Great review. The modern British army has/had, in effect, five knives. (1). The Jack Knife. So called because it was originally issued to the Royal Navy (sailors being referred to as 'Jack Tars.' Tar, because they used to literally tar the sheets (sail ropes), in order to preserve them). This is also why the knife has a sheepsfoot blade (for cutting rope) and, in some variants, a marlin spike for splicing rope so as to make a loop in the end so as to pass through another rope. These were first issued to Tommy's prior to the First World War. The rope functions might appear strange to us for soldiers, but you have to remember that most supplies were horse drawn, and that meant ropes were involved. The Jack Knife was issued for decades (usually withou the marlin spike but with a can opener and a screwdriver, which also came with the Marlin Spike version). It is no longer issued, I believe, but Sheffield makers still produce them in rather soft stainless steel. Far better to get a pre-60s version in 1095 carbon steel. This is a general purpose pen knife. (2). The Fairburn-Sykes fighting knife. Originally issued to the All Arms Commando Units. Still symbol of the Royal Marine Commandos and, I believe, the Amy equivalent. Although limited in use (ie short of letter opening and killing, not much practical use), this is still made in Sheffield from 1095 Carbon Steel. A fantastic bit of kit. Issued still? Possibly selected units. (3). MOD Survival Knife. Based on a traditionally made Sheffield knife that was commonly used on the American frontier, this is a heavy duty general purpose utility knife. If you are fighting with this, then things must be bloody desperate. Often carried in the van rather than on the person. Read recently about an SBS soldier using one to unearth turf so as to make a hide. Great bit of kit, if heavy. Heavy, but squady-proof. 1095 Carbon Steel by J. Adams of Sheffield. Issued to selected units on request. (4). Leatherman multitool. ST 300 (I think). Issued to selected units and can be obtained on request. (5). SA80 Bayonet. Thanks again for your great review.
People who have served in the British Forces refer to their experience of the Sheffield MOD knife (as it’s now known), often saying it was not personal issue, and only part of a vehicle’s tool kit. As a Royal Marine during the 70s and 80s, we knew this knife as an Arctic Survival Knife. It was personal issue, and we carried it in the field while in Northern Norway
Donnie B All Day. Likewise. I still have my Arctic Survival Knife, along with a few other items I forgot to hand in! It lives in my car boot (Trunk) these days. Hat off to your presentations. I’ve purchased a Case XX Bowie on the strength of your review. That will live in my back pack when hiking. UK law won’t allow wearing it.
Awesome review Donnie. Great knives too by the way! This is why I collect knives & I'm closer to animals than I am to people. They complain about everything. I've walked up to bears, cougars, and taken care of hawks and other injured wild animals. Right now I have a crow with an injured wing, and while he's more intelligent than most people in my neighborhood, he doesn't complain. We can learn a thing or two from wild animals. That MoD knife is a Beast, glad I got mine yesterday! I love your philosophy on editing videos, I highly agree with that. But I think that's why my channel doesn't take off, I guess people like fake rather than to speak the truth and what's on their mind without rehearsing it. Sad days we live in. I sure as shit aint gonna conform.
Donnie, if you ever come across the Tops Firestrike 45, could you get some info on the little hole where your thumb rest would go? The purpose of it. As well as let's see the wire cutter in action on the top part of the blade.
the hole is a lashing point. I demonstrated the wire cutter with a Rambo knife. Same type of thing. Its good for cheap wire fencing or aluminum fencing.
Hey man a commenter on another MOD knife video mentioned they reached out to the J Adams company and asked what the steel used in these knives was. He said it was 1080 AISI Carbon steel. Looked up the steel, and it is a softer steel, but extremely strong tensile strength. Perfect properties for a sharpened prybar! 👍 thick with two C’s. Lol anyways just found out about the steel the other day, just thought I would share that with you.
I've owned the British MOD knife for about 30 years, yes it's as rough as sandpaper toilet paper from the factory, but with a little bit of attention the blade can be made shaving sharp, the knife is virtually indestructable, and it will be passed down to my grand kids, and their grand kids, I feel like etching the blade with when I bought it so my future offspring can appreciate it.
