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Ernest R. Emerson is an award winning custom knifemaker, martial artist, author, and edged weapons guru who founded Emerson Knives, Inc. in 1996. In addition to being one of the knifemakers who started the Tactical Knife trend in the early 1990's, Emerson is one of the most highly sought after custom knifemakers and knife fighting instructors in the world. Emerson's knives have been displayed as museum pieces, carried by Navy SEALs, used by NASA in outer space, and have been featured in numerous books and films.

Background

Emerson was born in a log cabin built by his grandfather in Northern Wisconsin on March 7, 1955. While attending high school he displayed great ability as an athelete and a wrestler and was drafted to play pro baseball at the age of 17.

Emerson began his training and lifelong love of the martial arts at the age of 16 with Korean Jodo, traveling to another state twice a week in order to learn. He continued his study of the martial arts while attending the University of Wisconsin where he earned a brown belt in Kyokushinkai Karate and a black belt in Shotokan Karate while competing on the University's Karate team. After graduating with degrees in Physical Education and World History, Emerson soon moved to Southern California for the sole purpose of continuing his martial arts training at the Filipino Kali Academy. Here he studied Jun Fan Gung Fu, Jeet Kune Do, Kali, and Escrima under the tutelage of Dan Inosanto and Richard Bustillo (both proteges of the late Bruce Lee), eventually becoming an instructor, himself. Emerson additionally trained in Gracie Jiu Jitsu for three years at the original Gracie Academy in Torrance, California under the founders of Gracie Jiu Jitsu system, Rorion and Royce Gracie. It was in Southern California where he met his wife, Mary who is one of the world's top female practitioners of jujitsu, herself. Durring this time, Emerson worked as a technician, machine operator, and eventually a design engineer for Hughes Aircraft in El Segundo, California.

Early knifemaking

Finding himself in need of a balisong knife for his studies of a Filipino Martial Art and unable to afford one, Emerson decided he would attempt to make his own instead. He milled and drilled the handles from aluminium stock and the knife's blade was a simple steel blank that he handcut with a hacksaw, shaped by files, and heat treated at his dining room table with a butane torch.

After starting classes with this "homemade knife", his instructors and students were impressed with his handiwork and asked him to make knives for them. Emerson did so and sold these early butterfly knives for just the cost of materials, but soon had to raise his price to $50 each as demand for his knives increased. Emerson also went on to make fixed blade knives on a part-time basis, but after seeing a Michael Walker custom folding knife at a gun show, he was so impressed by the quality and design that he decided he was going to make folding pocketknives from that point. Emerson contacted Mr. Walker and obtained his permission to use the Walker Linerlock mechanism on his own knives.

Pre tactical models

Emerson's early folding knives were of the linerlock variety and utilized rare materials that working in the aerospace industry gave him access to at the time; such as titanium, carbon fiber, and micarta. He also incorporated exotic materials common to knifemakers of the time including Mother of pearl, abalone shell, paua shell, stag, hardwood, and ivory into his pieces. The steel was typically ATS-34 or 440C and the blades were either highly polished or handrubbed. Among custom knife collectors and purveyors today, these knives are known as the "Pre-Tac" (Pre Tactical) models. They can be identified by their bright annodized Titanium bolsters and liners and the predominant use of clip point blades. The knives were also noted for their close tolerances and precise locking mechanisms.

Emerson's first logo or stamp on these knives was "Emerson Knives" surrounding the outline of a Bowie knife, accordingly this is reffered to as the rare "Bowie Logo", appearing on only a very small number of knives. When a collector asked Emerson if he made Bowie knives, Emerson informed him that he did not. The collector then advised him to change his logo or he might confuse the knife-buying public as they would ask for Bowie knives instead of linerlock folders. Emerson agreed with this assessment dropped the knife outline and the word "knives" from his stamp, using just his name in a half circle on the blade as a logo. This marking is known among collectors as the "Half-Moon Logo" and would appear again as a transitional mark between the Viper and Specwar lines of knives.

