I like the Phillips head screws. If you want to take the scales off you just need a common (as in even on most multi-tools) Phillips head screwdriver. This looks to be a fairly simple, straightforward (but useful) knife so simple, straightforward screws make it even better, IMO. Honestly, I wish humans had just left it alone with flathead and Phillips head so that we wouldn't need torx, hex, star, blah, blah, blah tools just to take a simple screw out of something.
I got to demo the prototype in Colombia and I haven't put it down since. I have one on my hip right now actually. This design is amazing, and top notch.
For the handles feeling boxy it really is comfortable, I was happy with it. Super stoked they sharpened the spine just like the PSK. Tops keep it up! Nice review on it Ben
Arrogant comment, but I believe that's a Saber grind because of the secondary bevel. It's small so not easy to identify. Mora makes Scandi. Thanks for sharing Ben. I never miss an upload.
First review on TH-cam. Good job. I can't figure out why they put phiips head screws in the scales on such a nice looking knife. I suppose you can change them. The handle does look boxy. Glad it has a 90 degree spine. Thanks Ben.
Brilliant looking knife. Definitely on my list. Good to see a knife that hasn't followed the trend towards bigger is better like many other bushcraft knives. I think the higher scandi grind with secondary bevel makes a great edge. Better for all round bushcraft use. There were/are plenty of scandi knives with a secondary bevel so it's not accurate to say it's not a 'true' scandi. As for the argument over whether it's a scandi with 2nd bevel or a sabre grind it's just a matter of dimensions. At some point, one becomes the other. They can both be sharpened and used effectively so it makes no difference. This is a full tang answer to the old Mora 510 or my current Ahti. Love the choil too.Thumbs up
I would definitely love to get one hopefully soon. The two holes are interesting. Lanyard holes are usually close to the butt, do they have any intended purpose? or they are just aesthetic? I wonder there is some hidden bushcraft wisdom on those two holes. Thanks for the review!
Say Heah, Yeah, I exactly agree with you, I also like a puukku design. Infact I still can't understand why Cold Steel dropped a copy of a Tapio Wirkkala Puukku, Lynn Thompson designed it honor of his wife's heritage. But I love mine. Maybe it was the cost ? I also have a Stromeng Bhuku a copy of the Puukku given to every Athletes that participated in the Olympics that you, It's a Beauty, very traditional. But I'm still at our testing grounds, I brought my Fox Combo I just recently bought. My Fox Pro Hunter and my Fox Combat Jungle Knife a perfect match, well near perfect close. The Pro Hunter lists as being 0.20" but it's a distal blade so it isn't that full of a thickness, it's a little bit thinner if you know what I mean. But regardless it's a beauty also, and the price is awesome. It's made out of tge N690Co Austrian Bohler Stainless Steel a very High Carbon plus other goodies because it holds a very good edge retention and I can use it in wet and snowy weather conditions. The blade is 4.375" and tge style is what some new knives are being made in. Sort of the Mora Garberg L@@K. But it's a bit more robust which I love. I teamed mine with my Fox Combat Jungle Knife a near perfect match that you can tell right away that they belong together. Thanx You for sharing that Puukku, I wish Top's would make it in a stainless type of steel. But you did a good review on it. Thanx You.,,. p
Living Survival For Sure Ben ill have one ive wanted a design of Gorans for quite sometime , very stoked Tops noticed a sick Puukko design like this... someday ill have a custom of his as well ! Take Care My Friend ! ,,,,Spook
I would personally rather you use a traditional puukko as they usually have better handles and they tend to stay sharper for longer. Had a 50 euro puukko for over a year (daily use), only sharpened once 6 months ago and it is still as good as a new one.
awesome looking knife. man, the screw heads look tacky AF, though. In general, I dislike the philips head screw. The last place I want to see it is on my knife... If I get one of these, I would definitely be swapping those out, haha.
I also am no longer a fan of using my knife to strike a ferro rod. This practice came to a halt after a glob of molten material landed on the mirror finished edge of my knife. I'm currently using a Fininsh rat tail puukko as my EDC and have had no problems keeping a razor edge on it using only a strop.
How's your Micarta handle wearing ? Mine appears to be wearing some where the handle slides into the sheath. I can see the same wear spot the left scale of Living Survival's knife. Not a horrible thing, just annoying. Maybe the scale is too abrasive.
