Are the partially serrated blades serrated at the "wrong" place ?

M

MIKLE

Joined
Jan 28, 2000
Messages
57
Greetings from the former "iron curtain" ! Really, this is very interesting group !
I used partially serrated Gerber's "Easy-Out" at my outdoor activity: boating, camping, ballooning etc., for any purpose: from cutting a rope to preparing the sandwiches, and fely myself not so comfortably - it is hard to use serrated part near the handle for whittling and control-type usage.
Yhe similar suggestion I've read in Joe Talmadge article "Serrated vs. Plain" at www.agrussell.com.
Now some Russian survival centers (schools) are promoting Russian-made utility (survival) knife "Vitalis" with 1/3 of the blade nearest the tip tricky "sinusoidal" serrated.
I would appreciate any of your suggestion.
PS. I replaced partially serrated Gerber's "Easy-Out" by Buck's "Cross Lock - Double Blade" with one drop point plain blade and another - sheepsfoot fully serrated. I would like to get Buck's "Cross Lock - Yachtsmen" too, but its sheepsfoot partially serrated blade still serrated at the "wrong" place ...
 
Mikle,

Welcome to the forums.

I am not a big fan of serations and when I do get a knife with serations I like to keep the serations well back from the point. But, it is all a matter of how you intend to use your knife. I don't like serations near the front because it interefere with the use of the point for fine cutting. serations tend relatively to tear rather then cut.

The better choice would be a folder with both blade types.
 
Welcome to the forums, a spyderco dyad or mini dyad would be perfect for you. It has 1 plain blade and 1 serrated blade, both are locking and open with one hand.It clips to your pocket like the EZ Out too.
I like the serrations by the handle. It does make fine whittling harder but I don't generally use my utility type knives for that. When I do I usually choke up on the handle and take alot of care not to cut my hand. The problem with serrations by the point is it takes away from the serrations cutting ability. Serrations cut best when you can apply firm pressure along with a drawing motion to keep the teeth dug in. If you put them by the point you can't put quite as muck pressure or pull the full length of the blade across what your cutting. And if you ever need to use the point of the knife to puncture something or cut a small hole, the serrations will tear up what your cutting.

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Fix it right the first time, use Baling Wire !
 
WELCOME TO THE FORUMS
I am probably one of the few people here that actually like the serrated blades 50/50 I never usually go for full, I mean I really like plain blades but half serrated just appeals to me alot more???
 
If I'd buy partially serrated blade, I'd like it to be plain near the handle and serrated near the tip. (Actually Serration in tip region should be like in Spyderco Military - 1cm (1/2 inch) plain).
Reasons: For acute whittling etc. the plain part should be near the handle to offer more control. For package opening I use knifes belly and serrated belly would cut things open better.

This kind of serration would serve me better.
I think that we'll never see this kind of serrations from major manufacturer. We'll have to get serrations to tip region using Joe T's tips.
wink.gif
 
Mikle

Welcome to the forums.

I am not sure what would be a real use for serrations near front. Like MICKEY77 I find partially serrated blades (with serrations in the back) appealing. They just give a blade this "wilder" look
smile.gif
. It makes sense for serrations to be in the back since most of the time they are good for sawing through tough objects (ropes, wood, etc.) and by them being near the handle you gain better leverage.

As people mentioned, Spydie Dyad might be a solution. Alghought watch out: the handle may not be very comfortable because of the blade pivots on both ends. Never handled one so can't really tell.

Enjoy the forums,

Kris
 
I'm one of the few that like partial serrations too!
Gerber produced a version of their MK-1 called the "Command 1" that was partially serrated at the tip.
<img src=http://members.aol.com/kingknives/command.jpg>

They can sometimes still be found hanging around for about $35.
A nice different little knife.

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"May you live in interesting times"

AKTI - A000389




[This message has been edited by Kingknives (edited 01-30-2000).]
 
Though not a production knife and rather expensive(but worth it)Darrel Ralph does serrations at the tip of his Krait models upon request.

Kevin

 
I think the reason most partially-serrated knives have the serrations near the handle is because most people use the serrated part to cut things like rope, and they want to be able to lean hard on the knife to get the blade through quickly -- especially considering typically they've only got 1.5" or so of serrated blade.

I've heard some people ask for serrated-belly plus plain-near-handle, presumeably to whittle and the like near the handle, and use the tip for box opening, etc.

Keep in mind, if you can't get a knife in the format you want, just rough up the belly on an x-coarse diamond hone, and you'll get more serrated-like performance up there!

