Custom Shop/Ganza Team Geminis??

How about a laminate. Micarta or G10 or what ever you want as the "liner layer" and then your stag over the top. You could get by with a lot thinner piece that way.
 
I've been eyeing the Gemini for a long time and still haven't pulled the trigger because I think I just like the way It looks. I'm stressing on what I would use it for, and if I should just get a Ratmandu to go with my NMSFNO.

How is it for chopping? And is it good for those smaller tasks as well?
 
RLB, thanks for the suggestion. (Sorry its taken me so long to reply, I've been away at the grandparents without internet..!) I think that the stag/liner combination could look stunning! possibly red liners would look nice. I just need to get my hands on another TG cos I think I want to keep this one as a beater for now. I may later decide that what it needs is a bit more of a beautiful look...

Zookie, I can't stress enough how much I like this knife. I can only give my opinion for what they are worth, but it chops quite well. If you want a chopper just get the B9, which will be my next purchase. However, all knives are ultimately a trade-off over something. Even with an NMFBM you could argue that it might be a better chopper if only it had a 15'' blade! :p For small to medium branches it has served me very well (the first thing I did when I got it, was to climb a tree in my garden and hack of a decent-sized limb!) It is the same weight as the NMSFNO and is only a fraction shorter, and its handle looks like it would be superior for choking back on end for greater power, so I'm sure it should be a near-identical performer as the NMSFNO.

It comes with a very large edge angle, which seems something like 45+ inclusive. It would perform camping tasks better with a sharper angle. I think at this point it's important to remember that the TG was originally designed for military applications. From what I've read, Jerry said when he released the first 'sneak peek' of the TG that he had already been making lots of these as special military blades. With this in mind, the edge angle makes perfect sense for its likely use smashing crates, concrete blocks or whatever...

However, even with this edge, it has done very well at 'finer tasks' such as making parts for traps or whittling fishing spears (these are the only smaller things I have done with it so far)

This may sound a bit lame, but if you want to see it in action as a camp/survival knife, then it features prominently in Man Woman Wild the Montana episode called Bear Encounter. I know these shows should be taken with a pinch of salt, but the footage shows the TG easily handling a variety of tasks including trap building an fishing snares etc... as well as shelter building.

Ive paired my TG with a Zero Tolerance 0350 for smaller stuff, and tbh I still haven't desperately felt the need to call on the ZT (as cool as it is :) )


Having said all that, the TG suits me absolutely down to the ground. I would like a B9 or B10 for a bit of variety and I'm getting a Nepalese Kukri too, but I can scarcely imagine feeling undergunned with this knife. The TG seems to be a slightly niche love-affair, BUT there's a good reason why hogs such as Jaxx and Cricket Dave are such fans! HOWEVER, a knife is an intensely personal choice and everyone has slightly nuanced needs, and you would have to decide whether it provides anything extra to your NMSFNO given that they occupy very similar territory...
 
joshiecole said:
RLB, thanks for the suggestion. (Sorry its taken me so long to reply, I've been away at the grandparents without internet..!) I think that the stag/liner combination could look stunning! possibly red liners would look nice. I just need to get my hands on another TG cos I think I want to keep this one as a beater for now. I may later decide that what it needs is a bit more of a beautiful look...

Zookie, I can't stress enough how much I like this knife. I can only give my opinion for what they are worth, but it chops quite well. If you want a chopper just get the B9, which will be my next purchase. However, all knives are ultimately a trade-off over something. Even with an NMFBM you could argue that it might be a better chopper if only it had a 15'' blade! :p For small to medium branches it has served me very well (the first thing I did when I got it, was to climb a tree in my garden and hack of a decent-sized limb!) It is the same weight as the NMSFNO and is only a fraction shorter, and its handle looks like it would be superior for choking back on end for greater power, so I'm sure it should be a near-identical performer as the NMSFNO.

It comes with a very large edge angle, which seems something like 45+ inclusive. It would perform camping tasks better with a sharper angle. I think at this point it's important to remember that the TG was originally designed for military applications. From what I've read, Jerry said when he released the first 'sneak peek' of the TG that he had already been making lots of these as special military blades. With this in mind, the edge angle makes perfect sense for its likely use smashing crates, concrete blocks or whatever...

However, even with this edge, it has done very well at 'finer tasks' such as making parts for traps or whittling fishing spears (these are the only smaller things I have done with it so far)

This may sound a bit lame, but if you want to see it in action as a camp/survival knife, then it features prominently in Man Woman Wild the Montana episode called Bear Encounter. I know these shows should be taken with a pinch of salt, but the footage shows the TG easily handling a variety of tasks including trap building an fishing snares etc... as well as shelter building.

