Bladesport chopper

Thanks to Donovan and Dan for chiming in. Dan, it was nice to meet you in the Pit at Blade... I learned a lot from the conversations. Donovan, thanks for the compliment, bud... and your in depth replies in this thread.:thumbup:
 
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Dan and I didn't post to end the conversation lol. I know somebody has some questions, this thread was already three pages before we posted. So lets have some questions, go.

We like sharing and discussing what we've learned and experienced doing this sport. It has taught us a lot about steels and how to build knives to make them better for everything, not just for competition.

Ask away,
Donavon
 
Hey Donavon,

Thanks for peeking in here and answering questions!

I've got one for you. On the Bladesports Knife Certification page, there's this rule:

#2 From the plunge cut at the ricasso through the knife tip must be a single plane. No swells or bulges are allowed.

Does that mean that the blade itself is not allowed to have any form of fullering?
 
That is correct, it is not allowed. And I'll attempt to explain why. Its because we do this with a crowd of people watching and also a crowd of other competitors. A poorly done fuller can cause stress risers that will weaken the steel. And you can imagine what is possible if 3-4" of the blade breaks off while hitting with a lot of force. So it basically boils down to safety.
 
Rick Marchand said:
Thanks to Donovan and Dan for chiming in. Dan, it was nice to meet you in the Pit at Blade... I learned a lot from the conversations. Donovan, thanks for the compliment, bud... and your in depth replies in this thread.:thumbup:
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Rick
If it was also really nice to meet you at Blade. I was fortunate enough to get a handle a few of your pieces there and I was very impressed with your work.
Dan
 
dphillips said:
That is correct, it is not allowed. And I'll attempt to explain why. Its because we do this with a crowd of people watching and also a crowd of other competitors. A poorly done fuller can cause stress risers that will weaken the steel. And you can imagine what is possible if 3-4" of the blade breaks off while hitting with a lot of force. So it basically boils down to safety.
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So sleigh bells, wind chimes and lightsaber sound effect doo-dads are probably out of the question?:(:p
 
On your knife, yes that is correct Rick ...now if wanna wear sleigh bells on your shoes, and make light saber noises with your mouth while you compete, well I guess thats your choice. ;)
 
Rick would you be making the noises for the green or blue, or a red light saber? I think the red cuts a little bit better.
:D
 
Rick, Just don't wear the jingle bells on your shoes. Because I would have to call you Tinker Bell.
 
I'll leave the fashion questions to others, but...

Speaking of shoes... I notice some competitors (especially the shorter ones) come almost clear off their feet right before coming down with the blade, when making the heavy cuts. Certainly right up on their toes. I'm guessing this is to generate power and momentum? In other disciplines I was taught that keeping one's feet firmly planted actually generated more power than practically leaping up and basically falling down on the target...

(sorry if this technique question is a bit off-topic for ST... it would really fit better in the General "Cutting Competition" thread, but that forum moves so fast that things get bumped off the front page in a matter of hours or minutes, and sometimes no one ever sees follow-up questions).
 
Good observation. I do it at times also, and I'm 6'4". So I don't really have a good explanation. Stretching out or reaching up seems to help, more mentally I think, I don't know why other than its human nature I guess.

Another aspect to this is cutting on a tabletop, the top is at a set height and different height people need different drop angle in the handle to be able to hit across the 2x4 thy is laying flat. You want to accomplish a flat cut across the board because some media is that wide. So if you don't cover the width of the surface you don't make the cut. This is another reason why most of our edges are slightly curved outward and not flat.

Hope that helps.
 
I totally get the table-height thing... as I'm sure you know, being a tall guy like me, working on a bench that's too low really sucks... just like a guy 5'7" would probably hate working on my bench...

Anyway, the body mechanics involved in serious cutting are very interesting to me.
 
James... it really depends on the direction you intend to impart the force/energy. Parallel to the ground(as in forward or backward) like you would do for pushing, punching, thrusting, etc... a solid foundation is best... EXCEPT if your intent is to add momentum or lead-in distance(running, jumping, stepping) in the direction of travel/force. So that little jump offers a bit more travel and a bit more acceleration due to the effect of gravity on falling objects. This would all change if the competitors were able to "anchor" in with ski boots and add a downward pull(into the Earth) with their legs.

So grow your toenails, go barefoot and clampdown like an eagle!
 
The only body mechanics I've really looked at for competition is rope and 2x4. Rope for safety and 2x4 for speed and efficiency. The rest I just try till it works lol.
 
Do you mean they are similar or the same steel?

It is my understanding that CPM-4V is a steel from Crucible, and Vanadis 4 Extra comes from Böhler-Uddeholm.
 
mr_anderson said:
I thought Vanadis 4E and CPM-4V were pretty much the same thing. Or is zknives not that reliable?
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It looks like those are some pretty different alloys to me, but I'm no metallurgist.

Definitely has me curious about these steels though. 67hrc would be pretty wicked. Might even have to trade in my m4 knives!

Just a curiosity, do you guys train for these competitions (aside from chopping wood and fine target practice) and what do you feel is the important stuff.

Also, glad to see other tall guys on the boards. :D
 
mr_anderson said:
I thought Vanadis 4E and CPM-4V were pretty much the same thing. Or is zknives not that reliable?
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The chemical composition is very close. In my opinion the steels are the same composition when you factor variation due to tolerances.

Vanadis 4E has the advantage of the finer powder granules.

CPM 4V has the advantage of being available to buy.

Chuck
 
Alpha Knife Supply said:
The chemical composition is very close. In my opinion the steels are the same composition when you factor variation due to tolerances.

Vanadis 4E has the advantage of the finer powder granules.

CPM 4V has the advantage of being available to buy.

Chuck
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That looks like one HECK of an advantage. :D
 
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