Hi, Donnie B All Day greetings from Arbroath,Scotland ,good review but I wish to clarify some points.Firstly our troops do not routinely carry any blade at all, and this particular one labelled SAS Survival knife has been issued in small batches to the Engineers Corps. This does not detract from its good points. It can be used to hammer ,it has decent weight for chopping however, the blade BENEFITS from a higher custom grind purely for efficiency mines reworked and is now part sabre grind with a very small micro bevel it now cuts more efficiently than standard thanks to Artisan Custom knife maker Scott at Wessex Blades,my knife has been pimped big time.I do not buy American blades any more because shipping and taxes make them all really expensive now ,the sheath on that blade is pants bin it,we call them cheap and nasty but hey at the time they were produced you accepted what you have don,t bite the hand that feeds you ,have a good day oh boy the Topps blde looks fantastic, Lol at 16:33 some one shooting at you ? ,thank you.
Thanks for the info drop. I can always appreciate real knife news. And the fact that I'm part Scott means we can be cousins, so I can blame your intelligence on the blood line.
@@DonnieBAllDay Ha we could be,lol, who knows ?,here in the UK we have strict laws re- blades it goes something like this. Nothing over 2.5 inches is allowed, unless you have good reason to carry e.g. a chef ,fisherman ,dramatic reenactment shows for a film or public viewing etc.Now here's the kicker, no open carry at all, no switchblades ,no lock blades ,no carrying on view or in a public place,the main drag /boulevard a no no. If that's not bad enough, the Government is pushing legislation to ban online sales of blades as well.So the solution is to hide them in a back pack as you go deep into the dark woods do your thing hike/ camp, cook on your barbecue, chop your steak, and hope some bad ass Policeman does not throw the book at you if caught .It is not even worth having a blade on a belt hidden out of sight,that's CONCEALMENT, you get staked to the yard floor and get canned. I have a vacation to Atlanta ,Georgia soon and will stock up on as much as is reasonable, Cold Steel ,Topps, Buck Knives, here I come....." FREEDOM never sounded so good"
Right. A combat survival tool. This wasn't deigned for the Boy Scouts, but for the military. Combat survival is different than deep woods survival. If it were that alone, the grind would be different.
@@DonnieBAllDay It's not usually issued (soldiers have the rather piffy SA80 bayonet) but i think the Royal Marines and possibly paras are or were given it during training.
@@gyrovague I know it's not issued to all, but definitely an issued blade. I served in Afghanistan along with British soldiers. They didn't carry this.
@@DonnieBAllDay You never saw it over there? I may buy one to reshape.. there's a guy: Wessex Blades i think who does beautiful work and customization on them (vids on YT) but his order book always full. Glad you like blade .. it's a bit of an Excalibur in some ways but visually reminds me of some ancient short swords.
The British unit I knew didn't have belt knives. They may have kept them on packs or gear, but they din't wear one 24/7. My belt was always carrying my issued Gerber LMF Infantry II so I always look to see what the other guys are carrying.
Good review. However the MOD8 was designed for survival behind the lines,which is why they are given to pilots. It was never intended for fighting, which is why it is issued only when people do the survival course.
Donnie B All Day - if you’re a pilot you’re supposed to lay low and wait for rescue, or get back to home lines. If someone wanted a fighting knife on a raid then they would use a Fairburn-Sykes (or more likely a pp modern fighting knife). It’s not that the Mk8 wouldn’t be used as a weapon, it’s just the design brief was basically for an unbreakable knife for building a shelter, chopping fire wood etc. I assure you there’s no lack of fighting spirit in Brit military.
I served with the British in Afghanistan. Great guys. Mike Tyson said it best, everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth. Sure sounds nice to lay low, but the enemy isn't always so convenient. A sharpened stick can obviously be used as a weapon, so the primary use doesn't have to be, but it's made better to be a fighter than as a survival knife. With such a minimal grind to the edge, it's great for three things, trenching, stabbing and splitting. It's not made as a rope cutter and while it can chop, it's not a chopper. I wouldn't want it in my ribs though.
