First and foremost, Tops Knives
are TOOLS that are designed and built using the extensive knowledge and
real life experiences of 12 Operators with backgrounds in the Military,
Law Enforcement, Outdoor Professions and the Martial Arts.
Consequently, TOPS knives are specifically designed to be mission critical tools
for extreme assignments. Therefore, over the last couple of years, TOPS
knives have been requested and deployed in many “Hot Spots” around the
world. Plus, numerous individuals who are currently active field
operators are using TOPS knives and they have been reporting excellent
performance and reliability from their TOPS knives.
On top of all that, all TOPS fixed blade knives are designed and
meticulously handcrafted at TOPS’ own facility in the heart of the Rocky
Mountains so that you can be assured that, when you purchase a TOPS
knife, you are receiving the highest quality American craftsmanship
available.
For outdoor survival situations in heavily wooded regions, the TOPS Condor Alert is an excellent choice for a truly large survival knife.
This knife features an overall length of 14 3/4” with a 9 1/2” drop point blade made from 1/4”, high carbon, 1095 (non-stainless), tool steel (Rockwell Hardness
unknown) which is then subjected to a proprietary differential
hardening process that actually creates three distinct zones of
different hardness within each blade.
Each blade is then cryogenically frozen to relive stress and to force
the molecules of the steel into permanent alignment. When finished, the
edge of each TOPS blade is very hard, while the center of the blade is
less hard, and the back of the blade is left relatively soft to create a
“spring steel tempered” spine.
In order to prevent corrosion, each blade is coated with TOPS
proprietary Black Traction Coating epoxy polyester which is then baked
onto the blade for permanent adhesion. In addition, the full tang is
fitted with linen Micarta
handle slabs that are available in your choice of the standard, smooth,
version or the scalloped, Rocky Mountain version. Last, the TOPS Condor
Alert is supplied with a heavy-duty, ballistic nylon, sheath.
Those of you who have read some of my other survival knife reviews on
this web site are most likely well aware of my propensity for a LARGE
survival knife combined with a smaller one and the TOPS Condor certainly
fits my criteria for a large, heavy-duty, knife.
Although 1095 is not a stainless steel, it is a very tough tool steel
consisting of 0.95% Carbon and 0.30% to 0.50% Manganese only and it is
so tough that it is often used for cutting blades designed to cut much
harder steel.
The carbon content and lean alloy make 1095 a shallow hardening steel
with a quenched hardness between Rc 60-64 depending on exact carbon
content. This combination of factors makes this one of the toughest
steels available because, when quenched, it produces a near saturated
lathe Martensite steel with no excess carbides; thus avoiding the brittleness of higher carbon materials.
Consequently, this steel is particularly well suited to applications
where strength and impact resistance is valued above all other
considerations and will produce blades of almost legendary toughness.
However, with a quenched hardness of 60 to 64 Rockwell, it also has a very hard outer surface (commonly known as “case hardening.”) In addition, with a 9 1/2” blade made from 1/4” thick steel, the Condor Alert has
both the length and the weight to easily handle light to medium
chopping jobs and, with TOPS proprietary zone hardening process, I would
not be afraid to subject the knife to even heavy chopping jobs.
Plus, the blade is ground using a shallow saber grind which is
specifically designed to create a tough (if not particularly sharp)
edge. However, I personally do not care for the large choil ground into
the back of the edge since I feel like it removes a valuable section of
the cutting edge right where I need it most when carving or sharpening
stakes.
On the other hand, the full tang is covered by a pair of man-sized linen Micarta handle slabs which
are not only extremely tough, they are also impervious to moisture,
heat, cold, chipping, cracking, or splitting and thus, they will
withstand some extremely tough conditions.
Plus, the tang incorporates a small sub-hilt which helps the user
maintain a positive grip on the handle of the knife when the hand is
wet. Last, the exposed tang on the end of the handle serves as a lanyard
loop but could also be used as a glass breaker.
So, overall, I am highly impressed with the TOPS Condor Alert for
use as a dedicated survival knife. Not only is it made from some
extremely tough materials, it is well designed for the purpose of
outdoor survival and it is both large enough and heavy enough to handle
most any job the user would need to ask of it in survival situation.
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