The Freeman Outdoor Gear 451 neck knife. There are three easy ways to describe this neck knife: Affordable, High Quality, and last but not least Made in America! Jeff Freeman has built a neck knife that stands out in the crowd for those three reasons. You can learn a little more about Jeff and his background from the past review I did on his 451 Compact/Full Size fixed blade here.
Some knives you might look at and think, "Now what in the world could I do with that?" I think neck knives might fall into that category more than most (except for those wild and ridiculous fantasy knives). But sometimes you need a knife, and sometimes anything larger just wouldn't be practical. Maybe you just need a little blade to open boxes, maybe anything larger would scare people at the office. Or maybe you're a cyclist and just don't always have something to clip a standard folding pocket knife to. This is a nice little neck knife for discreet carry. Will also attach to Blade-Tech Tek-Lok and other aftermarket IWB belt loops.
These are some reasons for a neck knife, and I think the Freeman Outdoor Gear 451 neck knife is among the best for the three reasons I posted at the beginning of this review. So lets take a closer look at the specs and the knife.
Specifications:
Overall Length - 6.1"
Blade Length - 2.6"
Blade Thickness - .160"
Blade Steel - CTS-XHP Cerakote Finished
The blade on this Freeman Outdoor Gear 451 neck knife measures 2.6" and is constructed out of a CTS-XHP blade steel. I don't have a whole lot of experience with this steel, but the few knives I've owned that were CTS-XHP had excellent edge retention and very easy to maintenance. Out of the box this fixed blade came hair shaving sharp! And weeks later, it still just as sharp as the day I unboxed it. The high flat-ground really makes a great slicer and the belly makes for superb utility cutting.
The handle on this knife has excellent ergonomics and contours the hand beautifully. Whether you're bare-handed or using gloves, there is absolutely no hot spots when it comes to heavy-duty cutting task. There are five beveled holes drilled into the handle that not only looks cool, but it also helps keep the weight at a minimum on this knife. With the kydex sheath, I would say this knife is somewhere around 2.5 ounces. There are two smaller holes drilled in the butt end of the handle where they routed some 550 cord for a lanyard.
The Freeman Outdoor Gear 451 neck knife comes with a real nice kydex sheath. This sheath is .60" thickness and forms the knife very tight. So you'll never have to worry about the knife falling out no matter what your doing.
There are many ways of carrying this knife other than around the neck. Personally I don't like anything around my neck so what works great for me is either in a IWB belt loop or if I'm wearing jeans I toss it in that upper square pocket above the main right pant pocket. It sits in there nice and secure and just tight enough that I can pull out the knife without the sheath coming out too. These are just two ways I find it most comfortable for me to carry it. I am sure if you searched around you'd find many ways of carrying this knife.
Here are two pictures of this knife next to my Zero Tolerance 0560 for a size comparison.
My final conclusion on the Freeman Outdoor Gear 451 neck knife: I like this knife a lot! It's an excellent example of a fixed blade neck knife that while small is extremely tough. This is a great knife to carry as a backup to another larger knife while hiking, backpacking or self defense. Being that it is so small and lightweight it is also a good choice for a EDC knife. The three key features I listed at the beginning of this review: Affordable, High Quality, and made in America.. I love it!!
Right now, Jeff is selling this knife with sheath for $45 bucks on his website HERE. I cannot promise how long this price will be honored, so if it's in stock, don't hesitate to order one while they last.
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