These knives sold for between $800 and $2,000 each and combined with his appearance at knife shows and writeups in knife magazines it helped Emerson gain status and credibility as a custom knifemaker. Once established as a serious and reputable maker, Emerson was able to concentrate on making the knives he wanted to make, those designed for use as opposed to show, specifically folding combat knives.

Viper Knives

As a direct result of watching fellow martial artists train with a fixed blade fighting knife in class, yet carry some type of a folding knife when they left the training area; Emerson decided there was a need for a sturdy folding knife designed primarily for combat. In October,1988, Emerson stripped down five of his designs to simpler materials. He continued to use linen or canvas micarta because of its tensile strength and it offered a superior gripping surface when wet, he decided on black or dark grey for the color instead of the brighter colors used prior. He also retained the titanium for the liners and bolsters (although he beadblasted them a flat grey matte color as opposed to the colorful anodizing as he had been doing) because it provided an exceptional strength-to-weight ratio and being a non-ferrous metal that does not rust it offered excellent corrosion resistance.

Emerson ground the blades on these knives from ATS-34 steel with a Rockwell hardness of 57-59 and made them thicker toward the tip, creating a stronger tipped blade than he had made previously. He bead blasted the blades instead of rubbing or polishing them, giving them a matte finish as opposed to the mirror polish common on his earlier knives. Each of the Vipers was designed for a specific purpose. The slender Viper 1 and smaller Viper 2 were designed primarily for use as a police officer's backup weapon. The Viper 5 was designed to be used by Navy boat crews and the handle was contoured to not slip from a hand when wet. The Viper 4 is the rarest of the lineup, for some reason not very many were made.

Emerson's goal was to produce a working knife which would be more resistant to the elements and more durable than the "art knives" which he had become known for. This line was created to satisfy demands for a practical combat field grade knife which could be carried discreetly and accessed quickly. He sold these five models under the name "Viper Knives" and changed the logo on the blades to read the same. Emerson still makes these models to this day on a custom basis under the names MV1-5.

Specwar Knives

In the mid 1980's several individual Navy SEALs from a West Coast Team had been using personally purchased custom fixed blade knives made by Southern California knifemaker, Phill Hartsfield. Hartsfield's knives are hard ground from differentially heat treated A2 toolsteel and were known for their distinctive chisel ground blades. More accurately they were also Zero ground, in that the edge had no secondary bevel allowing for no additional drag when used for cutting purposes. Emerson had long been impressed by the cutting ability of the chisel ground edge and had recently asked Hartsfield's permission to incorporate it into his own folding knives; which Hartsfield granted. When the SEALs asked Hartsfield to make them a folding knife he quickly informed them that he did not make folding knives and referred them to Emerson.

The knife had to be corrosion resistant, designed for easy cleaning in the field, durable enough to be used on a daily basis as a tool, and capable as a weapon should the need arise. Emerson's folding chisel ground tanto became the sixth model in his Viper series and while a handful of prototypes were referred to as "Viper 6's"; the model was soon named the CQC6 (CQC = Close Quarter Combat) and was chosen by the SEALs for use. The Emerson CQC6 is a handmade linerlock folding knife which features a chisel ground stainless steel(ATS-34 or 154 CM) tanto blade, titanium liners and bolsters, linen micarta scales, and a steel pocket clip. Ownership of a CQC6 soon became something of a status symbol among members of various Elite Military Units including Navy SEALs, Army Special Forces, German GSG9, and British SAS. Because of this connection to the Special Warfare community, Emerson changed the name of his custom knife line to "Specwar Knives" and in 1996 this was the new logo that began appearing on his blades.

