The New & Improved Schrade Delta Class SCHF27 Extreme Survival Knife. (Coming Soon)

The New & Improved Schrade Delta Class SCHF27 Extreme Survival Knife. (Coming Soon)

So I just saw something cool coming down the pipe which isn't getting much buzz, but that's really not surprising considering that it's Schrade and their reputation isn't the best, nevertheless it has piqued my interest.

Folks may recall that several years ago, Schrade introduced their "Extreme Survival" line of knives, which actually had a few highly rated knives including but not limited to a few designs which they produced under license by B. Griffin Design such as the SCHF9, SCHF42, and SCHF55 as well as a modified clone of the old Chris Reeve Shadow III.

Beyond those were many other designs, including the SCHF27, which was an interesting design which had some aesthetic similarities to the aforementioned SCHF9, but smaller, and with a few aesthetic cues taken from the TOPS Steel Eagle.

It was cheap, inexpensive, but was reviewed surprisingly well. I always liked the look of it, but wasn't fond of the cheap 8cr13 MOV Stainless Steel construction, thermoplastic elastomer (rubber) handle, and polymer holster.

However, it appears that after all these years, Schrade is revisiting the SCHF27 with some rather nice upgrades to the build quality, namely an AUS10 Stainless Steel blade and a G10 Handle. Nothing too fancy, but an improvement nonetheless. Also, there appears to be a bit of contention in regards to where the knife is manufactured, as Amazon says it's being made in Armenia, while Knife Center says it's made in China. Normally I would assume that Amazon is wrong as they so often are, but Armenia? I'm not used to seeing many knifes listed as products of Armenia, so if that is a mistake, it's a weird one.

The original knife came packaged with a little multitool which could be stored within the handle at the base of the knife via a retainer pin.

However, this tool wasn't particularly well received, was mostly written off as a gimmick, and the knife received some criticism from "operator" types because the retainer pin would rattle, which would totally give away your position when you're trying to sneak up behind terrorists and neutral them before giving team Bravo Sierra the signal to move in and complete the mission then exfiltrate the area back to Fort Whiskey Tango Foxtrot.

Thusly, the multitool has been omitted from the new Delta Class model, so that all of the US Navy Seals, Black Ops, and Mall Ninjas can carry their Schrade SCHF27 with confidence knowing that it won't give away their position during a Top Secret Reconnaissance mission.

So yeah, you might want to preorder yours right away, because as soon as SOCCOM gets wind of this, they're going to adopt them immediately, and prices will.assuredly skyrocket. Look out Cold Steel SRK, the Schrade SCHF27 Delta Class just might be replacing you soon!

The knife is currently available for Preorder for August 3rd, but since it's inexpensive, I haven't purchased a new knife in awhile, and felt like treating myself to something for fun, I decided to go ahead and Preorder it. I'm not expecting much out of it, but I think it will be fun to check out, play around with, and evaluate.

Anyway, I know that nobody else really cares about this, but I just felt like posting a thread about it. Once I get my hands on it, I'll follow up with another thread giving my first impressions, followed by another once I've gotten a chance to try it out

Yeah, you are right. I think no one cares about it. I have a couple of the Brian Griffin designs, SCHF42 and SCHF55. He parted company with Schrade because they broke an agreement to make his designs in Taiwan rather than China. The Griffin knives use 1095 steel which seems to have been decently heat treated (in Taiwan).
They are decent enough utility or survival knives, able to withstand a certain amount of prying, bashing and general abuse. My experience with the Griffin designs leaves me mildly interested in Schrades efforts in this area, so if you get the SCHF27 I hope you will post pictures.

Unfortunately (like many items made now ) Schrade is not Schrade anymore! Few name brand company’s still are! Chinese knives don’t cut it for me. No pun intended. I’d much rather get a gently used US military survival knife and carry a small quality folding pocket knife as well for fine, sharp and precise cutting needs.

Anyone who regularly uses a survival knife needs to also have a descent sharpening stone to take along as well-and know how to use it.

So, in an example of one of Bob Ross' so-called "happy accidents" there was a mixup with the seller who shipped me the older Gen 1 model, but the price I paid was actually substantially less than what the Gen 1 models are currently being sold for, so I decided to keep it, and I'll just order the Gen 2 model next month when they're released. Now I can possibly do a little comparison between the old and new models.


Schrade SCHF27 Extreme Survival Knife - Gen 1. Featuring a Full Tang 6.5" Ti-Nitride-coated 8cr13MOV Stainless Steel Drop Point Blade with an Thermoplastic Elastomer Handle.


The SCHF27 G1 with the included Kydex Sheath.


The SCHF27 G1 with the included Multitool.

First Impressions: This looks and feels like a surprisingly high quality knife for such a low price. The blade came paper-shredding sharp fresh from the box and it feels good in the hand. The scallops on the top of the blade appear to exist sheerly for the sake of aesthetic appeal, as they are neither angled nor sharpened, so in spite of what it's appearance may suggest, the blade's spine does not double as a saw. The multitool is a nice little bonus, even if it is completely out-of-place on a so-called Survival Knife, but I can see it doubling as a striker for a ferrocerium rod, so I suppose it has at least some improvized utility within its intended role. The sheath is the only part of the package that feels cheap, as it's just two pieces of polymer which have been riveted together, but it holds the knife in place securely, so it serves its purpose.

