possum
Member
Who:
I am an Infantry squad leader with a current mission set of isolated personnel recovery, downed helicopter/ pilot rescue. I have been looking, asking, reading, and finally decided that I wanted a new knife. A general purpose do anything knife, good size, tough, reliable, and something that I could/ would be able to use in military operations, more specifically my current mission set. With my criteria, I figured a fixed blade would suit my needs the best. I decided that I was going to go with a knife form Grayman Knives. I have heard, and read great things about them, so I ordered a Grayman “Ground Pounder”. On the subject of customer service I would like to say in 2 days time I wrote three emails to them and all of them were answered within 30 minutes. Getting the APO addresses straight and all that was a breeze and they were easy and great to work with. Their warranty is top notch and on their website it reads as follows.
“Your Warranty goes like this:
Free sharpening anytime. You pay postage to me, and I'll sharpen her up and send her right back. If you break it (yeah right) send it back and I'll fix or replace it post haste. If you don't like it because it's ugly (like me), or your wife hates it, or the little voices in your head tell you to send it back, zip it back to me for a prompt refund. If you sell it, give it away, or will it to a family member or fave charity, the warranty goes with it.
We don't do custom modifications on our knives, but if you're dissatisfied in any way you can count on a cheerful and immediate refund.”
What:
The knife was shipped from the states on 18 DEC, and I got it in my hands on what more appropriate day than Christmas!
My initial reaction was sheer excitement of course, I was longing for it for a while, and it felt like it took forever to get there. The first thing that came to mind is, man this is a beast of a blade, ugly, mean, thick hunk of steel with an edge.
The “Ground Pounder” with “teeth” has a 6” long blade that is 1.5” wide and ¼” thick, with an overall length of 11.5”. It is made of 1095 high carbon steel. It is a full tang design with a lanyard whole at the end of the handle. The knife weighs in at 15 oz. The saw teeth are located on the opposite side of the cutting edge. There is approx 3” of saw teeth, they start just about 1.5” forward of the handle. There are no “serrations” on the cutting edge just a straight “smooth” blade. For the conditions that I would most likely use this knife for, I opted for the gator grips, in green. The Gator grips are micarta that has been checkered to add grip and positive control to the knife while in use under many field conditions. The grips are well done. They look great and work as I was hoping they would. No slippage occurred while using the knife. They allow great purchase of the handle.
The sheath is a tan cordura, MOLLE sheath with a plastic insert. The sheath allows for many mounting solutions including wear on MOLLE gear, as well as a belt both horizontally and vertically. The sheath has a snap closure that secures the handle. Also the sheath has MOLLE loops on the outside for mounting a multi- tool, pistol magazine, flashlight etc if you so choose. The sheath works, however I am a little disappointed In it, a knife this great deserves a better sheath, I would love to see them come with a kydex one. I will be ordering a kydex sheath for it in the future.
The spine of the blade reads “Grayman” and “Death To AL Qaeda”. I was going to go with “Tango Whacker” instead. However the standard “DTAQ” (for short) has a nice ring to it, and honestly how cool is that? It pretty much sums up how I feel.
I have read here and there on different forums that they come “dull” and you have to sharpen them when they arrive. This was not the case for me. The knife had a great edge on it, and I was able to shave with it. I was impressed, and very happy with the edge.
I have read a lot of reviews that say that his knives are not “finished” looking and there fit and finish could be better etc. Like everything else this knife is a tool, I don't care what it looks like, I just care that it performs. Personally I think that the fit and finish is great. It is a great looking knife. The green micarta grips and the gun kote black on the steel, make it look really nice. Presentation grade, no but again that is not the intended purpose of the knife.
I put the knife through a series of tests. Honestly I have never tested a knife. I can do it for a rifle, handgun, shotgun or any piece of gear all day long. This was what I thought made the most logical sense to test. I wanted to test the cutting, slicing, chopping, stabbing, as well as wood splitting ability of the knife. I figure that I will use this as a general purpose knife when I get out of the army, as a camp knife, etc, so all the above tests will apply for that context as well. I am currently deployed and there aren't many trees etc around for me to test on, however I did the best I could with what I had.
A)The cutting ability of the knife was tested with fibrous materials, 550 cord, engineer tape etc. with single and multiple layers of the above. Whether the material was sliced, hacked, or the blade pulled across, with little effort at all the fibrous materials fell prey to the Grayman. Additionally to test the knife's sharpness, edge retention as well as test the cutting ability more; I started the knife in the side of the .25” plywood. I held the handle and hit the top of the blade with a piece of wood, and proceeded to cut straight through 4’ of plywood. Though the cut wasn't straight, it was however a clean cut, and there was no ripping, or marring of the wood.
B) The chopping ability of the knife was tested by chopping a 2”x4” in two. As well as other odd and in pieces of wood that I found.