Other models quickly followed in the Specwar line bearing the CQC Series moniker including the CQC7 which is another chisel ground tanto bladed folder similar to the CQC6 with a sabre type handle shape. The CQC8 ("Banana Knife") was a folder inspired by Bob Taylor's Warrior Knife and is used extensively by British SAS troops. The knife also has the distiction of being the first folding knife that was designed to be ergonomically correct in the forward and reverse grip. The CQC9 ("Eagle Knife") is a reverse curved hawkbill blade developed as a backup weapon for a US Law Enforcement Agency (which also has an opening hole in the blade licensed from knife manufacturer Spyderco). The series continues up through the CQC15 in numeric sequence as of this writing. There is a knife designated as the CQC5 which is a slightly smaller version of the CQC6 that Emerson inserted as an afterthought and "supersized" versions also exist of the CQC6 and CQC7.

Although Emerson has standard models for these custom knives, each one is made individually by hand. They include but are not limited to the aforementioned Viper series(now referred to as MV1-5), the CQC models 5-15, Commander, ES1-M, SSDS (also known as the Rhino), Persian (fixed and folding), Kandahar, Phaser, Trivector, Stealth, Swinger, Warrior, Bodyguard, Rogue Warrior, Karambit, Tiger Claw, various neck knives, Caracci Dagger and Caracci Folder.

Popularizing the tactical folder

While not the first knifemaker to build what is known as a tactical folding knife, Emerson was one of several makers who popularized and perfected the concept of the handmade tactical folder. Emerson's knives also began appearing in the Rogue Warrior series of books written by the founder of the US Navy's SEAL Team Six, Richard Marcinko, which helped fuel popularity among collectors.

This popularity was not without its price, however. Although he had been making knives full time since 1994, Emerson was still manufacturing these knives in his home garage workshop three years later. As he watched his customer's wait time expand from 2 years to 7, he quickly realized that the demand for his handmade blades was far outpacing his ability to produce them. The first method to bridge this gap between supply and demand would be through factory collaborations with established knifemaking companies.

Emerson's first collaboration with a knife manufacturer was with Timberline Knives in 1993 for his SPECWAR model. This model featured a one-side chisel ground tanto blade almost 1/4 inch thick. Its handle was made from fiberglass reinforced Nylon, molded around a near-full tang. Vaughn Neeley of Timberline designed the sheath. The knife was originally a custom piece designed for Naval Special Warfare Group One and this factory version was soon entered in the trials for the Navy SEALs knife in 1995. Although it was not chosen by the Navy, the knife won Blade Magazine's 1995 American Made Knife of the Year Award, at the Blade Show in Atlanta, Georgia that same year and was displayed as an exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Modern Art in New York City from May 24 to August 15,1995.

In 1994 the president of Benchmade Knives, Les DeAsis, approached Emerson to manufacture the CQC6 on a larger scale as a factory production model. Preferring to keep the CQC6 as a custom only knife, Emerson instead licensed a similar design of his, the CQC7. The CQC7 is a folding tanto similar in all respects to the CQC6 except for the profile and shape of the handle.

The Benchmade factory version was sold under the model name BM970 or BM975 depending on blade length. Other designations followed which denoted blade finish, whether the knife was a manual or automatic opener or if it was offered with a partially serrated blade. The knife retained the chisel ground tanto blade profile of ATS-34 steel as well as the handle shape and titanium liners of Emerson's custom model. However on Benchmade's offering the bolsters and micarta scales were replaced with G10 fiberglass scales; the slotted screws were replaced by Torx head screws, and the pocket clip was repositioned so that the knife could be carried in the pocket in a tip down position.

Despite these changes the knife was still true to the original Emerson design, even though it did not have the craftsmanship of a handmade piece of cutlery, it satisfied customers with their own version of the now popular knifemaker's work at an affordable price and without the long wait.

For information on Emerson Knives, Inc., please see Emerson Knives.

