Gerber Hinderer Rescue Knife: A Firefighter's Review

I am a big knife person. I have several scars to prove it, However I can safely say that I have never loved a knife as much as I love The Gerber Hinderer Rescue Knife.
Everywhere I go (Work, School etc) I get comments on how "Sweet" my knife is and as I explain its features the faces of onlookers only get brighter. There are many different knives and multitools which claim to be Fire and Emergency Medical Systems (EMS) Rescue knives (Many of which I have owned) but none that I have seen which live up to the title.

In reviews that I have read earlier I was impressed with the Hinderer's many abilities, Nonetheless I was also skeptical and had to see for myself. I first heard of the Hinderer in 2006 when it first came out and I've been waiting for a chance to get my hands on one until now;

The Hinderer was designed by Rick Hinderer (A Volunteer Firefighter and Knife Designer) It's obvious that a lot of time and thought went into the design of this knife by someone who has spent a lot of time in EMS style pants and turnouts riding in rigs and most likely testing one after another to come up with the best product.
The Hinderer is designed specifically for Fire and Emergency workers:

Features of the knife include a 3.5" blade that is serrated almost all the way up to the tip, an integrated oxygen tank wrench cut into the handle, a window punch, and flip out trauma shears / seatbelt cutter.



A true rescue knife needs to meet several expectations. First, I expect a rescue knife to have the kind of durability that I can rely on to save my own life and the lives of my co workers, and Second, I expect a rescue knife to serve as a general utility tool for doing work around the station as well as rescue work for patients... In order for a knife to be able to meet the expected durability to save the lives of myself and my co workers, I expect it to be able to perform in several different categories:
1) I expect that it can cut through about anything that can trap or entangle a firefighter on the job including wire, rope, webbing, seatbelts, etc.
2) I expect that it would be sturdy enough to use as a prybar to be used during times of "Forced Entry" and when needed.
3) I expect that it has the ability to stand up to the exposures it would have during work as a rescue knife such as water, extreme heat, freezing temperatures and time.
4) I expect it to have the ablility to be opened and closed while wearing gloves single-handedly.

One of the first things I did when I got my Hinderer rescue knife is to go around cutting just about anything I could find: Rope, Webbing, Rubber, Pants, Shirts, Cardboard boxes, vinyl, Wood, and basically anything else that I could get away with destroying. The Hinderer certainly did not disappoint me, It cut through everything I threw in its path with ease, In most cases I was able to simply apply a bit of pressure and the knife did the rest without any kind of "sawing motions" needed.

I've both heard and read of stories where a simply prying job came back to haunt the rescuer by lodging itself in the user. The Hinderer was designed with a blunt rounded tip specifically for patient and user safety; The thick blade made out of Grade 440 A stainless steel stands up to light prying such as paint can lids, door locks, etc.
*Note* To a firefighter, “light prying” means anything that doesn’t require a Halligan Bar or Hydraulic Ram

I tried opening the Hinderer with several different pairs of gloves; It opened and closed with ease while using mechanix gloves and regular leather work gloves. (Much easier than any other knives I have tried) Turnout gloves took a bit of practice but after several tries I was able to open and close the Hinderer using a single hand.

It is a thick knife however I have carried it comfortably in my pant pockets for weeks now and I forget its even there until I go to use it. The Hinderer comes with a 9 piece tool kit, I haven't used it much because I have lots of different "Multi-tools". I am mostly interested in how the knife works. So far, I don't have any complaints, I love it and I'll never leave the house without it.