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Spartan Blades SHF: USA All the Way

June 27, 2016

For some American knife companies, stateside production is seen as an unreachable ideal. But the crew at Spartan Blades wasn’t willing to look at things that way. “So many people are convinced that to be profitable or successful you have to manufacture overseas, and that just isn’t the truth,” Curtis Iovito, co-owner of Spartan Blades, tells us. For Iovito, the proof is in the pudding – or rather, in the Spartan-Harsey Folder (SHF), the knife that brought home the American-Made Knife of the Year award at Blade Show earlier in the month.

The SHF is a collaboration between Spartan Blades and legendary designer William Harsey Jr. It was intended to be an American-made, high-end folder that took advantage of modern machining technologies and material advances. Harsey made his expectations clear from the get-go: “Bill only had one requirement. ’Make this the best possible folder that you can,’ ” Iovito quips. “You know, he doesn’t ask for much!”

Spartan Blades SHF Blue Anodized Hardware

Iovito believes that the SHF’s simplicity was key to its success. “All too often knives are over-engineered to be the ‘next big thing,’” Iovito says. Harsey envisioned that the knife could fill numerous roles, including EDC or self-defense.

For a knife designed with utilitarian intent, the final product is still an attractive, upscale folder with some distinguishing features. It might not be immediately apparent, but almost all of the hardware is made of titanium. The only steel components are the 4.25″ blade, the stop pin, and the pivot. Iovito said that this kind of construction is not often seen on production knives. “Basically, you’re getting very high-end, custom-quality knife without the incredibly high price point for comparable knives,” says Iovito.

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The SHF is the second collaboration between Harsey and Spartan Blades, and it will not be the last. They are already working on a new fixed blade design to be released in 2017. In the meantime, Iovito tells fans to keep an eye peeled for one-off and custom variations of the SHF in the coming months.

Knife featured in image: Spartan Blades SHF

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