T.o.p.s. Knives ? ? ?

Joined
Apr 29, 2007
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562
i spend a lot of time on all the knife forums and i hardly ever hear any mention of t.o.p.s. knives.

can anyone here tell me anything about them??are they good,bad or decent.

are they the real deal or a bunch of crap.

i do like their designs and i know the do a lot of work with custom makers but i never hear of anyone ever using or abusing one.
 
I was interested in a couple of their knives but,when i contacted them,they quoted me an outrageous price for international shipping.They also gave me their UK dealers information - but they charged about double the price for their knives and never had the one i wated anyway so i still don't know what they are like.
 
i spend a lot of time on all the knife forums and i hardly ever hear any mention of t.o.p.s. knives.

can anyone here tell me anything about them??are they good,bad or decent.

are they the real deal or a bunch of crap.

They are the real deal; very high quality knives.
 
Every once in awhile they get brought up and discussed a bit. There is a feeling by some here, and I rank among them, that their prices are a tad high. This isn't saying that they're not good knives, just that given their relatively inexpensive materials (1095, 154CM and micarta or cord wraps), and low amount of hand work that goes into them (bead blast or spray coating finishes, laser cut blades), the markup can seem a bit high.

But, that said, I've had a couple and still have one, and their grind lines seem very consistently even, fit of the handle scales very good, etc. One thing to really take a look at is what your intended use is for whichever knife of theirs strikes your fancy. They are real fans of saber grinds, even on relatively narrow blades that start at 3/16" or 1/4" stock, and this geometry makes them not the best cutters in the world, though very strong. I flattened the edge bevel on an Alaskan Harpoon down to the point that there was no transition from the edge to the primary bevel, essentially turning it into a really wide scandi grind, and even then it was on the obtuse side.

Some of the newer models, especially the smaller ones, are displaying better geometry for cutting. The one I still have is the drop point version of their Strikar model, and it's actually one of the nicer production knives I have. Still 3/16" stock on a relatively small knife, but nearly a full-height flat grind on a very wide blade. I'm not a huge fan of the sheath that came with it, but that's certainly a matter of preference. It holds it securely enough. The fact that I picked the knife up on Ebay for about 60% of the price it would have been from TOPS sweetens it even more. :D
 
I just picked up the Border Crossing model which is my first Tops Knife. Its 154CM and is of high quality and Blade design. I also bought it off ebay new for about 60%. I plan on buying more Tops knives.
 
Nice knives. Some of their models are a bit "over the top", but they have some very nice designs. I've got 2: the Rangers Edge, and the Armageddon (Trace Rinaldi design). Both are no-nonsense knives with good fit&finish. The sheath for the Rangers Edge is a bit dissapointing.

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I have the police interceptor and its all right. To thick for my taste.
I also had the scalpel. It was absolute junk. The tip snapped while prying a piece of plastic. There was no flex in the blade it just snapped under very little stress.
They have some cool designs but I don't forsee me investing in any more of there products.
 
I had two anaconda 9 inch non tanto blades and they were well constructed, solid, sharp and had a very ergonomic handle. It held a much better edge than all the other 1095 blades I have owned, but then again, I paid Busse, Ferhman prices for them and that is the part that I could not get over. 1095 is a very cheap steel and HT is simple, so the price point should have been under $200 for 9-10 inch blade. Still very nice knife.
 
I have the Armageddon, great large knife for softwood areas, I really think the handle needs a lot of work in the ergo department. If you see pics of one that someone actually uses regularly you will notice that they grind off the butt hook or whatever its called. I am waiting for funds/inclination to get mine reground around the handle to fit my hands properly.

Still, if TOPS are anything, they are well made and generally pleasing to the eye.
 
I've had a couple of them over the years and liked them a lot. I had a street scalpel and it was built like a tank, everyone i've seen seems to be well built. just my .02, ahgar
 
I have never owned one but my brother did. It was a Tom Brown Tracker. Pretty cool knife but I felt expensive for what you got($300). Id choose a Rat Cutlery over them..seem about the same quality(maybe even a little nicer) but way cheaper. Just my .02.
 
I had a Street Scalpel, too.

It is 1/4" stock and very narrow. Furthermore the edge was really thick above the bevels and said bevels met at an extremely obtuse angle.
So cutting performance was not even remotely acceptable. Any of my axes, hawks, hatchets, and even some of my throwers have better edge profiles that this "scalpel".

The only things it could be used for were things I wouldn't normally use a knife for: digging, prying, throwing.

Reprofiling the edge was out of the question, because too much steel needed to be removed for that. Even a full flat grind wouldn't have made a decent edge angle.

So the knife didn't cut it for me (sorry 'bout that cheesy pun, but I couldn't resist). I sold it and never want another TOPS unless they start to learn cutting edge geometry (sorry again for yet another cheesy pun) and start making knives that are able to actually cut.:grumpy:


Ookami

PS:That is not to say that TOPS fit and finish was bad or anything, I even thought about getting their ALRT as an ersatz Prybaby.:D All it comes down to is the lack of cutting ability in an otherwise fine knife.
 
I have three tops knives, great designs and well made but crappy bevels. I have had to reprofile each one to make it usable. They are almost a chisel bevel.
 
I had Scalpel and liked it alot, well designed for it's intended purpose. I ended up needing a new working folder so I traded it. I'd like to get another down the road some time, again for it's designed purpose.

Matador-
 
Last month, I've been to Vietnam for about 25 days, and I've brought just two knives with me; what can I say? It perfomed wonderfully.


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Despite how good the cut is out of the box,
....keep in mind that sooner or later you have to sharp the knife;)
 
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