Cable Tang?? Whats up, and will my Natchez Bowie save my....

[tikkidaddy]

Agreed Grinder, absolutely right...I can't imagine a time in bushcrafting history when guys are gonna understand the wisdom of the wooden wedge, and how insanely stupid it is to hammer on the handles of ANY KNIFE, I don't care who made it.
And to put a knife into a situation where *twisting* forces are added on to the stress of pounding on the handle...come on.
Lynn Thompson can make all the proof vids he wants prooving the durability of the Natchez and Laredo, and I still won't hammer on any portion of the handle area, period.

I would love to see a SM3 Laredo w/ real cocobolo handles. THAT is some downright sexy hardwood.

As far as I'm concerned, if I pay over $200.00 for a knife and its classification by the owner of the company is "fighter", then by God, that knife had *better* not fail, break etc. in a *knife fight* situation. If it does, that company has lost me as a customer. If a company produces a video showing the knives' ability to overcome the normal stressors in knife combat, and then says if I duplicate the testing...as in use it in a knife fight, it VOIDS my warranty...that raises eyebrows!

If I pay more than two bills, that son of a gun had better "walk my dog and do the supper dishes", in other words completely disable the opponents' knife when and *if* opportunity arises, and survive unbroken, ready for the next go-round.

 

[ursamajor]

Agreed Grinder, absolutely right...I can't imagine a time in bushcrafting history when guys are gonna understand the wisdom of the wooden wedge, and how insanely stupid it is to hammer on the handles of ANY KNIFE, I don't care who made it.
And to put a knife into a situation where *twisting* forces are added on to the stress of pounding on the handle...come on.
Lynn Thompson can make all the proof vids he wants prooving the durability of the Natchez and Laredo, and I still won't hammer on any portion of the handle area, period.

I would love to see a SM3 Laredo w/ real cocobolo handles. THAT is some downright sexy hardwood.

As far as I'm concerned, if I pay over $200.00 for a knife and its classification by the owner of the company is "fighter", then by God, that knife had *better* not fail, break etc. in a *knife fight* situation. If it does, that company has lost me as a customer. If a company produces a video showing the knives' ability to overcome the normal stressors in knife combat, and then says if I duplicate the testing...as in use it in a knife fight, it VOIDS my warranty...that raises eyebrows!

If I pay more than two bills, that son of a gun had better "walk my dog and do the supper dishes", in other words completely disable the opponents' knife when and *if* opportunity arises, and survive unbroken, ready for the next go-round.

Cold Steel had always gone above and beyond their warranty whenever I needed to exercise it. I think that it is something that CS points to when someone do dumb things with their knives.

 

[ursamajor]

Oh sure, Ive got a copy of every CS "PROOF" vid thats ever been made. You know, like the old days when the TM was shown going thru 9" of hemp rope...Yeah, that long!

I use them as a "sell point" for Cold Steel. Friends see a knife, eyes pop out, show them the vid, then theyre pickin' up both their lower jaw and eyes off the floor! LOL!!

Do I "work" for Cold Steel? Yes. and in over 20 years Ive never been paid a single dime. Ive never received a gift for doing so. Hell, I worry more about CS's reputation than alot of folks Ive dealt w/ who are dealers, or directly associated.

Thats why the Natchez interests me so much. Ive seen vids where relatively lightweight work caused catastrophic failure
I mean come on, is the mighty TM a slab sided, full tang knife?
No. But you can bet your "begonias" that 99.99% of the time, it'll "git-er-done".

I just want to see the cable tang versions in the fighter dept have that kind of success.

Because, after all, you can contact Lon Humphery, and he'll build you a version of this knife that is most likely impossible to break, but youll pay big money for it.

There are custom makers who have taken the "CS challenge" quite serious. Nobody has stepped up yet.

Can you show me here on bf, or anywhere else on the net, where the tang in a Natchez or Laredo Bowie failed? I have not seen it. But if it exists, I would like to.

 

[Knifenutty]

There was a video of a fellow that had the handle break while batoning wood...
However the tang didn't break is was cut...
I didn't want to add these thoughts because they weren't directly a knife but..
Picture the construction of the Golden Gate, Delaware, Alex Fraser, Alexandria(erected 1869)and many more bridges..
On a much bigger scale those are all tang constructed...
Why,, because it's stronger to use, absorbs shock, high winds and massive weight of traffic, along with many more reasons...
I have chopped wood with my san mai natchex to see how it worked...
The handle was very comfortable but to light for me to consider packing it on a camping hunting fishing trip to be used as a chopper..
IMO It was designed for one function and it performs well for what it was designed for...

 

[ursamajor]

There was a video of a fellow that had the handle break while batoning wood...
However the tang didn't break is was cut...
I didn't want to add these thoughts because they weren't directly a knife but..
Picture the construction of the Golden Gate, Delaware, Alex Fraser, Alexandria(erected 1869)and many more bridges..
On a much bigger scale those are all tang constructed...
Why,, because it's stronger to use, absorbs shock, high winds and massive weight of traffic, along with many more reasons...
I have chopped wood with my san mai natchex to see how it worked...
The handle was very comfortable but to light for me to consider packing it on a camping hunting fishing trip to be used as a chopper..
IMO It was designed for one function and it performs well for what it was designed for...

I saw the broken handle. But to me, that is in no way shape or form an indictment of the tang design.

If I break the grivory scales on a bk 2 by hitting them with a rock or log, does that prove that the tang design of the bk2 is flawed?

Anyone who points to that busted handle, and calls it a failure of the tang, is not very bright.

 

[tikkidaddy]

Can you show me here on bf, or anywhere else on the net, where the tang in a Natchez or Laredo Bowie failed? I have not seen it. But if it exists, I would like to.

UrsaMajor,

The video clip I saw was a Youtube Video. Search "Natchez Bowie Epic Fail". Shows two guys wailin' away at that blade w/ like a 3 inch piece of cordwood. In the vid, you can see the HANDLE come apart and break, but the cable portion is still connected, as far as I can tell. I agree w/ both of your comments, in that 99% of this foolishment is operator error.

We are probably talking about the same exact video, but I must admit, I didn't notice the condition of the cable ends being cut!! Good work guys!! Knifenutty is pretty much on the spot w/ what's happened there, and so are you UrsaMajor, a handle material disintegration doesn't point to tang failure.

I think the guy contacted CS customer svc., and they replaced the knife anyway. If it were me, Im not so sure I would've done the same.

I wouldve most assuredly had a meeting w/ a lead supervisor before boxing up another $400.00 plus knife for somebody to purposely skrew up!!

The whole and entire act of "batoning" is evidently much more intelligence centered than it is portrayed currently.

Those who believe and act differently should refrain from sharp objects, IMHO, LOL!