tracker knife

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ladybug93
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tracker knife

#1

Post by ladybug93 »

i remember watching the hunted when it came out. i remember thinking the knife was awesome, just like i thought the rambo knives were awesome as a kid. i remember the tracker knife coming out and needing one, but never getting one because they were too expensive and i was too broke. i remember the criticism of the knife by youtube "personalities" as well as the praise for the design by others.

i eventually ended up getting an esee 5 as my survive anything knife and gave up on acquiring a tracker. how many 1/4" sharpened prybars does a guy need? anyway, over time, i settled into more practical knives for the woods and frequently just take a mora into the woods as my "bushcraft" knife.

recently, the spark was reunited. this time though, i was looking for a small edc fixed blade. i have the izula and i like it okay, but i was looking for something different. i stumbled across the mini tracker. i had seen it before and just laughed it off as a joke. i mean one of the main features of the knife is it's bulk and ability to chop. this little tracker necker seemed useless. however, now that i'm good with bigger blades and don't really need a large tracker, i realized there may be some utility in mini version as an edc fixed blade.

so, what are your thoughts on the tracker knife design and usefulness of the mini version? any experience with the trackers big or small?
keep your knife sharp and your focus sharper.
current collection:
C253GBBK, C258GFBL, C101GBBK2, C11GYW, C11FWNB20CV, C101GBN15V2, C101GODFDE2, C60GGY, C149G, C189, C101GBN2, MT35, C211TI, C242CF, C217GSSF, C101BN2, C85G2, C91BBK, C142G, C122GBBK, LBK, LYL3HB, C193, C28YL2, C11ZPGYD, C41YL5, C252G, C130G, PLKIT1
spyderco steels:
CPM 20CV, CPM 15V, CTS 204P, CPM CRUWEAR, CPM S30V, N690Co, M390, CPM MagnaCut, LC200N, CTS XHP, H1, 8Cr13MoV, GIN-1, CTS BD1, VG-10, VG-10/Damascus, 440C
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Naperville
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Re: tracker knife

#2

Post by Naperville »

To be honest with you, I've never heard or read anything about the design. As an entry level prepper, if the idea was to design a tool with a shovel capability it succeeds. The more that I think of a bushcrafter's needs, it seems to fit.

That said, I'd rather carry a small BOB and have better tools.
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OldHoosier62
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Re: tracker knife

#3

Post by OldHoosier62 »

Tom Brown's fantasy knife, supposed to be all things to all men (and women) but in reality does nothing particularly well. It's a gimmick knife based in his books....which are full of inaccuracies.
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ladybug93
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Re: tracker knife

#4

Post by ladybug93 »

OldHoosier62 wrote:
Sun May 24, 2020 12:22 am
Tom Brown's fantasy knife, supposed to be all things to all men (and women) but in reality does nothing particularly well. It's a gimmick knife based in his books....which are full of inaccuracies.
based on what i’ve heard and read, i’m not a fan of the man either. however, people that love the knife would beg to differ with your opinion about it doing nothing well. there are lots of videos of people making notches with the sawback and very nice curls with the hook in the blade. it doesn’t look like a gimmick when it’s clearly being used effectively.
keep your knife sharp and your focus sharper.
current collection:
C253GBBK, C258GFBL, C101GBBK2, C11GYW, C11FWNB20CV, C101GBN15V2, C101GODFDE2, C60GGY, C149G, C189, C101GBN2, MT35, C211TI, C242CF, C217GSSF, C101BN2, C85G2, C91BBK, C142G, C122GBBK, LBK, LYL3HB, C193, C28YL2, C11ZPGYD, C41YL5, C252G, C130G, PLKIT1
spyderco steels:
CPM 20CV, CPM 15V, CTS 204P, CPM CRUWEAR, CPM S30V, N690Co, M390, CPM MagnaCut, LC200N, CTS XHP, H1, 8Cr13MoV, GIN-1, CTS BD1, VG-10, VG-10/Damascus, 440C
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Re: tracker knife

#5

Post by The Deacon »

No experience with any version of the tracker so I will only say this: if I wanted one and could afford it, I wouldn't give a rat's rump what other people think of it.
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VooDooChild
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Re: tracker knife

#6

Post by VooDooChild »

Which "The Hunted"?
Was it the movie with Tommy Lee Jones? It didnt do very well financially but it was one of the few movies out there that tried to depict realistic knife fighting.
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Re: tracker knife

#7

Post by Larry_Mott »

The Deacon's right.
With that said, personally i think it's a fail on many levels, but that's of course my opinion.
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bearfacedkiller
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Re: tracker knife

#8

Post by bearfacedkiller »

It is a polarizing design. Folks either love them or hate them. I have seen folks on YouTube demonstrate some impressive skills with one. I haven’t personally used one and it doesn’t appeal to me.

