FOG HORN

April, 2016
Twobirds Flying Publication

Columbia River Knife and Tool Clever Girl

Confidence in Hand

Copyright 2016, Towbirds Flying Publication. All Rights Reserved.

CRKT Clever Girl

2016

CRKT Clever Girl confidence in hand

By: Sal Palma
business. The Clever Girl was created so you
can grab it, use it if necessary, and then return
to your family.

Calling a fighting knife Clever Girl is

interesting to say the least but not
inappropriate given the very classy flowing
curves of this, new for 2016, fixed blade knife
from Columbia River Knife and Tool, CRKT.
Clever Girl is a collaborative effort between
Austin McGlaun, an Army veteran and its
designer, and the folks at CRKT.
After returning home from Iraq, where he
sustained several injuries, Austin joined the
police force but the annual salary of $36,000
was insufficient for him and his family. It was
then he decided to pursue knife making,
something hed done and started in his garage.
As part of the Forged By War program1,
Austin McGlaun of Columbus, Georgia, designed
Clever Girl. It aligns with his philosophy that a
knife is more than a tool. It's a psychological
deterrent very different from a gun and tells
your attacker, very quickly, that you mean

Clever Girl is an interesting design with a blade

profile credited to Middle East origins2, very
much like the Yemeni Janbiya, but formally
Clever Girls blade profile is a trailing point
design. The curve along the spine terminates in
a tip that extends above the spine resulting in a
sweeping belly that gives this knife amazing
slashing and slicing power.
Dont get me wrong, Clever Girl also has a
menacing point with tremendous piercing
ability but this baby is a slicer from the ground
up and simply a thing of beauty!

CRKT used SK5 for the blade material which has

excellent harness and edge durability.

In 2013, Ryan Johnson of RMJ Tactical, designer of elite, military,

tactical tomahawks, approached CRKT with the news that he had
been working with a few combat veterans that had returned from
war with varying degrees of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD).
To help work through their challenges, they have been designing
and forging steel into custom tools. Drawing from their
experience earned in combat situations, they have been creating
tools they wished they had available to them in the battlefield.

SK-5 is the Japanese equivalent of American

1080, a high carbon steel with carbon between
0.75%-0.85% and 0.60%-0.90% manganese. As
2

CRKT describes it as Persian

Copyright 2016, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved

CRKT Clever Girl

quenched, it has a hardness near Rc 65 and

produces a mixture of carbon rich martensite
with some small un-dissolved carbides. The
excess carbide increases abrasion resistance
and allows the steel to achieve an ideal balance
of blade toughness with superior edge
retention.
With that little bit of metallurgy, Ill continue
with Clever Girls hollow ground 4.6 inch long
and 1.58 inch thick blade sharpened to a razors
edge. This is so characteristic of CRKT
excellence. I have never experienced a dull knife
edge from CRKT and Clever Girl is no exception,
you can shave with this edge, and that is no
spoof folks.

CRKT has also included a black powder coat

finish for enhanced corrosion resistance and
tactical application.
Handle design is important in any class of knife,
but in a fighting knife, a properly designed
handle is everything. It determines how well
and how controlled youll draw and use your
blade and Clever Girls handle is worthy of a
dedicated review highlighting its numerous
exceptional qualities. Its here where Austins
military experience is evident.
Clever Girl uses a full tang design with a
beautifully sculpted G10 grip creating a natural

2016

hand-filling curvature with finger coils forward

and to the rear of the grip. All edges are
rounded and nothing bites into the hand,
gloved or not so its extremely comfortable to
grip. With this type of handle design, the user
will find that both a saber grip and reverse grip
work extremely well. Even an icepick edge out
hold feels natural due to the handle design and
a flattened surface along the lanyard hole at the
end of the tang.

Carry options are also important when

considering a fixed blade fighting knife. CRKT
meets that requirement by including an
excellent MOLLE compatible glass-reinforced
nylon sheath that securely holds the knife in
any orientation.

Austin McGlaun and CRKT have created an

impressive tool with many of the boutique
features but without the boutique price point.
Copyright 2016, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved

CRKT Clever Girl

2016

Clever Girl is a knife possessing all of the

attributes credited to excellent fighting knives.
Its tenacious blade profile, razor sharp edge, full
tang design and superb handle make her a
formidable deterrent. Clever Girls spirit is best
captured by William Congreves, English
playwright and poet, "Heaven has no rage like
love to hatred turned, nor hell a fury like a
woman scorned," spoken by Zara in Act III,
Scene VIII from The Mourning Bride. And its
yours for a very modest $125 MSRP. Check it
out!
Manufacturer Specifications
Dimensions
Open Overall Length
Weight

10.125 inches
6.3 ounces

Blade
Length
Thickness
Material
Blade-HRC
Finish
Grind
Style
Edge

4.6 inches
0.158 inches
SK5
54-56
Black Powder Coat
Hollow
Persian
Plain

Handle
Material

G10

Carry
Carry System
Weight

Glass-Reinforced
Nylon
1.6 ounces

Copyright 2016, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved