Custom "Ari B'Lilah" Predator Israeli Defense Force YAMAM
Counterterrorism Tactical Combat Knife
- Size: Length overall: 12.4" (31.5 cm), Blade Length: 6.0" (15.2 cm), Thickness: .234" (5.95 mm)
- Weight: Knife: 1 lb. (454 grams), Sheath (with accessories and belt loop extender: 1 lb. 9 oz. (709 grams)
- Blade: CPMS35VN Martensitic Powder Metal Technology High Vanadium-Niobium Stainless Tool Steel, Hardened and Tempered to Rockwell C59, Media Blasted
- Bolsters: T2 Pure Titanium
- Handle: G10 Fiberglass/Epoxy Composite Laminate
- Sheath 1: Hybrid Tension-Locking in Black Kydex, Aluminum, Stainless Steel, Titanium
- Sheath 2: Hand-tooled Leather Shoulder
- Knife: "Ari" is the Hebrew word for lion,
and the lion is the sign of the tribe of Judah and Jerusalem and is
even called the Lion of God. Made for day and particularly
critical night operations, this knife is Ari B'Lilah (lion by night). This is a knife custom made
the most serious of action; Ari B'Lilah was designed with and for an Israeli YAMAM
counterterrorism unit team leader. Using direct input and feedback, I've
developed a series of knives specifically designed for tactical
combat and defense in the field of counterterrorism. It's a
great honor to have the input, guidance, and direction of these
professionals, widely considered the most elite and effective
counterterrorism unit in the world. They requested a series of
extremely efficient, well-designed and constructed, lethal
combat knives with some special features, built to the highest
standards in the world: what I'm known for in tactical combat knives, sheaths, and
accessories.
I made the blade of CPMS35VN, a high vanadium,
high niobium, and high chromium
martensitic stainless tool steel, chosen for its superior toughness
at high hardness in extreme use. The inclusion of vanadium forms
vanadium carbides which are extremely wear-resistant, and the
niobium adds extra toughness to resist breakage. The chromium
imparts great corrosion resistance, as well has wear resistance due
to chromium carbides. This is a powder metal technology tool steel,
with even distribution of alloy elements not possible in other
steels that are poured. This is a very advanced modern alloy, and I
treated it in laboratory-like conditions during heat treating and
tempering. The blade of the Ari B'Lilah is double-edged and
hollow ground; the main cutting edge is hollow ground with a 3"
diameter wheel and the top edge with serrations is hollow ground
with a 3" diameter wheel. This is an extremely difficult grind
profile, and
the purpose is to create two complimentary edges, both yielding extremely thin and razor keen edges
with a high longevity while preserving a good cross-sectional
thickness of center spine to support thrusting and the point. The point of
this knife is critically strong; it is a very ancient design called
"armor piercing." This is not for piercing today's armor, but for
piercing chain mail of old: interlocking metal rings woven into a
tough mesh. My clients requested the strongest possible point that
would still offer extremely sharp and lethal penetrating potential,
resisting any tough or hard materials such a thrust could encounter
without breaking.
The point is carefully hand-ground at the maximum edge angle (25
degrees) possible that can still provide a keen and slicing
single-bevel cutting edge.
The cross section of the point is a solid "diamond" (in cross
section), as tough and lethal as a knife point can possibly be. The
point is created by an interrupted hollow grind; the transition to
strong point is well-matched and supported by the full thickness
spine running down the center of the blade. The main cutting edge is
thin and keen; the top edge is designed with my Hammerhead
serrations, which are extremely tough and aggressive, with reduced
snagging and wide transitions between concavities and segmented
edges. The blade is hardened and tempered to RC59 for maximum
toughness (resistance to breakage) at very high hardness (wear
resistance). The grinds on the blade are accurate, sweeping, and
with nicely radiused grind terminations for great transfer of energy
without stressing the blade-to-handle ricasso area while a very long
supportive spine runs the length of the blade. The ricasso is
kept very short, and is heavily reinforced with a substantial front
bolster, sculpted, rounded, contoured, and finished in pure T2
titanium. This is chemically pure titanium, an unbelievably tough
metal that is extremely light weight. It's also completely corrosion
resistant for zero-care. This makes a knife that is 3.5 ounces
lighter than if 304 stainless steel was used, and a larger and more
comfortable handle is possible while shifting the center of balance
more to the blade. The front bolster is contoured around a 1" (2.54 cm)
diameter forward finger ring, which is rounded and radiused for
comfort and smoothness. The finger ring offers maximum security
between the hand and the knife, essential in the most critical of
counter-terrorism offensives. The forefinger and thumb grip between
the thumb rise and the finger ring, and this reinforced area is key
to the control of the knife. The ring and thumb rise allow
tremendous force to be applied to the blade where it is needed. The
handle scales are G10, a fiberglass reinforced epoxy composite that
is one of the most durable and dependable manmade handle materials
on earth. The handle scales are dovetailed and locked and bedded
under the bolsters, secured with heavy 304 stainless steel pins. The
handle shape is comfortable and extremely secure, with deep
quillons, good belly, and slope for the heel of the hand that makes
the knife an extension of the arm. The tang is fully fileworked with
an accurate, tight staccato pattern for increased purchase and
handmade signature. The tang is fully tapered, with plenty of
thickness at the butt for a substantial stout talon (skull crusher
or persuader) also applicable for non-lethal inducement. The heavy
rear bolster is significantly mounted to the tang, and has an
extra-large 3/8"
through-tang lanyard hole in the titanium for super security when elevated or in
special circumstances that require insurance against dropping the
knife. The large lanyard hole is chamfered and dressed smooth for abrasion reduction
and is easy and fast to thread. The center of balance of the knife is
at the front face of the forward bolster, for great mass control. The
knife feels extremely light yet durable in forward grip; and in
reverse grip, with the small finger threaded through the ring and
the thumb over the heel with the tip at the talon, the knife feels
robust and tough. The knife blade has simple embellishment: a deeply
diamond-engraved mad lion graphic outline with the subtle yet
powerful words: "The
darkness for you is fear-for us it is daylight."
