- Joined
- Sep 7, 2014
- Messages
- 121
When I was a teenager I found an old Canadian girl guide's knife that had a marlin spike on it. Due to my upbringing in various coastal communities I was very familiar with the uses for a marlin spike (knot and rope work) and was thrilled to have my own. The tool soon traveled with my paracord whenever I went on a trip. So, when I saw that spyderco was offering a modern take on my knife I was very intrigued. That being said, the msrp of $399 was way out of my price range. Luckily for me I spotted one on sale at the West Edmonton mall for $180 (a steal I couldn't pass up).
(tusk and girl guide's knife side by side)
(the tusk at work with me today)
Build quality:The first thing I noticed when I picked up the tusk was how solid it feels. This is my first ti framelock and I think it got me hooked. The lockup is rock solid with zero blade play. I bought a show model, so I can't speak as much about the break in process, but the lock bar was quite stiff when I first got it, and after several hundred openings and closings it has loosened up to a comfortable lock tension without any loss in lock strength or blade play. A combination of a ceramic ball detent and bronze washers make this blade a very smooth opener and the ceramic ball lock on the marlin spike side is a nice touch. Although the pocklet clip is smaller than the average, it has much better tension than my endura, and the lip isn't so pronounced as to catch on things. With a solid build, a perfectly centered blade and high attention to detail and fit and finish this knife definitely matches what I would expect from a $400 knife.
Ergonomics:This is a very comfortable knife to hold, and places in the top 5 most comfortable knives I own. The 2 choils are well placed and not harsh on the fingers (although users with larger hands might find the choils too small). While there is no jimping on the spine of the knife, the design compensates for this with the flared butt and finger choils. These two features allow for a secure grip even in wet/cold conditions.
Pocket carry:The tusk offers left and right hand tip down only carry. Normally I carry tip up, but due to the flared back of the knife, tip down makes sense. This knife pocket carries very well and has bumped a lot of my knives in my edc rotation. The only thing to note is that due to the flared base of the knife, it fills the pocket quite well, making items deeper in the pocket difficult to access.
Blade:Blade length (2.38") as well as a relatively non-offensive blade shape make this a very city-friendly edc knife. That being said, the blade is still 0.118" thick, making it quite thick for the blade size (almost as thick as the 0.13" thick triage). Despite a thick spine, the blade is hollow ground down to a nice slicing edge.
(the stab in the tree shows how well the profile thins out)
Steel:Spyderco decided to use LC200N steel on the blade of the tusk. Having no experience with LC200N and not having read any reviews on it, I took a leap of faith with this steel. That leap of faith paid off. I've been whittling most days with this knife, as well as the usual edc tasks (paper, food, packaging, etc) and it's performed very similarly to n860. The steel is very easy to touch up, and edge retention is a little bit lesser than s30V. Spyderco made a great choice with this steel, and I'm very happy to have it as part of my collection.
The marlin spike:This is the best marlin spike I've ever had my hands on. The tip size and shape is perfect for digging into knots to grab individual strand of the knot, and the way the spike spreads is perfect for tightening knots. Ergonomically, the tusk is perfect in every grip needed for tightening knots and the ceramic ball lock with oversized ball is easy to operate and fun to flip. All this being said, the marlin spike brings up my only 2 issues with the tusk. In my opinion, the 300 series steel used in the marlin spike is too soft. Not only does the satin finish scratch extremely easily, but contact with the titanium scales is causing 2 notches to form in my marlin spike. Also, the steel is soft enough to deform under pressure in the lock. While testing out the locks when I first got my tusk, I discovered that I can collapse The lock on the marlin spike sometimes with very little pressure. I don;t know whether this is due to a small contact face from the ball bearing, or whether it is due to the softness of the steel, but I suspect it has to do with both. Hopefully as the lock breaks and the ball bearing travels farther up the lock ramp in this issue will diminish. However this issue does not affect the function of the spike as the ergonomics encourage using force in the proper direction against the lock.
Overall, the tusk is a very well designed knife with high useability, high quality materials, and high quality workmanship.If you do any sort of paracord or other types of knotwork, and are interested in the tusk, I would highly recommend it.