Overall, I must admit that I am pleasantly surprised by this blade. The fit, finish, and feel of the knife are above and beyond my expectations for such an inexpensive knife. I like it enough that I believe that I will go ahead and pickup the Gen 2 model when it releases, and maybe I'll do a side-by-side comparison. (I say "maybe" because if nobody cares but me and nobody is going to read or respond to the thread, then it really isn't worth the effort to do a full write-up on it.) We'll see.

I'll read it.

I'm sure there are a lot of us here with an interest in knives . As stated in another post knife snobs can be as bad or worse than gun snobs . Pull your knife out at the range and watch the people crowd in and show their knives and state how much better their knife is .

But to have someone with no interest in the company to take the time to first buy the knife and then critique it and write about it , that's a good thing . I'm sure you'll get a lot of readers m but who knows how many posters . I like knives , but am not loyal to any brand . If I like the looks and feel , I buy it . I can't speak for anyone but myself , but I look forward to reading your expose and hope you write it .

Have owned and used a number of Shrades.
I especially like this one.

It is amazing how the Bush-crafting craze has shaped knife design and production these days. Completely changed the industry of big fix-blade knives.

Of course to each his own, and anybody can certainly have what they want with their own money. Personally, I have a hard fast rule about knives. Nothing made in China! That would include Schrade, Imperial, NRA, S&W, and anything made by Taylor Cutlery. German and Swedish OK on occasion
Schrade went out of business in their 100th year. I have a couple of the commemorative lockbacks, unused with a 100 year inlay inlay in the handle. They had 3 generations of family workers working at the same time. The loss of their manufacturing hurt a whole region for jobs. They could not compete with the stuff coming out of China.

Actually I bought a like new Schrade SP2 lockback yesterday for 4.99. I have about 8 of them.

So to each his own, but my money for footwear and knives stays here.

just my .02

Most of my knives are made in the USA, (Buck Knives is my favorite brand) but if I see a knife that I like that's made outside of the US, then I'll buy it. Generally I also prefer to stay away from knives made in China in particular, but this was the exception.
Frankly, if the Buck 632 Mesa were still in production, then I would have bought that instead, (as it was a very similar knife which sold for about the same price and was made in the USA) but it has been discontinued for some years now and the prices online for them (if you can find one) are just stupid for what was a budget knife.

Forte Smitten Wesson said:

Most of my knives are made in the USA, (Buck Knives is my favorite brand) but if I see a knife that I like that's made outside of the US, then I'll buy it. Generally I also prefer to stay away from knives made in China in particular, but this was the exception.
Frankly, if the Buck 632 Mesa were still in production, then I would have bought that instead, (as it was a very similar knife which sold for about the same price and was made in the USA) but it has been discontinued for some years now and the prices online for them (if you can find one) are just stupid for what was a budget knife.

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Buck is OK, but in all honesty, I have never been really able to put a real edge on a Buck. Must be me. I believe some of their stuff is made overseas now. Oh, I forgot one exception Italian stilettos

I will stick with one of these.

I have a number of Randalls, all made here. And I am very happy with the recent acquisition of a RMJ forge Eagle Talon. Also made here in the States.

Narragansett said:

Buck is OK, but in all honesty, I have never been really able to put a real edge on a Buck. Must be me. I believe some of their stuff is made overseas now. Oh, I forgot one exception Italian stilettos

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Most of Buck's knives are made of 420HC, which doesn't have great edge retention, yet sharpens up in a jiffy. You can practically keep a Buck 420HC blade sharp forever just by stropping it with a couple of passes over a leather belt after each use. However, they do also offer knives in steels with better edge retention like D2, S30V, S35VN, and S45VN as well.
A few of their bottom dollar knives are made in Taiwan or China, but most of their knives are made in the US, although some like to split hairs by asserting that they are merely; "Assembled in the US" because many of their materials are imported, but to say that they're just assembled in the US because they use imported Steels, wood, and leather in their production is a gross oversimplification. All machining, shaping, sharpening, and finishing is done in the factory in Idaho. But if folks want to argue that a Buck 110 is "Assembled in the US" because they use African Ebonywood in the grips and imported 420HC Steel for the blades, then whatever.

Stilettos are actually among my favorite style of blades from an aesthetic standpoint, but alas, quantity Stilettos are hard to find, and I'm unaware of any American company that makes them. Even the American Cold Steel Ti-Lite is made in Taiwan.

Forte Smitten Wesson said:

Most of Buck's knives are made of 420HC, which doesn't have great edge retention, yet sharpens up in a jiffy. You can practically keep a Buck 420HC blade sharp forever just by stropping it with a couple of passes over a leather belt after each use.

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I won a Buck 110 folder in a drawing and that thing will shave the hair off my arm. I've never seen a knife before that would do that.

So, just wanted to give everyone an update here... I'm not going to be able to get the newer model right away as planned because my phone is dying, so now I have to replace it before I can do anything else, plus I've got some payments coming up that I forgot about, so now everything is on hold.