Emerson Combat Systems

Emerson Combat Systems

Emerson Combat Systems
Country of origin	USA
Creator	Ernest R Emerson
Parenthood	Jeet Kune Do, Boxing, Brazillian Jujitsu

Emerson's study and instruction of martial arts is ongoing and continuing to this day. He has accumulated close to 40 years of experience in a variety of styles and philosophies of combat. As a result he has also developed a unique fighting system known as Emerson Combat Systems, which has been taught to numerous Law Enforcement Agencies, members of the U.S. Military, and hundreds of civilians.

The system is based on simple and effective techniques unencumbered by the ritual or "sport" aspects of martial arts and is characterized by training as realisticly as possible and utilizing flowing, dynamic concepts (e.g. Integrated Fighting Skills and Weapon Transition Skills) with a strong emphasis placed on overall physical fitness.

In addition to the numerous individual Martial Arts Instructor Rankings listed earlier, Emerson's teaching credentials include, California POST(Peace Officer Standards & Training) Instructor, Gunsite instructor, Hand-to-hand Combat Instructor for H&K Defense Group, and Director of the Combat Research and Development Group. Emerson is also an expert witness for the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office and has been consulted as a technical advisor to various television and movie productions, including National Geographic through his position with Global Studies Group Incorporated.

Emerson is noted as one of the foremost authorities on knives and Close Quarter Combat(armed and unarmed) from many different areas. As a testimony to this, he is also in high demand as an author on the aforementioned subjects and has written numerous articles on hand to hand combat, knife fighting, history, and knifemaking for publications including Blade Magazine, American Cop Magazine, Martial Arts Experts, Journal of Modern Combatives, Inside Kung-Fu, Black Belt Magazine, Police Magazine, and American Handgunner Magazine.

Emerson's knives in popular culture

Emerson's knives have appeared in a variety of films and television shows:

• Night of the Running Man: Scott Glenn's character carried a whitehandled one of a kind Emerson folding tanto.

• Soldier of Fortune, Inc.: Ravens, neck knives, and the Commander were featured in this short lived UPN television series.

• Black Hawk Down: various soldiers carried EKI folding knives in the hangar scene.

• Tears of the Sun: The Kandahar model appeared on Bruce Willis character's web gear and other actors were seen with Emerson Police Utility Knives.

• The Punisher: Frank Castle used an Emerson Karambit to kill an opponent in one of the final scenes.

• The Transporter 2 featured several an Emerson fixed blade Kandahar Knife in the trunk of Jason Statham's car.

Emerson's knives are prominently featured in a host of mystery, spy, military, action, and adventure novels.

• Nearly all of Richard Marcinko's Rogue Warrior Novels,(Red Cell, Green Team, Task Force Blue, Detachment Bravo, SEAL Force Alpha, Violence of Action, and Holy Terror) prominently feature Emerson's knives (CQC6 or CQC7) as a regularly carried piece of equipment. The protaganist, Marcinko, uses an Emerson CQC6 or CQC7 on various occassions as a weapon, to get himself out of trouble, or otherwise accomplish his missions. On page 175 of Task Force Blue, Marcinko remarks that the CQC6 was a "personal gift from Ernie Emerson, himself".

• New York Times bestselling author David Morrell's novel, The Protector, not only has the main character, a former Delta Force operator named Cavanaugh, using an Emerson CQC7 knife but the cover art, itself, is a photograph of a blood stained Production Emerson CQC7. Cavanaugh uses the knife in combat as well as in many rigorous cutting chores. The author, acknowledges Emerson as "the best manufacturer of tactical knives" as well as a top level blade instructor for elite military and law-enforcement units". In an interview with British E-Zine, Shots : The Crime and Mystery Ezine, Morrell indicated that he injured his collarbone durring an Emerson knife-fighting course while performing research for the novel.

• Marcus Wynne's novels (Warrior in the Shadows, No Other Option, Brothers in Arms) also feature extensive use of Emerson's knives by the main characters. The CQC7, Commander, and La Griffe are favored by the main characters and used as defensive weapons throughout the books

• Barry Eisler's fictional hired killer, Jack Rain uses an Emerson Comrade CQC-12, a folding knife based on the AK-47 bayonet in the final book of the series, The Last Assassin.

