Home / Knives / Austin McGlaun Offers Up All-Purpose Field Tool in Latest CRKT Forged by War Collab

Austin McGlaun Offers Up All-Purpose Field Tool in Latest CRKT Forged by War Collab

March 20, 2017

Austin McGlaun is following up his award-winning Clever Girl with another CRKT Forged By War fixed blade, the Rakkasan. Informed by his experiences as a former cop and soldier in Iraq, McGlaun says he designed the Rakkasan to be a high performance, low-maintenance hard use tool for warriors.

The Clever Girl was single-mindedly made to be a weapon, but McGlaun had different objectives for the Rakkasan. “Mainly the desire was to create a tool that was more multifunctional,” he says. As McGlaun told us in our first installment of Knife Cops, first responders use their knives in a variety of trying ways, from cutting seatbelts to prying open windows. Also a US Army veteran, McGlaun says soldiers have similarly diverse and demanding requirements: “I remember busting parts boxes open with my knife, cutting flex cuffs off of detainees, busting ammo crates and opening MRE boxes. You know, Army stuff.”

The Rakkasan’s 4.875” blade is a stylized clip point designed for wide functionality. “It has a fine point for detail work, a curve for slashing and slicing, and the recurve for chopping power,” McGlaun explains. Sharpening a recurve can be cumbersome but McGlaun says the added longevity in the field is worth it. “The biggest bonus is how much extra chopping power that shape offers. Especially once the edge starts to dull.” Sharpening, whether done in the field or back at base, is made easier thanks to relatively soft and durable SK5 carbon steel.

During his three years overseas McGlaun learned that it doesn’t hurt for soldiers to have something formidable on their hip either. “In Iraq I wanted a useful tool that would also get noticed,” McGlaun says. “Persian culture is a blade culture. You get more respect by a knife or hawk than with a belt fed weapon.”

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Like with the Clever Girl, McGlaun payed special attention to ergonomics which he says can make or break a knife design entirely. “If something has hot spots and causes blisters when used then it’s not a good tool.” The Rakkasan has an oversized 5.5” handle and medium-textured G-10 scales with a serpentine pattern cut into them. According to McGlaun, these elements combine to create a grip that is comfortable and intuitive. “The knife teaches you how to hold and use it,” he says.

10% of Rakkasan profits go to benefit the Green Beret Foundation, a charity that helps Veterans, including McGlaun’s own friends.

Knife featured in image: CRKT Rakkasan

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