- Sheath 1: The sheath is one of my hybrid
tension-locking models, originally made for my skeletonized knives,
but specially adapted to this fully bolstered and handled knife.
This is a proprietary design, the best possible sheath of its type
available in the world today. Actually, it is the ONLY type of this
sheath available in the world today! The sheath is built of double
thickness (.125" thick) kydex (methyl acrylate and polyvinyl
chloride) over a welt-frame of 5052H32 corrosion resistant high
strength aluminum alloy. The sheath is bonded with waterproof cement
and bolted together with all 304 stainless steel Chicago screws for
zero care and extreme corrosion resistance. The sheath (like most of
my sheaths) has die-formed aluminum belt loops that are able to be
moved to multiple locations as well as either side of the sheath
frame. On this particular knife, the belt loops have 10 different
locations with multiple combinations for versatile wear. The sheath
is based around my hybrid tension-locking mechanism. This device is
custom made to fit each knife, and allows a lock pressure of 15-20 pounds to hold the knife in the sheath, with
an optional thumb or finger release. There are two options to
unsheathe:
1. placing your hand on the knife handle in forward
(traditional) grip and use the finger or thumb to operate the release
and
unlock the knife for a controlled extraction of the
knife.
OR
2. grabbing the knife handle and pulling hard, with at
least 15-20 pounds of tension, the knife is unsheathed.
Simply put, the knife can be unlocked manually, or yanked hard and
unsheathed. 15-20 pounds is quite a bit of force, so the knife is
locked into the sheath unless it encounters 15-20 pounds of pull. This means that in most circumstances, the knife stays
locked in the sheath, and the assembly can trustfully be mounted
upside down or used in highly active movement with relative security. To be
certain that the knife is locked in the sheath properly, it takes a
thumb operation to re-engage the locking mechanism. All of the
components in this proprietary system are corrosion resistant
stainless steel or titanium, and the entire assembly is even
reversible by the owner. It's simple, it's lightweight, it's
fast, and it's clean, and it's all non-glare.
- Sheath 2: This knife package also includes a
basketweave pattern hand-stamped leather sheath, made of 9-10 oz.
leather shoulder, dyed black and sealed. The sheath was included for
quiet operations, when moving against hard objects (concrete or
stone) could telegraph a position through noise. The sheath has a
double belt loop with high and low mounting positions, and the belt
loop is double-stitched with the toughest polyester thread that is
water and sunlight resistant. The knife fits deep and secure into
the sheath, with the handle exposed and the back of the sheath
protecting the wearer. The sheath edges are dressed and smoothed for
comfort; the entire sheath is sealed for durability and longevity.
- Accessories: This is an example of my commitment to
the entire knife experience, from design to working service, for
some of the finest professional knife users in the world. Since the
bolt pattern of the sheath matches my 2.5" bolt pattern for our
accessories, most of my accessories can be used on this sheath,
including any new ones I develop. At the request of the Unit, this
knife comes with a full bunker of my attachment, wear, and useful
accessories, including:
Ultimate Belt Loop Extender
for lowering the knife handle position and mounting the diamond pad
sharpener and the Maglite Solitaire LED
Horizontal Belt Loop Plates (for horizontal belt or webbing wear)
Flat mounting straps (for rigid clamping to webbing, belts, or gear
in vertical or horizontal orientation)
Sternum Harness Plus (for wearing the knife diagonally across the
sternum, with full torso reinforcement straps)
LIMA and Solitaire (Lamp Independent Mounting Assembly with Maglite
Solitaire LED emergency back up light)
HULA and MagTac (Holder, Universal, Lamp, Articulating, a fully
functional main lamp with Maglite MagTac extreme intensity tactical
flashlight)
Lanyards (Adjustable 550 cord
and SCUBA rated)
All necessary stainless steel hardware, fittings, fasteners and
tools for mounting, moving, and adjusting
Containers: Waterproof storage container for loops, LIMA, and Tools,
can for screws and hardware, heavy stitched embroidered canvas
drawstring bag
Archival and Instructions: Detailed Bio, Care
Sheet, materials sheet, instructions for sharpener, Maglite MagTac and Solitaire,
Archival co-extruded acrylic information plate
This arrangement of useful and necessary accessories was requested
because the Unit operates at night or in low-light situations, and
requested a wide variety of wear options. My system for wear options
allows the greatest flexibility, usefulness, and applications of any
tactical combat knife in the world. See also the
Ari, Aryeh,
Ari-El,
Shahal, Shahaz,
Ari B' Lilah,
Ari B' Lilah,
Ari B' Lilah Predator, and
Ari B' Lilah Commemorative
in this YAMAM series.
- Learn much more about my Counterterrorism Knives at this link.
- This is an extreme use, highly engineered and intelligently
developed tactical combat knife and weapon, made with superior
technical precision and ultra-modern materials, with the toughest,
strongest penetrating point possible, and one of the finest
tactical combat weapons made in the world today, specifically made
for the world's most elite counterterrorism unit leaders. It is a great
honor for me to make these knives, respecting the very ancient and
most crucial relationships between weapons maker and warrior.
Special thanks to S. H., for his input, patience, and
professionalism.
Thanks, S. H., Predator, and the Unit!
