New Designer Brings Big Folder to CRKT’s Forged by War Line

CRKT is adding the Taco Viper to their Forged by War lineup this week. The Taco Viper is a folding knife from first time designer Antonio Rodriguez, son of a longtime Forged by War contributor.

If you’ve followed the other Forged by War releases, you’ll see that the Taco Viper fits right in with previous releases in terms of style and materials. But even in that rough and tumble crowd, this is a big boy, with a blade length of 4.22 inches. The XL blade puts the Taco Viper squarely into a tactical role – a remit further enforced by the drop point blade’s combination edge. Opening is done with a flipper tab accelerated by an assisted opener, and the blade steel is 1.4116 – a low-maintenance, entry level stainless that, on the Taco Viper, comes with a blackwash coating.

Rodriguez gave his first CRKT knife a sinuous handle, with no sharp angles and plenty of hills and dales for users to rest their fingers on. Chunky gear tooth jimping topside gives additional traction for hard use applications; further traction is provided by the snake skin texture cut into the GRN scales. The Taco Viper weighs 5.2 oz., which isn’t terribly much given its size, and it does come with a deep carry pocket clip – but CRKT is also offering a sheath (sold separately) for those who want to carry their knife on a belt or pack.

Antonio Rodriguez is the son of Michael Rodriguez, who has been working with CRKT since 2017. The senior Rodriguez created the Tecpatl fixed blade and the Xolotl folder, both also for the Forged by War line. Like his father, Antonio Rodriguez is a veteran – thus the appearance of his design in the veteran-focused Forged by War project. The Taco Viper gets its name from a running joke in Rodriguez’s former unit, the 82nd Airborne. Evidently some local serpentine wildlife would come hunting for scraps after the 82nd’s Taco Tuesday dinners. All Forged by War knives benefit a charity of the designer’s choice; Antonio Rodriguez chose the Global War on Terrorism Memorial Foundation.

Knife in Featured Image: CRKT Taco Viper

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