SOG Field Pup Fixed Blade Knife Review

Spencer Frazer is the man behind SOG. He says, “SOG started some 25 years ago in my apartment with a simple mission: To create innovative products that stand apart from the pack. While SOG has grown, our commitment to that original mission has remained the same. Today, it’s one of my greatest satisfactions to receive letters from SOG enthusiasts the world over, expressing the fact that our products have lived up to their highest standards. It inspires us to continue to build superior products that last… knives and tools that help you meet the challenges of a demanding world.”

Born in 1955, Spencer Frazer was a creative kid with a great curiosity for how things worked. As he grew older, while in the Boy Scouts, he gained an affinity for knives and axes. But it wasn’t until much later that this interest would be channeled into actually creating knives and tools.

After graduating from UCLA as a math and science major, Spencer started his own company in the professional audio industry, designing a whole new style of speaker system.

“I learned to work with many different materials as I built models and prototypes,” he says. Then Spencer went on to work in the aerospace defense industry – in the Top Secret Black Projects Division – as an R&D tool/die and model maker. He recalls, “I saw things there I still can’t talk about.”

At about that same time, while becoming involved in the modern art movement and meeting with top artists, Spencer learned a lot about scale and color. He went on to work in product development, creating toys and consumer products. All these life experiences converged the moment Spencer saw his first Vietnam SOG Bowie: “The knife was magical in how it looked and felt. You could see the history as well as the functional aspects of the knife.”

That single knife spawned the birth of SOG Specialty Knives & Tools, Inc. His one goal: to reproduce the mystical knife… the SOG Bowie.

“We started our company by having to sell a one-knife line at the very high price of $200 retail!”

Today, SOG is a true innovator in the knife industry. Having won many industry awards, SOG was one of the first companies to be synonymous with a high-tech modern image. “SOG was the first company,” says Spencer, “to produce a sculptural faceted folding knife. We called it the Tomcat. With the Paratool, SOG became the second company ever to produce a folding multi-tool. And we remain the only company that uses compound leverage in our multi-tools; the only company to have adjustable lock-on clips on our folding knives; the only company to employ one of the strongest locks in the industry with the Arc-Lock; the only company to use exotic BG-42 steel cost effectively in the production of our knives; and the first company in the world to offer an automatic opening multi-tool.”

But those are just a few of the landmarks Spencer Frazer has helped SOG achieve. “I design each one of our products,” he says, “to be functional and comfortable to use, as well as aesthetically pleasing. If I personally don’t like them or wouldn’t use them, they don’t make it into production.”

Today, SOG is distributed and sold throughout the world. Law enforcement specialists, military, hunters, outdoor enthusiasts, industrial professionals, and everyday carry knife enthusiasts have come to rely on SOG in the most extreme conditions. “We don’t settle for ordinary,” says Spencer. “We never did, and we never will.”

Today we will be talking about the SOG Field Pup fixed blade knife.

The Blade:

The blade on this knife is made out of 7Cr17MoV steel that has been hardened to a HRC 55-57. For the common man, a good hardness range is between 56 and 63. This means that this steel is going to be the perfect amount of hardness to really make a good steel at a low price. This steel is very popular steel for budget knives. Of course, the word “budget” does make people a little bit nervous, but this steel makes a budget knife worth having. Wikipedia describes this steel as a specially modified 440A stainless steel that contains more Vanadium than other steels. Vanadium helps to add increased overall strength, increased wear resistance, as well as increased toughness. This all means that with a 7Cr17MoV steel, the edge is going to last longer than you expect with a budget knife.

The blade on the Field Pup has been finished with a satin finish. To create the satin finish, the steel is sanded in one direction with an increasing degree of a fine abrasive. The most common abrasive that is used is a sandpaper. As a key, the finer the abrasive and the more even the lines, the cleaner the satin finish on the blade is going to look. The satin finish is one of the most common finishes that you are going to find on the market today. It gives a very traditional look that is going to stand the test of time. It is also a simpler look, so your knife is not going to steal the show. The satin finish shows of the bevels of the blade as well as showcasing the fine liens of the knife. The satin finish can also reduce the reflective glare of the knife and can sometimes even increase the corrosion resistance of a knife.

