Here's a guy that broke a RAT-7 as posted on BF

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=486375&page=2

sicily02
Hi all I have had a rat-7 fail me while I was battoning through some seasoned mulberry. This is a pretty tough wood the round I was battoning through was about 3.5" and about a foot long. I got the knife I week before last Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving night is when the knife had a 3" piece break out of the knife and stayed in the round. I sat there with a shocked look on my face and then went into my 5th Wheel camper and told my wife and that I just broke my new knife get your camera and take some pics. Later that knight we drove into town and I e-mailed Mike perin and Rat knives. Now this is Thanksgiving week end so I did not think I would here any thing back until at least the nest week. The next day Mike called me and we talked about it and what happened Mike said he would get a new knife out to me. Mike told me that D-2 is a bit more brittle and say the 1095 modle that they have to. I asked Mike if he would send out a new knife in 1095 steel instead of a new D-2 steel. Mike said he would but that I would loose money on it because the D-2 cost more I said thats ok. So to wrap up here I am glad I was not in a real sitution. I did get the new Rat & in 1095 steel and I went out and battoned with this one and had know problems. I own a few rats and believe this was just a one in a millon mishap. The morale of this story is carry more than one blade. Which I do anyway. Here are the pics.