Discussion in 'SOG Specialty Knives' started by Fixall, Mar 13, 2019.
My wife loves the SOG Field Pup. Loves it.
It's a great little knife, but I feel a kind of guilty carrying around $100 - $200 fixed blades while camping when my wife is carrying a $15 - $30 budget knife. I've tried to introduce her to higher end fixed blades, but she just isn't having it.
As far as she's concerned there is nothing on the market that feels nearly as good in her hand. This is great because it inspires a noticeable confidence in her while using it. She loves the finger grooves. She likes the recurve for cutting paracord and sharpening marshmallow sticks. She likes the jimping for her thumb and she likes the looks.
After talking to her, she decided she would rather put in the money customizing her Field Pup, instead of me getting her a new, higher end knife. Gotta give it to her... She knows what she likes! As of now, I'm on the hunt for someone to rehandle my wife's Field Pup in black linen micarta (following the original lines). Should make for a sweet knife! I may have sent SOG a suggestion to produce a Field Pup with micarta and something like S30V, S35VN, BD1, BDZ1, D2 or maybe even VG-10 too, lol.
The newer Field Pups are made in China with 7cr17mov. My wife has an older version made in Taiwan with AUS-8 steel. These are getting harder and harder to find, so I thought I'd pick a spare in case my wife loses hers or something happens while getting the handle customized with micarta.
Unfortunately... The seller misrepresented the knife and claimed it was an older AUS-8 version when it is not.
I just thought I'd make a quick post going over some of the differences while I have both knives in hand. Maybe it'll help someone in the future who is looking for an AUS-8 version.
If you're able to see both sides of the knife, the easiest way to tell the difference is to check where it was made of course. The old AUS-8 version will be marked Taiwan, while the newer 7cr17mov version will be marked China.
The knives also feature different acid etches on the blades and different molding on the handles. The Newer Chinese Field Pup is up top and the Taiwanese is on the bottom.
The older version also came with a standard nylon SOG sheath, while the newer version came with a leather sheath... But I'm not sure if some of the older Field Pups also came with a leather sheath. My wife really likes the leather sheath, so at least getting sent the wrong knife wasn't all bad.
Now for the less noticeable differences (sorry for the blurry pictures, it's late and the light is bad so you'll just have to take my word on some of these).
The blade on the older AUS-8 Field Pup is about 2mm longer than on the newer 7cr17mov version. The ricasso on the AUS-8 version is also about 2mm shorter than on the newer version.
The recurve on the older AUS-8 Field Pup is slightly deeper than on the newer version. The belly also sweeps sharper towards the tip on the older Field Pup. The grind on the AUS-8 version also looks to be much more even.
Hard to see in this photo but the jimping on the older AUS-8 Field Pup is much more aggressive than on the newer 7cr17mov version. My wife actually prefers the feel of the newer version, so I'll likely tone hers down with a file.
Lastly, the knurling on the older AUS-8 Field Pup is more aggressive than on the newer Chinese Field Pup (hard to see since it's out of focus).
Well, that's all the noticeable differences that I see. Hope someone finds some use for this, lol.
On a side note... It looks like the standard Field Pup is being retired and replaced with a new "Digi-Pup". Looks like it's still produced in China with 7cr17mov steel, but now comes with a black coated blade and handles in three different colors (Jungle, Desert, and Black). Looks like they went back to the nylon sheath too.
Have a good night BladeForums!
Thanks for a nice comparison review. But isn't the Field Pup discontinued?
And wasn't the shift from Taiwan to China manufacture back around 2014 or thereabouts?
I see in the 2019 lineup a "Field Knife" that's sort of similar but not exactly made in China.
Yep, the Field Pup has been discontinued and replaced with the "Digi-Pup". The Digi-Pup is the same as the Field Pup just with a coated blade and different color options for the handle.
The shift from Taiwan to China and the change to 7cr17mov from AUS-8 happened quite some time ago, but the AUS-8 version of the Field Pup can still be found here and there for around $25.
I just posted this in case there was another Field Pup nut like my wife who wanted an upgraded steel over the 7cr17mov on their newer Field Pup/Digi-Pup. I thought it would make it easier to tell the difference between the old version and new... But then I noticed there were more differences than just the steel and etching and thought it was interesting.
I bought one 2010 with a leather/kydex pouch style sheath. No retention strap. Ugly as hell but a comfy useful knife.
Good she knows what she likes and you can easily provide it for her!
I bought the 7cr version here on the exchange at an unbelievable price. It's a stash away knife.
The field pup is a great knife for the price, I picked one up at a cabelas when it was discontinued for $14!!! It’s a great food prep, camp knife, and I even skinned a couple cottontails with it on my last hunting trip this year. The only downside is the steel requires sharpening often but for the price it’s tough to beat.
I agree. She likes what she likes, I love that about her.
Although I'm sure I'll be spending ten times the cost of the knife to have it rehandled in canvas micarta, lol.
Definitely! I picked up her AUS8 version during Black Friday years ago for $10 plus tax and it's blown me away considering the price. I've been doing some loosely controlled edge retention tests with the AUS8 and 7cr versions, and I have noticed the AUS8 version holds an edge significantly longer than the 7cr. Every once in awhile I see one of the old versions pop up on the auction sites for $20 or so if it's worth it to you.