Joe
 
Hello Mikle! (Talking to Kiev- how about that!!) I agree that you should really think about whether you really need the partial serrations, especially since you already have a fully serrated blade. I have a 50/50 AFCK with the serrations at the back. I bought it because I thought that it would make a great utility knife since it has plain and serrated edges. It is a grat knife, but after a year with it I wish I had a fully plain edged blade. There are many past posts dealing with this subject. As far as serrations being in the "wrong" place, if you do need a knife with serrations at the front and all you have are knives with the serrations at the back, then they ARE in the wrong place!!!
smile.gif


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"Come What May..."
 
Hi there

Mad dog used to have 3 versions of the ATAK 2: one with serration at the back third, one with serration at the middle third and one with them on the front third - like you prefer.

The Mad dog is mighty expensive though - over 350 $ and the debate on their quality can keep you interested for days (check out the longest string going right now: "Mad Dog RC Test results! PICS..." in the general forum.

(I personally own one ATAK2 and think it’s a great knife)

Where can one get those knives you mentioned????


PS: welcome!!

 
My short answer is: Yes, usually.

I'd say 20-30% near (but perhaps not right out to) the tip could be useful. Sometimes.

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Urban Fredriksson
www.canit.se/%7Egriffon/
Latest udates Moki Blossom and Fällkniven S1

No knife content: My trip to Japan

"All this takes only about ten seconds, and then I hang the knife vertically, with a nail through the thong hole (and that's one of the big reasons why most every LOVELESS knife has a thong tube; it makes things easy, handling the blades and knives here in the shop)."
- How to make knives, Richard W. Barney and Robert W. Loveless
 
Rather than comprimise your fine work ability with serrations ant the front, pick up and ER1 from Cold Steel. 3" blade, a little over that closed, the blade slide into the handle, front opener automatic stlye. CS's serration pattern cuts like a buzzsaw and is a lot smoother thatn other designs. It only weighs 1.6 ounces, so it won't but you too muck. It only costs 19 bucks from Botach.com, so it won't break you like a custom knife will.
 
Thanks all, especially JOE TALMADGE, DARREL RALPH and STILETTO RAGGIO for really professional advices.

BLILIOUS, please, give me some time to find information you had asked.

Best regards,

MIKLE
 
I like 50/50 blades but I do find that in regular cutting, it does get in the way...
frown.gif


But also, the serrations for a right handed knife actually belong on the right hand side of the knife. Most knives, however, have it on the left side and i think it's for cosmetic reasons....
cool.gif


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-Humpty

AKTI Member # A000984
Proverbs 23:2
 
Yes !!!

SID POST at Knife Reviews & Testing, topic: "Chisel ground?", believes, that manufacturers put the chisel grid on the left side (wrong for right handed users) because they will photograph nice. I sure, that is very cause why serration is on wrong left side ! Amongst my knives ONLY Leatherman "Wave" has blade with the "right" right side.

I think, that manufacturers should think about serration "moving" from "wrong" left side to "right" right side.

Regards,

MIKLE
 
I used to like partial serrations, near the handle, but I've grown to dislike them, for the reasons already given. You need a long blade if the serrations aren't to get in the way. Cutting with serrations and cutting without seem to be two different things and the transition from one to the other is usually not efficient. Buck's Intrepid has serrations on the back, which is OK as long as it's not a dreadful "sawback". For canoeing and kayacking I use the Gerber River which is serrated completely on one side and nonserrated on the other. A different kind of serration is offeref by the Pocket Hobbit, which is more for grabbing than cutting and is most useful in reverse grip fighting.
 
I think the two-blade approach is best for a utility knife. If you can keep your knife sharp all of the time a single plane blade can serve all of your utility needs (I never use serrations). If you expect to not be able to sharpen your knife for long intervals the two blade approach can be better. You use your plain edge (that cuts cleaner and is easier to sharpen) until it gets too dull, then you use your serrated blade (which cuts sloppy, cuts ok when it is dull, but is a pain to sharpen).

As a weapon a knife does most of its slashing work with the area closest to the point. For a military knife it might be good to serrate an area close to the tip on the curved belly of the blade. I would still leave an unsserated portion for the last centimeter next to the tip (to prevent tip breakage). Serrations near the end of the blade should probably be shallow and have wide radius to avoid weakening the tip.


[This message has been edited by Jeff Clark (edited 02-02-2000).]
 
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