Germany during World War II
The period in history since World War II designates Germany as the "German Reich" Deutsches Reich until 1943 and then the "Greater German Reich" Großdeutsches Reich. Russian historians use terms such as “Hitler”, “Nazi”, “fascist” and “Third Reich” to refer to Germany. The Greater German Reich ceased to exist after the defeat in World War II, and some security forces and the National Socialist German Workers' Party were recognized as criminal organizations.
On September 1, 1939, the German Army invaded Poland. During the period from 39 to 41, German troops defeated Poland, Denmark, Luxenburg, the Netherlands, France, Greece, Yugoslavia, Norway and Belgium. On June 22, 1941, the invasion and seizure of part of the territory of the Soviet Union took place.
A regime of intimidation took place in the occupied territories. The persecution and extermination of Jews began, and in some areas the complete extermination of the local non-Jewish population began in order to suppress partisan movements.
The unconditional act of surrender was signed on May 8, 1945 in Reims. May 9 was declared the day of cessation of hostilities, and on May 23 the government of the Third Reich was arrested in Flensburg.
According to the latest data, German losses during the Second World War amounted to 8 million 876 thousand people.
Finnish cleaver Vesuri
We continue the series of articles dedicated to national heavy knives. As noted in the note about the machete, this knife is used in the tropics, but is practically useless in temperate latitudes. In the taiga and deciduous forests of Eurasia and North America there are not so many vines and reeds that you need to cut through with a long knife, and in order to cut down even a not very powerful (by our northern standards) tree, a machete is not suitable. The popularity of machetes among drug addicts in Russia, Ukraine and Belarus can only be explained by the frantic promotion of this “miracle weapon” by Hollywood movies. Plus the relative cheapness of this tool: the North American Bowie hunting knife, mentioned in one of the previous articles, is a very expensive “toy,” just like the Himalayan kukri.
Meanwhile, the northern knife tradition has its own long, heavy blade. Meet the traditional Finnish cleaver, vesuri.
Vesuri
It has a long (up to 40-50 cm) straight blade, which at the end is bent to the working side, like a sickle. Vesuri is sharpened only on one side, the working side. It is mounted on the handle from above, using a hollow cone - an ordinary working shovel is secured in the same way, and in ancient times the tip of a spear was attached to the shaft in this way. The handle of the vesuri is long, equal in size to the blade. This is done to make it easier to hold with both hands and to give the cleaver inertia during the swing.
Unlike kukri, which can be used with equal success for peaceful purposes and as a weapon, vesuri is a purely civilian economic tool. It is used for cutting off knots, sharpening pegs and similar auxiliary work in the forest. It can also be used in the garden when forming tree crowns.
Despite the narrow use of vesuri, Finns are sensitive to this instrument, which emphasizes their national identity. And during the Civil War, the “Finnish machete” appeared on the coat of arms and banner of the North Karelian state, which existed in 1919-1920. on part of the territory of the modern Republic of Karelia. The coat of arms of this state depicted a black bear standing on its hind legs, trampling a chain. The animal held a vesuri in its front paws.
Independent North Karelian bear
But, as you know, the Bolsheviks very freely interpreted the “right of nations to self-determination”: the North Karelian state fell under the blows of the Red Army, it was not helped either by military assistance from Finland or by heavy cutlasses in the calloused hands of lumberjacks. The coat of arms with a black bear and vesuri became part of history. However, vesuri in a modern layout, with an ergonomic plastic handle, are still produced to this day. The original Finnish cleaver is popular among timber merchants and gardeners.
World War II Antiques. Germany
The Hitler period in German history left behind many striking and characteristic objects. Awards, for example, at this time became national (before the Nazis came to power, they were awarded by the state government and were of a purely territorial nature). A number of changes were made in accordance with the new attributes. Before the start of the war, Hitler personally presented all types of awards; later this right was vested in the military command.
During the period of the war of action, industry in the military sphere underwent crazy growth. A huge number of daggers, daggers, helmets, belts and buckles and other elements of uniforms and equipment have survived to this day and are presented in our catalog. Interior items and watches also have great collectible value and best convey the spirit of that time.