• The character's of S.M. Gunn's novels based on Naval Special Warfare, Navy SEALs and submarines also carry Emerson's knives. One of the main characters carries an Emerson custom MV-1 Viper knife in the book SEALs SubStrike.

References

1. ^ Template:Harvard reference
2. Emerson, Ernest R. (2003). "Grandpa Gave a Part of Himself With That First Knife", Sporting Knives 2003, pp54-59, ISBN 0-87349-430-X
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8. "Titanium Alloys – Corrosion and Erosion Resistance". The AtoZ of Materials:Materials Information Service – The Selection and Use of Titanium, A Design Guide. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
9. ^ Walker, Greg (1993). Battle Blades: A Professional's Guide to Combat/Fighting Knives (Hardcover), pages 38, 130 ISBN 0-87364-732-7
10. ^ Template:Harvard reference
11. ^ Template:Harvard reference
12. ^ Staff, Knives Illustated. (1996)"Ernest Emerson Profile", Folders Special Edition by Knives Illustrated
13. Dockery, Kevin (2004). Weapons of the Navy SEALs. California: Berkeley Hardcover. pp. 23–24. ISBN 0-425-19834-0. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
14. ^ Covert, Pat. "Strike Force!" American Handgunner, January 2000. Available at findarticles.com, Retrieved on December 29, 2006.
15. ^ "Le CQC-8 d'Emerson Knives", CIBLES Magazine, Issue #439,October 2006
16. Sweeney, Patrick (2004). Modern Law Enforcement. California: Krause. p. 7,142-143. ISBN 0-873-49659-0. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
17. Template:Harvard reference
18. Delavigne, Kenneth (2004). Spyderco Story: The New Shape of Sharp (Hardcover). Colorado: Paladin Press. p. 163. ISBN 1-581-60060-7.
19. Template:Harvard reference
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21. ^ Marcinko, Richard (1994). Rogue Warrior II: Red Cell. New York: Pocket Books. p. 108. ISBN 0-671-79956-8. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
22. ^ Marcinko, Richard (1995). Rogue Warrior: Green Team. New York: Pocket Books. pp. 3, 18, 56, 78, 130–132, 204, 230, 265. ISBN 0-671-89671-7. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
23. ^ Marcinko, Richard (1996). Rogue Warrior: Task Force Blue. New York: Pocket Books. pp. 4, 22, 107, 153, 174-175. ISBN 0-671-79958-4. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
24. Template:Harvard reference
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26. Knifemaker Profile:Ernest Emerson, Fighting Knives, July 1995
27. ^ Fritz, Mark (2006-07-25). "How New, Deadly Pocketknives Became a $1 Billion Business". The Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 2007-01-02. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
28. Stanford, Andy (1999). Fight At Night: Tools, Techniques, Tactics, And Training For Combat In Low Light And Darkness. Colorado: Paladin Press. p. 89. ISBN 1-581-60026-7.
29. Template:Harvard reference
30. Emerson, Ernest R. "Old World Skills Keep Today's Soldiers Alive", Tactical Gear Annual, Summer 2005.
31. ^ "Ernest Emerson". TREXPO East 2006. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |accessmonthday= ignored (help); Unknown parameter |accessyear= ignored (|access-date= suggested) (help)
32. Waterman, Steve. "Brown Water to Silver Screen: Story & Photos". Soldier of Fortune Magazine, July 1997.
33. Chalker, Dennis (2003). One Perfect Op: An Insider's Account of the Navy Seal Special Warfare Teams. New York: William Morrow Publishing. p. 323. ISBN 0-380-97804-0. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help); Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
34. Emerson, Ernest R. "Blades That Conquered the World", Blade Magazine, September 2001.
