Masters of Defense
The Tempest by Michael Janich
MSRP U.S. $189.98

Michael Janich's Tempest offers the ability to reverse the direction of the pocket clip. This provides for point up or point down pocket carry. The pristine grind lines visible on the Tempest and all M.O.D. knives are the result of a double bead blast with two different gradients of media. Unlike the less expensive methods of tossing knives into tumbling media, M.O.D. finishing treatments are the standard to which others aspire. Janich's blade design offers considerable heft for users with larger hands and features extraordinary penetration capability against heavily covered attackers.Michael Janich is a 9 year decorated veteran of the U.S Army, with service in both the Defense Intelligence Agency and the National Security Agency. A former Golden Gloves boxer, he is a leading practitioner of the eclectic art of ASP-American Self Protection, black belting for the first time at age 14. He is the author of many books on the subject of personal self defense, including Knife Fighting, a Practical Course, Street Steel, Choosing and Carrying Self-Defense Knives, and co-authored with Col. Rex Applegate, Bullseyes don’t shoot back; The Complete Textbook of Point Shooting for Close Quarters Combat.

SPECIFICATIONS:

HANDLES: Milled, 6061-T6 Aluminum
BLADE: 154cm high carbon stainless steel alloy, 60 Rockwell hardness! Cryogenically hardened for complete molecular conversion and absolute dimensional stability. Ambidextrous milled thumb studs.
HANDLE FINISH: Military Spec Hardcoat, Black Anodized
POCKET/BELT CLIP: Through hardened 301 Stainless steel, matte finish. Reversible point-up/down by user.
OVERALL LENGTH: 7.9", 4.4" when closed.
BLADE LENGTH: 3.5"
BLADE THICKNESS: 148 thousandths.
LOCKING LINER: 17-4 Stainless steel, 76 thousandths, sustains over 100 lbs of reverse force.
EDGING TREATMENT: Precision hollow ground modified bowie point. Thumb ridge on top.
HOLSTER: CorduraTM Nylon, can be worn horizontally or vertically on belt. Velcro ® closure.
BLADE FINISH OPTIONS: Matte double bead blast, or new ultra hard Stealth matte black Boron Carbide.
SERRATION: Optional, half-serrated or non-serrated, all finishes.
AUTOMATICS: Auto-opening version available for military, fire/EMS and law enforcement.

Our review of the MOD Tempest

I received the MOD Tempest that included in the box the followings: the knife; the cordura/nylon belt sheath; warranty/registration card and maintenance instructions. The box was opened and the knife was found sitting in foam, in a cutout in the shape of the knife. A similar cut-out was occupied by the knife's sheath.

My initial impression was that this was a quality made knife. The blade was, what I would consider "tight" in opening when received. It was not so tight that it was difficult to open, but tighter than I prefer in a defensive knife. Time carrying this folder was just over 4 weeks daily, on my right front pocket in dungarees or dockers.

I was impressed with the knives' feel in the pocket. It was unobtrusive and I did not know the knife was there, due to it's weight and size. Even seated the knife did not "pinch" me, when wearing the jeans, which some of the longer folding knives have a tendency to do from time to time. The knife did not need readjusting in the pocket, as I got into and out of a seated position, nor did it make me aware I was wearing it, when I would bend over to pick something up off the floor as other longer knives do. This knife stayed put on the pocket and was in the same position, regardless of my activities during the day. I feel this is a big plus in a knife designed for defensive purposes. The last thing I want, is for the knife to wander along the edge of the pants pocket.

[John's Note: Maybe the rubber-like material on the left side of the knife, helps stabilize it in one's pocket. It is the cross-cut area shown in the picture above.]

Within a few hours I was comfortable with being able to access the folder one handed, open the blade with the ambi-thumb studs provided, unlock the blade one-handed with the liner-locking mechanism this knife utilizes and return it to it's position in my pocket using the provided pocket clip.

