Mosquito Tactical "Puppy": modern sodbuster, internet meme
Oct 13, 2018 5:54:41 GMT -8
HunterHype and everydaybeer like this
Post by Shorttime on Oct 13, 2018 5:54:41 GMT -8
“This is the stupidest $150 you'll ever spend”. So says the only Youtube knife review that I could find. So, let's start by talking about the real reason I sent one hundred and fifty Freedom Bucks to a seller on Mao's Dollar-Rama Wholesale Website. The brass coin:
Um, yeah.
It's a reasonable method of commemorating your company's tenth year in business. People who carry knives are slightly more likely to also carry a coin, or other tactile engagement objects with them.
That's all the dignity I'm going to give it.
Other gubbinz include a set of pivot washers, and a card with the logo, again (how about a torx driver that fits the pivot screw? Think about it).
The English Internet is built up of layer upon layer of cultural references, and it must be absolutely impossible for people in countries that don't fully participate in it. So, I can understand how some version of “doge” made it into a knife logo. It may fall victim to the 220 grit customization, or I may leave it on, as a reminder not to take things too seriously. I'm a tightly wound person, and I need that, sometimes.
I have liked sodbuster-pattern knives for a long time, but I've never found one that I really wanted to add to my collection. I also like titanium scales, and framelocks. My only concern was that it was a copy of something else. I checked, and didn't find anything. In the meantime, a user on Bladeforums beat me to the purchase. I wanted to show up first for once, but at least I know it has the BF seal of... not being a copy.....
Is it really M390? China doesn't have an equivalent to the AISI, so we may never know for sure. It's not a big deal to me, I'm the guy who collects CRKT knives, so you know steel choice is not high on my list.
Now, I'm a knuckle dragger. So full flat grind blades aren't my thing. But I'm okay with it this time.
I like flipper knives (knife flippers, not so much), because they're easy to open, without the obnoxious spring that you have to pre-load on the closing. I also like that they don't need a thumb stud. This is one of the places where a lot of manufacturers stumble. They come up with a perfectly good knife, then slap on whatever thumb stud they have the most of in the parts bin, and the result looks like an obvious afterthought. The fact that about half of them don't work quite right probably has more to do with the fact that my hands are smaller than the average.
Personally, I would like to see this backspacer in bronze. It would be impossible to match the frame colors exactly, and the blue is subtle enough that I don't mind it.
The scales are flat, but the titanium (?) is slightly rough on it's own, so the knife actually feels more like a nicely buffed micarta, rather than smooth metal.
I have no fucking clue. They were gracious enough to put it on the inside, so I can pretend I don't see it. It's not enough to ruin the knife for me, because it's good in a lot of other ways.
This is very good. The extra inch or so up near the point is placed where you want it to be, and it's very shallow, with nicely broken corners, so it doesn't get in my way. I don't like jimping, so the less impact it has on either the aesthetics or the ergonomics, the better for me.
And now, we come to the edge, where there is a problem. It's plenty sharp, don't worry, and the bevel looks to be about 30 degrees per side. That's pretty much what you find on factory knives.
Do you see it?
How about now?
Yep, the apprentice needs to work on his dwell time, when he's putting on the secondary bevels.
It's disappointing for $150, but I can fix it, so I can live with it. I'm going to run this puppy through some cardboard, and the moment it slows down, it's going to have a long meeting with a 750 grit diamond hone.
Why would I do that? These shots are a pain in the ass to set up. This one took me seven tries to get the light right, and the camera was picking up the pulse width modulation from the flashlight driver while I was trying to frame it.
Overall, seven out of ten. Most of that is the fact that I'm going to have to fix the blade, and at this price point, I shouldn't have to. I like the modern interpretation of a classic pattern, and I like the minimalist design. I can overlook some.... odd... details.
Um, yeah.
It's a reasonable method of commemorating your company's tenth year in business. People who carry knives are slightly more likely to also carry a coin, or other tactile engagement objects with them.
That's all the dignity I'm going to give it.
The box also contains a cleaning cloth. It's a good size to use as a disassembly mat, and the color is a neutral background for photos, so you may see it in some of mine.
