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There are a huge amount of jobs around the world that require a high-quality knife day in and day out. But there might not be a more high-stakes job that needs a purpose built tool more than law enforcement. When lives are on the line, as a police officer, you need to have a reliable cutting tool that won't fail you when you need it most. But reliability isn’t the only concern for most LEOs around the world. The need for ambidextrous and easy-to-access controls and the ability to cut seat belts and other tough material is a must. In this article, I have compiled a list of a few of the best police knives on the market across multiple categories. Let’s dive in.
Key Takeaways
- The Toor Knives Darter is the Best Fixed Blade Police Knife.
- The Best OTF Police Knife is the Benchmade Shootout.
- The Best Folding Automatic Police Knife is the Benchmade Mini Auto Adamas.
- The Spyderco Matriarch is the Best Manual Folding Police Knife.
- The Benchmade SOCP Dagger fixed blade is my Honorable Mention For Best Fixed Blade Police Knife.
Top Picks for Best Police Knife
- Best Fixed Blade: Toor Knives Darter Fixed Blade
- Best OTF: Benchmade Shootout Drop Point D/A Automatic OTF
- Best Folding Automatic: Benchmade Mini Auto Adamas AXIS Lock Knife Black G-10
- Best Manual Folding: Spyderco Matriarch 2 Knife Emerson Black FRN
- Honorable Mention: Benchmade SOCP Dagger Knife w/ Trainer Blade
Best Fixed Blade: Toor Knives Darter Fixed Blade
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The Darter design is a collaboration between Toor Knives and Travis Haley of Haley Strategic Partners. If you are at all involved in the tactical community, then I'm sure that you have heard about Haley Strategic at one point. Real-world combat experience and premium USA bladesmithing come together to form one of the best fighting knives in the world. The Darter features reverse ground serrations on the spine of the blade which offer great utility for cutting seat belts, rope, or other tough material without taking the space on your plain edge.
The serrations also aid in hand-to-hand combat, allowing you to fight with both sides of the blade. The blade is forged from CPM-S35VN steel, which has superb edge retention, toughness, and corrosion resistance. The handle scales are milled out of G-10 and have a unique texture that makes the knife extremely grippy in all scenarios. The back of the handle features a flat, textured bevel that makes holding the knife in a reverse “hammer fist” style grip extremely comfortable and secure.
I chose the Toor Knives Darter as the Best Fixed Blade Police Knife because it allows for a multitude of mounting options, it’s easy to carry, and it performs extremely well in a wide variety of circumstances. For law enforcement use, a knife is supposed to be carried on the non-dominant side as a backup weapon to help with primary weapon retention in close quarters combat situations. The Toor Knives Darter perfectly fills this role, better than most other knives on the market.
Best OTF: Benchmade Shootout Drop Point D/A Automatic OTF
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Choosing the right knife to carry while on duty is essential. Although there are a few standards to follow, for some, personal preference might be the most important. Maybe you don’t want the added bulk and weight of a bigger fixed blade on your duty belt or plate carrier. An OTF might be your best solution. With an OTF style knife, you get rapid deployment times, convenient one-handed operation, and a seamless carry experience because it’s a pocket knife.
The Benchmade Shootout is my top choice for the Best OTF Police Knife for many reasons. The first is the weight. This knife is extremely lightweight for its size and especially compared to other OTF knives on the market. This is because of the lightweight polymer (FRN) handle material. The second reason that this is the Best Police OTF Knife is the overall ease of use. I’ve carried a ton of different OTF knives over the years, but none of them were as easy to operate as the Shootout.
The spring resistance on the thumb slide is perfectly dialed, so it is very easy to actuate, which is the opposite of most other high end OTFs. Another unique feature of the Shootout is the fully centered blade, which doesn't sound like much, but this little detail makes a huge difference while cutting. Overall, I personally wouldn’t choose a pocket knife as my go-to duty knife, but I am also not a police officer. If I were, I would prefer a fixed blade. The next best thing would be an OTF. And the Shootout is one of the best out there.
Best Folding Automatic: Benchmade Mini Auto Adamas AXIS Lock Knife Black G-10
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This was a difficult choice for me when I was making my list of best law enforcement knives, and more specifically the Best Folding Automatic Police Knives. There are so many fantastic push button automatics out there, that I’m sure many active Law Enforcement Officers carry on a daily basis. But that style of knife just didn't quite fit the requirements I was looking for in a Police Knife.
Like I mentioned earlier, a good Police Knife needs to be fully ambidextrous. So the basic design of a push button automatic just doesn't cut it here. You can flip the pocket clip over to the other side usually, but the push button will always be on the front side of the knife. In bad situations, hitting that little button with your first finger could become problematic.
So I decided on the Mini Auto Adamas, which features Benchmade’s renowned Auto-Axis lock mechanism, which by design is fully ambidextrous and extremely robust. The Adamas is well-known for its crazy durability and great ergonomics, which are important for police use. The blade steel matches perfectly, as CPM CRU-WEAR steel is one of the toughest steels out there and also has quite good edge retention to boot. Overall, the Benchmade Mini Auto Adamas is my top choice for Best Automatic Folding Police Knife.