The exhibits are carefully preserved in excellent condition and prepared for further storage. You can purchase a piece of memory about one of the largest wars in history, which only becomes more valuable every year.
“So dangerous that no one is locked up with him.” How Tesak serves his sentence
“They fed him to the pigs as a joke.” Tesak spoke about the filming of the film “Dau”
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Martsinkevich said that he has been in prison for five years, but does not know how much longer this can continue. Tesak is confident that his case was initially “grossly falsified,” and the judge “made many violations and mistakes.”
“I’ve been in prison for five years now, but there’s no point in counting how much time I have left. And it couldn’t have been any other way given the initial fabrication of the case, so the verdict will inevitably be overturned. In this story, if anyone has committed crimes, it is the operatives, investigators, prosecutors and judges who cover up the fight against objectionable social movements in the name of the law,” Tesak said.
According to the prisoner, in his case it is pointless to talk about parole. “It is only for ordinary prisoners who can reform. How can an innocent person correct himself? - Martsinkevich was indignant.
According to Tesak, after the end of the term he will not continue to work with his organizations. “I intend to get out of this country and implement a global cultural research project,” he concluded.
Martsinkevich's lawyer Ivan spoke about the prisoner's conditions of detention. The interlocutor of “360” emphasized that Tesak feels good, “his mood is cheerful, he’s having fun.” According to the lawyer, Martsinkevich shares a cell with only one prisoner because, “apparently, [Maxim] is so dangerous that he is not locked up with anyone else.”
If you think about it for even five minutes and imagine [the conditions in which Martsinkevich is being held], it becomes creepy. And this is not the first year that a person has been in such conditions. Naturally, only fortitude and fun keep him from going crazy
Ivan is Tesak's lawyer.
Tesak is serving his sentence in the federal prison Pre-trial Detention Center-1 of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia, better known as “Matrosskaya Tishina.” According to the lawyer, “officials, legendary killers and participants in high-profile cases” are imprisoned there.
“The judge committed fundamental violations of the law”: the lawyer spoke about the development of Tesak’s case
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“Prisoners have no connection whatsoever with the outside world. Absolutely every action is based on a written application to the administration. Everything is censored, even the papers that lawyers carry when meeting with their clients,” said Ivan.
The lawyer emphasized that after the verdict was passed, he and his client had already filed an appeal. “A verdict was passed and an appeal was filed against it. Accordingly, it remains to be seen whether other defendants in the criminal case will do this. Well, everything depends on the judiciary,” he said.
According to Ivan, Tesak is a major media figure because of his projects. “The projects that he created were very powerful in their time. Martsinkevich became a media person. Most people remember this and recognize him,” the lawyer concluded.
Maxim Martsinkevich served a sentence several times under Article 282 of the Criminal Code “Inciting hatred or enmity, as well as humiliation of human dignity.” In 2007, chanting fascist slogans, he disrupted a colloquium at the Bilingua club, for which he received six months in prison. In 2009, Tesak released a racist video on his blog, for which he received three years in prison.
Upon his release, Martsinkevich organized the “Occupy-Pedophile” movement, whose participants carried out lynching of pedophiles, and Tesak himself took part in this “safari” after receiving “donations” from fans. In parallel with this, he conducted paid seminars at which he talked about life in prison and how to steal from stores “without a flaw.” For his activities, Martsinkevich received five years in a maximum security colony, but later the term was reduced to almost three years.
In June 2017, the nationalist was sentenced to 10 years in prison as part of an investigation into an attack on drug dealers. In May 2018, the Moscow City Court overturned the sentence, but in December the Babushkinsky court sentenced Tesak to the same punishment.
Cold Steel Mini Tac Knife. Compact Combat Cleaver
What are small knives even for? If we don’t take into account toys at all, such as CRKT Minimalist and others, which, by and large, are toys for the soul or as completely auxiliary knives, if you don’t want to scare others with some Spartan, Espada or Paul Force. It’s clear that a knife, no matter what its size, is a knife, and if you know how to use it, then it will be enough.
But today we will not talk about such “kids”, but about the so-called “compact urban Fixed“. These are small non-folding knives with compact blades and are aimed specifically at self-defense. Why specifically for self-defense, and not for economic needs?