As for the huge “Mosquito Tactical” logo? It's China. What did you expect?
Speaking on the subject of logos provides a handy segue into talking about the knife itself. And this trademark.
The English Internet is built up of layer upon layer of cultural references, and it must be absolutely impossible for people in countries that don't fully participate in it. So, I can understand how some version of “doge” made it into a knife logo. It may fall victim to the 220 grit customization, or I may leave it on, as a reminder not to take things too seriously. I'm a tightly wound person, and I need that, sometimes.
I have liked sodbuster-pattern knives for a long time, but I've never found one that I really wanted to add to my collection. I also like titanium scales, and framelocks. My only concern was that it was a copy of something else. I checked, and didn't find anything. In the meantime, a user on Bladeforums beat me to the purchase. I wanted to show up first for once, but at least I know it has the BF seal of... not being a copy.....
Is it really M390? China doesn't have an equivalent to the AISI, so we may never know for sure. It's not a big deal to me, I'm the guy who collects CRKT knives, so you know steel choice is not high on my list.
Now, I'm a knuckle dragger. So full flat grind blades aren't my thing. But I'm okay with it this time.
No pocket clip. I'm okay with this, too.
This knife lacks nearly every feature that I like, but I've always wanted a sodbuster, and this is such a well executed update to the classic pattern. Adding or altering it would make it into something else.
I like flipper knives (knife flippers, not so much), because they're easy to open, without the obnoxious spring that you have to pre-load on the closing. I also like that they don't need a thumb stud. This is one of the places where a lot of manufacturers stumble. They come up with a perfectly good knife, then slap on whatever thumb stud they have the most of in the parts bin, and the result looks like an obvious afterthought. The fact that about half of them don't work quite right probably has more to do with the fact that my hands are smaller than the average.
My location on this particular ergonomic bell curve is also the reason why front flippers don't work for me. By the time I get my thumb out in front of the blade properly, I've had to give up too much grip on the knife.
The nail nick works fine for me, and it should be there.
I'm not sure where the blue accents come from.
Kizer does this, and I see it in other places. It may have come from the folks who started their careers by copying the Sebenza, and if so, it's interesting to see it in other places: those guys over there do it, we should, too.
Personally, I would like to see this backspacer in bronze. It would be impossible to match the frame colors exactly, and the blue is subtle enough that I don't mind it.
The scales are flat, but the titanium (?) is slightly rough on it's own, so the knife actually feels more like a nicely buffed micarta, rather than smooth metal.
The chamfering extends around the perimeter, and it's a nice feature. The nicer feature is this scalloping on the lock bar.
This does a lot to make the knife easy to close. It's subtle, simple, and effective.
Yes, there is engraving on the inside of the scale. It's a series of patent numbers, and a small line drawing of a stylized dog taking a stylized dump. Like the "poop" emoji.
I have no fucking clue. They were gracious enough to put it on the inside, so I can pretend I don't see it. It's not enough to ruin the knife for me, because it's good in a lot of other ways.
I preach about jimping. A lot of knives have it, and it's mostly worthless, either by being poorly placed, or it's more like sawteeth than something you would want to put your fingers on. The too-sharp case is rare, but everybody seems to think that you should have it at the pivot, when the reason for having it at all, is to increase the surface area of the blade which can come in contact with your finger, and this extra amount of traction is better used when you need to do detail work, up here by the point.
And now, we come to the edge, where there is a problem. It's plenty sharp, don't worry, and the bevel looks to be about 30 degrees per side. That's pretty much what you find on factory knives.
Do you see it?
It's disappointing for $150, but I can fix it, so I can live with it. I'm going to run this puppy through some cardboard, and the moment it slows down, it's going to have a long meeting with a 750 grit diamond hone.
Aw, you're tricking us with camera angles, Short! It's an optical delusion.
Overall, seven out of ten. Most of that is the fact that I'm going to have to fix the blade, and at this price point, I shouldn't have to. I like the modern interpretation of a classic pattern, and I like the minimalist design. I can overlook some.... odd... details.
