Gov-Tac solid or not?

Sorry you had problems with your SOG knife.

But I don't think your description of "poor quality" exactly fits the design aspect of a "narrow" tang.

With the steels and heat treat used nowdays, I don't think thinner necessarily means weaker all the time.

It sometimes means less weight and easier carry etc.

I have seen many narrow or thinner tangs on many knives hold up for many years and never give any problems.

Every knife company designs and produces knives with hundreds of variations of tangs, blades and handles.

I think you should give SOG some credit here, they have been making knives for many years and have a great track record so far in my opinion.......especially with straight knives.

Just my opinion. :D;)

Oh, if you break a SOG tang, I would bet they will replace it.


Robbie Roberson ;)
 
I am interested to see if Chris adds to this thread because I am a bit surprised to hear that the tang could be welded on. That just doesn't sound right. If SOG really is welding tangs on now, I'd like to have some additional verification. I have thought about getting a gov-tac just so I could do the leather washer handle swat to it. I guess we'll see if Chris shows up or not to verify what's up.
 
Chris is at SHOT show.

I also was curious why Carcajou said "my ancient gov-tac" ?

Was this a new or older knife ?


Robbie Roberson. ;)
 
I think its a welded tang...i'm not totally (sure) but i understand that for a less weight because rubber like kraton is weighty...so why use rubber kraton...anyway you can burn or cut kraton...its not the best material for a knife
 
when i haved tested the knife was in brand new condition never use more than cut a box of corn flakes lol
 
baldtaco-II said:
Dan, hi

You've comforted me and alarmed me at once - “live with it”, yeah, nice attitude, but as you say the performance isn't impaired. mmm

I'm not willing to put up with it either, and although my Government is no longer a user I would like to fix it. The most obvious solution would be just to slice off the Kraton and do a new handle but I'm loathed to do that. I became distressed by the direction SOG has started to take a while ago so I won't be buying any more from them. That said, I would like to keep my Government as in tact as possible because I think it is a design classic from the days when SOG were at their best. Ideally, I'd like to just dismantle it and reassemble.

I've read that key to getting them apart is to break the glue bond added to the pommel bolt. I'm stuck for ideas as to how to get a solvent in there, especially when it'll probably nerf the Kraton. I have wondered if I was to boil just the pommel in a shallow dish of water, whether that would be enough to loosen it. May I ask how you did yours?

Thanks for your help so far.

'taco
Click to expand...

Taco,
I removed the but cap by putting the knife in a vice and using a long screw driver that provided plenty of leverage. It all came apart quite nicely and went back together just as easily.

I wasn't so concerned about SOG's response because everyone has their warranty and replacement standards. I have had and still have a few SOG knives and found that the folks in the warranty department responsive, friendly and fair.

In comparison though, there are other manufacturers that will go out of their way to take care of a customer's concerns whatever they may be. Thats one reason why I have more BRK's than SOGs. SOG has its place for a certain kind of "look and style", but for a real "using knife" I go elsewhere.
 
Carcajou

On the right - Antique Ivory. Yum Yum

589.jpg
 
Dan,

I had a tentative go with screwdriver a while ago and it resisted me. That's why I thought I might need to apply a bit of heat. I've now got both ends with BubbaGanew toasting his up with a torch and you being lucky with just a screwdriver. Hopefully mine might be somewhere in between so I think I will have a go a boiling the pommel and then going in with the driver again.

I've still got a few SOGs too. I've never had issues with those I've picked, and still even look fondly at my old AirSOG even though it gets no use now. And if my old Government was in D2 I'd still hold it in very high regard for it's niche. Although the design and the grinds don't suit what I do now I think that old Government pattern was an understated bit of design brilliance. That's the only reason I want to fix it up right rather than bequeath it.

That said, I do have a personality defect in that I'm not given to tolerance when I feel a vendor is not doing their utmost to be maximally transparent. Clearly excluding trade secrets, and this in no way is to necessarily imply only SOG, but I get really peeved when that feels not to be the case, and it gets me to wondering... That's been the case when I've seen questions on forums such as “is it true the Rat Trap is a re-badged job made by another company”, and the question appeared to be ducked. And again, in instances such as this, at which I'm thinking; “I know you know, you work there, now FOFO, and there's a racing certainty even your phone has a camera in it so don't come back empty handed”. When such easy questions are ducked my confidence plummets. There's no excuse for it despite the illness / vacation classic[Rant over – Sorry].