C)The stabbing and or piercing ability was tested with .25” plywood. The knife easily pierced through the plywood without hesitation. Additionally I enlisted the assistance of a very good knife thrower, who was easily able to make the knife stick in the .25” plywood without an issue. Another key thing I would like to point out is the fact that when the knife pierces something, there is a huge, ugly, nasty hole I would say about .22 cal or more. It looks like you put a round through the wood that you stabbed.
D)The slicing ability of the knife was tested with several full and empty water bottles.
E)For the wood splitting test, I took another piece of 2”x4” wood, got the blade started in the “top” of the 2”x4”, used the knife as a handle and beat the bottom of the wood on the ground. Basically hammering the blade down the length of the wood. This would have been better tested on a log or something found in the woods, however I did with what I had.
I was extremely surprised at the end of the “test” that the blade was still sharp enough to serve me well if I happened to be called out right then on a mission. The blade retention is outstanding.
Of course like a good soldier I wanted my gear to be good to go for whatever may lie ahead. So I cleaned the blade and re sharpened it. I didn't need to, however I wanted to see how much it would take to get the blade back to factory sharpness. With 10-15 strokes with my diamond “fine” stone I was able to get it back to the factory sharpness.
The finish on the blade was just fine after the test. Better than I expected for sure. It still looks good. I guess I didn't beat it enough!
I have also read negative comments about the price of these blades ($175 +$20 for the gator grips) mostly because it is a good but inexpensive steel. First of all I highly appreciate the ability to sharpen the knife quick and easily, for example on a camping trip in the field, no specialty tools etc. Overall I am more than 100 Percent satisfied with it and believe that it is worth its weight in gold. I couldn't be happier, and if that wasn't the case then I know Mike would take it back and give a full refund. To me that is a win, win situation. All in all I got all the requirements I wanted in a knife, that I believe will last many lifetimes and at a great price. Durable, sharp, great blade retention, easily re sharpened, with a great cutting, chopping, slicing, piercing, and stabbing abilities. This is my new favorite blade bar none. I highly suggest Grayman Knives, I will be buying more in the future, not so much the bigger of his blades which have their place, but for me, I am going to stay on the smaller end. They are more practical for me and my needs. The DINKA, SUENAMI, MINI DINKA, are next on my list. After seeing a fellow team member's DINKA I am even more impressed, and know without a doubt that my one Grayman isn't a fluke! Many more if the members of my platoon are now going to order a Grayman of some sort.
pics to follow
I am an Infantry squad leader with a current mission set of isolated personnel recovery, downed helicopter/ pilot rescue. I have been looking, asking, reading, and finally decided that I wanted a new knife. A general purpose do anything knife, good size, tough, reliable, and something that I could/ would be able to use in military operations, more specifically my current mission set. With my criteria, I figured a fixed blade would suit my needs the best. I decided that I was going to go with a knife form Grayman Knives. I have heard, and read great things about them, so I ordered a Grayman “Ground Pounder”. On the subject of customer service I would like to say in 2 days time I wrote three emails to them and all of them were answered within 30 minutes. Getting the APO addresses straight and all that was a breeze and they were easy and great to work with. Their warranty is top notch and on their website it reads as follows.
“Your Warranty goes like this:
Free sharpening anytime. You pay postage to me, and I'll sharpen her up and send her right back. If you break it (yeah right) send it back and I'll fix or replace it post haste. If you don't like it because it's ugly (like me), or your wife hates it, or the little voices in your head tell you to send it back, zip it back to me for a prompt refund. If you sell it, give it away, or will it to a family member or fave charity, the warranty goes with it.
We don't do custom modifications on our knives, but if you're dissatisfied in any way you can count on a cheerful and immediate refund.”
What:
The knife was shipped from the states on 18 DEC, and I got it in my hands on what more appropriate day than Christmas!
My initial reaction was sheer excitement of course, I was longing for it for a while, and it felt like it took forever to get there. The first thing that came to mind is, man this is a beast of a blade, ugly, mean, thick hunk of steel with an edge.
The “Ground Pounder” with “teeth” has a 6” long blade that is 1.5” wide and ¼” thick, with an overall length of 11.5”. It is made of 1095 high carbon steel. It is a full tang design with a lanyard whole at the end of the handle. The knife weighs in at 15 oz. The saw teeth are located on the opposite side of the cutting edge. There is approx 3” of saw teeth, they start just about 1.5” forward of the handle. There are no “serrations” on the cutting edge just a straight “smooth” blade. For the conditions that I would most likely use this knife for, I opted for the gator grips, in green. The Gator grips are micarta that has been checkered to add grip and positive control to the knife while in use under many field conditions. The grips are well done. They look great and work as I was hoping they would. No slippage occurred while using the knife. They allow great purchase of the handle.