Best Manual Folding: Spyderco Matriarch 2 Knife Emerson Black FRN
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Although the tactical knife market is dominated by automatic and OTF knives, there are still a lot of people who prefer a solid manual folding knife. There's a few reasons for this. The main one is reliability. When lives are on the line, the last thing you want is a mechanical failure in your backup weapon or life-saving tool. This is where a manual opening folder comes in clutch. There is very little risk for failure when deploying the blade.
However, it is completely dependent on your skill and muscle memory to do it reliably and quickly during stressful situations. Spyderco teamed up with the Emerson to develop one of the most iconic tactical police knives the world has ever seen. The Spyderco Matriarch opens swiftly and reliably by simply just removing the knife from your pocket. The hook on the spine of the blade grabs the edge of your pocket and swings the blade open as you draw it from your pocket. This negates the risk of your fumbling around trying to get the blade open in time and actually might deploy the blade faster than any automatic knife.
The Matriarch’s standout feature is the highly aggressive, fully serrated hawkbill blade, which will leave deep, devastating cuts with ease. Because the blade is fully serrated, it will increase the edge longevity overtime, meaning you don't need to sharpen as frequently. The only downside for me here is the lockback mechanism. Although it is extremely strong, it just seems a little outdated when compared to other more modern options. When closing the knife, you will usually need both hands to do it safely. That isn’t a horrible thing, but it can be a bit annoying for some.
Overall, the Spyderco Matriarch is one of the best Police Knives on the market, especially if you are looking for a manual folding knife instead of an automatic or fixed blade.
Honorable Mention: Benchmade SOCP Dagger Knife w/ Trainer Blade
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I wanted to include an honorable mention on this list because I think that this knife would make for a fantastic police knife in the right hands. But because it lacks some utility compared to the other knives on this list, I had to call it an honorable mention. The Benchmade SOCP Dagger is probably the best fixed blade for police use out there if combat performance is the only reason you are needing it. Because this knife has a double-edged dagger style blade, it automatically makes it less utilitarian than a single edged knife for cutting seat belts, ropes, and other materials in rescue scenarios.
However, the SOCP Dagger makes up for this lack in pure tactical cutting performance. The double edged dagger blade pierces deeply with ease and leaves devastating wounds. Another big upside with the SOCP Dagger is the integrated signet ring on the handle, which makes it extremely easy to index and draw the knife in high-stress situations.
But above all, I feel like the sheath design makes this knife shine. The sheath is designed to be carried in the pocket like a traditional pocket knife, but it sits deep in the pocket, making it extremely easy and comfortable to carry every day. Another bonus is the non-sharpened trainer blade that comes with the knife. This trainer allows you to practice your skills without the risk of accidental injury to yourself or others. This is extremely important for law enforcement, as proper training can mean the difference between life and death.
Overall, because of the somewhat lacking functionality for basic cutting tasks, and the subpar steel choice, I couldn't recommend this knife as the best Fixed Blade Police Knife. But I will call it a close runner-up, especially for those with more experience in hand-to-hand combat and self-defense tactics.
How To Choose The Best Police Knife
Fixed Blade Or Not?
When you are shopping for your next police knife, it is important to consider whether a fixed blade is right for you. There are so many pros to having a fixed blade as part of your kit, and in my opinion these far outweigh the cons. However, if a fixed blade just simply won't work for your duty belt setup, or you might not want to add any more weight to your already heavy loadout, then a folder or OTF might be a better option for you. But with these knives, you do incur the responsibility of knowing their limitations and risks like speed of deployment and durability.
Price Point
As we all know, police officers aren't paid a premium for their much-needed service. Because of this, if you are buying a knife on your own dime, then cost is an important factor to consider. Fixed blade knives will generally be more affordable but do increase when you get into the more premium USA-made category. OTF knives are also generally much more expensive than their folding automatic counterparts. And manual folding knives are pretty much right in the middle depending on the manufacturer. This is up to you to decide, as there are budget and premium options in all these categories. Try to find the best price-to-performance ratio that you can afford from a reputable manufacturer, and you’re bound to find a knife just right for you.
Material Choice
Don’t be fooled into thinking that you need the latest greatest super steel and ultra premium handle materials for a solid police knife. All you really need in the best law enforement knife is something that will stay sharp with minimal maintenance and something that won't break or bend on you. Nobody will notice a difference in edge retention during hand-to-hand combat because this doesn't matter as much as the overall design of the knife blade. When in doubt, just find something in the middle ground, as this is the “sweet spot” for most.
Why Trust Us
I have worked in the knife industry full-time for four years now and have had the opportunity to handle, test, and compare thousands of knives from basically every maker. I have extensive hands-on experience with so many great and not-so-great knives, which has allowed me to develop some pretty well informed preferences and opinions on mankind's oldest tool. On top of this, I grew up with a police officer father, who was dedicated to having only the most important and effective tools possible on his duty belt. I learned a lot about what police officers look for when they are looking to implement new gear into their kit over the years. He even offered a bit of advice and guidance for me while I was writing this article.
FAQ
Question: What knife do most police officers carry?
Answer: From my experience, a large majority of police officers carry an automatic knife of some kind. This varies somewhat between OTF and a traditional folding automatic knife. They prefer something lightweight they can carry in their pocket, rather than adding more gear to their already crowded duty belt.