BRKs. Not enough of them here in the UK without a huge mark up, but top bananas for sure.

Happy trails
 
ha thanks baldtaco-II for BRK solution.For SOG i think their better to say (A proven blade style that is robust)yeah the blade is robust for sure but the tang? can you show us its construction?why not!-----(Signature washer construction that has never before been accomplished with a molded Kraton rubber grip handle)ho wow what an innovation!!40$ is a reasonable price for a Gov-Tac,no more for a knife made by asians....Of course sog have made the Seal Knife 2000 but its not a reason to believe that all their knives are very strong...
 
BubbaGanew, is it really just a welded on piece of steel?

Carcajou, what were you doing when you "continued to destroy the knife and the knife broke?" What did you do to make the knife break?
 
Does it seem like a weak point? My understanding is that if a weld is done correctly and annealed, it can be just as strong as the joined metal. What do you make of it? I have to admit that I am a bit disappointed in this design. :(
 
Hi dl351 when the knife broke i was trying to remove the gard...i was hammering the gard in direction of the pommel,but the gard was really tight to the blade and the tang broke right at the welded...so you can see the place on BubbaGanew picture.Its clear that is not the same steel,for the tang than for the blade....

so you can believe it or not :) Of course i was not right to hammer the gard so, i haved do the same whit a Buck 119 i have detroy one to see the construction but Buck 119 are very strong they have a kind of full tang or (hide-tang)under phenolic resin handle...and the way buck attache the tang to the pommel is unbelievable,that so strong i haved hammer and hammer the pommel really hard to remove the pommel,and phenolic resin is a very good material for handle like micarta.and finally Sog Pommel are also very strong...the only problem i have with SOG is the Tang of their Gov-Tac
 
dl351 said:
Does it seem like a weak point?
Click to expand...

No. Not to me it doesn't.

dl351 said:
My understanding is that if a weld is done correctly and annealed, it can be just as strong as the joined metal.
Click to expand...

That's my understanding as well.

dl351 said:
What do you make of it? I have to admit that I am a bit disappointed in this design.
Click to expand...

I think its a good knife. I'm sure Sog isn't the first knife manufacture to use this design and I don't think it will be the last either. This knife design was made for reasons other than having its guard hammered off.
I think a happy medium rules but maybe when it comes to knives a little over kill mite not be so bad if you can afford it.
 
In my observations, you typically get what you pay for. Ka-bar makes an excellent version of the 1219C2 Mark 2 but in no way advertize it as the strongest blade around. They simply make a quality product and stand behind it. Randall Made Knives are neither state of the art or indestructable but are an excellent value for resale. Mad Dog knives are well made with quality materials and ergonomics to beat the band. Some love um and would carry nothing else. Others feel they are too much coin. Look at the resale on a Mad Dog - good stuff if you are the owner selling it. Interestingly, most keep them because they have a coolness factor that speaks to a guy's emotions. Whether he is an armchair warrior or a real deal Frog, there is and will always be an intrinsic value in a well-made and designed tool.

Bottom line is this, what are you purchasing the knife for? Looks, reputation, resale, the company behind the name? All of the above? The market bears what it does for a reason. Companies and products stand or fall based on demand and customer service. I like almost all knives for different reasons but to reiterate my last post, I have more of one product than another for very solid reasons.

Regarding the SOG Company, they came out with a product no one else was producing - an excellent reproduction of a version of the 6" 5th Group knife. This action put an aerospace designer on the map and helped propel the industry from a rather lackluster field of collectible pocket knives or high-end, buffed out hunters. Remember when the Cold Steel Tanto was all the rage? This was the same time SOG, Al Mar, Gerber were at the top of the production knife food chain. From this synergy came all the marvelous makers of today. I believe it was Steve Dick in his Tactical Knives mag were he said we are in the golden age of "outdoor" cutlery or tactical if you will.

At least in this point in time we have the freedom to purchase and use what we enjoy. The day may come when anything over 2" with a locking blade is considered verboten - wait, it has . . . in England. Sorry, had to put that little dig in there for my cousins in the UK. I was told that my great grandfather left Ireland because of the potato famine. I think he was just a knife-nut and saw the handwriting on the wall :)

Best,

Dan
 
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