The only way to know if it works for you is to buy one and play with it in the woods a little.

Haven’t had a Esee5 but I did have a Becker BK2. How many 1/4” thick pry bars do I need? None, that is why I sold my BK2 and that is also why I haven’t bought a Serrata. The only 1/4” thick knife I have is a large 12 inch chopper.
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Ankerson
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Re: tracker knife

#9

Post by Ankerson »

Was an interesting design, but I never had much interest in one over one of the more traditional designs.
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Re: tracker knife

#10

Post by JD Spydo »

For the past 8 years or so I've watched a lot of those survival type shows on TV. The one I liked more than any was Survivorman with Les Stroud. But the one thing I noticed in all those shows is that they were very careful not to let us see what type of knife they used. Oh sometimes we would get a glimpse of one but not long enough to recognize who made it. I find that so ridiculous that they are afraid that someone might profit from one of those shows.

Because to me that's where the rubber meets the road. Is to find out what the pros are using and how they are using their blades. Because seriously a knife is probably the most important tool to have in an actual survival situation.

With the Bushcraft craze as big as it is I would think they would want to do shows on knifework.
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ladybug93
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Re: tracker knife

#11

Post by ladybug93 »

JD Spydo wrote:
Sun May 24, 2020 6:58 pm
For the past 8 years or so I've watched a lot of those survival type shows on TV. The one I liked more than any was Survivorman with Les Stroud. But the one thing I noticed in all those shows is that they were very careful not to let us see what type of knife they used. Oh sometimes we would get a glimpse of one but not long enough to recognize who made it. I find that so ridiculous that they are afraid that someone might profit from one of those shows.

Because to me that's where the rubber meets the road. Is to find out what the pros are using and how they are using their blades. Because seriously a knife is probably the most important tool to have in an actual survival situation.

With the Bushcraft craze as big as it is I would think they would want to do shows on knifework.
if you watch alone, they all show their tools and explain why they chose each of them. it’s a great show. also, dual survival used to show cody using his classic “mora” all the time. i put it in quotes because it wasn’t actually a mora branded knife, but it’s the same exact thing.
keep your knife sharp and your focus sharper.
current collection:
C253GBBK, C258GFBL, C101GBBK2, C11GYW, C11FWNB20CV, C101GBN15V2, C101GODFDE2, C60GGY, C149G, C189, C101GBN2, MT35, C211TI, C242CF, C217GSSF, C101BN2, C85G2, C91BBK, C142G, C122GBBK, LBK, LYL3HB, C193, C28YL2, C11ZPGYD, C41YL5, C252G, C130G, PLKIT1
spyderco steels:
CPM 20CV, CPM 15V, CTS 204P, CPM CRUWEAR, CPM S30V, N690Co, M390, CPM MagnaCut, LC200N, CTS XHP, H1, 8Cr13MoV, GIN-1, CTS BD1, VG-10, VG-10/Damascus, 440C
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Re: tracker knife

#12

Post by JD Spydo »

ladybug93 wrote:
Sun May 24, 2020 7:01 pm
JD Spydo wrote:
Sun May 24, 2020 6:58 pm
For the past 8 years or so I've watched a lot of those survival type shows on TV. The one I liked more than any was Survivorman with Les Stroud. But the one thing I noticed in all those shows is that they were very careful not to let us see what type of knife they used. Oh sometimes we would get a glimpse of one but not long enough to recognize who made it. I find that so ridiculous that they are afraid that someone might profit from one of those shows.

Because to me that's where the rubber meets the road. Is to find out what the pros are using and how they are using their blades. Because seriously a knife is probably the most important tool to have in an actual survival situation.

With the Bushcraft craze as big as it is I would think they would want to do shows on knifework.
if you watch alone, they all show their tools and explain why they chose each of them. it’s a great show. also, dual survival used to show cody using his classic “mora” all the time. i put it in quotes because it wasn’t actually a mora branded knife, but it’s the same exact thing.
Yeah but after Dave Canterbury quit the show their entire game plan completely changed. I've only seen that Alone one or two times. Again of all the survival type shows I think that Les Stroud Survivorman was the most realistic from what I can tell. And I don't recall them ever showing his knife or his use of a knife in all the shows I watched. I think they make it a point to not give any glory that would help some company make money from it. Also I think that Graham in Dual Survival had a custom made fixed blade knife if I remember right. But you sure don't see much of any knives and usage of them much at all. That disappoints me too.
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ladybug93
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Re: tracker knife

#13

Post by ladybug93 »

JD Spydo wrote:
Sun May 24, 2020 7:19 pm
ladybug93 wrote:
Sun May 24, 2020 7:01 pm
JD Spydo wrote:
Sun May 24, 2020 6:58 pm
For the past 8 years or so I've watched a lot of those survival type shows on TV. The one I liked more than any was Survivorman with Les Stroud. But the one thing I noticed in all those shows is that they were very careful not to let us see what type of knife they used. Oh sometimes we would get a glimpse of one but not long enough to recognize who made it. I find that so ridiculous that they are afraid that someone might profit from one of those shows.

