Becker Patrol Pack and Ruger GS Scout

Becker Patrol Pack and Ruger GS Scout

Sunday, March 30, 2014

Pizza is no match.

This brutal test almost destroyed the Chogan.

Saturday, March 29, 2014

OSB vs Chogan

The OSB  did not stand a chance against this small hawk. Lots more testing to do today, but this is just a little taste of what is going to get put through.

Friday, March 14, 2014

New foot gear

Got a sweet new single boot to test for a while. Either a stress fracture or torn tendons. Gotta love fire fighting.

Monday, March 3, 2014

Sunday, March 2, 2014

Very Cool Survival Cordage

Got a package from Gearward the other day. Mark sells some really neat cordage and a few other items. He sent me several types of line for EDC and use in kits. This is obviously not a full review, just a little info about what I have been up to. Anyway, this line is Kevlar and has a 200lbs test strength. It is a 3 strand twist, and come on a compact spool. The spool has 60' of cord.


When it is broken down each strand will hold about 60lbs. Perfect for sewing,fishing,or other improvising projects. Look for a lot of projects with this and other cord Mark sent me.

Thursday, February 27, 2014

New Hawk, CRKT Chogan

I got a new hawk in trade the other day. I have done a few mods and tried to make it duty ready. I am going to be carrying this tool at work for testing and as an emergency egress tool. Look for lots of very hard use on this one folks. If all goes well with this I will be getting a real RMJ Tactical Shrike in the future.



Also, I will do the drawing for the Sargent M3 on Monday.

Saturday, February 22, 2014

Brian Sargent Model # 1 Review and Giveaway

Well folks I have done a bunch of work with this knife and it is time to report what I think.



 To start with here are the specs right from Brian.

Steel: Currently O-1 @ .125" thick,Blade length: 3 3/4 inches, Handle length: 4 1/8 inches , Hardware: Brass Corby Bolts,Handle materials: Phenolic, G-10, Carbon Fiber, Wood, Epoxy: West Systems G/flex, Sheath: Taco with Dangler and Firesteel Loop Optional, Grind: Single Bevel , Heat Treat: Peters' Heat Treat - 60rc and cryo'd.

Pretty standard stuff. My first impressions when I grabbed the handle was that I was not sure I was going to like the blocky shape. I am glad I was wrong. The squarish sandblasted micarta may not be pleasing to the eye, but it out preforms most knives I own. The handle will also stand up to a beating.


  I drove it into this dead Elm tree and then stood on it.




This is kinda of a silly test but it really gets the point across how tough this knife is.


One of my standards is firecraft. Even thought this is a relatively small thin knife, it made light work of several types of woods. This Cedar was like butter.





Withe the 90 degree spine it made great scrapings from hard woods and magnesium. It also strikes a firesteel very well.




Another biggie for me is improvising. A knife has to be sharp and stay sharp. All I had to do for sharpening was some touch up on a ceramic DC-4. Even cross batoning did not dull or damage the edge.




 Like I have stated earlier, the knife is tough. It is also a great size to do fine work. I have been using Willow for making projects lately. The Model #1 harvested them like a champ.




 Once harvested, I removed the bark and bound them together for several projects.


This Roycroft snow shoe was a lot of fun to put together.




I also had a failed project that I used this knife for. I was trying to make a rope machine for twisting natural fibers into cordage. This was a blast to make even though it did not work out like I planned.





Even though it is not a kitchen knife, I did some food prep for the testing. The scandi grind and short blade don't really work the best for chopping up veggies. But it did a serviceable job.







My final thoughts. I really like this knife. I liked it enough that I sold my BHK Boat Tail Scandi. I am very sure you will see me carrying this knife in the future.Thanks Brian for a solid knife.By the way Brian did not give me this knife to test. I bought it from him. but, he did send me another knife to give away!!!!!!!!!








Here is a link with some info on this knife.

M3 Bushcraft/Survival Knife

To enter the contest to win this knife you must post a comment on this blog and include you BushcraftUSA screen name. If you are a Supporter of BCUSA I will enter you twice. I will post the winners name at a thread on BCUSA. Good luck, and thanks for the knives Brian.