A mini-Gunting for people with arthritis

D

DeadManWalking

Joined
Apr 3, 2004
Messages
442
The title says it all.

I'm sure Bram Frank would skin me alive if he saw this :D

I was just talking to my mom the other day and she went on about how it's probably going to get harder and harder for her to do things with her hands. She already has a hard enough time opening a Jester and I don't know what she's going to do if it gets much worse for her.

I immediately then thought of the Gunting and how it can be opened and how much easier that would be for her. But honestly my mother isn't the least bit interested in the MBC purposes of the Gunting design and a lot of other people wouldn't be either.

I think there's possibly a market here... what if we take the Gunting, make it less menacing to the uninitiated (smaller, in sheeple friendly colors), but keep the basic blade shape with the hole and kinetic ramp and design/market it solely as a utility folder for people with arthritis and similar maladies?

Of course to do so you'd probably have to eliminate something else from the line-up that I'd rather keep but it's just an idle thought.

Like Spyderco needs any more product suggestions. :D
 
DMW,

There are several people that use the "G" for the exact reasons you bring up in your post.

It also makes a great outdoorsman's knife.
 
If it's not coming, any of the Ken Onion assisted opening folders might at least help.
In CA autos up to 2" are also legal.
 
johnniet said:
If it's not coming, any of the Ken Onion assisted opening folders might at least help.
In CA autos up to 2" are also legal.
Click to expand...

Actually the best thing we've found is the small Spydercos; the hump and the hole give her something to grab and pull. She only uses it once every other day or so, so it works. If its particularly bad she can stick a pen or something in the hole and pull against the handle.

I thought about a Chive but it was a no go. I fired off my Leek and demonstrated it for her and then gave her the knife and asked her to try it. She didn't have the strength in her hands to depress the flipper. Nor could she close the knife once it was open.

An Auto Benchmite might be a good solution but that's a good way to get arrested around here. We can own but not carry so to speak. Well she could probably get away with it because no cop is going to bother her, but she handles the Jester like it was a dead rat. I wouldn't even try giving her an auto :p
 
kamkazmoto said:
Even if she had no problem opening a Gunting she might have problems closing one.
Click to expand...

That's a good point. I was suggesting a neat idea would be to make a smaller, non MBC knife with a kinetic ramp and a hole like a Gunting but it would not a Gunting... see what I'm getting at?
 
Hi Sal. Actually she can handle a lockback. On days when her arthritis is particularly bad she takes it and either presses it against the corner of a kitchen counter, pulls on the detent with her purse strap, or otherwise presses the release. Or she has a helpful stranger close it for her.

A good tool here is a ballpoint pen or similar implement. You can stick it in the Spyderhole and use it to aid in opening. Then you can also use it to depress the lock by holding it perpendicular to the handle and pressing it to the release. It works better if you put the pen on a table and hold it first and then push the knife onto it with the other hand. I know that sounds elaborate and awkward but this isn't an often used technique.

She sometimes uses it to cut hard plastic, such as zipties, and doesn't have a lot of experience handling knives. Do you want to put a nonlocking blade in the hands of someone whose coordination is sometimes impaired by arthritis? I will admit I suspect a lot of her cutting is soft materials and lock failure wouldn't be an issue then but I can easily see her cutting a box open when suddenly she has a fit of pain and her hand jerks, which could close the blade on her.

Also realize it only comes out to cut twice or maybe three times a week at most. I sharpen it every time I visit and it's never anything more than a couple swipes with a rod. Everything else she cuts is a job for a pair of scissors. Plus her arthritis acts up sporadically, she has good days and bad days. At home dad does all the cutting and at work she has legions of zombie slaves :D if it's a really bad day and she just has no strength in her hands at all.

I'd like to see the UK Penknife actually :D It sounds like for people with less severe arthritis it could work well. Really it's a tribute to Spyderco that the ergonomics on the Jester are so good that a person with as much trouble as my mother can use it.
 
I have no problem with people using a Gunting as EDC , Hunting tool or just an ergonomic tool that because of the ramp allows for easy deployment..
Why would it bother me?
There are several who use it for this very reason....
MBC-SDR is a way to percieve the tools optimal design usage..but it works great as hunting fishing..EDC and I have many with hand problems that can use it..
WHY? its designed to work with loss of fine motor skills, meaning loss of grip and finger function..exactly what I teach with it..Its a GROSS MOTOR SKILL TOOL...

A TUSOK is NOT a mini Gunting..Maybe one day there will be a mini Gunting..
The TUSOK is another tool all together..
Similar concept but different approach and translation of the concept..
both are KinOps..

be safe
Bram
 
DeadManWalking said:
An Auto Benchmite might be a good solution but that's a good way to get arrested around here. We can own but not carry so to speak. Well she could probably get away with it because no cop is going to bother her, but she handles the Jester like it was a dead rat. I wouldn't even try giving her an auto :p
Click to expand...
Frankly, I'd love to see an arthritic old lady get arrested for owning a switchblade. It'd be impossible for the arresting officer and the DA not to look like total pricks. I suppose it'd still get confiscated even if not prosecuted, so it's probably not a good idea anyway, unless you happen to have bags of cash lying around.

Except for perhaps a linerlock with a large thumb hole, I can't think of a knife that would be more suited for your mother than the Gunting. A Cricket perhaps? Would a Benchmade AXIS lock be too difficult? A 555 Griptillian would be a breeze to open (or is this suggestion taboo in the Spyderco Forum? :p).
 
sorry to hear about your mom. I'm not sure if a folder is a must, but perhaps a small fixed blade would be a much safer choice.
 
It seems that a Maddox would be a little large for only cutting 3 times a week. It would be a bit of a pain in the pocket but possibly be good in a purse.
 
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