The blade on this knife has been carved into a drop point blade shape. A drop point knife is definitely one of the most popular blade shapes that you are going to come across today. While you are most likely going to find this shape on a hunting knife, it is also incredibly popular on almost every other type of knives. The shape is formed by having the spine of the knife run straight from the handle until it reaches the tip of the knife. It stretches in a slow curve, which creates a lowered point. The lowered point is more important to how this knife works than you would probably think. It is going to give the knife more control while also adding strength to the tip. The easily controlled tip helps people perform fine detail work with the Field Pup, because you don’t have to worry about losing control over the knife. The tip on a drop point is also very broad, which is where the characteristic strength comes from. The broad tip allows the knife to stand up to heavy use, which is why this knife is going to make such a great outdoors knife. Next, the drop point has a large belly, which is going to make slicing easy. This lets you take on more tasks than a smaller belly. The drop point does have one disadvantage—because of the broad tip, you are not as capable of piercing or stabbing.

 

The Handle:

The handle is made out of Kraton. This is a synthetic replacement to rubber. This means that the material is going to have a lot of flexibility, high traction, and will be able to resist heat, chemicals and weathering. Kraton is often used on utility knives because there is not a lot of character and there aren’t color options besides black. The advantages are that it adds grip, it will give your handle a more comfortable grip, it has high resistance to breaking down, and it is incredibly durable. The disadvantages of the knife are that it is not very aesthetically pleasing, because it is similar to rubber, it can slowly start to soak up some fluids, which means it is going to be a little harder to clean. And, because it can soak up those fluids, it can slowly damage the material, which will make it brittle and weaker.

This is a simple knife with a simple handle. The handle has a curve that goes from the blade to the butt. There is a large finger guard that will protect your fingers if there is ever accidental slippage. There are three finger grooves, which will give you a solid, comfortable grip on the knife. The face of the handle has been intensely texturized so that you can have a good grip even when things get a little messy. SOG has been stamped in the middle. As a bonus, there is a lanyard hole on the butt.

 

The Mechanism:

This is a fixed blade, which means that there is no mechanisms. There are plenty of good advantages of having a fixed blade, especially on an outdoors knife such as this one. For starters, they are very strong and don’t break. They don’t break because there are no moving parts on a fixed blade. This means that there are no hinges, screws, or springs to break down or corrode over time. And because there are no moving parts, a fixed blade is going to be easier to maintain. Ease of maintenance is a very high quality for an outdoors knife, because you probably aren’t going to have access to all of your maintenance supplies when you are in the field. All you really have to do is wipe down the blade and handle and make sure the blade is dry before putting it in the sheath. Lastly, this knife is going to have superior survival qualities because it is so strong and durable. You can use this knife for more than just cutting. Almost any challenge that comes your way when you are outside, you can achieve by suing this SOG Field Pup fixed blade.

 

The Sheath:

             The sheath that comes with this knife is made out of leather. Leather is one of the more common blade sheaths that you are going to come across while also being one of the most traditional sheath materials that you are going to come across. The leather dates back to the mountain men and cowboys. Leather is rugged, tough, and strong. It is not going to break like plastic can and even if the stitches come undone, they can easily be re-sewn. Plus, when a leather sheath is cared for correctly, it should only look better with age. One of the biggest advantages of a leather sheath is that it is going to provide a custom fit to the knife once it has broken in. And, leather sheaths are going to be silent. You can pull the knife out or put it back in the sheath without making a sound. This is very different than more modern materials such as Kydex, which is incredibly noisy.

Of course, leather is going to have its disadvantage. One is that it is not waterproof, which does make maintenance a little more complicated. Also, it is not going to do well in extreme environments. Both getting wet a lot or even high heat can dry out the natural oils and lead to cracking. Of course, if you oil it from time to time, it will help the leather last for much longer.

 

The Specs:

The blade on this knife measures in at 4 inches long and has a blade thickness of .13 inches. The overall length of this knife measures in at 8.5 inches long. This knife weighs in at 7.5 ounces. This knife was made in China.

 

Conclusion:

             The SOG Field Pup fixed blade knife features a high gloss satin finish that you normally only find on high end knives.  Just the right combination of size and weight, this outdoor sporting knife is comfortable to hold with its Kraton molded handle and is very strong.  The full tang blade features a standard edge.  The handle sports SOG’s trademarked finger grips as well as very aggressive jimping on the back of the blade to give you lots of control over the knife.  The Field Pup is a real working knife for those who need a knife that will perform in the outdoors. You can pick up this knife today at BladeOps.