It always seemed to me that Tops knives were quality made...

I looked at obtaining an original and the process was not straight forward. If It had been I may have followed through.

The Wild Pig Hunter seems to be a decent fighting/military knife. One of these days I'm going to have a Wicked Edge and one of my copies is going to get an edge on it fit for a fighting knife.
 
McFeeli said:
Tops makes one of the sexiest production fixed blades out there.. The Prather War Bowie. I only own one Tops, the G10 MSK, which is a great little fixed blade, but the War Bowie is on my "to buy" list. Not exactly sure what I'd use it for, but I know I want one, haha.
Click to expand...

I have two of the War Bowie. It is an incredible knife that is quite versatile. The sheath sucks a big one though. If you buy it, get a leather or kydex sheath made for it.
 
I know that Tops is known for most of their 1095 steel being differentially heat treated, but I do wonder on their .230 machete if that too is the case. There have been folks that have come to the conclusion that the .230 starts it's life as an Ontario Knife Company 18" military spec machete, either as a un-heat treated blank, or as an already heat treated machete from Ontario that they then perform the alterations on. So, I wonder which is the case on them.

I am still jaw dropped on the history of Tops owner... Like... What a crazy story his life must have been!
 
Last edited:
Stelth said:
BBB ratings don't actually mean anything.
https://www.ncconsumer.org/news-art...rless-tohelp-resolve-consumer-complaints.html

https://www.google.com/amp/s/abcnews.go.com/amp/Blotter/business-bureau-best-ratings-money-buy/story?id=12123843
Click to expand...

They usually don’t, but I know of a case where filing a complaint with the bbb actually worked, and saved my sister $5000. Apparently the dealer where she bought a used car(which turned out to be a complete lemon) actually cared about their rating. She got lucky, I guess.
 
Riz! said:
I have two of the War Bowie. It is an incredible knife that is quite versatile. The sheath sucks a big one though. If you buy it, get a leather or kydex sheath made for it.
Click to expand...

If you ever feel like a one War Bowie type of guy, you know who to call! Haha.

They do look great. When I decide I need a new truck knife I think that'll be the perfect candidate. Thanks for the warning on the sheath, though! I've read that about them, but it's hard to trust online reviews some times.
 
M McFeeli

The war bowie is quite underrated. For such a thick spine it slices pretty well. Its almost a full flat grind. I have batonned wood, carved feathersticks, cleaned game (just for fun. I have better knives for that task) made tent stakes and used it in the kitchen. It performed admirably. If I could get one that was 3/16 thick and made of CPM 3V I would have close to, if not, my perfect knife
 
After reading PKJ’s link posted in #25 I gotta gets a war bowie, made by a warrior for sure. This is the Prather War bowie that’s being discussed?
 
Thats real crazy I want to gather more info on that CIA story about the owner of TOPS. I am a bowie enthusiast, and I think I'd pick up the Long Horn Bowie, or Prather War bowie some day.
 
Wow, I didn't have idea that they had this kind of shady stuff going around. I'm kind of glad I never got to buy a knife from them.
 
I will purchase more, not because of some story. I like their product. Not all of it but some is real good.
 
I am certainly not condoning, (nor criticising), what I don't know for sure. I only know that there are certain allegations.
As for the story of this man being the man they say he is, the co-founder of the Nugan Hand Bank, that itself seems totally legit.
Our Government being involved in shady situations, (via the CIA), in order to get certain things done, is probably something most Americans believe has/does occur. No condoning here, but there is an acceptance, on my behalf, in believing that is true.

Anyhow, here is the 2015 article done by the Australians on the matter. Yes, it's a very interesting read, (with video included). And, yes... pretty incredible stuff...

https://www.smh.com.au/business/ban...ing-in-the-united-states-20151108-gkthas.html

One thing that is certain, (and on record), this man, (a former U.S. Green Beret), is a U.S. war hero...

"In 1965, Hand was in a small contingent of Special Forces troops dispatched to Dong Xoai on the Ho Chi Minh Trail. In June, Hand's outpost came under fierce Viet Cong attack. This was free-fire warfare without constraint. Only six of the 19 Americans survived. Hand saved four of them. He was awarded a Distinguished Service Cross, America's second-highest bravery award. His chutzpah brought him to the attention of the CIA – out of bullets, Hand ended up in a hand-to-hand combat, during which he killed a number of attackers with a Ka-Bar combat knife."
 
