A2 Mini Tusker Seal of Approval!

k_estela

k_estela

Co-Moderator, Wilderness and Survival Skills Forum
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I reluctantly placed aside my Bark River Fox River School Knife this past week at the Wilderness Learning Center. I carried that particular knife for well over a year and have used a Fox River for a few years now as my go to knife. Using that knife as a benchmark for quality and proven performance, I wanted to try the Scott Gossman A2 Mini Tusker he made for me for the duration of the course. All in all, (don't worry, pictures and more detailed explanations will follow soon!) I am very impressed with it. While I can't say the Fox River will be replaced, I found a knife that is equally at home in my hand during some serious real world testing. This knife is something else!
 
thanks Kev. Scott sure makes a kickass knife.

Can't wait for pictures.

Brett
 
Great to hear Kev. :thumbup: A2 is kickass tool steel. :D This Golok project will be interesting.
Scott
 
Golok?????? Oh crap.:eek:

Nice review Kev. I cant wait to recieve the kephart, and choiless tusker I have on order. Glad it served you well. Wheres the pics? cmon man dont tease me.;)
 
All I can add to the suspense is the Golok project is to honor my Filipino background and make a faithful rendition of a Ray Mears recommended tool. Ray Mears was the guy I read the most of in my teenage years and I always liked the idea.
 
GOSSMAN 4" MINI-TUSKER IN A2

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Specs:

Blade Length: 4" from tip to front of handle
Handle Length: 4.25"
Blade Thickness: 5/32"
Blade Width: 1"
Blade Steel: Kick Ass A2 Tool Steel
Black Linen Micarta Handle by Greg Haugh of Lone Rider Grips
Sheath: JRE Bushcraft Style

This small utility knife was my faithful companion during the last Basic Survival Course I taught at the Wilderness Learning Center. From stirring my morning coffee to battoning hop hornbeam ironwood, this blade did it all. A light stropping at the end of the week returned the edge to hair popping sharp and also brought back a glimmer of polished steel from under the nice patina that developed. The coke bottle contour of the handle gave it a secure purchase in my hand during the wet week. Using a longer lanyard with a diamond knot stopper, the mini-tusker became a field-expedient chopper for light duty use. The point, located almost in the center of the blade, made point first drilling a breeze. As for the grind of the blade, Scotts "70% flat and 30%" convex is a real winner. With his attention to detail, this little blade came out perfectly and handled every reasonable task without issue.

Don't hesitate to contact Scott about this one. It is my favorite Gossman knife I own and might be my new favorite knife overall.
 
I was lucky enough to be at the course with Kevin last week and damn this knife was great. It handled everything Kevin through at it. Great work Scott, that knife definately needs to be on your line up!

That wasn't the only Gossman getting use at the W.L.C.
My PSKjr was around my neck the whole time and was used for a bunch of stuff!
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Here's my post about the school, lots of pics!
http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=577035
 
Thanks Kev and Tony. Glad to see you make good use of your knives Tony. Marty has an awesome place to learn wilderness survival skills. Hope you guys can make my October gathering.
Scott
 
I already took the time off Scott! Hopefully you have a couple of trees around to hang a hammock, cause I aint using a tent anymore!
 
Bro, I really like the look of that Mosquito Hammock you posted the pic of on W&S. I am thinking of getting one, but the only drawback I see is that in some situations it might be hard to find suitable trees to hang from. In structured camping situations, like tent sites or open fields, for example. Was it comfortable for a whole night?
 
cocomen69 said:
Bro, I really like the look of that Mosquito Hammock you posted the pic of on W&S. I am thinking of getting one, but the only drawback I see is that in some situations it might be hard to find suitable trees to hang from. In structured camping situations, like tent sites or open fields, for example. Was it comfortable for a whole night?
Click to expand...


Dude it was the most comfortable nights sleep I have had while out.:thumbup: That said, I prefer softer sleeping surfaces, I can not stand the floor and I have had several air pads that don't quite do it for me.

I like to sleep on my side and the hammock allowed me to do it with ease. The mosquito hammock is double walled so you don't have to worry about those bastids bighting through, but I do reccomend yo use a sleeping bag or blanket as it is quite breezy. I am not a big guy, so bif you are you might prefer a henessy which has tiedowns at the side to allow for a wider spread, but use a pad with that as mosquitos will bite though that one.
 
Thanks for the feedback. I also like soft surfaces and also hate the floor. The HH I was looking at was rated at 250Lbs. Im 6'1 220Lbs, but I noticed the MH Jungle is rated at 350, so I thought it would be sturdier. Also, the fact that in in FL, and the whole swamp thing, mosquitos are really bad here from March to November, and I really like the fact that the MH is designed AGAINST mosquitos!
 
k_estela said:
GOSSMAN 4" MINI-TUSKER IN A2

...........Scotts "70% flat and 30%" convex ......
Click to expand...

What does this mean?
Is the "flat" part two parallel faces or are they tapered like a typical "flat-grind?"

I have added a "high" convex to some "flat-ground" blades and they are incredible cutters yet the edge still stands up well.

That's a work of art, Scott.:thumbup:

Very curious about the nature of this grind.
 
Jeff, what I do is hog off 70% of the steel with a 36 grit belt on the flat platen. I finish it off to pre-heat treat on the rotary platen with a 50 grit. The rotary convexes the rest of the grind. 70/30 is an estimate but most of the steel removed is on the flat platen.
Scott
 
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