35. Emerson, Ernest R."OH NO! You Did What I Told You To Do!", American Cop Magazine, March 2006
36. Emerson, Ernest R. "Art of Offense", Martial Arts Experts, Winter 2006
37. Emerson, Ernest R. 'Combatives is not an Art', Journal of Modern Combatives, February 2006
38. Emerson, Ernest R."Fighting Knives", Inside Kung Fu Magazine, October 1999
39. Emerson, Ernest R. "Anatomy of a Knife Fight", Black Belt Magazine, December 2006
40. Emerson, Ernest R."Countering the Karambit", Police Magazine, October 2002
41. Emerson, Ernest R."Under Siege",American Handgunner Magazine, Tactical Annual 2007
42. Cite error: The named reference cutler was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
43. Marcinko, Richard (2002). Violence of Action. New York: Atria Books. pp. 28, 101, 105, 110, 112, 116, 154. ISBN 0-743-42246-5.
44. Marcinko, Richard (2001). Rogue Warrior: Detachment Bravo. New York: Pocket Books. pp. 217, 317, 323. ISBN 0-671-00071-3. The best folding combat knife I've ever used, the Emerson CQC7, mine is serial number 007 {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
45. Marcinko, Richard (2006). Rogue Warrior: Holy Terror. New York: Atria. p. 108. ISBN 0-743-42248-1. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
46. Marcinko, Richard (1996). Rogue Warrior: Task Force Blue. New York: Pocket Books. p. 175. ISBN 0-671-79958-4. Five fucking hundred dollars' worth of hand-made, personally inscribed knife, a gift from Ernie Emerson, who designed it for me. {{cite book}}: Unknown parameter |coauthors= ignored (|author= suggested) (help)
47. Morrell, David (2003). The Protector. New York: Warner Books. pp. 259–260, 271, 273, 286, 300, 312, 324, 325, 382, 393, 401, 405, 410, 421–423, 452, 456, 463-464. ISBN 0-446-61403-3.
48. Morrell, David (2003). The Protector. New York: Warner Books. pp. viii. ISBN 0-446-61403-3. Ernest Emerson. In addition to being the best manufacturer of tactical knives(his CQC-7 is featured in this novel), Mr. Emerson is also a top-level blade instructor who works with various elite military and law-enforcement units.
49. "THE PROTECTION BUSINESS: David Morrell talks to Ali Karim". Shots : The Crime and Mystery Ezine. Retrieved 2007-01-01. Because THE PROTECTOR had a lot about knives, Ernest Emerson invited me to take part in a course he was teaching to law enforcement and the military. It was the most brutal training I've ever received. Two eight-hour sessions. After the first eight hours, I had bruises all over me from the practice collisions, attempting to defend against a mock blade attack. Half way through the second eight hours, I zigged when I should have zagged. I fell on my right shoulder and broke my collar bone. But it would take more than a broken collar bone to make me walk away from a research opportunity.
50. Wynne, Marcus (2003). Warrior in the Shadows. New York: Forge. pp. 12, 15, 30, 60, 105, 128, 162, 272, 275, 285, 322. ISBN 0-765-34376-2. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
51. Wynne, Marcus (2004). No Other Option. New York: Tor. pp. 78, 338, 381. ISBN 0-812-54944-9.
52. Wynne, Marcus (2004). Brothers in Arms. New York: Tor. pp. 124, 321. ISBN 0-765-34691-5.
53. Eisler, Barry (2006). The Last assassin. New York: Putnam Adult. p. 78. ISBN 0-399-15359-4.
54. Gunn, S.M. (2003). SEALs Sub Strike: Operation Ocean Watch. New York: Avon Publishing. p. 40. ISBN 0-060-09548-2. {{cite book}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)

External links

• Patent for the WAVE
• Video Demonstration of the WAVE
• Video of Emerson's NASA Knife in Space

• American martial artists
• Knife makers
• Living people