Last edited:
Here is quite a different take on Michael Fuller, former president of TOPS knives, and his past.

https://idahostatejournal.com/membe...cle_49c0eb89-d689-5aa6-916c-3837b82c5825.html

“A recent news story has surfaced from 60 Minutes Australia condemning Michael Fuller as a criminal because of an incident that occurred in Australia over 35 years ago. This is untrue and inaccurate. While we empathize with those who lost money, as with any investment, Michael Fuller is not to blame,” according to the statement.

“After serving in the US Military, Mike lived in Australia for a time and when a business that he was a part of collapsed, he left the country due to numerous death threats that he and his wife had received,” according to the statement. “He was never charged with any crime or arrested, and has not been extradited because he did not commit any crimes in conjunction with this incident.”
 
I wonder if the ownership was changed when Michael Fuller retired and left Leo as the President... Or, if he still retains ownership of Tops?
 
buckfynn said:
Here is quite a different take on Michael Fuller, former president of TOPS knives, and his past.

https://idahostatejournal.com/membe...cle_49c0eb89-d689-5aa6-916c-3837b82c5825.html

“A recent news story has surfaced from 60 Minutes Australia condemning Michael Fuller as a criminal because of an incident that occurred in Australia over 35 years ago. This is untrue and inaccurate. While we empathize with those who lost money, as with any investment, Michael Fuller is not to blame,” according to the statement.

“After serving in the US Military, Mike lived in Australia for a time and when a business that he was a part of collapsed, he left the country due to numerous death threats that he and his wife had received,” according to the statement. “He was never charged with any crime or arrested, and has not been extradited because he did not commit any crimes in conjunction with this incident.”
Click to expand...

He reportedly created a fake passport and wore a fake beard in order to get to Fiji, then went to Canada, if my memory is correct. Great men are neither truly evil or good, at best 50% self serving and 50% concern for ethics, morality, neighbor and country. His partner may very well have killed himself upon learning about the true nature of the international branches, or Mike may have been ordered to kill him based on his probable knlowledge of the nature of the bank’s dealings.
What I read is that he originally retained ownership, but that could have changed.
 
I have kept on trying to find out more about Tops and it's products. It seems that Rowen, (of Esee knife fame), made knives for Tops under contract with them, (before Tops went to their own all in house production). It is also pretty well common knowledge that Tops differentially heat treats most of their knives, and that the 1095 is their most used steel. That said, when did Tops begin their differential heat treat on their brand knives? Did this start prior to their all in house production, or did they have it done earlier on the knives made under contract by others (like Rowen)?
Tops is my latest study, so I am trying to sponge up, and hopefully share, as much info as possible on Tops and it's products :)
 
I have a Tops Delta Untit 3 in transit to me as a result of this thread. Thanks Jimmy.

I'm heading out to work in a few minutes and I don't have the time to dedicate to research. Can someone explain the differential heat treat process to me or maybe provide a link? I'm not sure exactly what that means.
 
Railsplitter said:
I have a Tops Delta Untit 3 in transit to me as a result of this thread. Thanks Jimmy.

I'm heading out to work in a few minutes and I don't have the time to dedicate to research. Can someone explain the differential heat treat process to me or maybe provide a link? I'm not sure exactly what that means.
Click to expand...

Just like an original Samurai sword, (although Tops uses a different method to achieve it), the area along the cutting edge is heat treated to be harder than the middle to spine of the blade. The idea is to heat treat the edge area to a hardness that will help in retaining the knife's sharpening, and keeps this limited, (and more brittle area), just for that purpose. The middle to spine area of the blade will be left softer to make the blade tougher overall, (less brittle and less likely to break). If the blade is then subjected to extreme abuse, it will likely bend, rather than break.
Most heat treating on production knives is done in a way that the exposed blade has the same hardness from edge to spine. This is pretty much the norm, and it's easier and less costly to achieve, but lacks the overall toughness that differential heat treating offers. There are pros and cons to just about everything, but many folks like the pros that differential heat treating offers, (namely the toughness advantage it gives).

In the USA made catagory, differential heat treating is something that is more expected to be found on the higher end custom knives, (example... a Bill Bagwell bowie knife), not something to be found on the common factory production knives. It simply takes another added skill, and is more time consuming to do. This adds costs, which most production firms are not wanting, willing, or able, to do.

Here is a link to a video where Tops shows their way of achieving this :)

 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top