Tops Knives’ El Chete Sets a New Standard for Cleavers
The buzz was off the charts. This year, like every year, fans and collectors of TOPS Knives gravitate toward their booth at the SHOT Show and BLADE Show, hoping to peek at their newest edged tools. And the excitement was overwhelming at both the shows and online. El Chete, one of their newest offerings, almost shut down the internet with all the chatter.
This is TOPS Knives’ first offering to ever feature their new Acid Rain finish and sandwiched Micarta scales. The size, balance, and aesthetics of the blade, combined with two different sheath options, has had the TOPS Knives Users Facebook page filled with so many positive posts from anxious collectors, it just made sense to write this article.
TOPS Knives set out to create a new knife that could cause a ton of destruction. By the looks and feel of their new El Chete, they weren’t playing around.
First Impressions
The El Chete is a big knife. If you are looking for a small camp knife, this is not the knife for you.
TOPS Knives’ current president and wizard lead blade designer, Leo Espinoza, did not hold back on this 17.5-inch beast of a blade. Leo is a big guy, so I can see why he went the direction he did with this big, beefy blade.
The knife boasts a 0.25-inch thick, 1095 high-carbon steel blade that is a full foot long. It has thick scales that were designed to make it feel and chop similar to a small axe. While the knife is large, it weighs just under 2 pounds, so it’s not impossible to imagine having this knife as a permanent piece of kit for one’s bug-out bag or hiking pack. Adding this knife would eliminate the additional need and weight of having a camp axe or tomahawk.
This story is from the November 2017 edition of Knives Illustrated.
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This story is from the November 2017 edition of Knives Illustrated.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
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I have a confession to make. See if this sounds familiar. I take meticulous care of the knives I use for everyday carry, hunting, and general woods wandering. I wipe them down with an oily cloth after use and I never let them get too dull. Seldom do I have to restore a damaged edge. Most of the time I simply touch up the edges of my pocketknives with a few careful strokes across the rough bottom of a ceramic coffee cup. That’s usually all that’s needed. I don’t use my knives as screwdrivers or pry bars. As a matter of fact, I still have the very first knife I ever owned, an old Boy Scout knife that was handed down from my older brother. The blades have a deep patina that comes with using carbon steel over the years, but the knife is very usable still.
