First, in the interest of disclosure, I do not own one of these knives so I am talking out my @$$, as is anyone else commenting on a knife they don't own or have experience using. Just looked at the Hurricane, and while the handle does look overly "grippy" for my taste (I prefer smooth for a long day of whittling, cutting, and chopping), I doubt the knife will fly out of your hand if you attempt chopping. Regardless, if you "choke down" on the grip in order to get a little more snap in your chop, you should be using a lanyard. Again, catastrophic knife escape averted.
It certainly has the Neato factor you're looking for, but is a bit above the price range you initially stated. Check out the web sites for the various custom makers that have been suggested and see if they have something close to what you're looking for and then give them a call and discuss your ideas and price with them. I'd like to add Dan Graves to the list of makers. He makes his own damascus, his designs are sweet, and his prices are reasonable. While I like, own, and use Busse and Kin knives, they are somewhat plain. Their joy is in their use by the owner rather than the eye of the beholder (though simplicity does have its own beauty) and it sounds like you'd like to do a fair amount of beholding before you actually get around to eviscerating the zombie hordes. Good luck on your quest!
