Tool Logic Pocket Survival Folding Knife (SL3)
Survival Knife:
Imagine you are lost in the wilderness with your Phone, sleeping bag, spare clothes, hiking boots, food, tent all gone and all you are left with is your survival gear, and be grateful to goodness for that. A Survival Knife can be the single most important tool in your survival kit during an emergency. You can do a lot to last in the wilderness with nothing but a survival knife.
Having spent quality time researching and reviewing some of the best available kitchen knives, we made up our mind to delve into knives designed for survival, rescue and utility purposes. Read on to know more about SL3 Fire Pocket Survival Knife developed by Tool Logic and find out how it can be an invaluable asset in a survival situation.
About Tool Logic:
Tool Logic, based at Washington in USA is a leading manufacturer and supplier of high quality, compact, multi-function tool kits, including survival knives with unusual and unique gifts for birthdays and men.
Design:
The Tool Logic SL3 Fire Steel Knife is a multi-function tool that is tough, light and versatile with a unique combination of useful accessories including a Fire Starter and a whistle. The addition of these features makes the SL3 a natural choice for hikers and car campers. The survival knife comes with an all-round utility shape for the 3″ razor sharp fixed blade with a full tang that has sufficient point to be actually useful, though softened with a steep drop profile at the tip. The blade has enough curve for carrying out most field chores.
Made of 420 J2 Stainless steel:
The blade of the knife is machined out of medium carbon420 J2 stainless steel (also known as Surgical Steel) with a hardness rating of RC50. A little bit of research will tell you that this type of steel has good corrosion resistance against blood, food acids, fresh water, steam, vinegar, ammonia, carbonic acid, detergent solutions, crude oil, petroleum products, etc. The manufacturer ascribes the use of 420 J2 over other steel types to its excellent strength, impact resistant qualities and easily machining properties.
Tough Zytel Body:
The knife body is made from durable Zytel overlay (by DuPont). We had no idea of it before, but came to know that Zytel is an extremely tough new generation polymer (nylon reinforced glass fibre material) that is unaffected by most solvents and even gasoline. Therefore, the knife body shows good mechanical strength and has excellent balance of toughness. The knife offers greater resistance to abrasion, corrosive chemicals and electrical shocks with the material having a high melting point.
50/50 Serrated Blade:
The SL3 Folding knife features a 50/50 serrated blade with a spear tip-point. The partially serrated blade can do extremely well at cutting clothing, synthetic materials and flesh. The serrated edges are also a good choice for self defence and paramedics. The knife seems to retain its edge well after 5 minutes of whittling. On the back of the knife is a saw you can use for sawing through metal or wood. But whether it is effective in doing the job as the regular saw blade remains a point of question. So, we advise you also carry a small saw in addition to the knife in your survival gear.
One-Hand Operation with Liner-type Lock:
We actually liked the nice, smooth, single handed opening movement of the knife. Thanks to the liner-type locking mechanism that allows you to open or close the knife with one hand. The mechanism though is not rocket science. There is a leaf spring-type liner within the groove of the handle that could snap into position under the blade when it is triggered. By pushing the linear to the side, the lock is released to allow the blade get back to its groove set into the handle. We felt that this feature will be more than handy during river trips. On rare occasions, the folding lock seems to jam a bit after hard use and thus requires a heavy thumb pressure to release. As a survival knife, it falls short a bit on this.
Lanyard Hole:
The blade has a lanyard hole at the handle end of the steel blade, as any good survival knife should have. This opening hole makes the blade more manageable and a little comfortable to hold and use. The Lanyard O-ring will also prevent you from dropping or loosing the tool.
Magnesium Alloy Firestarter:
Fire is the most important requirement in for survival. This survival knife is no ordinary knife as you can make fire anywhere without the help of matches or a lighter with the Premium Swedish Magnesium Alloy Firestarter which is good for several hundred strikes. Here is how it works: The blade of the SL3 is inserted with a wet/dry Magnesium Alloy Firestarter which is firmly held in the top of the handle and is a bit difficult to extract. This insert strikes a shower of extremely hot sparks at the first stroke of the blade (at over 2000 degree F) and even when tested in wet conditions.