Man Ben,that is a sweet knife. You and Chris are going to get me killed by my wife. Just bought two knives that Chris reviewed and now this. I just can't help myself. A man can never have to many knives can they? What am I going to tell the wife this time? Gotta think of something really good this time though. Thanks,Jeff
Just ordered mine so anxious to see. I am a huge fan of TOPS knives and their quality. I like the design and the phillips screws are fine to me. But for those that dont like them what could you replace them with and what size for example if you wanted hex screws? The sheath looks nice. TOPS leather has always been nice. I ordered the TOPS leather sheath for my BOB and its a nice quality sheath. Not the cheap thin single stitched leather. The sheath for the Puukko looks like like its the same quality. Could this sheath be wet molded? I know Chris from PM101 did that on a TOPS sheath for a BOB and I did and it fit like a glove. Just wondered if the shape of the Puukko would benefit from wet molding the sheath or if it would ruin the r=retention. Excellent video
Thanks for the fast reply. I appreciate that! The screws (IMHO) give it a classic-working look which I like. After thinking on it the only thing I would like better is if they were flathead screws but thats minor. And good to know on wet forming the sheath. I did that with the TOPS sheath for the BOB as I mentioned and it really locked it in. Might try it with the Puukko. Foaming at the mouth to get this knife. Will be an excellent EDC blade I think and I love the finish on the 1095.
Got mine yesterday. It is a cool design and feels very comfortable in the hand. However, the secondary bevel ruins its performance. It doesn't even cut paper smoothly. I'm going to modify the grind myself. But I'm not impressed to get a new knife in such a condition.
To be fair it's not a 3lb crowbar of a knife so as long as you aren't stupid with it like you said I suspect it would be forgiving of any reasonable mistakes.
great review. i see Helle knives at my local shops all the time and people seem to love them, but I never see the big TH-camrs review them. they any good?
I'm starting to feel like a douche bag for repeating that if it has a secondary bevel it's not a scandi grind. So I'll ask what's the difference between that knifes grind and a regular old saber grind? To me it feels like a marketing ploy to cash in on the scandi trend but maybe I'm wrong. In my experience I never liked scandi's, never understood what the big deal was, never seen any big performance gain over plain v edge knives. Until I got a real, zero ground, no secondary bevel scandi in my hand and experienced a huge difference in performance on wood, long cork screw like, almost see through thin feather sticks (and I'm not that good at them). So what am I not getting here? I've asked this from others and have only gotten defensive or dismissive answers so I'm still clueless on this issue.
I am a fan of secondary bevels for better durability. Definitely not a saber though as it doesn't have thick shoulders and is still quite slicey. I agree it might not match the true definition of a scandi but maybe modified scandi.
Normal saber grinds leave some meat at the end of an edge before they're sharpened (.050" to .020" or around there). Then they're sharpened. Our Modified Scandi grinds are sharpened to a "zero degree bevel" like a true Scandi and then we add the secondary bevel. So to us... It's not a normal saber grind. We add that secondary bevel because it makes the edge stronger than a true Scandi and people tend to use our knives roughly. In the end, it could just be semantics. We call it that because it's not quite a saber grind, but if you want to call it a saber grind, that works too.
Here is a good resource on Scandinavian knives. nordiskaknivar.wordpress.com/ A quick search of the site will show that many "Scandi" knives are made with a very fine micro bevel which aids in strengthening the edge and makes for easier field sharpening without much noticeable change in performance.
I'm curious about what the gimmick is? The fact that is a knife made out of steel and not bone or obsidian? The fact that it has a handle and a sheath? Seems like a very simple blade(I mean that in a good way). No saw back, no hollow handle, no uber protective reflection subduing coating. Please enlighten me.
Living Survival Even at that price it is overpriced, and it certainly is not a "favorite fixed blade" unless you are reviewing mass production knives in the under $100 category.
He shoots, he scores, touchdown and he hits a home run. Great knife. Thanks. Tony.
Your video helped me make this purchase. Just got it today and it's awesome! Thank you!!!
BLOODY HELL.. MICRO BEVEL = NOT A SCANDI!!!
this comment should be higher
Thank you for the review Ben, I have been excited for this one myself, I'll have to look at picking it up.
I love this knife!!! Thanks for the review!.
Thank you for responding. I really love the channel and love the honest reviews. Thanks.
I like the Phillips head screws. If you want to take the scales off you just need a common (as in even on most multi-tools) Phillips head screwdriver. This looks to be a fairly simple, straightforward (but useful) knife so simple, straightforward screws make it even better, IMO. Honestly, I wish humans had just left it alone with flathead and Phillips head so that we wouldn't need torx, hex, star, blah, blah, blah tools just to take a simple screw out of something.
I got to demo the prototype in Colombia and I haven't put it down since. I have one on my hip right now actually. This design is amazing, and top notch.
It's on my list....
For the handles feeling boxy it really is comfortable, I was happy with it. Super stoked they sharpened the spine just like the PSK. Tops keep it up! Nice review on it Ben
Great review Ben. Been wanting this Puukko sense Blade Show. Time to get it ordered. Thanks.
The first review I've seen for it, nice!
Just a great review and a wonderful product ! Update: got mine 3 days ago ! Thanks for the great review !
Thanks Ben!
Arrogant comment, but I believe that's a Saber grind because of the secondary bevel. It's small so not easy to identify. Mora makes Scandi. Thanks for sharing Ben. I never miss an upload.
Modified scandi maybe. Not a sabre though IMO as it is still quite flat to the top of the grind.
Truhe it is a Saber Grind withe a Small secondary bevel ! So its not Puukko
Great video thank you
Nice knife for sure. I'm sold.
"All time favorite knives... Of all time" #stuffbensays
PREPAREDMIND101 "All time favorite knife manufacturer is Schrade... Of all time" #stuffchrissays
Easy E You kiss your mother with that mouth?
PREPAREDMIND101 Yep, Every time she buys me a Schrade.
Puukko knives rock but this one is sweet! It looks like this one has amazing control nice review.
Nice review.And I have to buy it now.Love the high scandy puukos.
This is definitely a Sabre grind.
LOVE it!
Keep up the quality content buddy.
First review on TH-cam. Good job. I can't figure out why they put phiips head screws in the scales on such a nice looking knife. I suppose you can change them. The handle does look boxy. Glad it has a 90 degree spine. Thanks Ben.
It is a great camp knife. Small but mighty.
Nice knife. Thanks for the review Ben!
thanks!
Brilliant looking knife. Definitely on my list. Good to see a knife that hasn't followed the trend towards bigger is better like many other bushcraft knives. I think the higher scandi grind with secondary bevel makes a great edge. Better for all round bushcraft use. There were/are plenty of scandi knives with a secondary bevel so it's not accurate to say it's not a 'true' scandi. As for the argument over whether it's a scandi with 2nd bevel or a sabre grind it's just a matter of dimensions. At some point, one becomes the other. They can both be sharpened and used effectively so it makes no difference. This is a full tang answer to the old Mora 510 or my current Ahti. Love the choil too.Thumbs up
Agreed ;)
Very nice knife indeed ! i really like it . thanks for the preview !
atb john
It looks like it has a micro bevel?
I would definitely love to get one hopefully soon. The two holes are interesting. Lanyard holes are usually close to the butt, do they have any intended purpose? or they are just aesthetic? I wonder there is some hidden bushcraft wisdom on those two holes. Thanks for the review!
nice looking knife
Malanika Puukko in a birch handle, can’t beat it.
Nice knif!
Thanks Ben! Been waiting to see this knife. I bet you would like LTWK Lagom bush knife
yes, that is a great looking knife as well.
Phillip screws are for easy take apart . I can over look them or replace them .
I just bought one...👍
Carlos Sepulveda is the handle removable ?
is there a secondary bevel on this blade Ben?
yep
Tops knives look so nice until I look at those Phillips screws in it😂
Say Heah, Yeah, I exactly agree with you, I also like a puukku design. Infact I still can't understand why Cold Steel dropped a copy of a Tapio Wirkkala Puukku, Lynn Thompson designed it honor of his wife's heritage. But I love mine. Maybe it was the cost ? I also have a Stromeng Bhuku a copy of the Puukku given to every Athletes that participated in the Olympics that you, It's a Beauty, very traditional. But I'm still at our testing grounds, I brought my Fox Combo I just recently bought. My Fox Pro Hunter and my Fox Combat Jungle Knife a perfect match, well near perfect close. The Pro Hunter lists as being 0.20" but it's a distal blade so it isn't that full of a thickness, it's a little bit thinner if you know what I mean. But regardless it's a beauty also, and the price is awesome. It's made out of tge N690Co Austrian Bohler Stainless Steel a very High Carbon plus other goodies because it holds a very good edge retention and I can use it in wet and snowy weather conditions. The blade is 4.375" and tge style is what some new knives are being made in. Sort of the Mora Garberg L@@K. But it's a bit more robust which I love. I teamed mine with my Fox Combat Jungle Knife a near perfect match that you can tell right away that they belong together. Thanx You for sharing that Puukku, I wish Top's would make it in a stainless type of steel. But you did a good review on it. Thanx You.,,. p
nice
the tip looks fragile, as the tops b.o.b. that broke. can u do a tip test, means stabbing into wood and wiggle?