Donnie B All Day - I wouldn’t say it about being nice. If you are an Apache or fast jet pilot you cost millions and millions to train, your combat effectiveness relies upon getting back home. As I said they are issued as part of survival training, for use as a tool. I’m sure they can and have been used as weapons, but the Khukri is a much better weapon (and survival tool) and is carried more widely than the Mk8 by the Brits as I’m sure you’ve noticed. The MOD are not going to issue Khukris as pilots’ emergency kit though :-( PS - thanks for your your service 👍
@@NapoleonGelignite They should give the pilots Roman Gladius'. Not convenient, but would look bad ass. I didn't see anyone carrying any Khukris, but I really don't remember seeing them with any blades.
Someone in the background just coped three rounds in the chest, hey Donnie B my Brother from across the pond have you ever done a Sheffield Israeli Commando knife review 👍🏻🇦🇺
@@DonnieBAllDay Yeah, unfortunatelly they don't anymore ...😟 Since Lynn sold that company is pretty obvious that we don't have to expect too much in the future ... Too bad ... Actually I was saying a bad / sad joke ... Otherwise they DID make a lot of very cool knives - not available anymore ... Trailmaster / Recon Scout /Gurkha Kukri and few others ...
@@DonnieBAllDay Actually - in spite of their "pricey products" label, it seems that Tops remains (and maybe Condor) one of the few companies that still make good value products at a relatively decent prices ... Yeah, Tops is not cheap but not insanely pricey either - and since they are making almost "custom" knives on US territory probably the prices are pretty right ... And the quality is above many other manufacturers .... I've seen Schrades "shredded into pieces" - especially on those knives made from "wonder" chinese steel ...
That so called mod knife is not for combat. It is supposed to be for survival. I have never seen one in the army. My understanding is that this firm put them forward to get a contract with the uk forces. Combat knife it is not. Ballocks!
I talked to a bloke who had an issued one. Not sure if it was paratroopers or not, but survival means to survive all situations. Dig a toiled, open a can, split a log and defend against attackers. It's not a shovel, but you can trench with it. It's not a Katana, but you can fight with it.
@@DonnieBAllDay Apparently they are issued or at least used during arctic/winter training and exercises in Norway but i think soldiers are only initially issued with the SA80 bayonet (repro - www.firestormkit.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=2869). I'm not sure pilots get anything other than the aircrew knife which is basically a curved parachute cutting knife. Probably a multitool goes in their survival kit.
Great review.
The modern British army has/had, in effect, five knives.
(1). The Jack Knife. So called because it was originally issued to the Royal Navy (sailors being referred to as 'Jack Tars.' Tar, because they used to literally tar the sheets (sail ropes), in order to preserve them). This is also why the knife has a sheepsfoot blade (for cutting rope) and, in some variants, a marlin spike for splicing rope so as to make a loop in the end so as to pass through another rope.
These were first issued to Tommy's prior to the First World War. The rope functions might appear strange to us for soldiers, but you have to remember that most supplies were horse drawn, and that meant ropes were involved.
The Jack Knife was issued for decades (usually withou the marlin spike but with a can opener and a screwdriver, which also came with the Marlin Spike version). It is no longer issued, I believe, but Sheffield makers still produce them in rather soft stainless steel. Far better to get a pre-60s version in 1095 carbon steel.
This is a general purpose pen knife.
(2). The Fairburn-Sykes fighting knife. Originally issued to the All Arms Commando Units. Still symbol of the Royal Marine Commandos and, I believe, the Amy equivalent.
Although limited in use (ie short of letter opening and killing, not much practical use), this is still made in Sheffield from 1095 Carbon Steel. A fantastic bit of kit.
Issued still? Possibly selected units.
(3). MOD Survival Knife.
