Tac Knives impressions and opinions from UK

The General

The General

Joined
Jun 6, 2000
Messages
3,625
I was very kindly sent a copy of the latest issue by Steven Dick (thanks!) in request to a sample of the style of writing this magazine uses. All I wanted was a small selection of reviews cut and pasted to my e-mail so I could get a 'feel' for this magazine. Well Steven said he could not do this so he would very kindly send me the latest issue free of charge! Well this is after I explained that I was unable to get hold of this or ANY knife mag in the UK for obvious reasons:( , otherwise I would have bought a copy on the shelf and tried it out.

Well lets cut to the chase, the reviews are quite a surprise, as a computer tech head I have come to expect a certain level of... 'anal' detail in reviews. This includes facts like 3d marks and mhz etc, with knives thanks to certain reviews on-line I have become accustomed to how well knife steels and edges hold up cutting various things in quite a bit of detail. I came as something of a shock to find that such issues were almost sidelined in this publication and rather than concentrate on such facts and figures a brief mention was made on edge retention in most reviews. However and more importantly the general 'feel' of the reviews is not from a 'tech head' or backgarden vs 2 by 4 test we have reviews that come from people who are out there using these knives in situations that could mean a knife providing food and shelter in a life or death situation.

At last I have found a magazine that looks at a knife in terms I use and understand on an instinctive level. Cutting cardboard and 2 by 4's is interesting, but does not really tell me how any knife will perform for ME when camping. This new 'flavour' of review is refreshing as it cuts out the hype and bull and tells us how a knife will perform in the real outdoors, which believe it or not I am quite well versed in sunny old Wales;)!

I found the review of the new laser striker knife very convincing to me, as I had been stuck in the cold in winter with wet matches and a magnizium fire lighter that was worthless (serves me right for buying the cheap crap:rolleyes: ). A knife like this would have cut my time by half in making a fire bow and tinder board. The review is so convincing I am seriously considering buying one of these 1095 steel knives for camping! When funds allow!

Another thing that struck me appart from the no nonsence style was the lack of ANY negative or critical reviewing. Now this worried me a bit as if TK's only review the good products, unless it is featured, how do we know if a knife is a good one? I know 99% of us KnifeKnuts can see a bad design or a poor QC job from looking or handleing a knife, but for those who can't look close up at such knives (like me for example!) rely upon this group and such magazines. Now it is nice that this magazine does not make the mistake of judging one knife as represnting a batch or product as a whole, but I would rather prefer TK to review a knife as it is and provide a no nonsence opinion of such a product. However before publishing the 'negative' review TK could contact the manufacturer and hammer out any problems and if this went no where, publish the review as stands. The danger I feel is if TK simply fail to publish a review of a poor knife then it starts to feel like OK! Magazine where no awkward questions are ever asked and you know you will be put in the best possible light. Perhaps other knife magazines are more critical?

However to sum up, this magazine has greatly impressed me, the moment I get my new job, I will place a one year sub to this publication. I suppose I cannot offer a better recommondation other than I will spend my money here.
 
Nice review General. Congrats to Steven Dick for giving you a free copy to check out as well! Have you filled out the subscription card?

There was soem talk about the no-negative reviews a few weeks ago. A reason was given for this. I forget what it was, but there is some kind of reason for it.

Tac knives is my favorite too! And I can see why you'd be attracted to the Laser Strike. It would suck to be on the Brecon Beacons with a crappy magnesium bar and wet matches.
 
I think I provided part of that, but darned if I can remember what I said!

Actually, I referred to an editorial by Steven Dick. In it, he spoke of the fact that the mag doesn't publish negative reviews. He didn't exactly specify why, in my recollection, but he did state affirmatively that a regular reader who notices that popular manufactured models and well-known custom makers who have never appeared there may well be because the review was done, and the knife performed so poorly, the article wasn't printed.

I was lucky enough to purchase all the issues of '97 thru '99, and I'd started buying it early in 2000, so I can go back 4 years now. Of course, having no memory, it means I have to repeatedly look thru the magazines trying to not find something I might expect to find. Unfortunately, teh way what used to be my mind works now, I keep getting sidetracked by reviews I don't remember, and impressed with a review, and totally forget that I'm not looking for anything. I guess too many years of being an investigator and looking for things has left me ill prepared to look for things that don't exist.

Anyhow, that's what I recall. Steven Dick said that many, many articles have been roundfiled due to poor performance of the knife reviewed. He said that they've seen liner locks that don't lock at all from well-known custom makers. Things like that.
 
Hi, General

You'll enjoy TK. I really appreciate their "on the spot" working reviews. They are always dragging knives down to some Godforsaken places in South America and subjecting them to the "torture-test". I've always enjoyed Steven's editorial approach. Good luck!:)
 
General - Great review.

Crayola - some people that I know would consider a crap magnesium bar and wet matches a luxury when they are out on the Brecon Beacons. :D

I am sure Wayne knows of the people I am refering too.

