Hey Horn Dog,

I saw a pic of yours in an old post. How does your tops Ed Brown Tracker compare to your dogs and rats?

Personally, I did not care for the Tracker due to its obtuse grind. To get a decent edge, I had to completely regrind the primary to a convex edge. After I finished it, it cut much better. The quality of construction was fine, as was the steel and micarta handle. I just prefer a more conventional knife, like the SOD or Ratweiler. Pitman has my old Tracker now.

Here is pitman's Tracker after removing a bunch of steel. He likes it and says it works fine for him. Since doing that one, I have done regrinds for other Tracker owners. The short draw knife portion of the blade makes great fuzz sticks and the main chopping blade now chops instead of bouncing off the wood.

Beautiful work Horn Dog!!

The one I recently completed for a Blade Forum member actually looks better, but I didn't take any pictures. When you consider how expensive the Tracker is, and what you have to do to it to make it work, you could almost buy three SODs that will chop right out of the box.

This is kind of entertaining http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WNscTTLgBRE&feature=related . Part one was bit strange I must say. To me the knife looks a bit " pricey" and sure doesn't come close to Bussekin standards in my opinion. The interesting thing is the reviewer did give kudos to another knife manufacture so not just purely bashing. I can imagine you guys know far more about these reviews than I do so please feel free to enlighten. This particular knife is one I just about purchased before I found Bussekin. The rest is history as I love the SY and other Busse type knives. Any thoughts ? Thank You

That reviewer got it wrong. The chopping portion of the Tracker is the curved front edge. The other part is for splitting, notching, and use as a draw knife. The sweet spot on the Tracker is just in front of the "hook" at the end of the draw knife section. Unfortunately, he never actually used the knife. Pitman demonstrated some very good capabilities of the Tracker over on BF. As I said, I prefer a more conventional design, like the Ratweiler or SOD, but with a good edge on it, the Tom Brown Tracker is quite a capable survival knife. Since I no longer have the Tracker, I cannot do a comparison with a Scrapper or other Busse made knife, but personally, I'd chose a Scrapper 6 or SOD over the Tracker. The Tracker is heavier than a Busse FBM and costs nearly as much. But pitman loves his. As long as TOPS keeps selling these blunt boat anchors, I'll have fun regrinding them. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

I did'nt realise the Tracker was heavier than a FBM.....very good way of saying what the issues would be if you got one...I got a BATAC LE and it is very thick stock for a small blade and with the large grip area the knife initially feels like you are picking up a "brick" with all the weight in the handle...however...hold the knife to the rear of the grip and use a lanyard so your grip does'nt slip and the weight can be used very well in chopping...they are an acquired taste...for the weight on this knife I could carry quite a large knife in comparison. Certainly a Basic 9....but there is an "indestructable" feeling and "grin" you develop when you use a knife like the BATAC LE...it needs to be very sharp though...then it just cuts like a laser and you hardly feel any effort...and it looks like it would "never ever" let you down. Like a short stocky Pitbull...I guess a Tracker properly re-profiled might do the same...no wonder Pit likes it.It must remind him of his Dog.

Pitman (pitdog on BF) is a big fan of Tom Brown. If you want to see what the Tracker can do, find his post over on BF Wilderness forum from a couple months ago. This Knife Scares Me!

Dude you almost made me spit milk out my nose (ok so it was cookie and cream ice cream, which is probably worse).

"...and the main chopping blade now chops instead of bouncing off the wood."

I hope I answered your original question, Toast. As sold, the Tom Brown Tracker from TOPS suffers from an obtuse grind. The edge will not bite. A Scrapper 6 could out chop it. But reground with a good convex edge, the weight of the knife makes it a fair chopper if you grip the rear of the large handle. But for that much weight, I'd rather have a bigger knife like the DF or FBM. Even the lighter SOD and Chopweilers can chop as well as the convexed Tracker. The Tracker's appeal seems to be its multifunctional design. The saw back makes for good square notches, the reground draw knife section is outstanding for shaving wood, and the front edge is useful for skinning and chopping. The hook at the front of the draw knife section can be used for gutting an animal or smoothing and rounding a stick. The knife is heavy, thick, and darned near unbreakable. You can pound with it, baton with it, dig with it, pry with it, and chop with it. But I can do most of those things with a Chopweiler or SOD at less weight, even with the factory edge.