Based on a traditionally made Sheffield knife that was commonly used on the American frontier, this is a heavy duty general purpose utility knife. If you are fighting with this, then things must be bloody desperate.
Often carried in the van rather than on the person. Read recently about an SBS soldier using one to unearth turf so as to make a hide.
Great bit of kit, if heavy. Heavy, but squady-proof.
1095 Carbon Steel by J. Adams of Sheffield. Issued to selected units on request.
(4). Leatherman multitool.
ST 300 (I think). Issued to selected units and can be obtained on request.
(5). SA80 Bayonet.
Thanks again for your great review.
Great info
People who have served in the British Forces refer to their experience of the Sheffield MOD knife (as it’s now known), often saying it was not personal issue, and only part of a vehicle’s tool kit.
As a Royal Marine during the 70s and 80s, we knew this knife as an Arctic Survival Knife. It was personal issue, and we carried it in the field while in Northern Norway
From one Vet to another, thank you for your service my brother
Donnie B All Day. Likewise.
I still have my Arctic Survival Knife, along with a few other items I forgot to hand in! It lives in my car boot (Trunk) these days.
Hat off to your presentations. I’ve purchased a Case XX Bowie on the strength of your review. That will live in my back pack when hiking. UK law won’t allow wearing it.
@@DD-lc5ts That Case XX is no joke mate! It's a beast
Gun shots ring out, police and firefighters/trucks screaming 😱 in the background .... doesn’t miss a beat for the video.... Fucking mint !!!
Well... I caused it all. Going out with a bang! Haha
Awesome review Donnie. Great knives too by the way! This is why I collect knives & I'm closer to animals than I am to people. They complain about everything. I've walked up to bears, cougars, and taken care of hawks and other injured wild animals. Right now I have a crow with an injured wing, and while he's more intelligent than most people in my neighborhood, he doesn't complain. We can learn a thing or two from wild animals. That MoD knife is a Beast, glad I got mine yesterday! I love your philosophy on editing videos, I highly agree with that. But I think that's why my channel doesn't take off, I guess people like fake rather than to speak the truth and what's on their mind without rehearsing it. Sad days we live in. I sure as shit aint gonna conform.
I'm with you. We're the animal rescuers here. From racoons to rabbits and birds to snakes
@@DonnieBAllDay Nice! My hat is off to you. We are the stewards of God's creations, and defend those who who cannot defend themselves.
The MOD is available from Night Galaxy Inc. It is the survival knife to buy.
I love it
Donnie, if you ever come across the Tops Firestrike 45, could you get some info on the little hole where your thumb rest would go? The purpose of it. As well as let's see the wire cutter in action on the top part of the blade.
the hole is a lashing point. I demonstrated the wire cutter with a Rambo knife. Same type of thing. Its good for cheap wire fencing or aluminum fencing.
Did someone get shot...we heard the gun shots and then the Police sirens..
no. two separate things
Hey man a commenter on another MOD knife video mentioned they reached out to the J Adams company and asked what the steel used in these knives was. He said it was 1080 AISI Carbon steel. Looked up the steel, and it is a softer steel, but extremely strong tensile strength. Perfect properties for a sharpened prybar! 👍 thick with two C’s. Lol anyways just found out about the steel the other day, just thought I would share that with you.
Thanks. I never heard that either
I love how no one comments on the gunshots followed by police sirens, lol.
Funny as hell! Haha! The shots were from the Veterans Cemetery and the sirens thanks to 6 Flags. More fun I guess
I've owned the British MOD knife for about 30 years, yes it's as rough as sandpaper toilet paper from the factory, but with a little bit of attention the blade can be made shaving sharp, the knife is virtually indestructable, and it will be passed down to my grand kids, and their grand kids, I feel like etching the blade with when I bought it so my future offspring can appreciate it.
I love it so much as is, I never concerned myself with reprofiling the edge
Man, I like your knives! Just got a couple Tops myself... Idk why I waited so long!
