TOPS--"Laser Strike" any info?

G

garyo

Joined
Jun 10, 2001
Messages
2
Hi all

I'm new to this forum. I had it bookmarked to check out but never did. I did a little looking this morning trying to find some info on this knife. I liked it and decided to register. I look forward to coming here in the future! So anybody have any info on this knife? I'm not new to knives but I really don't know anything about TOPS. I know they are a new company and have read all about them on their site. Any general comments on quality, the company or other knives they make? Thanks all in advance.
 
Haven't seen the Lazer Strike, but own 3 other TOPS knives; Scalpel, C.A.T. tanto with micarta scales and a new "mini-kukri" that's not on their web site yet. They're super sharp right out of the box and tough as nails. 1095 steel ok, since the coating they use is extremely durable. Any oxidation occurs right on the edge and gets removed with sharpenning. Which they don't need often! These knives are heavy duty users, but the quality is there. The grind lines, metal to micarta fit, etc., are much better than other brands of the type I've handled.

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GronK
Just 'cause yer paranoid don't mean someone ain't out to get ya!
 
The Laser Strike is featured in an article in the latest Tactical Knives magazine. Check out that article for pics and lots of info.

It was designed by Jeff Randall, of Randall Adventure Training. Jeff posts here, so I'd suggest going to the "Tactics and Training" section and posting this question in the "Wilderness Survival" forum, as he goes there a lot! May as well get your info from 'Da Man himself!

Basically, the knife is a piece of 1095 steel, which Jeff likes a lot. 1095 is easy to sharpen, has good impact resistance and takes a very nice edge. It is easy to sharpen on river rocks and such as well, which Jeff thinks is important when you're in the bush, just in case.

The thing that makes the Laser Strike special is the 3 fire starting methods that the knife encorporates.

1) A Ferrocium Rod is attached to the sheath. You simply scrape the edge of the blade along the rod and watch the sparks fly.

2) A portion of the backside of the knife is specially heat treated to allow using a flint to light a fire. With the right steel and a proper heat treat, the steel will throw sparks when struck with a flint. 1095 will do this.

3) The Micarta handle has a divot in it to act as the top part of a bow drill. It is said that the top part of a bow drill is the hardest to make in the bush, so Jeff has taken this hard part out of the equation! Since the micarta divot is smooth, or will be with use, you get less friction at that part, which will make lighting a fire using that method easier.

Cool knife eh!

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"Come What May..."
 
In addition to the aforementioned article, there are a couple of threads or two, with picture, in the Wilderness Forum & Survival Forum. They would be fairly old by now, they were at prototype time.
 
What Crayola and Jeff R. neglected to mention is that the Laser Strike is shown in actual size on the cover of the 9/01 issue of Tactical Knives.

I went to a knife show in Tacoma today, and the lady selling TOPS knives hadn't even heard of this model yet. This was more than a little surprising since this knife has been talked about in the these forums for a while.

Mike in Seattle
 
I thought that too, Jeff, until I got my hands on them. These things are BUILT and the quality of construction is way up there compared to other tac/utility knives I've handled.

Ron
 
Sure it is 1095, but you get ncie micarta handles, what looks like a great finish on the handle, a bow drill divot, a coated blade, a kydex sheath, a ferrocium rod, the sheath is modified to hold the ferrocium rod, and the blade' sheat treat is special, as the portion for the flint and steel method of fire lighting is heat treated differently, as far as I remember. All of these "extras" add to the cost. But this $200+ knife, along with a chopper and a folder, are the LAST bush tools you'd need, really. The insurance with respect to fire lighting that the Laser Strike offers is worth the $$ too. Buy this knife and a chopper, and you can spend the rest of your knife $$ on collector stuff! It will be the last user you'll need.

By the way, I AM NOT a Jeff Randall knife dealer at all! I am a newbie hobby knife maker, who appreciates a great design. This is definitelya great design, especially when looked at from the "total package" perspective.

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"Come What May..."
 
Mike -- that same lady was one of several exhibitors and NWKCA members at the Tacoma show, who'd never heard of Blade Forums, or any knife forums on the web. I found the level of ignorance in that area to be amazing. I got an app to join the group, but if they only talk collecting, and don't try to keep up with newer knives, and the significant changes in knifedom, then believe I'll pass.

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Asi es la vida

Bugs
 

Thanks all for the information on this knife. I do look forward to coming here in the future.

Jeff R.
You guys did an excellent job on the design! It is just fantastic to be able to come to a forum and get info straight from the horse's mouth, so to speak. I like your site also and look forward to spending some time there.
 
garyo,

Thanks for the comments. We're working on some new projects that may or may not work out. Even though we operate a client based business in the jungles of South America, our number one goal has always been designing gear for folks that go and do, and especially cater to folks who go into harm's way. Currently we have a lot of knives in military hands and gathering feedback, especially from those operating in jungle environments.

We take our time doing this since we are not in any of these deals to make a living. All of our team works regular jobs when we're not "playing" in Latin America. We take on one or two projects at a time and work with them until we like the results.

Someone had a thread going on another section of Bladeforums about designing the best survival knife. There's no such thing. If I had my choice of our Laser Strike or a 10 dollar machete for jungle survival, I'll take the machete everytime. Change environments and I may change knives.

The Laser Strike works but anyone could take any good fixed blade and put a ferrocium rod and have the same thing. The flint striking abilities and bow drill divot are easy to fashion also. Better than ferrocium, anyone could just take some trioxane and a couple of bic lighters and be good to go on firestarting. The Laser Strike is just a package deal. There is no perfect knife or maker and there never will be. Anyone who believes otherwise would believe just about any bull****. We've had several people tell us that they would not pay 180 for the knife....our reply is simply "ok....don't"

We're definitely going to get something else going with TOPS in the future, but we're looking at doing something that is not totally knife intensive and more gear/tool oriented....we'll see. TOPS service and quality have been first-rate, plus if Mike Fuller tells you something you can take it to the bank.

Take care,

Jeff

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Randall's Adventure & Training
jeff@jungletraining.com
 
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