I've been a knife collector for quite a while. I've owned and used just about every prominent brand of knife out there. Truly, not all knives are made equal. Some are markedly better than others (design, quality, durability, fit and finish). Only a few absolutely live up to the marketing behind their respective brand; others go beyond even that significant trail marker. Such is the case with Emerson Knives. Emerson bills their products as "#1 Hard Use Knives in the World". Out of the hundreds of knives that my hands have experienced, Emerson is the only company to consistently produce knives that more than "walk the talk".

Their Commander design is certainly one of my favorites. The overall ergonomics of the knife are magnificently superb. The knife's handle seems to "read" the human hand. This is absolutely critical for a hard use knife. The recurved blade shape provides one of the most efficient cutting platforms I've ever encountered (though it is difficult to sharpen and maintain). I've heard that some people have a problem with Emerson's chisel-grind edge. I love it and have not had another style of grind cut "better" for most applications. Some people don't like Emerson's deployment systems; as for me, I've found that the thumb disc actually works VERY well, as does the super-efficient wave feature. Generally the titanium liner-locks start up locking a little too early, but once they get broken in...sweet perfection is obtained.

Emerson offers different variations on the Commander platform; the most common is the "standard" sized version, though they offer a "super" and a "mini". The handle scales, to the best of my knowledge, are always G10, though as of 2009, you could get them in black (the most common) or orange. Depending upon the model, the checkering on the G10 could be relatively "fine" (not "closed" or "polished" though) or somewhat "rough". Personally, I prefer the "rough" version. As for the blades themselves, they are offered plain edge, combo edge and in black, "satin" (which looks like a "frost" to me) or an outrageously beautiful stonewashed finish. The later is far-and-away my favorite.

Shown in this photo are my two "favorites". In the foreground is the "Mini Commander". Notice that it has the "rough" textured G10. In the background is the "standard" sized Commander (which I consider to be absolutely "ideal"). It has the finer G10 texture. Both are 2009 editions and haven't been put to any hard use. Why? Well, typically...at least with my Emersons...I get multiples of the models that I like. The Stonewashed editions see more tame use (because I don't want to mar up the blade's finish) and I put the "satin" (Frost) finished blades to the hard use. Take a close look at the blades shown in this photo. See the nice aesthetic lines produced from the added top swedge? Well, earlier additions of the Commander don't have that little "extra". Very cool...

Some collectors ignore the Emerson product line just because it is "tactical" (in fact, it is probably the "most tactical" knife company out there). They are missing out on some very impressive...and aesthetically-appealing knives. When it comes to "Second kind of Cool", the Stonewashed Emerson knives are off-the-charts!