The sheath is a tan cordura, MOLLE sheath with a plastic insert. The sheath allows for many mounting solutions including wear on MOLLE gear, as well as a belt both horizontally and vertically. The sheath has a snap closure that secures the handle. Also the sheath has MOLLE loops on the outside for mounting a multi- tool, pistol magazine, flashlight etc if you so choose. The sheath works, however I am a little disappointed In it, a knife this great deserves a better sheath, I would love to see them come with a kydex one. I will be ordering a kydex sheath for it in the future.
The spine of the blade reads “Grayman” and “Death To AL Qaeda”. I was going to go with “Tango Whacker” instead. However the standard “DTAQ” (for short) has a nice ring to it, and honestly how cool is that? It pretty much sums up how I feel.
I have read here and there on different forums that they come “dull” and you have to sharpen them when they arrive. This was not the case for me. The knife had a great edge on it, and I was able to shave with it. I was impressed, and very happy with the edge.
I have read a lot of reviews that say that his knives are not “finished” looking and there fit and finish could be better etc. Like everything else this knife is a tool, I don't care what it looks like, I just care that it performs. Personally I think that the fit and finish is great. It is a great looking knife. The green micarta grips and the gun kote black on the steel, make it look really nice. Presentation grade, no but again that is not the intended purpose of the knife.
I put the knife through a series of tests. Honestly I have never tested a knife. I can do it for a rifle, handgun, shotgun or any piece of gear all day long. This was what I thought made the most logical sense to test. I wanted to test the cutting, slicing, chopping, stabbing, as well as wood splitting ability of the knife. I figure that I will use this as a general purpose knife when I get out of the army, as a camp knife, etc, so all the above tests will apply for that context as well. I am currently deployed and there aren't many trees etc around for me to test on, however I did the best I could with what I had.
A)The cutting ability of the knife was tested with fibrous materials, 550 cord, engineer tape etc. with single and multiple layers of the above. Whether the material was sliced, hacked, or the blade pulled across, with little effort at all the fibrous materials fell prey to the Grayman. Additionally to test the knife's sharpness, edge retention as well as test the cutting ability more; I started the knife in the side of the .25” plywood. I held the handle and hit the top of the blade with a piece of wood, and proceeded to cut straight through 4’ of plywood. Though the cut wasn't straight, it was however a clean cut, and there was no ripping, or marring of the wood.
B) The chopping ability of the knife was tested by chopping a 2”x4” in two. As well as other odd and in pieces of wood that I found.
C)The stabbing and or piercing ability was tested with .25” plywood. The knife easily pierced through the plywood without hesitation. Additionally I enlisted the assistance of a very good knife thrower, who was easily able to make the knife stick in the .25” plywood without an issue. Another key thing I would like to point out is the fact that when the knife pierces something, there is a huge, ugly, nasty hole I would say about .22 cal or more. It looks like you put a round through the wood that you stabbed.
D)The slicing ability of the knife was tested with several full and empty water bottles.
E)For the wood splitting test, I took another piece of 2”x4” wood, got the blade started in the “top” of the 2”x4”, used the knife as a handle and beat the bottom of the wood on the ground. Basically hammering the blade down the length of the wood. This would have been better tested on a log or something found in the woods, however I did with what I had.
I was extremely surprised at the end of the “test” that the blade was still sharp enough to serve me well if I happened to be called out right then on a mission. The blade retention is outstanding.
Of course like a good soldier I wanted my gear to be good to go for whatever may lie ahead. So I cleaned the blade and re sharpened it. I didn't need to, however I wanted to see how much it would take to get the blade back to factory sharpness. With 10-15 strokes with my diamond “fine” stone I was able to get it back to the factory sharpness.
The finish on the blade was just fine after the test. Better than I expected for sure. It still looks good. I guess I didn't beat it enough!
I have also read negative comments about the price of these blades ($175 +$20 for the gator grips) mostly because it is a good but inexpensive steel. First of all I highly appreciate the ability to sharpen the knife quick and easily, for example on a camping trip in the field, no specialty tools etc. Overall I am more than 100 Percent satisfied with it and believe that it is worth its weight in gold. I couldn't be happier, and if that wasn't the case then I know Mike would take it back and give a full refund. To me that is a win, win situation. All in all I got all the requirements I wanted in a knife, that I believe will last many lifetimes and at a great price. Durable, sharp, great blade retention, easily re sharpened, with a great cutting, chopping, slicing, piercing, and stabbing abilities. This is my new favorite blade bar none. I highly suggest Grayman Knives, I will be buying more in the future, not so much the bigger of his blades which have their place, but for me, I am going to stay on the smaller end. They are more practical for me and my needs. The DINKA, SUENAMI, MINI DINKA, are next on my list. After seeing a fellow team member's DINKA I am even more impressed, and know without a doubt that my one Grayman isn't a fluke! Many more if the members of my platoon are now going to order a Grayman of some sort.
pics to follow
