Like the fighting knives of the past, the XCOM features a symmetrical, spear-point blade that's great for piercing and cutting. A bayonet grind adds to the XCOM's old-school theme. But Kershaw also kept legal concerns in mind. The XCOM's quality 8Cr13MoV blade is only sharpened on one side, making it safer and easier to close and making it legal in more areas. The big 3.6" blade opens manually with a built-in thumb disk.