They have the best differential heat treat in the business
Hi, Donnie B All Day greetings from Arbroath,Scotland ,good review but I wish to clarify some points.Firstly our troops do not routinely carry any blade at all, and this particular one labelled SAS Survival knife has been issued in small batches to the Engineers Corps. This does not detract from its good points. It can be used to hammer ,it has decent weight for chopping however, the blade BENEFITS from a higher custom grind purely for efficiency mines reworked and is now part sabre grind with a very small micro bevel it now cuts more efficiently than standard thanks to Artisan Custom knife maker Scott at Wessex Blades,my knife has been pimped big time.I do not buy American blades any more because shipping and taxes make them all really expensive now ,the sheath on that blade is pants bin it,we call them cheap and nasty but hey at the time they were produced you accepted what you have don,t bite the hand that feeds you ,have a good day oh boy the Topps blde looks fantastic, Lol at 16:33 some one shooting at you ? ,thank you.
Thanks for the info drop. I can always appreciate real knife news. And the fact that I'm part Scott means we can be cousins, so I can blame your intelligence on the blood line.
@@DonnieBAllDay Ha we could be,lol, who knows ?,here in the UK we have strict laws re- blades it goes something like this. Nothing over 2.5 inches is allowed, unless you have good reason to carry e.g. a chef ,fisherman ,dramatic reenactment shows for a film or public viewing etc.Now here's the kicker, no open carry at all, no switchblades ,no lock blades ,no carrying on view or in a public place,the main drag /boulevard a no no. If that's not bad enough, the Government is pushing legislation to ban online sales of blades as well.So the solution is to hide them in a back pack as you go deep into the dark woods do your thing hike/ camp, cook on your barbecue, chop your steak, and hope some bad ass Policeman does not throw the book at you if caught .It is not even worth having a blade on a belt hidden out of sight,that's CONCEALMENT, you get staked to the yard floor and get canned. I have a vacation to Atlanta ,Georgia soon and will stock up on as much as is reasonable, Cold Steel ,Topps, Buck Knives, here I come....." FREEDOM never sounded so good"
@@richardallan455 Liberal laws are freedom killers!
The MOD isn't a fighting knife it's a survival tool
Right. A combat survival tool. This wasn't deigned for the Boy Scouts, but for the military. Combat survival is different than deep woods survival. If it were that alone, the grind would be different.
@@DonnieBAllDay It's not usually issued (soldiers have the rather piffy SA80 bayonet) but i think the Royal Marines and possibly paras are or were given it during training.
@@gyrovague I know it's not issued to all, but definitely an issued blade. I served in Afghanistan along with British soldiers. They didn't carry this.
@@DonnieBAllDay You never saw it over there? I may buy one to reshape.. there's a guy: Wessex Blades i think who does beautiful work and customization on them (vids on YT) but his order book always full. Glad you like blade .. it's a bit of an Excalibur in some ways but visually reminds me of some ancient short swords.
The British unit I knew didn't have belt knives. They may have kept them on packs or gear, but they din't wear one 24/7. My belt was always carrying my issued Gerber LMF Infantry II so I always look to see what the other guys are carrying.
He he, the Tops, seen from the side, almost looks like the profile of the Spitfire plane (yeah, the famous one from ww2) 😊
I can see that
Good review. However the MOD8 was designed for survival behind the lines,which is why they are given to pilots. It was never intended for fighting, which is why it is issued only when people do the survival course.
Survival behind the lines, but not to fight with? I guess my survival training against enemy combatants is a little different than the Brits.
Donnie B All Day - if you’re a pilot you’re supposed to lay low and wait for rescue, or get back to home lines. If someone wanted a fighting knife on a raid then they would use a Fairburn-Sykes (or more likely a pp modern fighting knife).
It’s not that the Mk8 wouldn’t be used as a weapon, it’s just the design brief was basically for an unbreakable knife for building a shelter, chopping fire wood etc.
I assure you there’s no lack of fighting spirit in Brit military.
