I don't know I don't see the merit in a knife like this. To many different types of grinds to keep sharp, a saw that looks to thick to work, and some kind fo gut hook that doesn't seem to look like it would work either. I guess just not a big fan of this type of knife. I appreciate you wanting to own one though. keepem sharp
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Having a WSK made by a local knifemaker
- Thread starter chardin
- Start date
My problems with the TOPS Tracker were:
* The blade didn't have enough of a cant to it. This meant that attempts to use it as a hatchet were not as efficient as they should have been. The brunt of each hatchet blow fell upon the curved blade right at the bottom where it met the quarter rounder, rather than in the middle. The bend at the end of the handle was probably intended to correct this problem, but it made things worse, not better.
* The handle was not width-contoured, as the Beck and Linger models are, and as the Terrell model will be. This made it easier for my hand to slip during heavy chores. This is not a theoretical contingency -- it happened to me twice.
* The saw was not well-designed; it jams up when making notches and must be cleared repeatedly.
* The hatchet and draw blades are sharpened at too convex an angle. This makes them tougher but gives them less bite.
* The quarter rounder is not emphatic enough to use effectively in that role, much less as some sort of gut hook.
Thanks for posting your designs. They look interesting. May I ask what design considerations went into each?
* The blade didn't have enough of a cant to it. This meant that attempts to use it as a hatchet were not as efficient as they should have been. The brunt of each hatchet blow fell upon the curved blade right at the bottom where it met the quarter rounder, rather than in the middle. The bend at the end of the handle was probably intended to correct this problem, but it made things worse, not better.
* The handle was not width-contoured, as the Beck and Linger models are, and as the Terrell model will be. This made it easier for my hand to slip during heavy chores. This is not a theoretical contingency -- it happened to me twice.
* The saw was not well-designed; it jams up when making notches and must be cleared repeatedly.
* The hatchet and draw blades are sharpened at too convex an angle. This makes them tougher but gives them less bite.
* The quarter rounder is not emphatic enough to use effectively in that role, much less as some sort of gut hook.
Thanks for posting your designs. They look interesting. May I ask what design considerations went into each?
I think the knife's utility is more obvious if you look at it from a user's point of view rather than a knifemaker's. The knife does several tasks pretty well and minimizes the clutter in one's camping or survival supplies.
Again, the saw is for cutting square notches for traps and snares. This is a pretty common survival task and nothing does this as well as a small, short saw. For this purpose the saw is not too thick to work.
As for the gut hook, I've come around to the position that I don't care about gut hooks. If you can demonstrate their utility, I'm interested, but for now the quarter rounder functionality is good enough for me.
Again, the saw is for cutting square notches for traps and snares. This is a pretty common survival task and nothing does this as well as a small, short saw. For this purpose the saw is not too thick to work.
As for the gut hook, I've come around to the position that I don't care about gut hooks. If you can demonstrate their utility, I'm interested, but for now the quarter rounder functionality is good enough for me.
chardin said:
harm sent the images; here they are.
Image 1
Image 2
Image 3
Image 4
He also emailed me the specs:
harm said:
So, this knife is obviously straighter than the typical WSK and the saw is of unusual design, but otherwise it's very recognizable as a WSK.
Why did you make those design decisions? Were they customer-specified or were they on your recommendation? I'm curious to see why people make the design calls they make; I'm just inquisitive that way.
firstly thanx for posting the pics chuck.
the design was brought to me by a customer and was made as is.i only changed the saw,during construction,as i couldnt figure out how to machine it.i wanted to make the saw like the SAK or LEATHERMAN saws.in the end i settled for what i made.when i enlargened the knife to 12 in oal the first thing i noticed was that the blade is not suited for chopping,for the same reasons u mentioned,sweet spot is in the wrong place.i am messing around with the design but dont know when i'll make that one as i havent finished the larger model yet
.as it's my own blade that can take time
.i'm not happy with the the saw and considered doing it like the CHRIS REEVE KNIVES sawback[easy to mill] but prefer the Linger WSK saw.
the design was brought to me by a customer and was made as is.i only changed the saw,during construction,as i couldnt figure out how to machine it.i wanted to make the saw like the SAK or LEATHERMAN saws.in the end i settled for what i made.when i enlargened the knife to 12 in oal the first thing i noticed was that the blade is not suited for chopping,for the same reasons u mentioned,sweet spot is in the wrong place.i am messing around with the design but dont know when i'll make that one as i havent finished the larger model yet
.as it's my own blade that can take time .i'm not happy with the the saw and considered doing it like the CHRIS REEVE KNIVES sawback[easy to mill] but prefer the Linger WSK saw.- Joined
- Nov 7, 2005
- Messages
- 128
Wow, thanks for the pics. It is always very interesting to me to see different versions of this style. I have liked, and used, the WSK style knife in the wilderness for quite a few years now. Recently, I got my hands on a Linger version, and I must say that the saw teeth are superb. If I am correct, Mr. Linger takes about three hours (straight and non-stop) to complete the saw teeth on his version of the WSK. This dedication shows in his work.
