Pitdog's New Boat Anchor

[11x11x]

I was going to comment on the youtube video. Last month I used my RD6 to clear an Oak tree that fell across the trail. It took only a few whacks to get through stuff of similar thickness...

 

[Liam Ryan]

Man, I think it's partly the blade and partly how awkward the guy is. Watching him chop and baton was like watching a slow kid do it and not wanting to intervene so he can feel good about doing it himself.
Watching him sharpen it I doubt there's much of an edge on it either.

 

[tholiver]

From watching Noss's video (and others) it always seemed to me that the "sweet spot" on the Tracker blade is in a awkward location.
That is it seems to fall in the exact spot where the cutting edge transitions from one style to another.
Maybe if they kept the blade the same length and lengthened (or shortened) the drawknife edge it might chop better.

Really the tracker seems to be a "Jack-of-all-trades-master-of-none" kinda knife.
I'd rather have a Mora/SAK/Fiskars hatchet combo any day.

 

[Fiddleback]

Can't stand the WSK knife. Oh well, to each his own.

 

[mblackfu]

I am saying thank you , for Pitdog. I want Pit to take it, use the heck out of it and continue posting pics. I would really love to see him put this through the tests he has his dm

 

[macgregor22]

Man, I think it's partly the blade and partly how awkward the guy is. Watching him chop and baton was like watching a slow kid do it and not wanting to intervene so he can feel good about doing it himself.
Watching him sharpen it I doubt there's much of an edge on it either.

That guy is really goofy.
He has a ok shop where he sells gear.
He just seems like someone that buys the best gear but never learns how to use it.
In his archery vids he makes alot of mistakes in his information and he never shows how far he is shooting from, unless he has an amazingly fast bow he is probly shooting within 10 feet.

 

[chewbacca]

I have never tried one, so I won't comment...

I know a lot of you don't agree with his ideas on survival knives, he likes a big knife and hates bushcraft type knives, but you may be interested in a review M4040 did on this knife on his web site, he bashes on the design, and suggests the improvements he would make...

 

[macgregor22]

M40 turned the design into an uber cool kurkri style blade, still something I wouldn't carry in the woods but really cool.
http://m4040.com/Knifemaking/REVIEWS/FieldBladeReview-Tracker.htm

 

[matthewdanger]

I can\'t wait to see what Pitdog does with it now that it has Horn Dogs much improved edge on it. I am not expecting it to shatter my opinion of the design btu I do expect that it will work MUCH MUCH better than others I have tried.

 

[Horn Dog]

The reason I have so many camp knives and choppers is my quest for the ultimate one. I have three acres of wooded area to play around in. I wish I could get them for free to try them out, but I have to buy them. When I find one I like a lot, I keep it and use it. I am pretty good at bushcraft, all except for my ugly fuzz sticks. Some of the simplest designs seem to work best for me, like the BRKT golok, SR Camp Tramp, Chopweiler, and Ratweiler. I like the SY Dog Father LE a lot, too. I am hoping pitdog can show us how to use the Tracker. I found the instruction book (I thought it was lost) and sent it with the knife to pitdog today. BTW, my el cheapo ParaTraxx version of the same knife works much better, but it is poorly made.

 

[shangchi108]

Well, I'm no expert, but the last time I held a Tom Brown Tracker in my hand, all I could think of was that if I were carrying it when I had to cross a river on foot, that bitch would drown me. You would think with all that weight, if it couldn't chop through a sapling it would simply break it in two.

 

[ADD]

Yeah the WSK design is pretty much useless.

Not to a Klingon in need.

 

[Horn Dog]

Here is the Pakistan copy. It is called the ParaTraxx. Steel is 420J2. The sheath is plastic. The wood composite handle is pinned on. These sell from $15 to $60. This model has a longer blade of 7.25", so it has better balance for chopping. This knife is lighter than the TOPS version and made of thinner stock, about 3/16" thick. I sanded the sharp corners of the handle for comfort and gave it a decent edge. I lost the little knife that fits in the handle. It fell out during testing some place.

The sawback works well for making nice square notches.

The knife actually chops reasonably well for the size and weight of the knife. The sweet spot is right in front of the curved part of the draw knife section.

