Hinderer XM-18 3.5 S45VN Slicer Tri-Way Stonewash Blue - Red G-10

XM-18 3.5" Slicer

Blade Grind: Slicer
Blade Length: 3.50″
Handle Length: 4.75″
Overall Length: 8.25″
Blade Thickness: 0.165″
Lockside Thickness: 0.165″
Liner Thickness: 0.050″
Overall Handle Thickness: 0.540″
Handle Material: G10
Blade: Stonewash
Lockside: Stonewash Blue
Weight: 5.6oz
Blade Steel: CPM-S45VN
Made in the USA

XM Generation 6 with Tri-Way pivot system. System includes three different interchangeable pivots: teflon, phosphor-bronze and bearing.

The XM-18 is known the world over as one of the toughest tactical folders regardless of your mission. Rick’s focus when designing the XM-18 was a no nonsense tactical tool ready for the simplest cutting tasks to high speed low drag operations.

The over-sized choil permits choking up on the blade for more precise work. The blade locks up on a solid ¼ in diameter Thumb stud which is press fitted into the blade. This makes for a very strong lockup as there is no loosening of the thumb stud which can happen with two piece designs. The fact that the thumb stud locks up against the frame adds an incredible amount of strength to the sideways torque of the blade as the sideways stresses are being stopped by the whole handle side, thus relieving the stress that would normally be put on the pivot.

THE "SLICER"
My design intent for the “Slicer Grind” blade grind was to address a need for a blade style that will not only have high strength built into the blade for heavy use cutting but also to have the ability to perform fine slicing chores better than other blade grinds and styles such as the spear point and drop point style of blades.

For my first “Slicer Grind” style of blade grind I chose my spearpoint style of blade. As shown in the accompanying graphic this grind runs shallow at the back part or the handle end of the blade and as it traverses toward the front of the blade the grind slants upwards towards the top of the blade and extends to its widest part at the front portion.

This style of blade grind allows for the strongest part of the blade to be used for the toughest cutting chores such as push cut and draw cuts which use the back portion of the blade. The belly and front portion of the blade which has a higher, shallower grind angle is ideal for those “slicing” type cutting chores such as slicing vegetables for a camp stew, slicing thin slices of meat, filleting a fish, etc. This grind accomplishes those chores better than a spearpoint or drop point style of blade.

The “Slicer Grind” is the blade of choice for those wanting the dual purpose of a heavy duty knife but still retaining some fine cutting attributes!
                                                                                           -Rick Hinderer