Tops Knives?

S

snorkem

Joined
Aug 12, 2009
Messages
410
Recently I've come to wonder why Tops knives are not very popular on this forum. On may posts i see recommendations of esee and mora and other brands but very rarely do i see anyone mention tops. Is there something about tops that im unaware of? When i go to their website all i see is fantastic knife designs of all sizes for all different purposes, in excellent 1095 just like esee. Their warrenty may not be as good as esee's but i may be missing something.
 
Don't know. I have a Topps Ferret and It stays in my back pocket every day. I love the little thing.
 
First of all, there ARE a couple huge TOPS devotees on the forum. My own impression is that no one has much bad to say about the knives themselves, but the marketing slogans are cheesy, and some of the knife names are, too, which may lead some to stay away.

The new, large Devil's Elbow is near the top of my "to buy" list, as is the Mil-Spie 5 and the Wolf Pup. I love the "Grim Ripper" push knife design, too, for example, but I can't yet bring myself to buy a knife w/that name, which sounds like a "World of Warcraft" kid made it up, screened onto the blade. The whole "Spec Ops Trust Tops 'Cause They're Hard to the Core!" slogan sounds, JMO, cheesy and dumb, even if it's true. There has to be a more, well, mature sounding way to say the same thing or get the same point across, and if you saw the ads for the "Taliban Takedown" they ran in the gun mags, the pitch was much the same.

All that said, I don't think you can go wrong w/the TOPS quality, and after all, that ought to be the most important thing.
 
I was very very close to buying a TOPS B.E.S.T, when I carried out a final Google check for reviews and came across a Nutfancy chopping comparison video. When I saw how the TOPS came out, I changed my mind. I don't think that knife would have passed the ABS test which it should when you look at the price for a knife in 1095 steel.

I don't think you would go wrong with an EESE, it value for money and great warranty.
 
They have a lot of models. Almost too many in my opinion. There were a few that caught my eye, but they are in Bark River's pricing range. I'd have to own every competing model of BRKT before I'd go with TOPS, or I'd go ESEE for less $$.
 
One positive thing about them is they offer such a wide variety of designs. However, it looks to me like 80% of those designs are gimmicky, and often downright impractical. It reminds me more of a toy line than a serious knife line.

And I also think they are delusionally overpriced in most cases.

So in the end, I think the reason they aren't so popular is because there are so many better, useful, practical designs on the market that cost way less. And, as dobervol pointed out above, the marketing is just obnoxious. It reads like its aimed at teenage boys in the bottom 10% of their school! :rolleyes:
 
Too many models, very mall ninja on most. Just check out myke hawkes knife! Overpriced in a huge way for a chunk of 1095 steel. Just my $.02
 
different things for different people. TOPS gets blasted for their over the top advertising, as compared to other companies close to the top advertising. of course, advertising doesnt make the knife one way or any either.

i do agree that the sheer number of designs may or may not be a good thing, but they stay in buisness, so.

i own a few TOPS, all are very good quality. and the grim ripper has a bad name, but man it is an accurate name! its a tank, and would be brutal as a weapon.
 
I have a Mil Spie 3.

I am modding it as we speak , 'out of the box' for my tastes the edge was far too obtuse for the slicer I want out of it , otherwise it is a very sturdy hunk of 154CM heat treated by Paul Bos so you know it is done right !

Really what to hate about them ? Their knives are made in America which should please the "buy American" crowd, their knives are obviously well , if not over built for hard use.