I am loving this thread though. I look forward to seeing more versions, and more pics and reviews. Thank you.
-Damion
I am loving this thread though. I look forward to seeing more versions, and more pics and reviews. Thank you.
-Damion
- Joined
- Oct 25, 2005
- Messages
- 43
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dl...ndexURL=0&photoDisplayType=2#ebayphotohosting
does anyone think this knife is worth $400 it was a tom brown tracker
does anyone think this knife is worth $400 it was a tom brown tracker
- Joined
- Nov 7, 2005
- Messages
- 128
It was an interesting concept to slim the tracker knife down a bit. It is really hard to see the true form of the new blade in the pictures provided because of their darkness, so it would be a bit hard to comment on the worthiness of the blade. Have you tried contacting the seller? I would be interested to know and see. -Damion
I saw the knife on eBay also and I would have to say he did a really nice job. I'd figure he has a days labor on the knife and custom sheath. the tracker about $250, plus the material for the sheath. at $400 its a nice deal. you could always buy a tracker a do some grinding on it yourself (if you have the tools). I brought my tracker to guy who makes boat propellers and had him regrind my tracker. he only charged me $10.00. I'll try and get some picture up of it when its all done. my next step is to have the blade parkerized and reshape the handles.
The knife was actually done a month ago, but between an etching I wanted on the blade, the need for a sheath, and the holidays, it took a while for the complete package to make its way to me.
Mark takes better knife pictures than I do, so I suggest looking at his WSK website for a closer look. I blush to note that he named the model after me; it is very much his creation, but he is very kind to honor my participation. Gentlemen do not hesitate to give out credit; hucksters hoard it. Mark is unquestionably a gentleman.
What did he do right? Just about everything. For a first prototype, that's miraculous.
The grinds are beautiful and sharp. The draw knife cuts. The hatchet/hide scraper chops and shaves. The saw was the real surprise for me. It is not the conventional Beck saw, but it cuts perfect square notches in wood, and it'll cut without the need to clear the sawteeth of wood pulp.
The handle feels right in the hand. It fits there like a well-used bar of soap. I am not in good physical shape, but I found it easy to do tasks with this handle, which was not true of the TOPS.
The blade is canted at a good angle, but even better, it is laterally displaced toward the cutting side. This yields two very good results. The first is that the finger groove in the first position is very deep; you will not cut your hand while using this knife unless you try very hard to so do. The second is that it places the hatchet blade nicely without requiring a radical cant and without putting the draw knife at an awkward angle. That is very hard to do; in fact, it is one of the central tricks of WSK design. Mark came up with an original solution that works better than any other I have seen.
Mark is making a heavier version for me in 1/4" D2 to correct the first version's only flaw: It is not heavy enough (13.5 ounces instead of the usual 18 or so) and its hatchet blade is not long enough. With those changes, it will be even better.
Color me impressed, folks.
Mark takes better knife pictures than I do, so I suggest looking at his WSK website for a closer look. I blush to note that he named the model after me; it is very much his creation, but he is very kind to honor my participation. Gentlemen do not hesitate to give out credit; hucksters hoard it. Mark is unquestionably a gentleman.
What did he do right? Just about everything. For a first prototype, that's miraculous.
The grinds are beautiful and sharp. The draw knife cuts. The hatchet/hide scraper chops and shaves. The saw was the real surprise for me. It is not the conventional Beck saw, but it cuts perfect square notches in wood, and it'll cut without the need to clear the sawteeth of wood pulp.
The handle feels right in the hand. It fits there like a well-used bar of soap. I am not in good physical shape, but I found it easy to do tasks with this handle, which was not true of the TOPS.
The blade is canted at a good angle, but even better, it is laterally displaced toward the cutting side. This yields two very good results. The first is that the finger groove in the first position is very deep; you will not cut your hand while using this knife unless you try very hard to so do. The second is that it places the hatchet blade nicely without requiring a radical cant and without putting the draw knife at an awkward angle. That is very hard to do; in fact, it is one of the central tricks of WSK design. Mark came up with an original solution that works better than any other I have seen.