Nice size blad
1095 carbon rust rust. care care ilove the pukko style .my kind of blade i want it .😋
Gotta get one myself Ben i love Gorans work..Tops did it hella justice ! ,,,,Atb...Spook
DO IT!
Living Survival For Sure Ben ill have one ive wanted a design of Gorans for quite sometime , very stoked Tops noticed a sick Puukko design like this... someday ill have a custom of his as well ! Take Care My Friend ! ,,,,Spook
I would personally rather you use a traditional puukko as they usually have better handles and they tend to stay sharper for longer. Had a 50 euro puukko for over a year (daily use), only sharpened once 6 months ago and it is still as good as a new one.
awesome looking knife. man, the screw heads look tacky AF, though. In general, I dislike the philips head screw. The last place I want to see it is on my knife... If I get one of these, I would definitely be swapping those out, haha.
Nice. I wish the blade was a bit longer though
I also am no longer a fan of using my knife to strike a ferro rod. This practice came to a halt after a glob of molten material landed on the mirror finished edge of my knife. I'm currently using a Fininsh rat tail puukko as my EDC and have had no problems keeping a razor edge on it using only a strop.
right on.
I bought it.The only thing that bothers me is how the cutting edge is a continuous curve.I like the knife, but my Kellam out performes it.
How's your Micarta handle wearing ? Mine appears to be wearing some where the handle slides into the sheath. I can see the same wear spot the left scale of Living Survival's knife. Not a horrible thing, just annoying. Maybe the scale is too abrasive.
Man Ben,that is a sweet knife. You and Chris are going to get me killed by my wife. Just bought two knives that Chris reviewed and now this. I just can't help myself. A man can never have to many knives can they? What am I going to tell the wife this time? Gotta think of something really good this time though. Thanks,Jeff
Haha, heard that so many times!
Just ordered mine so anxious to see. I am a huge fan of TOPS knives and their quality. I like the design and the phillips screws are fine to me. But for those that dont like them what could you replace them with and what size for example if you wanted hex screws?
The sheath looks nice. TOPS leather has always been nice. I ordered the TOPS leather sheath for my BOB and its a nice quality sheath. Not the cheap thin single stitched leather. The sheath for the Puukko looks like like its the same quality. Could this sheath be wet molded? I know Chris from PM101 did that on a TOPS sheath for a BOB and I did and it fit like a glove. Just wondered if the shape of the Puukko would benefit from wet molding the sheath or if it would ruin the r=retention.
Excellent video
You forget about the screws the moment you hold it. Yes, you can wet form the sheath.
Thanks for the fast reply. I appreciate that! The screws (IMHO) give it a classic-working look which I like. After thinking on it the only thing I would like better is if they were flathead screws but thats minor. And good to know on wet forming the sheath. I did that with the TOPS sheath for the BOB as I mentioned and it really locked it in. Might try it with the Puukko.
Foaming at the mouth to get this knife. Will be an excellent EDC blade I think and I love the finish on the 1095.
Topps makes some good knives. Look up William Collins/WC Knives Master Woodsman. Awesome knives. Great price.
friends with William and have reviewed his knives.
I want mine.
you will love it.
Got mine yesterday. It is a cool design and feels very comfortable in the hand. However, the secondary bevel ruins its performance. It doesn't even cut paper smoothly. I'm going to modify the grind myself. But I'm not impressed to get a new knife in such a condition.
Hmm Bit of a fragile tip but I like it! I'll have to make one for myself. Maybe with some kind of exotic handles.
I did a few tip tests off video and it was fine..that being said I'm not stupid about it either.
To be fair it's not a 3lb crowbar of a knife so as long as you aren't stupid with it like you said I suspect it would be forgiving of any reasonable mistakes.
fo sho
Nice except for the philips head screws...
great review. i see Helle knives at my local shops all the time and people seem to love them, but I never see the big TH-camrs review them. they any good?