Because to me that's where the rubber meets the road. Is to find out what the pros are using and how they are using their blades. Because seriously a knife is probably the most important tool to have in an actual survival situation.

With the Bushcraft craze as big as it is I would think they would want to do shows on knifework.
if you watch alone, they all show their tools and explain why they chose each of them. it’s a great show. also, dual survival used to show cody using his classic “mora” all the time. i put it in quotes because it wasn’t actually a mora branded knife, but it’s the same exact thing.
Yeah but after Dave Canterbury quit the show their entire game plan completely changed. I've only seen that Alone one or two times. Again of all the survival type shows I think that Les Stroud Survivorman was the most realistic from what I can tell. And I don't recall them ever showing his knife or his use of a knife in all the shows I watched. I think they make it a point to not give any glory that would help some company make money from it. Also I think that Graham in Dual Survival had a custom made fixed blade knife if I remember right. But you sure don't see much of any knives and usage of them much at all. That disappoints me too.
wow. why are you being so combative towards me? i just offered a different view than you.

hahaha... just kidding, bro. sorry. i couldn’t help myself.

anyway, i think dual survival went to complete poo when dave was fired. i was glad to have his presence on youtube though. i wish there was a way to get more of cody without going to one of his $3k classes in arizona. matt graham’s knife was a cheap condor that he modified himself and then they started making it as a production knife. i agree with you though that we don’t get to see enough of the action on those shows. you should give alone another chance though. it’s alright.
keep your knife sharp and your focus sharper.
current collection:
C253GBBK, C258GFBL, C101GBBK2, C11GYW, C11FWNB20CV, C101GBN15V2, C101GODFDE2, C60GGY, C149G, C189, C101GBN2, MT35, C211TI, C242CF, C217GSSF, C101BN2, C85G2, C91BBK, C142G, C122GBBK, LBK, LYL3HB, C193, C28YL2, C11ZPGYD, C41YL5, C252G, C130G, PLKIT1
spyderco steels:
CPM 20CV, CPM 15V, CTS 204P, CPM CRUWEAR, CPM S30V, N690Co, M390, CPM MagnaCut, LC200N, CTS XHP, H1, 8Cr13MoV, GIN-1, CTS BD1, VG-10, VG-10/Damascus, 440C
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Re: tracker knife

#14

Post by Naperville »

JD Spydo wrote:
Sun May 24, 2020 6:58 pm
For the past 8 years or so I've watched a lot of those survival type shows on TV. The one I liked more than any was Survivorman with Les Stroud. But the one thing I noticed in all those shows is that they were very careful not to let us see what type of knife they used. Oh sometimes we would get a glimpse of one but not long enough to recognize who made it. I find that so ridiculous that they are afraid that someone might profit from one of those shows.

Because to me that's where the rubber meets the road. Is to find out what the pros are using and how they are using their blades. Because seriously a knife is probably the most important tool to have in an actual survival situation.

With the Bushcraft craze as big as it is I would think they would want to do shows on knifework.
I could be wrong because I've never seen any of these series, but I thought Stroud won with an ESEE Junglas....but I cannot find anything to back that up.

MUST BE FALSE.
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Re: tracker knife

#15

Post by Mike Slayer »

I bought the TOPS Tracker and tried it out for a year. Well it suck’s so I would waste your money. I have shared a camp fire with Dave Beck who made the original Knives’s. His knives were the ones used in The Hunted. I had the chance to use a few different variants he makes including the original design and the most recent version. They worked better than the TOPs version but they still had the same flaw. The design tried to do all these different things to the point it doesn’t do any of them well. Did I still want the original version like what was used in the movie? **** yeah because it’s still fun to use it and camp out in the woods using a knife like that and survival gear.
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Re: tracker knife

#16

Post by ladybug93 »

