CobraTec Trapper Knife

August 12, 2024, by Jaime de la Parra

Growing up in the 1980’s I spent a lot of time hunting, fishing, and exploring the woods, creeks, and fields of one of our family’s ranches out of the small town of Meridian, Texas, just a couple of hours south of Dallas. These were the best times in my childhood, and my life for that matter, and I am extremely thankful for them. But once I enlisted in the military, I was pretty much gone, albeit with the occasional visit.

Recently, my dear friend and brother-from-another-mother, Jon Heffron (aka: Wingman115), uprooted his family from San Diego, CA and relocated to San Antonio, TX. So, it made sense as I was planning a long overdue visit to Texas, that I would also drop down from Dallas and stop in to visit Jon and his family in San Antonio before heading back to the West Coast.

Every time I revisit ole Tejas (Spanish pronunciation), the nostalgia of those childhood memories at the family ranch flow through me. It was no different during my visit with Jon. While taking a drive through the local country roads or a hike in the local woods, those cherished memories and emotions came rushing back. And just the same as he took me around to visit some of the quaint, historic towns in the surrounding areas. One of which was Bandera.

Being the knife nuts that we are, Jon had mentioned a great little knife shop in Bandera that he wanted to take me to. He also showed me a knife that he had picked up there. The second he showed me this knife, I knew I had to have one. A beautiful stag handle, single bladed trapper design folding knife that just so happened to be automatic action opening. This thing blew my mind, and it was love at first sight.

I must confess that although I enjoy playing with auto knives, I never really cared to own one. It has always been my personal belief that any knife I own (at least most of them anyway) I will use thoroughly to include anything from food prep, game processing, and wood carving. This implies that the knife design and its engineering (in particular to folders) should be simple, robust, easy to clean and maintain. Thus, I’ve always felt that there was a potential of compromising the mechanisms of an auto with prolonged hard use, especially in an outdoor environment. But that’s just me.

Getting back to our visit to Bandera, this is where we visited SB Western Silver & Knives. As soon as we entered the shop we were greeted by the owner, Mr. Shayne Beckham. To say that I was impressed with the wealth of knowledge Mr. Beckham demonstrated would be an understatement. And this was just in the volume of information regarding the assortment of primitive arrowheads he had collected himself over the years in the local area! And we still hadn’t even looked at the knives or his handmade jewelry, which would require elaboration in another set of articles. So, after an impressive dialogue regarding the ancient arrowheads (much older than one would think) we moved on to the knives.

I must include a side note and share that there was an impressive showcasing of Anza knives. Per their website, “We have the best selection of Anza knives around. Anza has been making quality knives since 1980, handmade in CA from new files, and include a quality leather sheath. We order special knives from Anza that are one-of-a-kind, too.” Not only was I pleasantly surprised to see that they carried these knives in their inventory, but they had plenty of them.

After another lengthy and enjoyable discussion on some of the various cutlery pieces that were for sale, I finally got to the real reason for our visit. The CobraTec Trapper. And here is where I bring it back full circle to the introduction of this article…

I have never heard of CobraTec before. They are a small knife making company out of Meridian, TX. Yes, that’s right. The same Meridian where I hold such fond memories of my childhood. How I’ve never heard of CobraTec is beyond me. I would’ve thought that one of my cousins that frequents Meridian would have told me about it. Regardless, they make some amazing knives at great prices. The auto opening Trapper models could easily sell in the upper $200 or even $300 range, but apparently, they do not. Prices may differ depending on which retail outlet is selling them if you were to not purchase off their website.

As for this trapper, if I had to choose one word to describe it, it would be OUTSTANDING. First, let me elaborate on the automatic opening action. I am extremely impressed at what CobraTec calls their Hidden Release Automatic. This means that there is no visible button one would push to automatically deploy the blade. Instead, as a right-handed opener (pretty sure that’s how they’re all made) one would slide the bolster nearest the blade to open, as well as to unlock and close. This is extremely ingenious and discreet! The bolster-release design flows well with the traditional looks of the Trapper models. The simplicity and elegance of the engineering of this opening mechanism is very impressive to me and I have thoroughly enjoyed fidgeting with it. As you pop that blade open it gives you a solid snap and one can feel the construction that could have only been put into it by craftsmen.

