Ontario Knife Company

Ontario Knife Company
Industry	Knives, edged tools
Founded	1889; 135 years ago in Naples, New York, United States
Defunct	August 1, 2023; 16 months ago
Fate	Ended operations after sale to Blue Ridge Knives
Successor	Blue Ridge Knives
Headquarters	Franklinville, New York, United States
Products	Aircrew Survival Egress Knife (ASEK) Survival Knife System; M1942 Machete; M7 bayonet; M9 bayonet; Navy MK3 MOD 0 diving/survival knife; OKC-3S Bayonet; Old Hickory; Randall's Adventure & Training survival knives; RAT-7; TAK-1;
Owner	Servotronics (?–2023); Blue Ridge Knives (2023);
Website	Official website

Ontario Knife Company (OKC) was an American manufacturer of knives and military tools. On August 1, 2023, OKC was acquired by Blue Ridge Knives and subsequently closed.^[1]

History

Ontario Knife Company was founded in 1889 in Naples, New York. It is currently located in Franklinville, New York, in Cattaraugus County, where most of their products have been manufactured.

Military production

The company has historically supplied the U.S. military with products such as^[2]

ASEK (Aircrew Survival and Egress Knife)
Model 499 U.S. Air Force Survival Knife
Model 498 Marine Combat Knife, Ontario's version of the original Ka-Bar
Mark 3 Navy diving/survival knife
Spec Plus SP6 Fighter and SP13 Tango
Spec Plus SP25 USN-2 Navy knife
Spec Plus SP26 USN-3 Navy pilot's survival knife
M7 Bayonet
OKC 3S U.S. Marine Corps Bayonet

OKC's "Randall's Adventure & Training" survival knives were designed in conjunction with Randall's Adventure & Training, an outdoor survival training and expedition company. The lineup includes the original RTAK (formerly produced by Newt Livesay Blades), and the TAK-1 and RAT-7, both of which have been adopted by the U.S. military.^{[citation needed]}

Ontario Knife Company has also collaborated with other designers^[3] such as Justin Gingrich, Bram Frank, and Bowie Knife knife-maker Bill Bagwell, introducing lower cost renditions of several of Bagwell's designs.

Civilian production

Ontario sold many of its military models for civilian use, and also produced a number of sporting/outdoor knives designed explicitly for the civilian market. In addition to these, Ontario Knife Company produced a range of other cutlery and tools including Old Hickory kitchen cutlery, industrial and agricultural products, and sci-med scientific tools and instruments. Ontario Knife Company was also a major supplier of private label blades and knives.

References

^ "BREAKING: Blue Ridge Knives completes purchase of OKC; attempting to restart NY production". Knife Magazine. Retrieved 2023-08-30.
^ :Pohl, Dietmar (2011). Modern Knives in Combat. Atglen, Pennsylvania: Schiffer. ISBN 978-0-7643-3766-6.
^ Matt (2014-01-14). "Justin Gingrich Signature Series Knives from White River Knives". BladeBomb.com. Blade Bomb. Retrieved 20 March 2017.

[1] "BREAKING: Blue Ridge Knives completes purchase of OKC; attempting to restart NY production". Knife Magazine. Retrieved 2023-08-30.

[2] :Pohl, Dietmar (2011). Modern Knives in Combat. Atglen, Pennsylvania: Schiffer. ISBN 978-0-7643-3766-6.

[3] Matt (2014-01-14). "Justin Gingrich Signature Series Knives from White River Knives". BladeBomb.com. Blade Bomb. Retrieved 20 March 2017.

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