The liner-lock is recessed into the handle, which helps to prevent accidentally unlocking the knife, while it is being used in the hand to cut or stab objects. I noticed that the teeth milled into the liner-lock, where your thumb will release the lock, were all that was above the handle. The 17-4 Stainless steel liner-lock that is 76 thousandths thick is also shaped perfectly, to match the outline of the 6061-T6 Aluminum handles outline. The teeth on the liner-lock were aggressive, but not sharp and aided in being able to comfortably and safely unlock the knife blade, without having to actually look at what you were doing. I find some liner-locks woefully inadequate in this area and requiring much more effort on the users part to unlock.

This knife blade utilizes the Military Spec Hardcoat, Black Anodizing for it's finish. After four weeks of carrying the knife and using it for normal cutting chores on cardboard boxes, manila rope and even a piece of linoleum, I did not see any finish wear on the blade. The blade would have small scratches or "marks" where the finish touched the objects it was cutting after use. These were easily removed, using soap and water and a soft sponge once I got home.

The knife blade came from the factory very sharp and would suffice extremely well for most everyone's needs in a defensive capacity, but not mine. I found the factory edge sharper than most production knives "out of the box". I stayed with the factory edge it came with and determined through use that the knife held an edge better than most as well. It was still hair-shaving sharp after 100 passes through cardboard boxes, tape, and the linoleum.

In one month of using this knife daily, I did not have to "touch up" the blades edge. It was still acceptably sharp. Most knives of lesser quality would have needed edge attention with the crock sticks. Therefore, edge retention is considered very good on the 154cm high carbon stainless steel alloy, 60 Rockwell hardness, cryogenically hardened blade. The knife blade has the MOD logo as well as the designer's name, his credentials and the name of the model imprinted on it. Through using the knife these imprints suffered no wearing that was noticeable. The imprints are silver colored on the black blade and in my opinion are not so big as to be "gawdy" in appearance.

I tested the knife's ability to stay locked, when used in a stabbing role. I put the gloves on and stabbed a piece of wood several times with considerable effort. Not something it was designed for, but I feel this gives a fair representation of the liner's ability to not unlock, in the event it was ever used in it's intended role of defense and the point actually made contact with a rib or the skull. The tip showed no signs of stress in these stabbing tests as well. Once I inserted the blade into the wood, I ripped the knife out laterally, testing the knife tip strength. No damage or bending occurred in the blade tip.

After these tests were performed I checked the liner-lock for apparent damage. There was none. In fact the liner-lock unlocked the blade as easily as when it was new, which told me there was no binding of the lock mechanism upon hard point contact with hard objects.

This knife retails for $189.98 per MOD's website. I believe it can be purchased through discount retailers for somewhat less than that, as a rule of thumb though. For the person who spends a considerable sum of money on this knife, they can feel confident in the blades edge retention and the ability of the blade to stay locked open under hard-use field conditions.

I sharpened the knife on the crock sticks I use and found the edge was easily returned to better than the factory in only a few minutes. 6 passes on each side with the course sticks and then 15 passes on each side with the fine sticks was all it took, to bring the edge back to razor sharpness. The ease in sharpening the knife after the length of time it took to take the factory edge off, tells me the folks at MOD know how to properly cryogenically harden the 154cm high carbon stainless steel alloy blade.

The only downside to the knife tested was the pocket clip. Though ergonomically effective, with rounded/beveled edges so it doesn't feel sharp in use or unnecessarily "eats" the top of your pockets, one of the two torx screws which hold it to the handle became loose, allowing the clip to "wiggle" slightly. It did not lose the screw and does not appear loose but is allowing the clip that small movement. The torx head screws used in the making of the knife, are extremely small and I did not have a torx screwdriver small enough to retighten it. I would suggest, as I do with all my personal folders, to take the screws out when new and locktite them back into the handle, so this would not happen to you.

[John's Note: I removed the screws and dropped some red Loctite in their holes, as soon as I received the knife. I tightened the screws properly, and that was the last I've seen of the "moving clip" syndrome.]

