws will get their hands on them while I live becaues unfortunately, they would not know how to use or care for them. One final note on the matter of using either of these knives as survival gear or as camping tools. As survival knives, absolutely, use them and do what you have to do with them to keep yourself alive if the knife is the only edged tool you have at hand. If the edge and blade suffers as a result, buy yourself another one as a congratulatory gift when you return to civilization, having used one of these great knives to keep you alive. But, Come On Man...If you are going camping and need to chop something to pieces, buy yourself a hatchet for crying out loud! LOL

But this is a pretty nice knife. It seems well made (USA ... not All Ka-Bars are anymore, so ready the country of origin if that's important to you. If not, then just skip that part), very nice black finish on the blade with no visible defects, sharp, well packaged, comes with a nice synthetic sheath. Although I read the specs, it is a bit larger than I expected. Which is fine, but just not a knife to easily carry around for day to day use. It's not a pocket knife. It's built more for durable survival. I know there isn't a lot of instruction on using a knife, but I thought a little more could be for how to use the sheath. It explains how to insert the knife and remove it, but not so much the retention straps (okay, not a lot of brain power required to know that the top snap holds the handle of the knife to the sheath, but it did take me a few seconds to notice how the bottom strap worked. No, not difficult, but if one has never had a knife like this, a little shout out would be nice.) I'm still not sure what the top plastic loop thing does. I assume it's for some sort of belt attachment, but I see no instructions. I tried a YouTube search but found nothing useful to explain it. In the end I would definitely purchase it or another model again.

I knew this was a large knife, but it really feels like a short sword in your hand. It has a lot of heft. It's versatile an strong, but still a $50 knife (when I bought it). The locking feature is simple and effective in the sheath. While this knife is now listed around $90, I wouldn't hesitate to purchase again. The design is purpose built and the finished product is a beautiful design. The accompanying sheath is versatile and useful, not just included as an afterthought. You should never own a tool like this without a sheath, and this is the whole package. I will say I have not subjected this tool to abuse and misuse, so I can't speak to its durability, but it has been a great tool for me camping. If you're concerned about durability, please read more reviews that will speak to that before you purchase.

Es un producto Ka Bar. La calidad de materiales y de fabricación es muy alta. Este cuchillo te da la sensación de que podrá hacer los trabajos más rudos y exigentes que se requieran. El estilo con influencia asiática le proporciona un aspecto intimidante y disuasivo si hablamos de uso de defensa personal. Al comprar productos Ka Bar no te decepcionarás. Lo recomiendo al 100%

Perfect shippment, carefuly packed, arrived in 2 days with Amazon Prime, knife condition is perfect: solid, really sharp and black on the blade as no scatches or any marks on it. I really don't undstand those who are saying that kabar knifes are fragile? I'm a blade and knife collector, I have blade from many part of the world like blade from Gil Hibben and other blade from world reknown best forgerons and KaBar knives are easily in the top 5 of the chart, their blades are one of best seen everywhere, they used quality iron and are manifactured in the U.S. with care for each part of the process. The handle are made and craft using material like leather and kraton that ensure you to have a great take on the knife and that you will not drop it by mistake. I recommand every Kabar knives in this series (US Marine,2211,1245-1 Tanto) I'm convinced that you'll not regret it like me and many others blade collectors

Hab’s für mein Beruf gekauft macht guten Eindruck Versand hat bisschen gedauert aber sonnst alles gut einzigste was mich persönlich bisschen stört das dieses Messer kein Leder griff hat ist aber mein persönliches Ding ansonsten geiles Teil klare kauf Empfehlung wer Zweifel hat soll einfach mal YouTube schauen was des Messer so alles aushält

Otima lamina.

This knife is AMAZING I love it!!! It comes razor sharp out of the box, high quality strong steel and handle material, it is extremely durable and the handle fits very comfortably in my hand. The best part is being a big knife with a quite bit of weight to it feels almost weightless and perfectly balanced to wield in a single hand, and deadly sharp making it extremely lethal, I would take this knife camping, hunting/fishing or hiking as a utility knife and to defend against bears, YES ITS THAT DEADLY. Its weight and perfect balance makes it effortless to chop and also slice, slash, stab and even throw. I cracked a brick in half with the blade of this knife (like I saw in a YouTube video) the edge held, zero damage to the edge, just a few scratches but the edge can still cut clean through paper. KA-BAR never disappoints these are my favourite knives EVER!!! This knife is a BEAST and I recommend this to anyone who loves knives, it will pass your expectations I promise 😉