This Mad Dog, Swamp Rat, MOD knife test is our first field test. Excuse us systemic errors we have commited. It is hard to verbaly describe what have happened so let pictures talk, with us giving commentary only.
Test is not for a knives comparision as they belong to different categories.
One they have in common - they all are high end technology products. In our test we have taken them on the other side of their capabilities - not all got back.
IMPORTANT - This text is working version. Changes and further thoughts will be annotated soon.
Swamp Rat Battle Rat, Mad Dog Pygmy Atak and MOD Razorback have been tested..
Gerber ProGuide ClipPoint near them for company...
Chopping first - Batlle Rat on torment.
Changing now and then we proceed.
{mospagebreak}
Meanwhile in field conditions other competitors are being prepared ...
Mad Dog enters.
Our impresions
It obwious that choping with Battle Rat and MD can not be compared. MD is more fixed EDC than survival/outdoor knife. It worth emphasizing that it can chop, but chopping is not so easy and natural as with Rat. In extremal conditions althouth nobody would care, he would be happy to have a tool to the purpose. Chopping with Rat is a kind of poetry...
Resepirene C on handle perfectly dumps vibrations. Knife is heavy, and it really helps. Stroke is enough, then RAT is on it's own...
After chopping Rat is still shaving sharp - MD not any more.
WAR's impresions
First cuts of Rat and then only ambition how long it takes to chop branch in two. Time less than one minute, that long because of lack of skill, not knife capabilities. Comfortable handle weight of the knife is all, knife cuts so easy through the wood that you are sorry it is finished allredy. Handle from Resepirene works great, hand sticks to it and does not move during chopping, besides dumps blade vibrations and because of it hand is not getting tired. I have got an impresion that harder handle would not work so good.
PNow the time of rope cutting test have came. We haven't got 25 mm thick rope, 10 mm must be enought, alas.
Good cut...
... is a successfull cut...
{mospagebreak}
Everyone wanted to cut the rope - in different styles.
Gerber wanted to cut also...
... just for a company.
Rope cutting impresions
Frankly - Rat has suprised me positively again. It has cut smooth and without problems. Mad Dog worked well also. Test which suited its design made very good.
WAR's impresions
We have cut free hanging rope with all knives. At first of course cutting with test celebrities - Battle Rat i Mad Dog. Both have passed the test. But the most smooth cut belonged to Gerber and Tloluvin's Spyderco Temperance. Both sharp with high flat grit have passed through rope easili. After few attempts small Spyderco Centofante II have made it as well. MOD have not taken part in this test, but be realistic it is not knife for cutting.
{mospagebreak}
The next obstacle for our pets was door from MINSK refrigerator.
All knives were driven into door without trobles.
{mospagebreak}
After ripping refrigerator's door on Rat's edge dent appears.
Mad Dog has finished this trial without loss...
And Razor has lost its greatest advantage...
WAR'S impressions
Penetration first. After driving all the blader into the door it appeared that MOD designed to it is in the last position in this test.
Weigt and sure grip is essential for good penetration, and shape ... well - result speaks fot itself. MOD has the shallowest penetration and lost its point. Rat has just a little damaged point also. You can say that thrusting into sheet of metal it is not Razorback's everyday work, but after Mad Dog i Battle Rat show it is hard to believe that in different conditions MOD would succeded. Sharpness after test: MOD - totally blunt, MD i BR still retained utility sharpness. Here MD is in favor - BR has notch, Mad Dog is more blunt but without damage.
After metal sheet ripping test we tormented knives at bricks. It is hard to say knives chopped - it was rather smashing like with hammer. Of course edges became dull in an instant, but in neither turned, bend or notched.
{mospagebreak}
Lateral load test time has came next.
Rat is very strong knife... Torturing squad in persons of TloluviN and War did not manage to damage it. Even WAR - 108 kg of live weight appeared too light for Rat.
{mospagebreak}
Time for Mad Dog now.
In this moment we heard dry crack, so moving and piercing that difficult to describe... Now You know what happened...
In this moment all fun disappeared. We stayed calm. We returned in silence. I spoke to kieleka that I felt like on funeral. He asked if is that burial of knife or legend (myth). I responded incoherently. I know now - it is the same feelling like during sparring injuring your best friend.
Using Rat we removed shards from the tree.
WAR'S impressions
Lateral load test... When Tloluvin hanged on Battle Rat bending of the blade scared me a little. When I hanged myself, I felt clearly how it worked, but BR managed it. What more, after the test blade was in the same shape without bend. Next in the row was Mad Dog.... and you know what happened. I landed on my knees with hanle in hand. And truly speakinh I lang could not believe, becouse in spite of my reluctance to "legends" and "cults" human has atavistic wish to believe.
Recapitulation (WAR)
Full test have passed two knives. Battle Rat is now my number one in survival category (anything it could mean). For resonable price you got knife with capabilities exceeding requirements in it's class. Hewing a tree, choping it to pieces, cutting and planing it comes to BR easy, and the wieght of it allows us to beat selfmade tent-pegs into the ground. Our tests proove that it has hidden redundant power. This power is not necessarily to be used ever, but it nice feeling to know about it.
Mad Dog Pygmy ATAK is excellent knife in his category and very hard to beat. Fact that it not passed the last test do not lessen my admiration.
Using it to the exteme we have showed it's limitations. But this limit is very far for most knives on the market. As a EDC it is an indestructible knife.
One thing about MOD Razorback. After test realization comes that there is a lot of publicity and designer's work in this knife. But Razorback's utility features are not worth it.
{mospagebreak}
And now a few unsorted pictures and videos...
{mospagebreak}
{mospagebreak}
{mospagebreak}
Videos:
Mad Dog - chopping - 8.3MB
Ripping sheet of metal with Razorback - 748kb
Ripping with Razorback is going on - 3.1MB
Ripping with Mad Dog - 6.8MB
Ripping with Rat - 5.4MB
Rat rips on - 3.9MB
Refrigerator was bad - 2.7MB
It was so bad that the Dog went Mad - 1.9MB
Afterwards we have checked edge hording ability - 9.5MB
Rat versus pre-war brick - 4.9MB
Mad Dog against other brick - 5.9MB
Mad Dog - brick chopping is going on - 2.5MB
Posted in Recenzje on sty 27, 2006