Our life has seen a few design movements – the plastic era in the 90s, the anodized aluminum era in the 2010s, and the transparent tech era in the mid 2020s… but to be honest, we never had a ‘glow in the dark’ era and I’m kind of bummed about it. Think about how incredible it would be if our essentials were glow-in-the-dark. Glowing light switches, glowing keychains, perhaps even glowing smartphones so we don’t need to scramble for them when the lights are off. Glowing EDC should almost certainly be a thing, and I feel like I’ve found my first companion in this crusade – the Compact R4a from Countycomm.
As its name suggests, this fixed-blade knife is compact, and R4A or ready for action. There’s nothing overtly spectacular about it – it isn’t a multitool, it doesn’t have damascus steel metallurgy, it doesn’t secretly hide a glass-breaker or bottle opener, but it does have one fairly charming trick up its sleeve – it glows. Equipped with a UGM Glow handle, this knife could be the shining star of your EDC collection… literally!
Designer: Countycomm
I usually shy away from talking about fixed blade knives here. They’re a little archaic in my book. You can’t carry them around willy nilly, they need a sheathe for safe storage. The fixed blade design feels a little restrictive when it comes to just design and innovation (this website is FILLED with interesting flippers and switchblades), and in the rare occasion that I DO talk about fixed blades, it’s usually because of a highly unique element in its design. With the Compact R4A, it’s clearly the handle. With the military-grade glowing material that Countycomm developed in-house, this knife is just captivatingly intuitive to use. The handle glows bright, so you know where the knife is and how to grip it. Would it be best for tactical situations? Probably not, given it’ll probably give your position away to the enemy – but for regular indoor and outdoor use, this knife is as eye-catching as it is handy.
Just to get the details about the handle out of the way – it’s ergonomically designed, ambidextrous, and features a two-part handle, secured together with titanium bolts. The UGM Glow material recharges just in regular light, and according to Countycomm, can last for up to 24 hours on a ‘full charge’. Interestingly enough, the handle glows as bright as the light it’s exposed to. Place it out in the harsh sun and come sunset, your Compact R4A emanates a bright green hue. Place it, however, near a lamp, and the glow still remains, albeit mildly subdued.
The fixed-blade Compact R4A measures a cool 7 inches in length, featuring a fairly tiny 3″ blade. The blade comes fashioned out of high-carbon D2 steel, complete with a black stonewashed finish and a drop-point design that feels fairly straightforward. Countycomm isn’t trying to break any rules or rewrite any playbook here. The purpose of the Compact R4A is clear – make a knife that does the job, and is different enough to stand out against a bunch of other knives. With that phosphorescent glow, it certainly does.
Having a fixed blade design does come with a few advantages. For starters, its full-tang blade (which can be seen sandwiched between the two handles) gives the knife incredible robustness, which means you can wield it rather confidently, striking hard without fear of the blade shutting or shattering. This confidence comes with a small trade-off – you may end up wearing the blade down if you use the Compact R4A for intense activities like piercing wood on the regular. The simple drop point design offers a clever benefit here – it’s fairly easy to sharpen, making maintenance simple. Countycomm only plans on making 1000 of these knives, and each one comes serialized, making it unique to you. The knives start at $45 and ship with a 1-year warranty.
Key Specifications: Countycomm Compact R4A Fixed Blade (With UGM Glow Scales)
Overall length: 7 inches
Blade length: 3 inches
Blade material: D2 high carbon steel
Blade thickness: 0.175 inches
Handle material: UGM GLOW (ultra glow material, glows in the dark)
Weight: 4.35 ounces (blade and scales), 1.35 ounces (Kydex holster and clip)
Blade style: Drop point
Sheath: Kydex with belt clip
Full tang construction
Jimping on spine for thumb grip
Lanyard hole at handle end
Compact model compared to the larger 8.6 inch R4A version
Designed for heavy-duty utility and prying tasks
Made in the USA
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