America to me means so many things, and one of those things is pure respect. This knife conveys that message clearly and eloquently. I didn't have the fortune of being born in the US, but in my heart and soul this is my home country.

This particular protech is rare, not in that its "limited" or something, but in the fact that it sells out fast. I just can't believe that anyone still has these in stock! BladeHQ ran out of them in like 3 seconds flat. I am so greatful to AIK for having these!!!!!!

First of all, please note that this is my first purchase with AIK and they have been amazing. They actually held one of these for me until I was ready to buy. I was so worried about it being out of stock.

Ok, onto the review...

This knife is in all respective terms, the ultimate in bad-ass-ery. In real life it looks slightly different than in the pictures, I have to say that AIK's pics are better than BladeHQ's, but in reality you will see that stars a bit more "bronzed" and the flag as a while look a bit more "vintage". THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT.

This knife is my first auto, so if this in any way applies to you, I have to remember to push the button ALL THE WAY DOWN in order for it to fire. That makes sense because the one and only downside I can find to this knife is that there is no secondary lock for when its in the closed position. Don't get me wrong, it locks up both open and closed, the thing is, when its in the closed position, some knives have additional locks to prevent you from accidentally firing it.

Don't worry though, this is handled (or, at least the possibility reduced) though having a long button press in order to fire. Maybe its just me, and this is how all auto's are. As I've said its my first auto (tied with one more beauty that came in the same shipment).

When it fires, it really does fire hard and fast. Faster than my Gerber AO Propel, but that one is assisted so there is that. What is truly remarkable about Protechs, and this one is no exception, is how SMOOTHLY they fire. Its like silk, and is really impressive.

I just can't get enough of how perfect the design is - the flag doesn't look like a toy and the skull is legit and means business. The knife has a good weight to it without being too heavy, if that makes any sense. My wife is in love with it too, which is a huge bonus. If someone out there does not appreciate this knife, I would be truly startled.

The black hardware is a perfect match for this knife, it somehow feels better that the blade, button, etc are jet black.

There is no amount of praise that I can give any higher for both Protech and AIK for making and distributing this masterpiece.

If you have any doubt's about this knife, forget them. If you have any doubts about AIK (I am new to knives and at first I did, to be honest) then you should take my example and forget them as well.

If, as you are reading this, the TR2.44 is still available, I suggest you snatch it up.

BTW - Protech has spring assisted models, and as of last month when I messaged them, they didn't have plans to put this flag design on those models. If they ever do, I'd suggest strongly into looking at that option as well. If you are in a knife-friendly (read: SANE) state, then it doesn't matter.

Sorry for the long winded review!

Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!]