Cliff:
On a very basic level all knives are just wedges. Force is exerted to break the material apart at the very edge, and then the material is wedged apart along the sides of the blade. One of the critical effects of a sabre flat grind is that in order to get the same level of cutting ability as a fully flat ground blade, because the sabre ground blade is thicker above the edge, the edge has to be thinner and/or more acute than on the fully flat ground blade, thus it is not as durable. So basically the thicker primary profile has weakened the edge.
Very true and good point as far as knives being wedges. I haven't found (noticealby) that the sabre grind has weakened the edges -- atleast within the realm of work I've done, although I don't doubt your observations here because you do get into those specifics, and it's very interesting to read. The sabre grind just splits things aprt faster for my tastes, and although on bigger knives it redcues the slicing ability, and the depth of a fine cut, I tend to look at my knife as a more general multipurpose tool in the woods, so it's fine overall for me.
This is high performance indeed, I have never seen a lock that even claimed that level of strength and durability. A critical question for me is will TOPS support the performance you describe?
I can't say whether they would support it or not...the first CQT Magnum we brought into the field in Idaho was abused by us at the specific request of TOPS, in order to see how far we could take it until it failed. It happened not to fail. In fact, it did so well, I got one of my own as a result! TOPS have not, however, made any claims as to that level of strength and durability. I'm just describing my own experiences with the blades. I'm still flabbergasted...LOL. Your best bet is to check with them, tell them what you want to do, and ask if they'd cover it. Otherwise, they probably would consider it abuse. The only reason I abused the knife on those recent "rescues" was because it had to be done and I had, based upon my Idaho experiences, a high degree of confidence that it wouldn't fail. And it didn't. One thing to point out is that my experiences here were with two differnet knives: the one in Idaho, and the one I now own. It ws nice to see that the quality and durabiblity did not vary.
Of course, that said, I had no way (and no real skill) to measure specific stresses, so I can only do an anecdotal/statistical kind of evaluation over time and continued use. That's where your scientific training helps us all out, Cliff.
As far as your tests go, Cliff, I admire the way you've set an objective performance standard -- it's very important work that you do for all of us here in the community, even if some of my outdoor brethren don't always agree with me. And I do like how you cross reference your friends' experiences as well. Like I said before, it also looks like fun!!! Most of us here don't have the skills to properly measure performance in such a consistent way. I always learn a great dela from reading your reviews and findings on blades, metals, and many other related factors. Don't ever stop!
I was being facetious when I posted about your abusing them far beyond the uses in the field. Hee Hee. I was specifically thinking at that moment about the time you jumped on a Busse blade to try breaking it, and sent it flying like a projectile...LOL!
ALl the Best, and thanks,
Brian.
) Before this knife, I was very very leery of liner locks (many have failed, and I have a few finger scars. It's why I became a "fixed-blade only" fan. This one is the first to change my mind. Now, I certainly have not used every liner lock on the market, so I can't say this is the only one that is strong. It's just the only one so far I've found.
But I can tell he's having a LOT of fun....who wouldn't?! LOL.