As you can probably surmise by now, I like this knife for defense. I feel it is a knife you can depend on, to be ready when you need it, as well as be able to defend yourself effectively, without fear the blade tip will break or bend in use. The liner-lock strength can be depended upon to keep the blade from closing on your fingers, if you ever have to stab something with fairly moderate pressures. The liner-lock is also recessed enough to keep your fingers from activating the lock unintentionally, which bodes disaster for the user if this were to happen.

As the knife came from the factory, the pocket clip was set to blade tip-up on the handle. It does have two holes in the handle, so that you can change this to tip-down carry if that is what you prefer. I would change this over to tip-down carry, were it mine, as I prefer it to tip-up. I have had too many knives using tip-up, come open a little in my pocket after they have been worn awhile and opened extensively where the ball detent has broken in enough, to allow this.

Other than the clip becoming loose and the tip-up carry mode from the factory there isn't a whole lot not to like about this knife. If you are in the market for a production tactical folder, I can recommend this knife quite easily. I like the fit and finish, the edge was superb, compared to most other manufacturers products from the factory, and the liner-lock is sturdier and thicker than most, which gave me a sense of confidence right out of the box. It carries well in the pocket for me and the thumb ridge on top of the blade is effective in keeping you thumb indexed on the blade and at the same times retards the movement of your thumb down onto the spine of the blade.

Recommendations: Get one before the prices go even higher. You won't be disappointed in it's intended role as a tactical folder you may have to use to defend yourself with.

Brownie

[John's Notes: I would like to point out a few more things about this knife.

- The knife opens and closes with authority. The position of the thumb stud is such, that your thumb never misses it, while the pressure required to open the blade is small and the action very smooth.
- The left side of the handle is cut a tiny bit more than the right one, exactly above the liner lock release, in order to facilitate hitting the liner lock.
- I liked the grooves cut on the front, upper edge of the handle and on the rearmost part of the blade, to help you properly position your thumb.
- What I do not particularly fancy, is the way the handle becomes smaller as you move to the rear of the knife. It just does not feel right in my hand, for a fighting knife.
- The cordura sheath that comes with the knife, is not a generic item, it is made in such a way to accomodate the particular knife it is supposed to contain. Plus it can be attached to your belt either vertically or horizontally. Nice touch M.o.D.!
- The knife is covered by a limited, lifetime guarantee. Nice!
- As Brownie said, it is amazing how smooth this knife is. There is not a single point that will catch yoru clothing, or that will feel harsh when your fingers pass over it. It reminds me of a ... slightly "Melt-Down" M-1911. Even screws used on the knife, are either recessed or curved so they do not grab on clothes. The only point I found that was not consistent with this, was the top of the thumb studs. A little file work, took care of that, plus it lowered the thumb studs a little, just below the handle surface, just what the doctor ordered!
- The knife send for testing features a different clip than the one shown in M.o.D.'s web site. I do not know why, in any case, the new clip is quite strong and trouble-free. And contrary to Brownie's opinion, I am a declared fan of tip-up carrying, so I love the Tempest as it is. Others, may opt to relocate the clip, so that the knife is carried tip-down. Easily done if you have the proper Torx screwdriver.

Update on Tempest usage
During the last couple of weeks, I went through the nightmare of a house change. For those who have done it, it is an unforgetable experience. Anyway, during this ordeal, at least 200 cartons were packed with various things from the old house, and moved to the new one. I decided that throughout all this, I'll be using the Tempest as my carrying knife, to see how it will withstand the usage. Well, after cutting through carton, ropes, plastic wraps, and whatever else you can think off, the knife is still shaving-sharp, with no noticeable degradation of its performance. What also amazed me, was the fact that the blade's coating hadn't the smallest scratch. I can tell you from experience, that other knives with coated blades will have a whole ... map of scratches on their surface. Not the Tempest, the coating is still like new. I guess that M.o.D. is doing a great job, this house changing proved to me that the Tempest is indeed a quality knife.

Overall, a very interesting, useful and well-made knife.

John]

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