Regards,

Ed
 
edmoses: My former TKD instructor and friend used to be in the SAS. He said that they would hide Mars bars and other goodies on the course when it came up to do the Fan Dance. THOSE are luxuries! Wet matches still suck! Besides, who needs a fire when you have a hidden stash of Mars bars!
 
The first step any time a knife fails in testing is to return it to the maker, detail the problems and request a second sample. 9 times out of 10 the magazine never hears from them again. It is at that point the article gets killed. Positive reviews of the same knives usually then turn up in the other publications a short time later.
I feel TK has ran some fairly negative reviews of a few knives. There was never any comment made on the forums about these but I can guarantee you we heard from the maker!
 
Tactical Knives is my favorite knife magazine, mostly because it is tactical, or hard use knives that I am interested in. There are certain contributing writers who do very informative reviews, Chuck Karwan, Kim Breed, Anthony Lombardo, Jerry Van Cook, and Jeff Randall, namely. But the bulk of the writing is still of info-mercial caliber in my opinion.

I enjoy subjective style knife reviews, Jeff Randall's being some of my favorites. He takes the knife out and uses it hard, tells you what he did with it, what he liked and why, and what he didn't like and why. A lot of what attracts a person to a particular knife is subjective anyway.

But a writer for an enthusiast magazine should be able to do more. He should be able to give the reader an objective evaluation of cutting efficiency: an accurate description of the knife's edge geometry, the force necessary to cut through a particular standard medium, give a standardized indication of the quality of heat treatment, be that wear resistance, edge durability, or a combination thereof, for example. As the situation stands, Cliff Stamp is leading the way for knife evaluations - he leads the way right over the edge sometimes, well frequently, but at least he is leading. ;) I think it is up to the editorial staff of the magazines to do better than that. Until then, it is still great fun to look at the pictures.
 
I have every issue ever published since the magazine came out.After the first issue I subscribed,and have never been dissapointed. In my opinion this is THE BEST on the market.
 
Thanks for the feedback! Steve as to your comments, I will just have to get that sub in and see for myself won't I?;) :D . You can bet I will sub as soon as I get my first pay cheque which is another bit of good news as I have been offered a job as a teatcher of drama and performing arts and might even have landed a job as a manager in a big high steet chain! Weird how nothing, then job offers! If the retail chain job pans out I will go for that as the pay is better, but either way it means I will no longer be in fiscal poo!:cool:

Time for the sub 3" slipjoint folder with a Spyderco Hole pocket clip stag scales in CPM 420V!:p !!!

For the first time in my life I will be able to carry a street legal knife over here!;)
 
Here's my take on this from a writer's perspective:

First of all features are pretty much limited to 1500 words. Sometimes it's difficult to say everything you want to say (good or bad) in that many words. If the mag went larger on features then it would be detrimental since everyone doesn't like the same type of knife - larger articles mean less articles per issue.

As far as "bad reviews," what you read is the way I feel in my articles. Sure, I've written about some pieces that are not considered high quality, but my focus is catering to all levels of user. If I only wrote about high dollar knives then it leaves out a whole host of users that may need to spend a lot less and still get a pretty good knife for their purposes.

As Steve Dick well knows, I refuse to steer the readership wrong when it comes to the way I feel about a particular knife. Again, this is subjective because it's based on my preferences and style of use.

As for objective reporting, I think a certain amount is a good thing BUT in the end, overall reviews are subjective when it comes to use. Your hand may not be the same size as mine. You may use a knife differently than me. Strength of the user may be different. To prove this go to a slaughter house and watch professionals dress out beef cattle. Where you may like the newest skinning knife on the market, they may be using a worn out simple looking knife that they are accustomed to using. Another "proof" of this is taking your lastest greatest 300 dollar wilderness survival knife to the jungle and then watching the indigs out-perform you with a 5 dollar machete. Swap blades with them and it will not increase their efficiency.

Although I'm a firm believer in Ayn Rand's principles of objectiveness, I still believe that most everything in the world is subjective, especially when it comes to knives and guns.

Jeff
 
Here is yet another reason why I like Tactical Knives best out of the big three knife rags. (Like I need another reason:rolleyes: ).
Jeff Randall has got the right idea when it comes to evaluating knives that cover a wider spectrum of price. There are many people out there who are intensely interested in owning and being able to use the very best knives they can afford, but are unable to drop big bucks($100.00+ in many instances is BIG bucks) on the higher end knives. Budgets are what they have to live with. This puts big limitations on what can be dropped on that camp knife or the bushwhacker and so on.
It's good to find that there are people out there evaluating knives who are keeping this in mind.
 
Agreed! I hope none of my opinions were seen as being overly unfair or critical. Jeff as an aside I have come to respect your no- nonsense approach on the forum and in this exellent magazine. You have forgotten more about survival that I know. I have a solid background in the armed forces cadets as well as a number of years of practical skills around the farm and camping. My knoledge is base compared to yours though. The style and language you use appeals to the 'need a knife to work' ethos that I am comming to respect more and more. I have seen to many expensive knives fail simple tests to risk my bottom with less. I really like the look of that laser strike though, simple and very very tough. When you are eating worms and living in the woods I would trust a knife like that over some $1000 big boys toy!:D
 
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