Gerber GDC Hook Knife
Manufacturer: Gerber (supposedly)
Model: GDC Hook Knife
Shipped From: China
Vendor: Seller libinbin2018 via ebay
First Impressions
I'm still trying to perfect my emergency/SHTF go box. Looking around for any little gizmo or gadget to add to or replace stuff in the box. I saw these popping their heads up every few days and wondered if I should pull the trigger.
Doing a little research revealed that Gerber seem to have discontinued this item, I'm not sure when though. Original pricing was around the £10 mark from online outdoor stores.
I managed to win two separate lots costing 50p and 60p respectively. The first lot arrived the other day in a plain yellow envelope.
Inside the envelope was a little white cardboard box containing the knife and nothing else.
On first inspection we find a rather nicely made knife within a safety sheath. The blade appears to be made from a piece of coated steel although I'm not 100% sure of that. It's tough and well machined.
The sheath is made from a single piece of tough ABS plastic and features a click lock for holding the knife in place.
There isn't much more to it than that. It's simple in design.
Product code on the back
A genuine Gerber?
Nope!
I think this plain white box was the biggest giveaway as to this items true origin. Gerber never shipped the hook knife in a plain box with a Chinese sticker on it! The original knife was packaged in a small square black box. Another slight omission by the counterfeiters was the lack of a silver split ring through the top hole in the sheath. The original knife does have a ring.
Another little fakery faux pas for those paying attention is the difference in the Gerber logo font. Check out the photo below to compare. The low price of 50p is another clue to this products shady past. Online stores were selling these for anything up to £10.00 each .....not 50p
Unless the genuine Gerber knife is made from Titanium or Platinum then I reckon this fake will be equally as good and made from similat stuff. That's my guess.
An Authentic Gerber GDC Hook Knife
Testing:
Despite having a dubious pedigree this knife works surprisingly well.
Cutting through a piece of paracord was quick and simple. The knife blade is incredibly sharp meaning you don't have to apply too much pressure when cutting.
I can't see any reason why this knife would be crap in an emergency situation. It's strong, tough and plenty capable.
Rating: ✅✅✅✅✅ 5 out of 5
Despite appearing to be a knockoff, this hook knife is super value for money. The blade is sharp enough to slice through a seat belt and chop through paracord, what more do you want? A useful addition to any keyring.