The U.S. Divers 4.5-inch Sabre dive knife can be summed up into just one word: average. This knife does not have any spectacular features or any significant faults – what you would expect for the price. The Sabre’s blade is 420 stainless steel, which is good for dive knife due to its high stain and corrosion resistance, at the sacrifice of edge retention. The fact is, this is a stainless steel used in lower end, cheaper knives.
The blunt tip of the Sabre is designed for safety, and will be good for prying if need be, but there are many advantages to a spear or clip point design. This is almost a double-edge blade, with one straight-edge and one serrated. There is line cutter near the base on the serrated side. Like most dive knives, there is a metal tank signal piece on the butt of the knife. The sheath attaches to the leg and utilizes a quick-release mechanism.
In my opinion, this dive knife might be a good buy for the casual or beginning diver who don’t get much use out of their dive knife. But for the serious underwater explorers, diving a wreck or somewhere with a good chance of some loose tangles of line, I probably wouldn’t want to be caught with this knife.
I like U.S. Divers, so I might go with the U.S. Divers 5-inch titanium blade. Or, in blunt tip, the Underwater Kinetics Blue Tang titanium blade is a good quality. Titanium blades just last longer than to stainless steel.