I served with the British in Afghanistan. Great guys. Mike Tyson said it best, everyone has a plan until they get punched in the mouth. Sure sounds nice to lay low, but the enemy isn't always so convenient. A sharpened stick can obviously be used as a weapon, so the primary use doesn't have to be, but it's made better to be a fighter than as a survival knife. With such a minimal grind to the edge, it's great for three things, trenching, stabbing and splitting. It's not made as a rope cutter and while it can chop, it's not a chopper. I wouldn't want it in my ribs though.
Donnie B All Day - I wouldn’t say it about being nice. If you are an Apache or fast jet pilot you cost millions and millions to train, your combat effectiveness relies upon getting back home. As I said they are issued as part of survival training, for use as a tool. I’m sure they can and have been used as weapons, but the Khukri is a much better weapon (and survival tool) and is carried more widely than the Mk8 by the Brits as I’m sure you’ve noticed. The MOD are not going to issue Khukris as pilots’ emergency kit though :-(
PS - thanks for your your service 👍
@@NapoleonGelignite They should give the pilots Roman Gladius'. Not convenient, but would look bad ass. I didn't see anyone carrying any Khukris, but I really don't remember seeing them with any blades.
Donnie...which would you consider more badass knife...GI tanto or the Sheffield Mod?
Sheffield hands down
@@DonnieBAllDay thanks...there is wood scales version. Is the black scale version better?
@@lishandealwis427 doesn't matter but prefer them
@@DonnieBAllDay that's good. Want to buy one...was not sure which one would have a better grip.the black would feel better I guess...
@@DonnieBAllDay still cant decide between cold steel survivalist and Sheffield.....
Just got a MOD today. It's a beast.
I love it
Someone in the background just coped three rounds in the chest, hey Donnie B my Brother from across the pond have you ever done a Sheffield Israeli Commando knife review 👍🏻🇦🇺
No bro. It sounds like something I should do though.
Donnie B All Day yeah they look and feel good buddy 👍🏻🇦🇺
Ha ha : all that cold steel will touch your hands ... Or should I write "Cold Steel" ?! 🤔
CS doesn't make one this cool
@@DonnieBAllDay Yeah, unfortunatelly they don't anymore ...😟
Since Lynn sold that company is pretty obvious that we don't have to expect too much in the future ...
Too bad ...
Actually I was saying a bad / sad joke ...
Otherwise they DID make a lot of very cool knives - not available anymore ... Trailmaster / Recon Scout /Gurkha Kukri and few others ...
@@DonnieBAllDay Actually - in spite of their "pricey products" label, it seems that Tops remains (and maybe Condor) one of the few companies that still make good value products at a relatively decent prices ... Yeah, Tops is not cheap but not insanely pricey either - and since they are making almost "custom" knives on US territory probably the prices are pretty right ... And the quality is above many other manufacturers ....
I've seen Schrades "shredded into pieces" - especially on those knives made from "wonder" chinese steel ...
@@DonnieBAllDay I'll buy one of CS WW Bowie while is still available ...
I don't know if it will not be discontinued in the near future ...
@@lucianbrad4291 CS can be very over priced depending on the model
That so called mod knife is not for combat. It is supposed to be for survival. I have never seen one in the army. My understanding is that this firm put them forward to get a contract with the uk forces. Combat knife it is not. Ballocks!
I talked to a bloke who had an issued one. Not sure if it was paratroopers or not, but survival means to survive all situations. Dig a toiled, open a can, split a log and defend against attackers. It's not a shovel, but you can trench with it. It's not a Katana, but you can fight with it.
@@DonnieBAllDay Apparently they are issued or at least used during arctic/winter training and exercises in Norway but i think soldiers are only initially issued with the SA80 bayonet (repro - www.firestormkit.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=2869). I'm not sure pilots get anything other than the aircrew knife which is basically a curved parachute cutting knife. Probably a multitool goes in their survival kit.
Gary Sheffield has five kids hate the Yankees
DJ BILLY B old school vinyl mix mix i have 1 and hate the yankees.