As I stated earlier, I am not a fan of putting auto knives into much hard use. Particularly if the auto knife is of a small, pocket type. In my opinion, these traditional pocket knives that are reminiscent of the older versions are just for cutting and slicing within the scope of their capabilities. Any leveraging, prying, or thumping should be done with a more appropriate tool.

Constructed of D2 steel, the 3.125-inch blade came screaming sharp out of the box. Easily shaving arm hair confirmed this, along with some light duty cuts where the blade just went through material. Normally when I purchase a new knife, regardless of the price tag, I choose to put my own edge on it. But not this time. I am very satisfied with the edge on this Trapper and will only touch it up after extended use until it needs to be resharpened.

Now for the main reason why I even purchased this knife. Those gorgeous stag antler scales! Although CobraTec offers this Trapper model in various handle materials, the stag antler scales had me hooked. As one would expect, due to being a natural product each antler is unique. Meaning, each antler scale will be unlike any other. And some may be prettier than another depending on what you like. As the saying goes, beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

In saying that, when I saw the Trapper model in the glass case at the SB Western Silver & Knives store, I knew it was not to my liking. Without me uttering a word about how I felt about those particular scales, almost as if reading my mind, Shayne said that he had one more in the back. He stated that he always saved the most beautiful one for his last piece to be sold. Lucky for me and thank you, Shayne! The man was true to his word and it felt like I was going to prom with the Homecoming Queen! Which has never happened to me, so not sure what that would actually feel like. But I think you get the point.

Last thing I’d like to comment on is the great pocket clip that comes with it. Once again, simple and elegant describe this ambidextrous carry clip that allows the knife to almost disappear inside the pant pocket. And I should mention that Mr. Beckham just happened to be carrying the carbon fiber handle version of the Trapper during our visit.

Due to this being a slim pocket knife with those antler scales which tend to be a bit more fragile than most other handle materials, and the fact that it is an auto, I will ensure that I use this knife in a more delicate and dare I say, gentlemanly way, so as to preserve it for many years to come. But again, that’s just me.

I know that this article seemed to serve more as a look into my life than a simple knife review. But the fact that a knife can take me back to all those happy childhood memories makes its value beyond priceless to me.

In closing, if you’re in the market for a well-built USA made automatic gentleman’s knife that won’t cost an arm and a leg, and that has the classic design of a traditional pocket knife, then I highly recommend you take a look at CorbraTec Knives and their Trapper models. I don’t think you’ll be disappointed.

Please follow the link to their website at the conclusion of this article for more information on this knife. And if you’re ever in Bandera, Texas, stop by SB Western Silver & Knives.

CobraTec Knives
411 West Morgan
Meridian, Texas 76665
254-435-3040
www.cobratecknives.com

SB Western Silver & Knives
330 Main Street
Bandera, TX 78003
210-218-3911
www.sbwesternsilver.com

About the author:

Jaime Leon de la Parra joined the US Army straight out of high school and served from 1991 to 1994. After an Honorable Discharge, he went to school and after a 4-year separation, he reenlisted into the US Navy from 1998 to 2000.

Following a Medical Discharge from the Navy, Jaime went on to work as a military contractor out of San Diego, CA, where he met Jon Heffron after watching one of his videos on the Wingman115 YouTube channel. Since then, Jaime has been a guest host for multiple videos on various topics on the Wingman115 channel.

Jaime and Jon both share a passion for knives, archery, and the outdoors. They embarked on many adventures in the local San Diego mountains before Jon and his family relocated to Texas.

Jaime still resides in San Diego where he continues to work alongside the military community. With his spare time, he teaches traditional archery and instinctive shooting. For more information, you can visit Jaime’s website…

www.jldarchery.com