New review!!!
Douk Douk, a Ghost, and a 21st Century Douk
A review/article by Terry Trahan
Several years ago, I was discussing various survival related topics with
my Brother, Don Rearic, and the discussion turned towards small folders
for pocket kits. He brought up a knife by the name Douk Douk, and asked if I
knew about them. I told him I had read a review of them by Fred Perrin, but had never
used one. Well, at his urging, I ended up getting one to include in a kit. I do not know what
took me so long, but I do know that I missed out on a wonderful knife for many years, that I
cannot see doing without any longer.
The Douk Douk is a slip joint folder made completely out of steel, with a nice bail at the end of the
handle to accept either a fob/lanyard, or a length of cord, for different purposes. It comes in 3 different
sizes, and I have a medium and a small, and find they can handle anything I have been able to put them through.
I like the carbon steel for a few different reasons. First, it can be used along with a fire rod to create sparks to
start a fire in a survival emergency. Second, it is easy as hell to resharpen, and takes a razors edge with no
hard work involved in the sharpening process. The only downside to this wonderful knife is the opening process.
As mentioned, it is a slip joint, and one with very strong backsprings. Strong backsprings are a great thing, they keep the knife
open and don't let the blade close on your fingers. However, it does not provide for quick use of the knife, and definately is way
to slow for SD usage. Apparently, I am not the only one who likes the Douk, it's blade shape is wonderfully useful, and it
is the right size for any job. Among fans of the Douk is one Mr. Laci Szabo. As a matter of fact, I purchased one of my
first Douks from his website, www.szaboinc.com
Mr. Szabo has an incredibly creative mind for bladeware, and produces some of the most usable, attractive, and purpose
designed knives around. I was looking at his website, and nearly had a heart attack, as the answer to the Douk problem was
right there in front of my eyes. Mr Szabo had designed a fixed blade Douk Douk. The fixed blade Douk has a 4" handle with
Micarta scales, is full tang construction, and has the traditional Turkish clip point of the folding Douk, with a 3.5" blade.
start a fire in a survival emergency. Second, it is easy as hell to resharpen, and takes a razors edge with no
hard work involved in the sharpening process. The only downside to this wonderful knife is the opening process.
As mentioned, it is a slip joint, and one with very strong backsprings. Strong backsprings are a great thing, they keep the knife
open and don't let the blade close on your fingers. However, it does not provide for quick use of the knife, and definately is way
to slow for SD usage. Apparently, I am not the only one who likes the Douk, it's blade shape is wonderfully useful, and it
is the right size for any job. Among fans of the Douk is one Mr. Laci Szabo. As a matter of fact, I purchased one of my
first Douks from his website, www.szaboinc.com
Mr. Szabo has an incredibly creative mind for bladeware, and produces some of the most usable, attractive, and purpose
designed knives around. I was looking at his website, and nearly had a heart attack, as the answer to the Douk problem was
right there in front of my eyes. Mr Szabo had designed a fixed blade Douk Douk. The fixed blade Douk has a 4" handle with
Micarta scales, is full tang construction, and has the traditional Turkish clip point of the folding Douk, with a 3.5" blade.
Let me tell you, I have used this knife for everything I can think of. Utility use has seen it go through hundreds of feet of cardboard
in the warehouse at work, opened a few thousand packages in the repair shop, and all the other normal uses you can put a knife
through. In all of this, I had to sharpen the knife a grand total of one time. The handle really makes this knife shine for defensive use,
however. Mr. Szabo totally reworked the traditional handle of the Douk Douk, and made it as ergonomic as possible. The length
of the handle, and the weight of the knife due to its thickness provides a balance point right behind the choil, allowing for rapid
manipulation of the knife, and grip changes that are smooth and quick. This knife shines in all four of the major grips, but really works in
standard forward hammer grip, and RGEI, due to the point alignment, and the curvature of the handle.
I cannot recommend this knife enough. Some will say that the price is too much, but the construction, useability, and feel of the knife
guarantee that it will last a lifetime, and serve you well. It is well worth the price, especially for a truly custom knife, that you will want to
use everyday.