Steven Peterson They ain't cheap!
PREPAREDMIND101 true, but neither is Bark River or LTW but they get a lot of play. you like them? had much experience with them?
Steven Peterson Helle is a fine knife company !
I have a Helle and it's awesome but the Tops is a better all-around knife IMO.
Steven Peterson I love my Helle Eggen, though the TOPS would be stronger.
I mean no disrespect and not judging you. I enjoy the channel and am a new subscriber wondering where the channel was coming from that's all.
I review gear I personally research, use and recommend.
not feeling the micro bevel.
Were you sponsored by them for this video? And other videos are you getting paid by the company to do reviews?
i was not paid for this video.
Sure looks like theres a secondary bevel on it from here....i hope they didnt ruin that fine knife by putting a sabre grind instead of a scandi...
This vs Mora!!!
:-O
I've rolled the edge on many Moras. They are great for the price but no comparison here.
Living Survival
We could have just started a war.
:-O
It is a beautifully knife but the Phillies head does make it look cheap
I like tops knife but I think they can do better.
Just bought one $100 on amazon
Barry Bueler how do you like it today, barry?
99$ wow not cheap? but i like it not big or to small 90degspine yes .l would by it 😃
I found it for 97 bucks and change
deer killing time .get some blood on it .good .very nice blade.i like it.
I can't get past the Phillips head screws.
they are growing on me.
As far as function goes I see no issue with phillips head screws. I am not sure I like the way it looks, but I could prob get used to it.
Son of Dad really? I think it is rather usefull
I'm starting to feel like a douche bag for repeating that if it has a secondary bevel it's not a scandi grind. So I'll ask what's the difference between that knifes grind and a regular old saber grind? To me it feels like a marketing ploy to cash in on the scandi trend but maybe I'm wrong. In my experience I never liked scandi's, never understood what the big deal was, never seen any big performance gain over plain v edge knives. Until I got a real, zero ground, no secondary bevel scandi in my hand and experienced a huge difference in performance on wood, long cork screw like, almost see through thin feather sticks (and I'm not that good at them). So what am I not getting here? I've asked this from others and have only gotten defensive or dismissive answers so I'm still clueless on this issue.
Mt. Baldwin Scandi-ish
I am a fan of secondary bevels for better durability. Definitely not a saber though as it doesn't have thick shoulders and is still quite slicey. I agree it might not match the true definition of a scandi but maybe modified scandi.
Normal saber grinds leave some meat at the end of an edge before they're sharpened (.050" to .020" or around there). Then they're sharpened. Our Modified Scandi grinds are sharpened to a "zero degree bevel" like a true Scandi and then we add the secondary bevel. So to us... It's not a normal saber grind. We add that secondary bevel because it makes the edge stronger than a true Scandi and people tend to use our knives roughly. In the end, it could just be semantics. We call it that because it's not quite a saber grind, but if you want to call it a saber grind, that works too.
Here is a good resource on Scandinavian knives. nordiskaknivar.wordpress.com/ A quick search of the site will show that many "Scandi" knives are made with a very fine micro bevel which aids in strengthening the edge and makes for easier field sharpening without much noticeable change in performance.
Scandipocalypse
Schweet
SChweet for sure!
Tops way overpriced, real living indigenous don't use gimmick's.
Abo Bushcraft they also dont use micarta, stainless steels, or almost anything modernized
Abo Bushcraft youre not wrong about some of them being overpriced tho
Abo Bushcraft ... Because they have no money.
Abo Bushcraft Good thing most people watching this video and buying this knife aren't real living indigenous then.
I'm curious about what the gimmick is? The fact that is a knife made out of steel and not bone or obsidian? The fact that it has a handle and a sheath?
Seems like a very simple blade(I mean that in a good way). No saw back, no hollow handle, no uber protective reflection subduing coating.
Please enlighten me.
Those screws are so ugly and look cheap. And a secondary bevel? Pass
Seriously?
seriously what?
Living Survival Even at that price it is overpriced, and it certainly is not a "favorite fixed blade" unless you are reviewing mass production knives in the under $100 category.
Living Survival Hope you got beer in the fridge... 🍺
PREPAREDMIND101 I would need a few cases to watch your channel.
MrWinger1951 lol