Well, I was going to reply to the TOPS Silent Hero thread, until I noticed it was a necropost. Since I already had this typed up, I thought I'd share it anyway.
I recently had some experience with TOPS' "black river wash" blade coating, as well as their customer service. I bought my wife a FMS, who promptly used it to cut vegetables. On the very first use, the coating immediately peeled and flaked off like old paint, and the blade was starting to pick up a forced patina like you'd expect from uncoated 1095 coming in contact with onions.
I emailed customer service and explained the problem. They stated that the coating was definitely not supposed to flake off, and requested photos. After seeing the photos, they had me send the knife in. I got the knife back about a week later, and the invoice indicated that the knife had been "reprocessed". The coating appears darker and glossier than before. Even though it has the same serial number, I'm not entirely convinced that it's the same knife. The maker's mark appears to be closer to the handle than it was originally, and it's definitely not the same set of Micarta scales. I don't know what reprocessing entails, but it looks like a brand new knife. I'm guessing that they accidentally skipped a coating step the first time around, but I haven't tested the reprocessed knife on any onions yet to confirm this.
I should also note that the invoice indicated they had to replace a broken spring clip on the Kydex sheath. I'm not sure how that could've happened, as the clip had never been used and the knife was properly packed when we shipped it back to TOPS.
Before reprocessing...
After reprocessing (ignore the Micarta color difference; that's just lighting)...
I recently had some experience with TOPS' "black river wash" blade coating, as well as their customer service. I bought my wife a FMS, who promptly used it to cut vegetables. On the very first use, the coating immediately peeled and flaked off like old paint, and the blade was starting to pick up a forced patina like you'd expect from uncoated 1095 coming in contact with onions.
I emailed customer service and explained the problem. They stated that the coating was definitely not supposed to flake off, and requested photos. After seeing the photos, they had me send the knife in. I got the knife back about a week later, and the invoice indicated that the knife had been "reprocessed". The coating appears darker and glossier than before. Even though it has the same serial number, I'm not entirely convinced that it's the same knife. The maker's mark appears to be closer to the handle than it was originally, and it's definitely not the same set of Micarta scales. I don't know what reprocessing entails, but it looks like a brand new knife. I'm guessing that they accidentally skipped a coating step the first time around, but I haven't tested the reprocessed knife on any onions yet to confirm this.
I should also note that the invoice indicated they had to replace a broken spring clip on the Kydex sheath. I'm not sure how that could've happened, as the clip had never been used and the knife was properly packed when we shipped it back to TOPS.
Before reprocessing...
After reprocessing (ignore the Micarta color difference; that's just lighting)...
Last edited:
), the SERE Mini-Operator, and love the knife. The sheath, not so much. The rotating clip managed to undo itself. While an interesting concept, I had my doubts about it's ability to hold up to daily use, which were confirmed within a week or so. Despite their warnings about taking the clip apart and voiding the sheath warranty ( who warranty's a sheath?), I did so and with a little modification hooked up a Spyderco G-clip in place of the rotating clip. Everything's fine now.