Loud Signal Whistle:
An emergency signal whistle built into the back of the handle of the survival tool is piercingly loud even with a soft breath.
Blackened Stainless Belt Clip:
The carry system is very simplistic. The knife comes with a built-in clip made of blackened stainless steel on the rear of the handle for carrying on the belt. This accounts for better accessibility and ease of use. We really appreciate the integrated steel pocket clip as the knife is easy to carry in the pocket and releases only when you have to.
Watertight Cavity:
Another feature in the making of SL3 is the Watertight Cavity on the butt of the hilt that you can unscrew and inside one you can store fishing line, matches or all sorts of useful materials. You can even wrap up some cotton wool tinder around the steel within the Watertight Cavity.
Drawbacks:
We wish the blade was a straight edged blade instead of serrated as it is not easy to sharpen properly in a survival situation where maintaining a sharp edge during hard use is crucially important. Though the serrated blade generally requires a special sharpening device, it could be sharpened up with minimum effort. And also the very fact that the serrated edge is not too good a blade for carving and chopping definitely comes as a downside.
Use & Care:
Just a point of observation we think, needs to be made is that once the coating is scraped off the fire starter, it tends to corrode around salt water. This of course, can be prevented by re-coating it.
Warranty:
The manufacturer offers a 3-year limited warranty for the product against manufacturing defects.
Summary:
Weighing just 75 g (2.7 oz.), the SL3 is an excellent blade/firesteel combo, simply because the tool has the ability to achieve both – make fire as well as protect yourself from the elements. As a survival tool in your tank bag, glovebox or back pack, it may well turn out to be a lifesaver, which is what the knife is by purpose and design. If you are out for the day – fishing, hiking, riding or boating and find yourself off the trail and camp overnight, you will be extremely glad you had one on hand. As parting words, we should say that this pocket survival knife is not only well thought-out, but is really tough enough to live up to its principle: “Built for Life”.
Tool Logic SL3 Survival Knife – Technical Specification Table
| Manufacturer | Tool Logic |
| Model Name | Tool Logic SL3 Fire Pocket Survival Knife |
| Model Number | SL3 |
| Type of Knife | Survival Knife |
| Best Use | Camping/Hiking/Hunting/Survival |
| Type of Blade | Fixed blade with a full tang |
| Material of Blade | Medium carbon420 J2 stainless steel |
| Hardness rating | RC50 |
| Length of Blade | 3 inches (7.6cm) |
| Material of Body/Handle | DuPont Zytel (Nylon reinforced glass fibre) |
| Abrasive resistant | Yes |
| Corrosion/Acid resistant | Yes |
| Shock resistant | Yes |
| Handle Grip | Smooth |
| Type of Edge | 50/50 serrated blade (Partially serrated) |
| Edge-Retention | Excellent |
| One-Hand Operation | Yes |
| Safety feature | Leaf spring steel body |
| Locking mechanism | Liner-type |
| Magnesium Alloy Firestarter | Yes |
| Lanyard Hole | Yes |
| Signal Whistle | Yes |
| Watertight Cavity | Yes |
| Carry system | Blackened Stainless Belt Clip & Pocket Clip |
| Dimensions | |
| Overall length (inches) | 7″ |
| Folded | 4″ (L) x 1.75″ (W) |
| Weight | 75 g (2.7 oz.) |
| Suitable age | 18+ years |
| Features | Complete off-road survival kit Easily Foldable All-weather FireSteel fire starter Single handed opening movement Loud Signal Whistle Spear-tip point Custom contour section allocated for use with Firesteel Utility Design |
| Manufacturer Warranty | 3-year limited warranty |