Tostig
 
TOPS are very good knife. As you can see I have a quite a few of them. Yes, they priced high for their blades. But, you need to own one to understand their quality and craftsmanship. Just don't look for 1095 as they have S30V, 154CM made blades also (their TOPS DART is S30V). Blade really well made and holds an edge very good even their 1095. But, TOPS blade are not designed for chopping except the Armageddon. Only problem with their blade is no High Flat grind on their bigger blades. But, remarkably blades are balanced on the guard side. TOPS knives are built for hard use (basically you can abuse it), coating is very wear resistance, and linen micarta handle very durable, even with high RC - it sharpens easily on a strop (need to sharpen the blade when it comes for the first time as it's not that sharp). :thumbup:
 

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I bought the Tracker knife from TOPS and wasn't overly impressed with it. What turned me off the most was that it didn't even come very sharp! Sorry, but if I'm paying good money for a knife it damn well better come shaving sharp, no excuses. Overall fit and finish was pretty good though I must admit, and I loved the micarta handle. Still, I ended up selling it.
 
I've got one, only paid $55. Thought it was a pretty good knife out of the box, though the edge was obtuse. I sent it to Krien and he gave it a high hollow grind and bead blasted off the coating. Now it's an awesome knife, but I wouldn't have paid the $100+ price tag they normally ask for as it came in the box.
 
TOPS do have a few gems but you have to wade through the piles of knives they have on offer to find them. I have had a few in my time but only kept the small wolf pup and street scalpel (both needed rebeveled). As metioned they are a bit over priced and the marketing is a turn off for a lot of folks too, but they are not bad knives by any means...... if you choose wisely.
 
TOPS makes some great knives.

The fit and finish is among the best in the business. I’ve had knives from companies that charge 2-3 times as much for similar knives that weren’t as nicely made as any TOPS.

Many people knock TOPS because of their plethora of goofy models. However, for every goofy one, TOPS makes several very sound designs.

The other issue many people have is the pricing. The TOPS website pricing vs. dealer pricing is often vastly different.


If you see a model you like, buy it. You won’t be disappointed.
 
I have a TOPS wolfpup, mini-hoffman and the outfitters axe.

ive cleaned a deer with the wolfpup, it did the job well but was hard to clean up the epoxy and to clean out the scales , holes in the blade and such from the fat. it does fit the hand very well and is thin enough to slice well.

the axe feels good in the hand, bites deep, and can be handled like a knife if needed. the sheath is kinda inconveiniant and clumsy. DO NOT take this tool into combat as it rings loudly even when tapped lightly!

the mini harpoon is pretty cool, comes with firestarter and sharpener. it is a neck knife, and its built well for that , however, the sheath is poorly designed and you can never really trust it. the blade comes very sharp and the handle is well wrapped with plenty of paracord.

Over all, i find TOPS to be a decent company with servicable knives & tools, the tools themselves are pretty tough. the blades though on most of their knife models are a little on the too thick side. on the other hand , so to speak, the handles on my knives are pretty comfortable.
 
Tostig said:
I have a Mil Spie 3.

I am modding it as we speak , 'out of the box' for my tastes the edge was far too obtuse for the slicer I want out of it , otherwise it is a very sturdy hunk of 154CM heat treated by Paul Bos so you know it is done right !
Click to expand...

Hey Tostig! I own a Mil-Spie 3 myself and would be very interested in a picture of your modified Mil-Spie. I like this knife however it is pretty improper when it comes to what a knife is actually intended for: cutting :D. Or at least fine slicing is almost impossible.
 
I don't own one because of the cost to value ratio. There are plenty of good knives made from 1095 that can be had for a much lower cost. Their production knives are priced at similar levels as many of the good handmade knives that are sold in the makers section here.
 
jfive said:
Hey Tostig! I own a Mil-Spie 3 myself and would be very interested in a picture of your modified Mil-Spie. I like this knife however it is pretty improper when it comes to what a knife is actually intended for: cutting :D. Or at least fine slicing is almost impossible.
Click to expand...

Hey buddy !

I should have said 'work in progress' as it is not nearly finished yet.

wwk8rt.jpg


Here you can see I'm working on thinning the blade some , not sure if I will remove all the yellow or not.


2z6z4nn.jpg


I also made the drop point dramatic , I like a knife that can pierce and cut , I think in the end it will still have it's sharpened prybar status to boot :D

Tostig
 
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