The fact is that any “knife maker” will tell you that a non-folding knife is better than a folding one, because it... There is no need to unfold it. No, there is no possibility of confusion and mistakes when extracting and putting into combat readiness. That is, understand correctly, you can practice retrieving with any folding knife. Fortunately, there are such things as the Emerson wave, there is a Coldsteel washer (like on the same Rajah), which allow you to open the knife in the process of removing it from a belt or pocket without being distracted by the fine motor skills of your fingers.
However, there is a high probability that the knife will not open completely or will get tangled in clothing. The Fixed is forgiving of all these mistakes if you wear it correctly. Why are we talking about self-defense right away? Although I usually try not to say anything on this topic, due to the huge number of “experts” on this issue. You can blame me yourself, because I wrote that a knife is not suitable for self-defense.
I will not say that you need to read carefully and not attribute to me what I did not say. I’ll just say that in life there are different situations and people. Some people a knife in order to use it in the first urgent need.
For ordinary urban carrying with ordinary urban tasks (cutting food, string, trimming a twig, and any household work), any folding knife, even a Victorinox or Wenger, will suffice. If someone sometimes needs power work, there are folding knives from the same Cold Steel (Voyager, Recon 1) and other serious knives. The need for Fixed for economic purposes in the city is not justified in any way. Even those who are legally required to have a knife in the city prefer folding knives, simply because they have at least a pistol or something more serious in addition to the knife.
That is why a clumsy knife is a rare guest in the city. In addition, in our native organs, in principle, any awkward knife causes a state close to joyful hysteria about the capture of a “dangerous, unbalanced criminal” and subsequent reward for such merit. Consequently, it completely turns off their brain. Which, in turn, leads to long unpleasant explanations, disputes, arguments regarding laws/GOST/certificates, and loss of time. Well, if you are not stubborn enough, then you will lose your knife and have a lot of hassle. Yes, don’t be surprised, our employees still like to “squeeze” the knives that interest them, hoping that they will run into a person who can be intimidated and deceived, taking advantage of his ignorance of the laws.
Therefore, the knife must be compact enough so that it can be carried unnoticed, and it does not cause the employees of the authorities to switch off their brains by its very appearance. However, enough has been said on this topic without me, so let’s finally move on to the main topic, why all this was written in the first place.
So here it is. Compact urban Fixed. Honestly, for me, with my preferences, the ideal would be the Benchmade Nim Cub II. Which, alas, Benchmade discontinued. And in the end we have to look for other options.
Personally, my parameters are very simple:
- Blade type: American tanto (because I like this type of blade the most).
- The total size is no more than 20 centimeters.
- The length of the blade is no more than 90 mm, or less, but not less than 75 mm.
- Easy.
- Comfortable to wear (this mainly applies to the sheath).
- Convenient to use.
- Suitable for household needs.
In short, what to take is a problem. To be honest, after Benchmade genuinely upset me with the discontinuation of the Nim Cub II, I found myself in a rather difficult situation. The fact is that manufacturers completely ignore AT type blades in compact Fixed blades. The smallest size we could find is something like Aldo (Mr.Blade) or Schf-15 (Shrade). On the one hand, these knives are extremely close to the dimensional boundaries of interest, and, in principle, were practically suitable. Aldo - in a pleasant and fashionable light design (both the handle and the sheath). Yes, and the Schrade also fits in size, but it is quite bulky on its own, and even more so with the sheath.
Of course, attentive citizens may remember that I have Benchmade SOCP Dagger, two of them. But I’ll remind you of the previous part: just the sight of it provokes the employees’ desire to write you down as a serial killer and squeeze out such a knife for themselves. And it is also completely inapplicable for economic purposes (try cutting a tomato with it). I might also remember Timberline's Mini PitBull, but I just don't like it. The knife is good though. As for my favorite CRKT products, such as KISS (Ed Halligan or Stiff), they are also not very suitable for household needs.
