Cold Steel Mini Tac Tanto 3.75"

The Cold Steel Mini Tac Tanto with serrated blade makes a great EDC knife, although a bit heavy for my taste in terms of a neck knife. The Tanto alone is 2.6 oz, but add the secure-ex sheath and chain and the whole unit jumps up to 4.6 oz. I would have liked for the sheath to have come with a belt mounting option like with my Columbia River Folts Minimalist Tanto (Excellent neck knife), however the sheath can accommodate both right and left handed users. The full tang knife measures 6.75 inches, and add about a half inch with the sheath, and the chain is just about 30 inches. The blade measures 3.2 inches of actual cutting surface, and is 0.1 inch (2.7mm) thick. The G-10 Griv-Ex style handle measures 3.25 inches, not 3.75 as stated on their web-site. What is great about the handle is that it is relatively flat at just 0.34 inches, actually thinner than that of the Folts neck knife. The blade is a good quality Japanese AUS 8A stainless steel and comes shaving sharp with a nice non-reflective finish, with the knife actually made in Taiwan. The knife feels well balanced and sturdy in hand with a secure grip, and though I have read a lot of complaints that it is too hard to draw from the sheath, I have not found this to be an issue with 2 inches still available to grab onto, and the scales are very grippy; you can also push off with your thumb which makes it quieter as well. The only thing I felt was a bit odd is the spacing of the jimping, but that is just being picky. Although I don't recommend it as a neck knife unless you are tall and don't mind the weight (but check out the CRKT Folts Minimalist), I do think the Cold Steel Mini Tac Tanto makes a great EDC or pack knife, and I will probably be buying the non-serrated blade as well. I hope you found this review informative and useful! If not, please leave a comment so I can do better next time. Thanks!

This is awesome! With these super budget knives, serrated is the way to go. I got the Bowie version of this knife, and sent it back for being dull. This one however, is good to go! Great edc

it has a good grip. g10 handle is pretty good. good defense knife. pros- serrations and blade are sharp sheath is amazing!! good grip good quality bead chain cons- au7 steel is good though i would prefer carbon but is fine for our use hard to sharpen serrations steel gets thin in the beginning of the handle where the blade meets with the handle over all - i would recommend any one who wants a good defense knife and light utility knife (opening boxes cutting rope...etc)

I am a knife fanatic and this little knife has won my heart. I have been carrying high dollar limited edition benchmades for years and I decided I wanted to take better care of my more collectible knives. Cold steel has made a winner here. They use great blade material and designs with their products. The tanto blade style is very useful. The sheath is great too, I have it lashed to my belt in the middle of my back and it holds the knife in place nicely, I never have to worry about it falling out. The best part of this knife is the handle design, it is super comfortable and gives the user excellent grip. For the price this knife is a steal, I actually just bought another mini tac in another blade stlye. Oh yeah....this thing is sharp This is my first fixed blade that I have used for daily carry and have found it even more convenient than a tactical folder. You can draw it quick and it stays completely concealed. Putting it back in the sheath requires two hands with it placed laterally in the center of my back on my belt, but I would rather have a tight sheath than a loose one.

I bought the Mini Tac Tanto to be a backup defensive blade. There's pretty much no other purpose for a neck knife that comes with a kydex sheath with no clip. The mini tac Tanto seemed like the best choice in blade type for this role as the Tanto blade is known for being a premier defensive use blade. The Mini Tac is a very small knife, however, it handles like a much bigger knife due to the deep finger grooves allowing a very positive grip on the handle. The handle is encased in G10 scales which also allow excellent retention while the knife is in your hand. The chain that comes with the knife is plenty strong enough to withstand repeated draws from around the neck and the kydex sheath offers good retention of the knife as well as plenty of holes to use to attach the blade to anything from a belt to MOLLE gear. The one negative is a complete lack of pocket clip on the mini tac. The blade itself is outstanding offering the blade length and cutting performance of a decent sized pocket knife. Cold Steel has done a great job of giving you enough handle to hold on and leaving you a nice large useable blade. They've also added some outstanding jimping (ridges for your thumb on top of the blade) to add to your grip when performing smaller tasks with the knife. I'd happily recommend the Mini Tac Tanto to anyone looking for a backup defensive knife. 10/10

I brought this knife with me for a week long vacation to Dominican Republic. I used it to cut fish and coconuts and took it into the water with me at 11 beaches. It WILL oxidize in water. However after arriving home I used a bit of vinegar and a dish scrubbing pad and it looks almost as good as new. It's very easily concealable, very sharp, very egronomic. As for the grip being "too textured" according to some reviewers, I didn't find that to be the case at all. I found the texture to be perfect as it gave me excellent grip. The blade has managed to hold it's sharpness, even as I used it to dig in sand under-water that had shells and rocks. The steel isn't as "stainless" as I would hope, but it's a small trade-off considering the excellent durability of the blade. I really did abuse the knife quite a few times, and the blade didn't chip or dull. My only complaint is that the knife is hard to unsheathe, but I corrected this by leaving it sitting for a few datys with a coin tucked under the plastic where the finger notch is. I highly recommend this blade, as despite it's small handle, it's easy to maintain a strong grip, and I'd feel confident to rely on this knife in both combat and survival situations.

Perfect neck knife for those of us with larger hands. I originally bought the minimalist neck knife but it was just too small for my hand. My son sure liked it though! This knife is a tad heavy, but you will forget about it being there. I put mine on some paracord that I felt was more comfortable and stronger than the chain. Once you get the cord adjusted to the right length it is hard to tell you have it under your shirt. This is a full tang very strong, sharp little tanto, right out of the box. I especially like the finger cutouts that keep your hand from sliding up over the blade. The thumb ridges also help to give you a stable grip. The kydex sheath is a great positive retention sheath that really holds the knife very securely. Great for self-defense or just everyday carry. A plus, in my opinion

Gsm please improve your quality control. This is another knife I have received from GSM that has had issues. I really love this Andrew Demko mini tac design. It securely locks into your hand, I have large hands but it's more like a 3 and a half finger grip. The finger slot is designed so you don't accidentally cut yourself. I think the design and knife and sheath and bead chain are all a win. However what's not a win is that the quality control has seemed to slip now that GSM has taken over. Seem my photos to seem how the tanto grind lines are asymmetrical. Also there are minor imperfections here and there. Like all cold steels knives I have received it came beautifully paper slicing sharp. I think it's a great value for the money. The griv ex is a faux g10 I really enjoy it on their knives. It basically feels like plastic but it's highly durable. I use it as a neck knife. I've found it to be a GOOD just could be even better with better build quality and better quality control.