Viper Fighting and Survival Knife (VFS Mark 2)

Viper; the Fighting and Survival Knife  (VFS Mark 2 )

::About Kevin Kraus:: The Designer

A Louisiana man with enough trouble under his belt to have an idea what he wants in a tool when being out in the woods or the concrete jungle that is New Orleans.  An avid adventurer, I see what some may call "trouble" as simply as my next adventure, and with several years of various martial arts and weaponry in my background, I found one common factor between wilderness/disaster survival and fighting to survive: not having the right tools makes life a lot harder.  And thus I began looking to design a tool that was as multipurpose as possible, as well as my original desire of adding visual appeal to the tool as well.

And the easiest tool to make look good AND be useful were knives.

Viper Knife Profile

The world was filled with knives that either were a tool, or a work of art. Seeing artistically inclined knives in many forms of media, I took inspiration from some different tropes of blade profiles, handle shapes, and looked to mesh my favorites into something that was more than just for looks, but for actual use. The prototype of these knives was first tested in woods and with input from friends within the Krav Maga martial art, with duly noted critique from them and my own experiences with the first iteration.

And that's where my friends from KHHI came in, collabing on the ergonomic aspects of the original knife. Removing the frivolous aspects and taking the suggestions of the company, I settled on a mix of Persian, tactical, fantasy and the streamlined allure of a bejeweled snake: full of subliminal elegance, but still very much a refined creature with purpose in its design. With KHHI’s input, they helped me create the second iteration: Viper Fighting and Survival (VFS) Knife Mark 2.

::The Blade::
Taking a nod from the khukuri, the front belly and forward curve allows it to be a chopping tool, but despite the thickness, still have a serviceable edge and piercing ability. The belly is subtle enough for batoning, and the finger choil on the front is useful to choke up on it for finer tasks. At roughly a .25 inch thickness, the knife is in the sweet spot for chopping, and can take a razor edge if desired. The spine section before the back edge made batoning feasible, yet let me keep the desired tip shape.

The overall tip shape I took inspiration from various edged profiles and thrusting styles, taking nods from Persian and Italian knives and tools such as a “smatchet” (a chopping weapon with a point used by the OSS during world war 2 survival), allowing the aforementioned chopping ability...but leaving one with a devastating point that is reinforced by the beefy nature of the knife, but will still sink its fangs deep into what you strike at, in the woods or in battle.    

::The Notch and the Pommel::
The notch on back is useful for multiple reasons, ranging from a lashing point for lanyard when making a spear with it...to opening cans with ease when struck spine side downward into the edge of the can like a can opener. It also helped lift pots from a fire by their handle, a nod to various knife designs with that functionality designed by late survivalist Ron Hood.

The pommel/tangs butt was designed to help break glass and other material. Living in Louisiana, I drive across the world's longest bridge on Lake Pontchartrain, where accidents involving a car going over the rails and into water were common enough for me to want a knife that will also get you out quickly. In the combat sense, the pommel would absolutely deliver a devastating blow to the head.

The pommel also has a lanyard hole, allowing one to string paracord through it or attach accessories.

::The Handle::
The grip was the biggest discomfort in my old designs, where the desire to have more visual appeal over function was found foolish. In talks with KHHI, the Mark 2 (the version seen here) allowed for a comfortable grip no matter the position in hand, and made the pommel and tip easy to use without strain.

In hand, it is very similar to the military knives such as the famous USMC combat knife, with a flare out from bth tang and Rosewood grips to provide the needed methods to keep one's hand from slipping, especially on the devastating downward stab. 

The grips, carved with grooves like most military knives, wears authentic rosewood slabs, with removable screws in case one wanted to replace the grips with a paracord wrap or etc.

::The Sheath:: IT IS OPTIONAL (Please select KYDEX sheath option as per your need; Price changes)
The sheath and it’s design allows one to wear it traditionally, or across the small of back with some adjustment, using the lanyard holes all around the edge of the kydex.  Utilizing a form-fitting mold, it also has a leather retaining strap with button-clasps to keep it even more secured. The lanyard loops allow one to attach any other tools you would like, including smaller blades, firesteel, or lanyard.   

SPECS::

Overall Length: roughly 15"
Blade Length (from rosewood slab to tip): roughly 8.75" / 8" edge ONLY
Handle Length : roughly 6.25"
Thickness: roughly 0.25"
Feature/ profile: Full tang, slab handled
Handle: Authentic Rosewood, with rivets

:: Like a Fang! ::

To this end, survival knives and fighting knives share one purpose: to live by any means. And the Viper Fighting and Survival (VFS) knife Mark 2 is built to be both tool and titan wherever trouble may roam. From the murky swamps and forests of Louisiana, to the shores of the Gulf of Mexico’s abandoned oil rigs, and the more adventurous parts of New Orleans so far: enjoy an incarnation of a knife that is hopefully one of many of a long line of work/war horses I bring to you through my adventures across the countryside and urban fiascos, brought to you by the fires of the revered KHHI bladesmiths.

​Released Date : 04 september 2018