XSF, Yes or No?

XSF, Yes or No?

Not long after starting the Chisel Tip project the Beshara XSF-1 knife showed up on the market. Well that was disappointing because here I was working on a new concept and this knife threatened to preempt it. I waffled back and forth like a politician, should I buy an XSF-1 or not. The Titanium ones looked very cool but the price was a bit staggering. As time passed I just forgot about it.

One day I was cruising Ebay and came across a used, like-new, Beshara dagger complete with the original box. The opening bid was reasonable and I bid that, plus a small margin. At auctions end I was the winning bidder. As luck would have it the knife showed up while I was out of town on business.

Conceptually, the knife is extremely interesting! One of the first things I noticed is that it is made in the USA. The workmanship is very good, and other than the typical modern tricked-out sheath I am generally impressed. Remember though what I always say. A knife has only two functions, to cut and to stab. If it can’t perform those two functions it serves as a very short, ineffective club.

Well, this particular XSF-1 does not XCL when it comes to cutting. Despite the brightly honed edges it refuses to even cut post-it notepaper. No, I am not surprised, because the blade bevels are way too steep to permit the forming of any sort of edge. I hope that it will perform better at stabbing. Because of the thickness of the blade, and the fact that only half as much material is ground away during the shaping process, the knife ends up blade heavy, but incredibly strong.

If you were to purchase an XSF-1 knife with the intent of using it in UDT or EOD work I am confident it would be more than suitable for any prying tasks. The short serration on the model I bought also cut somewhat effectively. For any serious cutting chores like rope etc., I would suggest buying the version with the four inch serration. To be honest, our experimental Chisel Tip F/S knives perform much better at cutting and stabbing. If you are looking for a readily available, reasonably priced, multi-functional, serious combat dagger then I would suggest looking into an Ek Knife. In fact I have a new Ek F/S model on order right now and when it arrives it will be the next knife reviewed. Over the years I have purchased many Ek Knives and I have never been disappointed. I am not saying that I am disappointed in the XSF-1, nor am I surprised. It is what it is, and what it is not, is a fighting knife.