The draw knife cuts well enough.

The "hook" is useful for rounding out a peice of wood, as I did on this skewer made of palmetto.

Things started to go wrong when I beat on the knife with my baton to split some maple.
The handle started separating from the shock, and the pins started working loose.

I suppose I could just remove the handle and epoxy it back on, putting some on the pins, too. But I just don't like this POS enough to do any more to it. I know Pit will have better luck with the TOPS version.

 

[Liam Ryan]

Might just forge my own in a fire with a rock, to my own specificatons.

 

[KiljoyKutlery]

Hey Gene, it may surprise you, but I agree. I had the opportunity to handle 2 different Becks and I really liked them. I didn't get to use them, though, so that may have been a different story.

I also agree about the Nessmuck design (no disrespect to any of the wonderful makers on this forum that make them, of course). That design does nothing for me either.

Of course, that just puts you and me in the minority.

Doc

YUP! I am surprised!
I am sure that the Nessmuk cuts well, it just looks UGLY..fiddlebacks Nessmuks look pretty nice..he could make any knife look good with his handles...but for the most part..the shape just doesnt appeal to me.
Its all about using what you have..and if it works for you, then thats what matters. Hollow handle knives are fine in my book..I dont really have any, but I could see using one.
As far as the chopping in the video...that knife has a bad grind on it, I gaurentee that it isnt sharp from his technique, and the method in which he chopped was all wrong, he was using soft, short strokes..his energy was lost before impact with the sapling. I could do the same thing with a Tram..I might have to try..but I could make it take that long....it was as if he wanted to take his time....?? Overall, a BAD argument for a Poorly made knife.
TOPS knives have a couple of really great designs..and as far as thier handles go, I believe they are as comphy as it gets from a factory knife.....just need to change the angle of thier grinds??? I dont understand why they havnt yet???

 

[MSgt]

No comment on the knife, but I repeatedly see comments on the weight of large knives, axes, etc on different threads here. I wonder how our fathers and/or grandfathers managed to hump a Mi1 Garand, BAR, ammo and kit they needed, day after day, week after week, month after month, etc. The "Greatest' generation must also been a lot tougher.

 

[macgregor22]

Here is the Pakistan copy. It is called the ParaTraxx. Steel is 420J2. The sheath is plastic. The wood composite handle is pinned on. These sell from $15 to $60. This model has a longer blade of 7.25", so it has better balance for chopping. This knife is lighter than the TOPS version and made of thinner stock, about 3/16" thick. I sanded the sharp corners of the handle for comfort and gave it a decent edge. I lost the little knife that fits in the handle. It fell out during testing some place.

The sawback works well for making nice square notches.

The knife actually chops reasonably well for the size and weight of the knife. The sweet spot is right in front of the curved part of the draw knife section.

The draw knife cuts well enough.

The "hook" is useful for rounding out a peice of wood, as I did on this skewer made of palmetto.

Things started to go wrong when I beat on the knife with my baton to split some maple.
The handle started separating from the shock, and the pins started working loose.

I suppose I could just remove the handle and epoxy it back on, putting some on the pins, too. But I just don't like this POS enough to do any more to it. I know Pit will have better luck with the TOPS version.

That looks closer to the Beck then the TOPs does.

 

[tychoseven]

counted roughly 80 chops to cut down that sappling. a bit inefficient dont ya think...?

I believe that knife is the T2 tracker, a mini version of the standard T1 tracker, which is the knife Horn Dog posted. The T1 is huge and weighs plenty to chop a sapling like that in only a few passes.

On a related note, I just got back from a class with Tom Brown, and some of the folks working there talked about how TOPS doesn't put a good edge on the knife from the factory...so at least they know that's a problem and suggest that if you buy the knife you re-profile the edge.

I don't own one of these, but I'd be game to borrow somebody's and take it for a spin I hear rumors of a T3 knife, which will be in-between the T1 and T2 in size and weight. I might be interested in something like that. But in the meanwhile I'll stick to my khukuris and Moras.

 

[macgregor22]

Looks like the guy in that vid has designed his own knife.
http://www.wildernessoutfittersarchery.com/PathfinderKnife.html

 

[Kyp Degal]

His website has some strange text positioning problems...