I have been testing the Douk Douk fixed for a few months, and in that time, I frequently checked Mr. Szabos website, to see what other
new ideas or tools he has come up with, and during the process, I saw another tool there that I had to have. It is no secret that I believe in
overlapping layers of tools, and different tools for different jobs. Impact tools are one of the articles that I think are indispensible in a defensive
profile. My ideas of good impact tools run the gamut from saps & blackjacks to knuckles, to Stingers, and especially Koppo sticks.
In this new tool that Laci Szabo designed, he has managed to combine the best of the Stinger/knuckle tool, and a Koppo.
It is called a Ghost, and it is constructed of one piece of hardened aircraft aluminum. It should be obvious the many uses that this tool can
be applied to, and I am working on an article showing some of the uses for the Ghost, but I had to include some pics and a mention in this article.
in the warehouse at work, opened a few thousand packages in the repair shop, and all the other normal uses you can put a knife
through. In all of this, I had to sharpen the knife a grand total of one time. The handle really makes this knife shine for defensive use,
however. Mr. Szabo totally reworked the traditional handle of the Douk Douk, and made it as ergonomic as possible. The length
of the handle, and the weight of the knife due to its thickness provides a balance point right behind the choil, allowing for rapid
manipulation of the knife, and grip changes that are smooth and quick. This knife shines in all four of the major grips, but really works in
standard forward hammer grip, and RGEI, due to the point alignment, and the curvature of the handle.
I cannot recommend this knife enough. Some will say that the price is too much, but the construction, useability, and feel of the knife
guarantee that it will last a lifetime, and serve you well. It is well worth the price, especially for a truly custom knife, that you will want to
use everyday.
I have been testing the Douk Douk fixed for a few months, and in that time, I frequently checked Mr. Szabos website, to see what other
new ideas or tools he has come up with, and during the process, I saw another tool there that I had to have. It is no secret that I believe in
overlapping layers of tools, and different tools for different jobs. Impact tools are one of the articles that I think are indispensible in a defensive
profile. My ideas of good impact tools run the gamut from saps & blackjacks to knuckles, to Stingers, and especially Koppo sticks.
In this new tool that Laci Szabo designed, he has managed to combine the best of the Stinger/knuckle tool, and a Koppo.
It is called a Ghost, and it is constructed of one piece of hardened aircraft aluminum. It should be obvious the many uses that this tool can
be applied to, and I am working on an article showing some of the uses for the Ghost, but I had to include some pics and a mention in this article.
I have to admit, after receiving the Ghost, it has supplanted my carry of the Van de Camp sap.
All the pics used in this article come from either Fred Perrins old Geocities website, where the original review of the Douk Douk is,
or Mr. Szabos wonderful www.szaboinc.com
Thanks for reading.
All the pics used in this article come from either Fred Perrins old Geocities website, where the original review of the Douk Douk is,
or Mr. Szabos wonderful www.szaboinc.com
Thanks for reading.
posted by Terry at 4:42 PM
5 Comments:
I wonder, though -- would this critter fall into the category of brass knuckles? Lotta places, those are specifically outlawed, more so than some kinds of knives.
Steve,
Thanks for reading.
Yes, it would probably be considered knucks in just about every jurisdiction.
As always, collectors can have them, but we must all make our choices.
Remeber, everything is illegal somewhere, but the people you would use this on don't worry about that.
YMMV
Great article Terry..good toys as well. I agree it's only illegal if ya get caught. I never worry about that whether it's guns, knives, or knucks, etc.
My notion is -- always -- to obey the law and be an upstanding citizen, as of course, everybody should.
However, were I going to carry something illegal upon my person for self-defense, I'd be apt to make sure it was the most useful item I could haul around. Might as well be hung for a sheep as a lamb ...
Just the word obey rings false with me..LOL...it's the anarchist in me I suppose...oh well to each their collective own. I have always preffered the left side of the razor. More truth in that world and definitely less BS. Right, Wrong, or Indifferent!
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