Taking a knife for the city just for self-defense is stupid; the knife should still be economically functional. Their Side Hawg is not very comfortable to hold. The same applies to skeleton-type knives, for example Buck Csar-T Liaison; they may fit in size, but ergonomically it is usually inconvenient. And the recipe “wrap the handle with paracord” does not always help due to the design of the sheath (after wrapping it no longer fits or is fixed in the sheath). Crawford NECK simply doesn’t fit in my hand because it’s small. No, of course, there are NK2 and NK3 from Extrema Ratio, but in this case the dimensions and price are unsatisfactory.
Again, knowledgeable and attentive people will immediately tell me that I need to be more modest. Because I have two SOG Mini Pentagons. Their blade is not AT, this is not a problem in principle. But he has such a sheath... For such a sheath you have to kill on the spot with a slingshot. In short, the SOG Mini Pentagon is completely unsuitable for concealed carry, although it was originally designed for this purpose. You can, of course, just order a sheath, but why bother with a sheath if you can buy another knife. In general, in short, I just wanted to get myself another knife. Just know that.
By the way, if anyone suddenly has versions and suggestions on what can be taken using these parameters, I will be glad to see your feedback in the comments. The most important thing is that you can touch it with your hands before buying it. I can take knives blindly, but not for serious purposes.
In short, I turned my attention to the familiar and beloved Cold Steel . Why unexpected? Do you remember what this company produces? Crowbars and cutlasses. The compactness of the knife in the CS is a bit of a strange thing. Again, I have their Byrd&Throut, but this is a pure self-defense knife, generally something between a non-writing tactical dystrophic pen and a scalpel. In addition, my beloved has a CS Brave Heart, but, firstly, its handle is completely uncomfortable for me, secondly, it is a dagger, and thirdly, it is not mine, but her knife. And my eye fell on the Mini-Tac , and there is a knife made by Tanto Plain.
TTX Cold Steel Mini Tac :
- Blade material: Aus 8A
- Hardness: 56-58 (Hrc)
- Blade profile: Tanto
- Cutting edge: Plain
- Blade Section: Flat Grind
- Blade coating: Stone wash
- Handle Mount: Full Tang
- Handle material: G-10
- Sheath: Zytel®
- Blade length: 80 mm
- Knife length: 170 mm
- Blade width: 2.7 mm.
- Butt thickness: 3 mm.
- Weight: 75 gr.
And here's what's interesting. In store photos, the knife looks deceiving. It looks large, and for some reason it personally made me think of a cake spatula. Even after I watched a couple of videos about this knife, this feeling did not completely go away. But despite the stated dimensions, the knife is persistently perceived visually as quite large. In principle, this is influenced by the subtle transition from the handle to the wide blade. Well, I’m used to the fact that CS practically doesn’t make small knives. And if it does, it’s very specific (remember the same Spike series). What's in reality? In reality, this is indeed a very compact knife, quite convenient, functional, but ambiguous.
But everything has its time.
In general, Mini-Tac is positioned as a collar. That is, the Secure-Ex sheath comes with only the usual chain for CS . And the knife is really suitable for the role of a collar; by itself it weighs 75 grams, together with the sheath 115. The result is not a record, but for a non-skeletal type knife of this size it is very worthy. With all this, if you remove the chain, it becomes rather difficult to carry the knife: there are no belt loops or hooks on it.
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An interesting point: it fits perfectly into the belt loops on the trousers. Experiments have shown that if the belt loops are well sewn, then the knife does not fall out of them even under intense loads (I tried it on the Splavov ones from Gorka-3 and BH Taclite). At the same time, the Mini-Tac is very convenient on the belt in a horizontal position and does not get in the way at all.
At the same time, the knife sits in the sheath like a glove; I was able to shake it out only by simulating throwing the knife with all my might, while holding it only by the sheath. That is, in reality, the probability that the knife itself will “leave” from the sheath is practically zero. Of course, it is better to additionally attach the sheath itself to the trousers, so as not to rely only on them bursting the belt loops, but this is already simple. Hook it with the same chain or paracord to your belt or to the loop on your pants (if there is one) and that’s it, the problem is solved. Considering that the sheath is not only “soldered” but also has grommets, it’s not scary to drop it or knock it. All that remains is to check the possibility of installing a tek-lock, and if it fits, then the sheath can be considered perfect for this type of knife.
