I thought I would do a review of the Hisshou from CRKT. Like the Hissatsu it is a James Williams’ creation, founder and CEO of Bugei Trading Company. Part of my reason for reviewing this knife now is to respond to a few reviews posted on Amazon.com about the knife. A couple of the reviewers slammed the knife as being too big, or too curved, or having a number of other professed faults. I bought mine quite a few months ago and I have no complaints. Have I carried it into battle yet? No. Have I carried it on my belt to the mall to show off my manliness? No, I rather think the police would object to that Mall Ninja sort of activity.
Let’s get real, James Williams designed this as a combat knife, pure and simple. For those who bought it to trim your toenails or open your mail I am sorry you foolishly wasted your money. The Hisshou is big, it is a wakizashi sized knife, a veritable short sword. It will carry best when attached to your web gear, back pack, or armor carrier, not dangling off your waist with your pants hanging down ‘round your crotch. Like most edged weapons today it is a weapon of last resort. If your M-4 is dead, your Beretta is out of ammo, and no one is able to bail you out, then this knife is your next go-to-weapon. One reviewer complained about the quality and I have no idea what he was talking about. For a production knife this is a superbly built weapon, and as such you are going to pay a fairly hefty price.
Yes it is more radically curved than many fighting knives. This curvature will, in the right hands, make it a superb slashing knife. Does the curvature prevent launching stabbing attacks with it? NO, it may force you to work on your technique some. Obviously the Hisshou is not a dagger nor a stiletto, but it will stab. Every weapon has its weak and strong points and it is up to the warrior to best determine how to maximize the performance. One of the more exotic fighting knives in my collection, the Kamaitachi, is a Laci Szabo design. When I asked Laci about its proper use he replied that he thought it was self-evident. Translation: you figure it out stupid. Work with it and it will tell you how it likes to be manipulated. Same thing for the Hisshou, work with it some see what it can do.
My very first thought when handling my Hisshou was that a mid-sized version would be absolutely perfect, like Goldilocks, the bears, and the porridge. Well evidently James heard what people were thinking and, along with CRKT, he produced the Shinbu. Am I going to buy a Shinbu? You bet I am, because I have always gravitated toward 9-10 inch blades in fighting knives as being optimum. That does not in any way diminish my opinion of the Hisshou.
As usual I am less enthusiastic over the sheath and its attachment system. Admittedly you can adjust the belt loop up and down or lace the sheath to your web gear but I am not sure what the little strap’s purpose is. It would make more sense to include some molle straps. In its defense the sheath body is well made. The overall length of the Hisshou is 18.5 inches with a blade length of 12 inches. The sori (depth of curve) is almost 7/16 of an inch. The Hisshou is not an EDC knife but in no way do I regret buying this knife. But I think the Shinbu would be a better compromise.
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7 comments:
Great review Dave and it is nice to see you posting again! The Hisshou is definitely an intriguing piece. I totally see where you are coming from, not a practical edc knife at all, and it appears to have it's strengths and weaknesses as a weapon. Really nice knife and I look forward to reading your thoughts on the Shinbu.
Thanks for the great review, Dave. I agree that the Shinbu is a better size.
Your comments though do make we wonder whether it's worthwhile (apart from it's sheer awesomeness) to have such a knife. As a civilian, it seems like a "societal breakdown" knife, not likely to ever be carried (and one would hope less likely to ever be used!!). Also, as you say, kind of like the backup weapon to the handgun.
Makes we wish Williams would do a further scaled down version in the 5.5" - 6" range, which would make it more practical for EDC, or almost EDC.
Jeff, well the Hissatsu is the scaled down, original recipe, of the shinbu and Hisshou. I am lucky to own one of the first Hissatsu sold by James Williams under the name Ancient Edge and it is a superior knife to the CRKT version. BUT it was bloody expensive. Thats the trade off.
Hmm, good response, Dave. I've seen the CRKT Hissatsu and conveniently forgot about it. My feeling probably doesn't have any grounding in anything factual or practical, but I just don't like the looks or feel of skinny or "needle" knives. They seem to be designed for those at "termination with extreme prejudice" situations and for better or worse I see the knife hitched to my personality and personal preferences principally as a defensive weapon. I'm sure the Hissatsu has its place in the knife universe and can be awesome for its purposes, but I like the cutters with a bigger belly, which is why I like Bradburn's style japanese knives. I tried to get Gary to make me a 5.5" shobu, he said yes but for reasons unclear/unknown to me, it's been a year and his heart is clearly not in it. I think I will succumb to getting the Shinbu. It's more affordable than the Lamey bowies, although the latter would be more useful as an all-around hiking, camping, in-the-woods knife with major personal protection benefits. I really wish my budget wasn't so tight but c'est la vie.
the best price I have found on the shinbu is actually thru amazon.com. Goodluck.
Thanks Dave,
After looking into it more, I think I will get a Spartan Ares. About the same price I would have paid for a Bradburn knife, and it's made in the US. After that I'll save pennies for a Lamey.
Love your knife reviews and general comments on self-defense and other matters, your blog is a real resource.
The guys at Spartan Blades are super and make an excellent product. Tell them I said hello. They also sell my knife defense book. "The rhythm of one"
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