Gerber Hinderer rescue knife

May 6th, 2006

Gerber Legendary Blades has developed a new fire/rescue folding knife. The Hinderer is made by knifesmith, and trained fireman, Rick Hinderer. Here is his knife, shown with the Hobbit Hole’s standard, the Camillus Rescue Heat.

The knife is very solid, with sturdy stainless steel liners. The rectangular hole on the clip side is a wrench that fits the standard firefighter’s air tank valve. The heavy “tail” is a lanyard hole, and glass breaker.

With the blades open, we see more details of both knives. The Gerber has a blunt tip, while the Camillus tip is fashioned into a screwdriver. The small button on the side of the Gerber is the release that allows the blade to be closed. The Camillus is assisted-opening, while Gerber has a large thumb stud on each side for opening.

The left side of the knife also has a swing-out seatbelt cutter.

The knife comes in a nylon pouch that attaches easily to MOLLE gear. It also has an extra pocket that holds a L-shaped handle, adapter, and some assorted tool bits.

My review

As with all Gerber products, the quality is first rate, and nothing can be faulted there. I have a minor quibble about the add-on tool set. The tool bits don’t add anything to help rescue people. They’re just small parts that can get lost, and add cost to the knife.

Cost is my biggest concern about this knife. It would cost us considerably more to supply this knife to the troops than what the Camillus Rescue costs. The swing-out seatbelt cutter is nice, but I don’t think it will work well with military harness. The concave curve of the Camillus blade tends to gather the material and keep it in contact with the blade, and seems to work well with a pulling movement.

The Gerber Hinderer is a fine knife, and will do its specialized job well. However, we will continue to supply the Camillus Rescue as our standard emergency knife.

If you do rescue work, or especially if you’re a firefighter who works with air tanks, the Gerber is a great item. Our evaluation model will go to the first person who asks for it. All we request is you be honest, so this knife can go to a trained firefighter who needs something with an air tank wrench. For medics, combat lifesavers, aircrew, and vehicle drivers, the Camillus Rescue is still there to get you out of a tight spot.

Entry Filed under: Hobbit Hole Knives, Troop Tech