Regarding functionality, everything is also in order. The blade is long enough to perform household functions, but at the same time it is really small. And, for example, in comparison with the same SOG Mini Pentagon, the total length of the RK is noticeably longer, due to the shape of the blade (one of the advantages of AT-type blades). That is, the knife performs cutting something, peeling an apple, cutting a string, and other small household needs with ease, while being only 17 centimeters long. It is clear that it cannot do everything, but you need to understand why this knife was originally made.
CS knives , but here it is still worth making a small remark. Still, this is not a knife for heavy work; I’m not sure whether it’s good for bending or breaking. Slightly concave slopes and a thin reduction hint to us that he still needs to cut, and not pick, chop and saw. Yes, the butt is 3 millimeters, which is not much CS But I repeat, this is not what the knife was made for. And of course, the transition from the blade to the handle is very thin - only 13 mm, which also hints that there is no need to twist anything with a knife, and there is no need to hit the butt plate. Although, of course, the sad experience of the Blackhawk Kalista still makes me think that if the knife breaks, it will be in this very place. So as usual, if you use the knife for what it was made for, it will last you a long time. And sawing the rails... Well, I don’t know, take a grinder or something...
But with ergonomics, not everything is so simple. And this is perhaps the most controversial place in the entire knife. On the one hand, it is clear that they tried to make the knife as convenient as possible. And in principle it worked out. Surprisingly, the knife lies comfortably even when the hand is wearing a thick glove. That is, this means that it is also suitable for people with large hands. Due to the notch and the finger rest, the knife does not fly out anywhere even with fairly strong blows, and when cutting it is confidently controlled, without even trying to jump out anywhere. That is, on the one hand, the handle is comfortable. On the other hand... On the other hand, when you take it in your hand, you begin to think a very masculine thought: “Well, if only I had a centimeter... Well, at least half a centimeter...”
The fact is that the handle of the Mini-Tac is comfortable enough for three fingers. The fourth finger does not actually hold the handle, but slightly feels it. At first it is very unusual, and all the time it seems that the knife does not lie quite confidently in the hand. At first, you constantly try to somehow grab the knife so that you can hold it clearly with four fingers. And this is the main problem, the grip requires getting used to and training. Especially on quick extraction. The fact is that the recess for the fingers (also known as the stop) goes into the sheath, that is, when gripping the handle, you first need to remove it from the sheath and only then put your finger there. The problem is that the grip, let me remind you, is based on three fingers.
That is, you need to develop the habit of grabbing the handle not with the usual order of little finger - ring finger - middle, but only ring and middle. If you grasp the handle starting with the little finger, then the index finger easily goes to the cutting edge, which is unsafe. That is, there are two options: either we get used to it and train our draw grip, or we remake the sheath so that it does not hide the under-finger notch. I don’t see a problem for myself, I learn quickly, I also form a habit, but for someone it can really create problems. And still, the handle is missing at least 5 millimeters, or better yet, a centimeter in length. At the same time, the knife would not lose in compactness and ease of carrying.
So it's hard to say. On the one hand, the knife is still convenient. On the other hand, without training it can cause difficulties. So for a beginner, this is not the best option, which can cause even more problems than a folding one.
What's the output? An interesting, functional knife but with ergonomic features that can cause some difficulties. At the same time, it is a really comfortable, compact, urban fixie, with quite a wide range of wearing options. Which can perform not only combat missions, but also do housework. At the same time, it is quite inexpensive, from 3 to 3.5 thousand. And of course, very high quality made. Despite all the simplicity, there are no burrs, gaps or anything else. In short, typical CS in this sense. Whether to take it for yourself or not... Decide for yourself. If you need a very compact folding knife. If you're willing to get used to its ergonomic features and you don't want to pay a lot of money, then this could very well be your option. Well, don’t forget that this knife model is available with two more blade options, in addition to the AT, and there is also an option with a serrated AT. So there is plenty to choose from. I liked the knife, otherwise I wouldn’t have taken it.
Well, here’s a photo to make it clearer, along with the SOG Mini Pentagon and CS Mini Recon.
