- Joined
- Dec 13, 2005
- Messages
- 6,105
I recently found a used TOPS Tracker at a good price, so I decided to pick it up and beat the crap out of it. Now, most who know me know that I'm not a big fan of the WSK design in general, let alone the TOPS version of it. But frankly I was just bored! I've been playing with it this evening and compared it to my BK9 in a few regards.
Carving
It didn't fare too well. You know those really, really cheap hatchets you get from Lowe's or Wally-World? Trying to make a fuzz stick with the Tracker felt just like using one of those, just very labored. Similar imbalance, lack of comfort/control, and much too similar grind. It just wouldn't bite. I kid you not when I say that I could barely sharpen a stick! It just couldn't do it. If this knife were a samurai warrior, I feel certain it would commit ritual suicide due to this ineptness.
I'm also not a fan of finger grooves since they're necessarily selective for a certain hand width/finger thickness. This was a problem with the grooves on the Tracker when choking up for 'fine' work: it was forcing my fingers to spread apart in an uncomfortable position. Not cool. Thickness/circumference of the handle was fine however. Obviously, any Mora would have done this job quicker, smoother, and more comfortably.
My BK9 was handy so I used it for a basis of comparison. Obviously a bit longer blade than the Tracker, but actually it weighs a good bit less (or at least certainly feels it). Here is a pic showing the different thicknesses and the results of fuzz sticks from each.
Notching
I used the 'sawback' for notching on a couple of small sticks, as I'd use for a trap. As I've heard described before, it does more tearing and gnawing than actual sawing. The notch it made was thick and and pretty rough around the edges. Certainly you're not going to use it in the capacity you would, say, a SAK saw. Any Mora will make a much cleaner notch, much quicker. The BK9 did not compete at this part.
Chopping
To the good stuff, eh! Put simply, the Tracker feels like an overgrown cleaver, but without the bite. It'll mash stuff but not really smoothly/cleanly. The 'sweet spot' on this felt like it was at the base of the chopping edge, just past the gut hook. Or put another way, the long curve at the end feels like wasted space (it's hard to chop and make it strike there, it means that you're striking your target at a level below the axis of your forearm). Versus the BK9, the Becker was the clear winner. Less fatigue, better accuracy, and deeper bites. Neither would win compared to a similarly sized khuk (like a 12" AK or something), and none of those would win versus a similarly sized hatchet of substantial quality.
Here's the result of about 30 seconds of chopping with each. The Tracker was hitting the right side, BK9 on the left. (Getting any objective measure of 'chopping power' is pretty hard when you're goofing around, and I don't care for the method I used. But hey, it's worth what ya paid for).
The Gist
So overall? The Tracker is pretty much what I expected. It doesn't chop well (very certainly not better than a decent hatchet or long blade). With the current grind, it has (for most intents and purposes) no carving/slicing ability. It is a hatchet shaped like a knife. If it was sent to someone to be thinned out a bit and convexed, I might have a different opinion.
The 'chopping' edge is not placed at an angle that's really optimal for...anything.
The sawback is 'so-so' at best, a SAK saw would do a better job by far.
It's really heavy, it's bulky, it's not comfortable to use. It doesn't cut well (what else is a knife for???) or chop. For an answer to a "one knife" scenario something like a good 15" HI AK or the BK9 is a vastly better option/performer. For those who don't needlessly limit themselves to one blade, a GB wildlife (or Fiskars or Wetterlings, etc) plus a mora (or similar) is at the top of the list.
Carving
It didn't fare too well. You know those really, really cheap hatchets you get from Lowe's or Wally-World? Trying to make a fuzz stick with the Tracker felt just like using one of those, just very labored. Similar imbalance, lack of comfort/control, and much too similar grind. It just wouldn't bite. I kid you not when I say that I could barely sharpen a stick! It just couldn't do it. If this knife were a samurai warrior, I feel certain it would commit ritual suicide due to this ineptness.
I'm also not a fan of finger grooves since they're necessarily selective for a certain hand width/finger thickness. This was a problem with the grooves on the Tracker when choking up for 'fine' work: it was forcing my fingers to spread apart in an uncomfortable position. Not cool. Thickness/circumference of the handle was fine however. Obviously, any Mora would have done this job quicker, smoother, and more comfortably.
My BK9 was handy so I used it for a basis of comparison. Obviously a bit longer blade than the Tracker, but actually it weighs a good bit less (or at least certainly feels it). Here is a pic showing the different thicknesses and the results of fuzz sticks from each.
Notching
I used the 'sawback' for notching on a couple of small sticks, as I'd use for a trap. As I've heard described before, it does more tearing and gnawing than actual sawing. The notch it made was thick and and pretty rough around the edges. Certainly you're not going to use it in the capacity you would, say, a SAK saw. Any Mora will make a much cleaner notch, much quicker. The BK9 did not compete at this part.
Chopping
To the good stuff, eh! Put simply, the Tracker feels like an overgrown cleaver, but without the bite. It'll mash stuff but not really smoothly/cleanly. The 'sweet spot' on this felt like it was at the base of the chopping edge, just past the gut hook. Or put another way, the long curve at the end feels like wasted space (it's hard to chop and make it strike there, it means that you're striking your target at a level below the axis of your forearm). Versus the BK9, the Becker was the clear winner. Less fatigue, better accuracy, and deeper bites. Neither would win compared to a similarly sized khuk (like a 12" AK or something), and none of those would win versus a similarly sized hatchet of substantial quality.
Here's the result of about 30 seconds of chopping with each. The Tracker was hitting the right side, BK9 on the left. (Getting any objective measure of 'chopping power' is pretty hard when you're goofing around, and I don't care for the method I used. But hey, it's worth what ya paid for).
The Gist
So overall? The Tracker is pretty much what I expected. It doesn't chop well (very certainly not better than a decent hatchet or long blade). With the current grind, it has (for most intents and purposes) no carving/slicing ability. It is a hatchet shaped like a knife. If it was sent to someone to be thinned out a bit and convexed, I might have a different opinion.
The 'chopping' edge is not placed at an angle that's really optimal for...anything.
The sawback is 'so-so' at best, a SAK saw would do a better job by far.
It's really heavy, it's bulky, it's not comfortable to use. It doesn't cut well (what else is a knife for???) or chop. For an answer to a "one knife" scenario something like a good 15" HI AK or the BK9 is a vastly better option/performer. For those who don't needlessly limit themselves to one blade, a GB wildlife (or Fiskars or Wetterlings, etc) plus a mora (or similar) is at the top of the list.
