FOG HORN July, 2016

Twobirds Flying Publication

Copyright 2016, Towbirds Flying Publication. All Rights Reserved.

Spyderco Street Beat Black a Fred Perrin Design

Spyderco’s Street Beat Black a Fred Perrin Design 2016

Copyright 2016, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved

Spyderco’s Street Beat Black a Fred Perrin Design

By: Sal Palma

If looking and holding Spyderco’s Street Beat

doesn’t float your boat, you may want to check

your vitals. This little fixed blade knife has all of

the sex appeal of a Lamborghini HURACÁN LP

610-4 AVIO. The Street Beat is compact,

muscular and agile, all extensions of its

designer, M. Fred Perrin, de Paris, who’s

impressive military resume and martial arts

experience undoubtedly tempered his designs.

If you’re familiar with Perrin you’ll know that he

has a lure for Bowie profiles, but he’s not just

copying, he has a unique way of fusing the

concept into his superbly original Street Sweep

and Street Beat designs.

Spyderco’s newest version of M. Perrin’s Street

Beat is fashioned with a 3.5 inch VG-10 blade

that is 4 mm thick finished in a full-flat grind to

a finely honed plain edge. This knife is

extremely sharp and quite capable as

characteristic of most full flat grinds. The VG-10

blade material offers ease of sharpening, edge

retention and corrosion resistance, an all-

around superb Japanese steel. The Street Beat

(Black) is intended for use in tactical application

so the blade is finished in a very nice black

ceramic coating to mitigate telltale reflections.

Perrin selected a clip point for his Street Beat so

it maintains that chromosomal link to the Bowie

profiles that Perrin is so fond of, but remains

unique and well suited to a 3.5” blade; striking

an excellent balance between slashing and

puncturing. The Street Beat is a full tang design

for rigidity and durability with an abundance of

jimping along its full length.

Et maintenant, pour le coup de grace! The

Street Beat’s handle is designed so that the

knife rests nicely on your fingers and not the

Spyderco’s Street Beat Black a Fred Perrin Design 2016

Copyright 2016, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved

palm of the hand; thus, the index finger locks

securely into the large finger coil so

characteristic of Perrin’s neck knives and other

short fixed blades.

The Street Beat handle performs exceptionally

well with a saber grip, reverse grip or icepick

providing a very secure hand to knife interface.

The very large finger coil resides at the exact

center of balance and serves as a faux hilt of

sorts.

Spyderco offers two versions of the Street Beat,

the satin steel model features a Micarta handle

while the Black model, subject of my review,

features an injection-molded fiberglass-

reinforced-nylon (FRN) handle. The handle is

molded directly onto the tang of the VG-10

stainless steel blade.

As important as all its other accoutrements the

Street Beat sheath leaves nothing to be desired.

The black Boltaron sheath is equipped with a

multi-position belt fastener that Spyderco

markets as the G-Clip™. The G-Clip can be

attached to either side of the sheath and

configured to support a wide array of carry

positions, including inside-the-waistband carry

vertical, horizontal, or a canted carry on the

belt.

The Perrin Street Beat is a very credible

example of what can be achieved when

exceptional design meets manufacturing

excellence. The knife is a compact and light

tactical fixed blade and proves that size isn’t

everything. The petite Street Beat is quite

capable of delivering a very big bite. You’ll want

one in your collection.

-SP

Specifications:

Blade Length: 3.5"

Blade Thickness: 4.0 mm

Blade Material: VG-10

Blade Finish: Ceramic

Blade Grind: Full Flat

Blade Edge: Plain

Handle Material: FRN

Overall Length: 7.18"

Weight: 3.0 oz.

Sheath: Polymer

Country of Origin: Japan