Ive paired my TG with a Zero Tolerance 0350 for smaller stuff, and tbh I still haven't desperately felt the need to call on the ZT (as cool as it is :) )


Having said all that, the TG suits me absolutely down to the ground. I would like a B9 or B10 for a bit of variety and I'm getting a Nepalese Kukri too, but I can scarcely imagine feeling undergunned with this knife. The TG seems to be a slightly niche love-affair, BUT there's a good reason why hogs such as Jaxx and Cricket Dave are such fans! HOWEVER, a knife is an intensely personal choice and everyone has slightly nuanced needs, and you would have to decide whether it provides anything extra to your NMSFNO given that they occupy very similar territory...
Click to expand...


What a great response Josh! Thanks buddy, this definitely explained a lot for me. I'll probably end up getting one anyways even if its similar to the NMSFNO, I'll just have to see which one I like better ;).

Sounds like you like you're very much! You should PM me some pics!
 
No problem mate. I'm going to be giving it a 'light beating' in a few minutes and i'll try to get some action pics :)

One other thing I forgot to mention is that my TG is not the LB version but the original. If you were thinking of getting the LB version from the shop theres a couple of differences I should have flagged up.

Firstly, its lighter! At approx 15 oz its 25% lighter than the original. But this is still no lightweight, if you remember that it's still the same weight as a recon scout. And not too many people have complained about the Recon Scout as a camp knife! In fact the Trailmaster is only a couple of oz heavier than the TGLB, and the TM has been considered a very decent-sized knife for quite a while before Busse upped the 'big knife' stakes!

Secondly, the geometry is different. It's a hollow grind, however it is 'deep dish' which basically means the grind is not too concave. Coming from someone who has the original and should therefore be incentivised to knock the follow-up LB version, I can honestly say that I think the difference in strength and toughness caused by the different geometry should be absolutely negligable! :p Mr Busse doesn't make knives he think a bit of 'abuse' will break! His business model relies on quite the opposite! The other aspect of this is that slicing performance should be considerably improved, which will be a bonus for some of those smaller applications.

Anyway, whatever you decide, you won't regret it if you decide to order a LB from the shop. Get one, have a little play with it, and if you decide it doesn't do it for you, just pop it on the exchange (you will need to pay the 25-50 USD to become a gold or platinum member) and you'll get in all likelihood more money than it cost you...
 
Here's just a few pics from this afternoon.
joshiecole


Couple of thoughts from further use...

1. I like it! :D It has a nice weight. I didnt tire easily with extended chopping or whittling. On the belt you almost forgot it was there.

2. I'm going to chenge the edge. The edge feels like it was optimised for chopping concrete blocks (it was)... this was illustrated by the fact that a few stray bashes into paving slabs didnt absolutely nothing to the edge. Nada! I suspect part of that is thanks to INFI!

3. The balance is really quite nice on this. It balances just in front of the handle, which makes it feel light for closer, smaller jobs, while the bulge at the end of the handle is a pleasure to choke back on, to get a much more weight forward feel.
 
Thanks for the pics Cricket Dave. How does the g10 feel on the TGLB in comparison with the canvas of your original TG?

Nice 'nuclear' Toyota! My gf grew up in Oman and Brunei and she swears by Toyotas. She even claims that they were better in the sand than land rovers and range rovers.... I find that hard to believe (my dad works for Jaguar Land Rover) but hey, you can't argue with experience!!
 
The g10 isn't as grippy as the micarta on my original tg. Its still good just not quite as porus. I really do like the toyota, I don't know about in sand but in deep mud and climbing trails it does very well, I've pulled a hummer and a land rover out, and of course with the snorkel I can actually get home after a rain storm. We have a low water crossing that frequently is 3ft under water and its the only way in. Of course when we get a really heavy rain it can get 10ft deep and nobody is coming or going.
 
Sweet pics cricketdave. How do you like the hollow grind of the LB compared to the original's convex? Do you think the hollow grind of LB takes away much strength?
 
I like the slight hollow grind it cuts much better. I don't think it takes away much if any strength its still a stout blade. It bites deeper chopping too. The extra weight of the original gives more of a bashing chop where the hollow grind gives a deeper cut in the wood. For small camp tasks they both do great, carving a walking stick or some branches for a shelter or making feather sticks for a fire its pretty much a wash.
 
Yup, hand shaped micarta & comp finish.

Have a second on the way with black / green G10, but already thinking I'll send it back for new (well.. the same) handles.
 
If I wasn't trying to save up for an NMSFNO from the custom shop (or an original TG if can find one on the exchange when I have some spare cash), I'd be very tempted to get a 2nd TGLB with tan micarta and comp finish.
 
Bullitt, I love that so much I'm tempted to strip mine myself... won't be as pretty as that, but will still look great! Have you got any user pics yet!?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top