The SOG FSAT-8 Flash II Tanto Straight Edge Knife is not your grandpa’s whittling tool but rather a modern, lightweight, assisted opening knife that combines both form and function. Two of the slickest features of this knife is the S.A.T. or SOG Assisted Technology which almost automatically deploys the blade as soon as you place a little tension on the blade thumb stud. The other is the unique piston locking mechanism that not only positively locks the blade open, but also makes it easy to close.
SOG FSAT-8 Flash II Tanto Straight Edge Knife Features
One of the first things we noticed about the SOG FSAT-8 Flash II Tanto is how lightweight it is—besides the knife blade shape, that is. The biggest reason for of its nimble weight is that the handle is made of glass-reinforced nylon (GRN) and it does not have any reinforcing metal liners in it. While this might sound like a bad idea, we found that the overall feel of the knife is quite sturdy and actually well balanced. The handles are designed with a unique, machined-like texture on the sides which makes them very “grippy”. The handle shape is comfortable to hold when the blade is opened and thanks to the two deep finger groves, they help ensure that your hand will not slip down and come in contact with the blade. The two halves of the handle are held together with small ALLEN style screws. On the back of the handle, is what SOG calls their bayonet mounted pocket clip. By design, this clip is reversible and also allows the knife to ride lower in your pocket for a more discrete carry position.
Perhaps the most important part of any knife is the blade. The blade of the SOG FSAT-8 Flash II Tanto Straight Edge Knife is a Tanto style which really is a modern interpretation of the tip of a Japanese Samurai sword. With this style blade, the full thickness of the blade is carried out almost the very tip of the blade. The triangular geometry of the blade makes it very easy to sharpen and also more multipurpose. On this particular knife, the larger section of the blade is hollow ground which makes for a very fine and sharp edge. Down towards the tip where the blade edge changes, this section is flat ground which makes for a very strong, almost chisel like edge that can take extra pressure and stress. Given that the tip of a knife is often times the weakest part because of its thinness, the Tanto style blade maintains a larger cross section closer to the tip which makes it much stronger. Choosing a knife blade design is one of the first steps in picking a knife. We think that this knife lends its self more to be utilitarian and tactical by its design. If you you were looking for a knife for wood carving, skinning game, and fine detail work you might want to consider a different style blade more suited to your use.
The blade the of the SOG FSAT-8 Flash II Tanto Straight Edge Knife is made of AUS8 and is hardened to a rockwell hardness of 57-58. The AUS8 type of stainless steel is sometimes used instead of the popular 440C stainless steel which is considered a high-end stainless steel. Both types are very resistant to corrosion and have similar amounts of carbon in them. What makes the AUS8 stainless steel that is produced by Aichi Steel Corporation in Japan slightly better is that this type of stainless steel has vanadium added to it which improves the wear resistance, toughness, and ease of sharpening. Right from the factory, our knife arrived razor sharp and has continued to stay sharp even after we used it quite a bit over the last few weeks. We requested the straight style blade rather then the available serrated style because of its ease to resharpen when needed.
What makes this knife really functional and almost fun to use is the SOG Assisted Technology (S.A.T.). What this does is when you put slight tension on the thumb stud on the blade, the blade will swing open automatically thanks to some hidden spring tension inside the handle. Once the blade is opened it is locked into position with a powerful piston lock that is easily released with a sliding button on the side of the handle. When closed, the blade is also held under slight spring tension to help minimize the possibility of the blade opening when you are carrying it or if you were to drop it. Just to be extra safe, there is a small safety switch towards the back of the handle on the knife that when activated, makes it impossible to open the blade. Just a technical note for those of you that live in states with stringent weapon laws: this knife is not considered an automatic or switchblade. The reason is that in order to open the blade on this knife, you must use a standard method of opening a blade that comes with a thumb stud. With a true automatic or switchblade knife, all that you have to do is push a button and the blade will deploy. Just to be safe, if you have questions on the legality of something like this, it is best to check with your local authorities.
SOG FSAT-8 Flash II Tanto Testing and use
As far as testing and using the knife, we have carried it for a few weeks and have found that it fits well on the inside of a pants pocket. For a decent sized 8″ long folding knife, this knife was easy to take anywhere thanks to its lightweight construction. We also liked how it sat low in our pocket, with only the pocket clip visible. Most of our day to day adventures have had to do with things like opening boxes, cutting tape and an occasional sharpening of a carpenter pencil and similar light-duty work. Needless to say, the knife is still razor sharp and was able to slice through a sheet of paper like it was nothing.
Conclusion
The SOG FSAT-8 Flash II Tanto Straight Edge Knife is one of the coolest knives we’ve seen. With its lighting fast, SOG Assisted Technology (S.A.T.), blade deployment and a very safe piston locking mechanism, this knife has the features to make it a favorite for everyday carry. If you are not sold on the Tanto style blade, check out the SOG web site since they offer a host of different blade styles, finishes and handles for their Flash line of knives. For our Performance rating we gave this knife an 8/10 since it combines a quality type of stainless steel blade with the assisted opening feature all in a super lightweight package. For our Value rating we gave this SOG knife a 7/10 since it represents a fantastic value in the assisted opening blade market and has the quality and warranty to back it up.