Mark is making a heavier version for me in 1/4" D2 to correct the first version's only flaw: It is not heavy enough (13.5 ounces instead of the usual 18 or so) and its hatchet blade is not long enough. With those changes, it will be even better.
Color me impressed, folks.
Again, Mark Terrell's photos are better than mine, so his WSK site is the place to go if you want a look at version 2 of the WSK.
This is a fun knife! I've been abusing it by chopping and sawing and planing several oak and pecan branches, and it works like a champ.
The grind is unusual for a WSK in that the draw knife grind is not continued into the quarter rounder, but I think that's absolutely right. The draw knife needs to be a much sharper surface than the axe blade, and it's not really practical to grind the quarter rounder that fine.
The saw looks odd when viewed edge-on; it's rather irregular. However, it cuts utterly square notches without the need to clear the sawteeth of pulp.
The handle is beautiful and, like its predecessor, fits perfectly in my hand like a used bar of soap. This is a comfortable knife.
The weight is around 17 ounces, which is more typical than its predecessor for knives of this kind, and it improves the chopping power considerably. Its increased length and thickness also improve the balance for chopping without making it awkward as a draw knife.
This is one good blade. I'd stake it against any WSK implementation I've seen, and more importantly, I'd bet my life on it.
This is a fun knife! I've been abusing it by chopping and sawing and planing several oak and pecan branches, and it works like a champ.
The grind is unusual for a WSK in that the draw knife grind is not continued into the quarter rounder, but I think that's absolutely right. The draw knife needs to be a much sharper surface than the axe blade, and it's not really practical to grind the quarter rounder that fine.
The saw looks odd when viewed edge-on; it's rather irregular. However, it cuts utterly square notches without the need to clear the sawteeth of pulp.
The handle is beautiful and, like its predecessor, fits perfectly in my hand like a used bar of soap. This is a comfortable knife.
The weight is around 17 ounces, which is more typical than its predecessor for knives of this kind, and it improves the chopping power considerably. Its increased length and thickness also improve the balance for chopping without making it awkward as a draw knife.
This is one good blade. I'd stake it against any WSK implementation I've seen, and more importantly, I'd bet my life on it.
Esav Benyamin
MidniteSuperMod
- Joined
- Apr 6, 2000
- Messages
- 90,915
From the maker's site at http://www.mtknives.com/wsk.html
The hole in
the blade is a leverage hole
for wire cutting and for
snapping bone etc...
The hole in
the blade is a leverage hole
for wire cutting and for
snapping bone etc...
Esav Benyamin
MidniteSuperMod
- Joined
- Apr 6, 2000
- Messages
- 90,915
Mr. Hardin, thanks for the follow-up. It looks like he did a fantastic job. He sure satisfied his customer!
redscorpion6
BANNED
- Joined
- Jan 17, 2006
- Messages
- 399
Interesting piece. What size is the hole? I thought the hole was used for arrow shaft straighting in the original BECK WSK. Looks rugged piece and could be effective.
Kaylee said:
Some measurements would be helpful, wouldn't they?
The blade on my example is 5" long and its handle is 4.5"; Linger's figures are 6.5" and 6" for the same measurements, so it's definitely shorter. A rough visual comparison suggests that the aspect ratio of Terrell's knife is 33% wider than Linger's. The weight is about the same, however; Terrell does not taper the tang, and this gives the knife heft.
Kaylee said:
I'm waiting on a Linger version, as is half the known universe, apparently.
In comparison to a hatchet, the Terrell knife is nearly as effective as a chopper; it gives up very little in ergonomics. I don't have a kukri for comparison.http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/sh...d.php?t=404745
Guys can you help me with this discussion? Who has legal ownership and the right to produce the WSK design. Rumor has it the RS6 Blades is in battle with Tom Brown over the right to produce this knife.
Tom Brown is on the war path and is supposed to coming after all makers of the WSK's. The Discussion is on does he own the design or not and does he have the right to keep others from making it?
Guys can you help me with this discussion? Who has legal ownership and the right to produce the WSK design. Rumor has it the RS6 Blades is in battle with Tom Brown over the right to produce this knife.
Tom Brown is on the war path and is supposed to coming after all makers of the WSK's. The Discussion is on does he own the design or not and does he have the right to keep others from making it?