Mike Slayer wrote:
Thu May 28, 2020 9:52 pm
I bought the TOPS Tracker and tried it out for a year. Well it suck’s so I would waste your money. I have shared a camp fire with Dave Beck who made the original Knives’s. His knives were the ones used in The Hunted. I had the chance to use a few different variants he makes including the original design and the most recent version. They worked better than the TOPs version but they still had the same flaw. The design tried to do all these different things to the point it doesn’t do any of them well. Did I still want the original version like what was used in the movie? **** yeah because it’s still fun to use it and camp out in the woods using a knife like that and survival gear.
i'm aware that many people feel that way about this design. i was thinking that it might be nice to have the capabilities of the knife (minus the chopping) in a small edc fixed blade without the weight. it would just be a small fixed blade meant to compliment my more standard folders and/or larger standard fixed blade bushcraft blades. i'm looking forward to trying one out. i don't think i'll have problems selling it if it doesn't work out for me.
keep your knife sharp and your focus sharper.
current collection:
C253GBBK, C258GFBL, C101GBBK2, C11GYW, C11FWNB20CV, C101GBN15V2, C101GODFDE2, C60GGY, C149G, C189, C101GBN2, MT35, C211TI, C242CF, C217GSSF, C101BN2, C85G2, C91BBK, C142G, C122GBBK, LBK, LYL3HB, C193, C28YL2, C11ZPGYD, C41YL5, C252G, C130G, PLKIT1
spyderco steels:
CPM 20CV, CPM 15V, CTS 204P, CPM CRUWEAR, CPM S30V, N690Co, M390, CPM MagnaCut, LC200N, CTS XHP, H1, 8Cr13MoV, GIN-1, CTS BD1, VG-10, VG-10/Damascus, 440C
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Re: tracker knife

#17

Post by VashHash »

So have you pulled the trigger yet? I got an email recently and bark river just released a large tracker. It looks pretty slick.
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ladybug93
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Re: tracker knife

#18

Post by ladybug93 »

VashHash wrote:
Wed Jun 03, 2020 2:28 pm
So have you pulled the trigger yet? I got an email recently and bark river just released a large tracker. It looks pretty slick.
not yet. i suggested it for father’s day.

the bark river version is very nice looking. i prefer the look of dave beck versions, so if i ever get a big version, that might be the one. i wonder why they omitted the sawback though.
keep your knife sharp and your focus sharper.
current collection:
C253GBBK, C258GFBL, C101GBBK2, C11GYW, C11FWNB20CV, C101GBN15V2, C101GODFDE2, C60GGY, C149G, C189, C101GBN2, MT35, C211TI, C242CF, C217GSSF, C101BN2, C85G2, C91BBK, C142G, C122GBBK, LBK, LYL3HB, C193, C28YL2, C11ZPGYD, C41YL5, C252G, C130G, PLKIT1
spyderco steels:
CPM 20CV, CPM 15V, CTS 204P, CPM CRUWEAR, CPM S30V, N690Co, M390, CPM MagnaCut, LC200N, CTS XHP, H1, 8Cr13MoV, GIN-1, CTS BD1, VG-10, VG-10/Damascus, 440C
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Re: tracker knife

#19

Post by VashHash »

I would say either a sales move or just to make a different run for collectors /to differentiate from older models.
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Re: tracker knife

#20

Post by CObvious »

Honestly, I don't think the design is bad even if initially it was made for a film.
The concept IMO, is pretty solid if you think about it. The Design just need to evolve over time, which it has. Also people really needed to come up with proper use and techniques other than what was shown on film.
I do feel that some folks opinions on the knife are biased strictly because it was designed for a film and possibly because there are some folks (survivalists) who don't like tom brown.
The first basic truth is that every survivalist knows, even a scrap piece of steel can used as a survival tool, with that in mind, quality in the material the blade should be a paramount factor when buying any blade. I have a tracker designed type knife and love it, and use it how its initial design allows it to be used rather than rely on how the film advertises it. Its custom made blade (not an official tom brown, which in my opinion is over priced ****)
The Second basic truth is that any metal tool fairly balanced can be thrown with deadly accuracy. It takes years of practice and talent to do so. Could the Tracker be thrown? Sure, in the right hands as I pointed out obviously it can. I've seen cheap screw drivers thrown and hit its target by someone who has that talent. Does it mean the tracker knife should be used in that way? Not really. The design was based on a couple of things Hunting/Skinning, basic bush craft and basic combat which in truth any blade can do if used in the right hands. How many people bought this knife with unrealistic expectations, and were disappointed later on? So criticism needs to be taken with a grain of salt.
Best advice, get a cheap one first play with it use it how it was intended not how fantasy dictates, then from there determine whether or not its the right design for you and if it is, get a custom high quality version.
Like I said, I have one and with conjunction with Swiss army I can do a lot of stuff out in the bush.
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