Ontario Spec Plus Gen II SP40 Knife (Black)

Great handle for such a small blade (3 3/8"). The handle is long but narrower than the handle on the bigger knives. This handle is extremely comfortable for me and if you follow this designer, his best to date. Ergonomically it couldn't be better. I find this size blade extremely useful. While a mora is thinner and nimble, this has a full tang and is robust. So you lose a bit of dexterity with the wider, thicker blade, you gain confidence it will last.3 3/8" !!! Cutting Edge, dont know where they measured, but its my one complaint. I wanted a 4" blade and the cold steel master hunter is $20 -$30 more. This is a backup to that blade. It seemed the best knife close to 4" at the advertised 3 3/4.......well its not close to 4", not even 3 1/2. Even so it is in itself a nice blade. Just as long as you know that in advance and it fits your system. IE, like a bk14/11 with a full size grip......very nice.Of course these are first impressions, I believe it will be durable and reliable based on my other gen II spec plus purchases

Blade shorter than advertised, but razor sharp and takes punishment that would break the average blade.

The knife came fairly sharp, full flat ground. It was able to cut my arm hair fairly easy. One of the major things I really like about this knife is how light it is. It feels like a butter knife almost compared to in weight. I have medium size hand's so the long handle still fits great in my hand. The biggest thing that I noticed about this knife is that the grind is uneven, by 2 degree's on one side. That is on the side that says "5160 OKC - USA"The heat temperament I happen to read some where said this knife was at 55-57.The retention strap on the sheath needs to be cut at the end then burned with a lighter, because it's currently very hard to clamp it down.I happen to put a convex edge on this knife using my Wicked Edge Knife Sharpener. Luckily this sharpener will help with the uneven grind on one of the sides. The edge was brought to a 22 degree. I finished off the edge with a 600 grit diamond stone, then stropped it on some leather loaded with green compound. After I got a some what highly polished blade (not mirror), I took the knife out to cut some things outside. I proceed to cut some tall grass, followed by some tough weed's (very thick) using a push cutting motion. The blade bit in pretty easy. Little bit more of struggle with the thicker weeds, but not that much.After cutting this way for about 10 minutes, I examined the edge, and could see area's where the edge started to go dull ever so slightly. I basically could see bright silver beads on the edge. I was kinda shocked to see such a result with 5160 spring steel going through just grass and tough weeds, but I had to remind myself, the Heat Treatment was 55-57. That treatment alone is used mostly for machetes. There is also another factor to. I was cutting grass near the ground. I vary well could have been hitting some dirt.Now the butt cap is a bit of mystery to me. I don't see a pin system incorporated. On the bottom of the butt cap I could see a small circle beneath the paint. Not sure if this was Ontario's method of securing the butt cap.So here are the pro's and cons with the knife.Pro'sLight weightGood steelLong handle; great for any sized hand.Con'sMine came with a uneven grind, yours may not...A minor issue with the retention strap, but a easy fix.Heat treatment is a bit low. 55-57. You generally want 57-60 or 58-60 for knives.