Boss Jack CG: Choil or no choil

[verisharp]

Which one would you choose and why, I can't decide...

I dont use choils much, but occasionally I do, but the bj is a larger knife, and i'm not sure if it's necessary

 

[Soulrack223]

I have 2 with a third on its way. None have choils.

 

[mymindisamob]

I wouldn't have one without.

 

[Tree Herder V]

I also have one le that I'm using from some time and one CG on order - both are choiless. On the knife of this size a choil is useless and it hooks on the material you are cutting. Besides choiless BJs look excellent!

 

[verisharp]

I also have one le that I'm using from some time and one CG on order - both are choiless. On the knife of this size a choil is useless and it hooks on the material you are cutting. Besides choiless BJs look excellent!

That's what i'm thinkin, The boss jack just seems to big for a choil

 

[Last Visible Canary]

 

[Tree Herder V]

That's what i'm thinkin, The boss jack just seems to big for a choil

To me it's too small for a choil. I can live with choils on larger, heavier, blades. There they are quite useful to choke up on the blade - for all the works that need precision.

 

[jtsharp]

I love blades with choils, and medium sized blades are perfect for them.

 

[BlackNinja]

Choil.

 

[TrailWolf]

I love blades with choils, and medium sized blades are perfect for them.

Choil.

Yup I prefer a choil on the BJ as well...

 

[HuntBomb]

Choil... of course
Why?
That other good grip.

 

[verisharp]

Can you guys post some pics of Boss J's with and without choils?

 

[mymindisamob]

 

[TrailWolf]

Can you guys post some pics of Boss J's with and without choils?

Aesthetically, a choil makes the knife look much nicer as well...

With all this said, I'm ordering another BJ because I love it so much and might just try one without a choil to see if it grows on me...

.

 

[Last Visible Canary]

Aesthetically, a choil makes the knife look much nicer as well...

I normally have the opposite reaction, I see a choil and recognize the aesthetic they're going for, but immediately think it looks like less of a functionally concise design. I've never seen a choiless knife and thought 'I really wish the edge was farther away from my hand'. Nor have I ever though of gripping a plain bar of metal as a 'good extra grip'. It's an option, but a poor one for grip strength, comfort and endurance under stress.

 

[Last Visible Canary]

aside from aesthetics, some reasons for avoiding choils:

Most people will never get into a situation where they go "I NEED TO CUT THIS NETTING RIGHT NOW OR WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE!!!", but you might get into a situation where you've got 40 bags to cut and you've got 10 minutes to do it, and you really just don't have the time to a) think about how your using the knife b) be watching your hands to make sure the edge is in the right place to avoid the netting/burlap/plastic sheeting sinking into it or c) the patience to reset the edge every time the media slips into it or d) unsheathing your knife, then taking the time and effort to change to a new grip unnecessarily to avoid all of the above.

Having a choil makes for 2 compromised set ups. The first set up is that whatever your cutting is unnecessarily far away from your hand. This reduces your mechanical leverage meaning you need more muscle to acheive the same force

The second set up is that your gripping a flat bar of metal. Gripping flatter objects (vs. perfectly round) helps to increase control of tortional position, so your can get "fine detail control". The problem is that it puts almost all of the weight and stress onto the fingers gripping the flat bar, because the weight will sink down onto the smallest point of contact (the edge of the choil). you end up with a weird mostly-uncomfortable grip that will wear your hand out faster without a signficantly good reason.

the alternative? don't have a choil. You maintain mechanical leverage without losing the nice comfortable full grip

and if you still want to choke up, you can either grab it in a chefs knife grip (pinching/palming the spine of the blade) or just choke up on the gaurd. It's not that much less comfortable than a choked up choil grip, and chances are you won't have to do it since you don't have the distance created by the choil in the first place.

also, you may want/need the extra edge space for a sawing or batoning action, like through these incredibly dense and brutal english muffins:

 

[Last Visible Canary]

 

[Demonic1]

I love the english muffin argument.

I vote -no choil.

 

[stabber]

Choil. Makes sharpening a little Neater/easier as well

 

[dericdesmond]

hahaha, brutal English muffins