(Fixed blade) features you'd like to see?

Shorttime

Shorttime

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Okay, serious question. I mean, as serious as we ever get. So, I know that the answer always Smatchet. But, otherwise.

I make knives. Sometimes. Very, very occasionally. I don't have many chances to use and test them, except for cutting cardboard. So I want to know if there is anybody out there who has looked at their knife and said "I wish this was different".

Tell me. Show me. Learning.
 
I assume everyone who likes knives, says that.....
I Love knives, but never bought a Perfect knife.


It would be a good question to ask Why makers make knives?
*I started, because I always wanted More
 
Thin, distal tapered, six inches long, edge all the way to ricasso, ricasso has primary grind going in opposite direction towards the handle by a few degrees, slight drop point, rounded crown, flat transition from handle/guard/crown, lower guard does not stick out past blade edge, no sharpening choil, handle allows for multiple grips, finger scoops on each side of front handle slabs.
 
OK, seriously: I rarely cut cardboard, but I cut a lot of baling twine and other things that a serrated edge is good for. There are very few fully serrated edges outside of Spyderco and Cold Steel that are suitable for outdoor use.

The knife I have used the most for the last few months is a Spyderco Enuff. It's nice, but Spyderco's serrations are too pointy and are nuisance to sharpen. I prefer wavy serrations like Victorinox has. I like having a couple H1 knives for rainy days, but I would also like to have something in MagnaCut (of course). I like the sheepsfoot shape on the Enuff because it is good for serrations and I don't have to worry about accidentally stabbing somebody's snout.

I would also like to have a blade with a smooth edge and a straight spine ground at a sharp 90 degrees. I have a couple Moras that come close, but the points drop a little. I want the spine to be straight all the way to the point in order to scrape flat surfaces better. The Spyderco PM3 would be nice if the spine were not chamfered so much and if the blade were not quite so pointy.

And very important: a sheath with good retention that can be worn horizontally or canted, with enough handle sticking out for it to be easy to draw.
 
Handles/scales.

I would guess that of all the largish fixed blades I own (approx. 100), there has only been one - ONE - handle that fits my hand perfectly and is truly and totally comfortable.

I realize that production knives are a compromise of "one size fits all", but I have never been totally happy with the comfort of any fixed blade handle - except one.

I always have to modify the handles in some way to get rid of sharp edges, or I have to re-profile them in some way to fit my hand better. Usually I have to make them slimmer. And handles with finger grooves are usually an instant disqualifier for me.

I know there is no real solution, but I honestly can't believe how uncomfortable most large fixed blade handles are. Except for one.

Kudos to the large Becker series (BK7, BK9, etc.) - the one handle that is just perfect for me in every way. If every knife had that handle profile, I would be a happy man and could retire my Dremel.

Wait - I still need my Dremel to add a sharpening choil to knives that do not have them.
 
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Handes/ergos are the most important part of a knife for me. I can generally tell within a few seconds of picking a knife up whether or not we'll get along. Anything that forces my hand into a certain grip is out. (So the "I wish this were different" knives get moved along.)
Clean lines on minimalist, generalist knives for me.

Edit - three tests for a fixed blade for me:
A spoon (shape roughed out w hatchet if large spoon)
A netting shuttle
A trystick
 
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Fallkniven MB10 with carbon scales instead of their molded "nylon" same profile and it would be perfect. Same goes for their A1 pro excellent handle ergonomics. Or just give me a walter brend bowie.
 
If you’re gonna use a tough steel like 3V or 80CrV2, don’t be afraid to go with a thin knife, those steels should handle it. I don’t get the trope that tough steel must have a really thick stock, seems like a waste. If you absolutely must have the sharpened prybar (above 0.18 inches thick I’d say) don’t be afraid to go with a thin edge of 15 DPS, seriously it makes a huge difference in how well the knife performs over say a 20 DPS edge. Took my winkler woodsman down to 15 DPS and oh my god that .18 inch stock will now chop hard wood and also carve like a dream without any chipping that I’d have with a brittle stainless steel at that geometry, wish it came from the factory like that. Also unpopular opinion inbound- I love pommels, on the end of my knives, whether a flat bit of exposed tang for light hammering or a spike for glass breaking, I love that extra bit of utility, any fixed blade I’ve used extensively without one, I’ve always found myself missing the pommel.
 
I wish more fixed blades had a thumb ramp. I admit I like a thumb ramp on a fixed blade. My Bark River Bravo 1.5 and BK10 both have one. I don't always use it but it is nice to have an option of using it.

It might also be a result of owning more Spyderco folders than anything else.
 
In a "big" knife: I like the blade profile of the Randall #1 and the USMC fighting-utility knife (Ka-Bar). Either of them in a high alloy steel would be nice. You pick the steel, S30VN, Magnicut . . .whatever is the current high-performance steel.

In a "smaller" knife: Id like to own a Loveless style drop point in a high performance steel. Stag scales would be nice.
 
Shorttime said:
Okay, serious question. I mean, as serious as we ever get. So, I know that the answer always Smatchet. But, otherwise.

I make knives. Sometimes. Very, very occasionally. I don't have many chances to use and test them, except for cutting cardboard. So I want to know if there is anybody out there who has looked at their knife and said "I wish this was different".

Tell me. Show me. Learning.
Click to expand...

Rarely say "I wish this was different". Sometimes, I say, "I wish I had the other one with me".

Point being, there all have their purposes ..... say, in the kitchen, cutting a fillet out of a rack is very different from cutting onions or cheese.

Meaning, you have to be more specific. And don't say "bushcraft" or "tactical", please :)
 
3fifty7 said:
No because I have a Carothers.
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Agreed. I couldn’t find anything to chance about my DEK1. I also have a David Mary custom that’s perfect for me. That might be part of the problem; what’s perfect for one person might not be for another. Carothers seems to work some kind of magic that makes his knives ubiquitously perfect. I’ve never heard of anyone not liking one.
 
Depends on the type of knife, but for what I’d consider a do it all “field” knife, I want something tough that I can use for light batonning or prying. I want a knife that will excel in a fight and perform adequately on wood. I like the following qualities on a field knife:

Substantial lower guard (or “self guard”) to keep my fingers off the blade - especially in a fight.

~8-13 oz.

Thin edge.

Acute point.

No jimping (because it tends to chew up my thumb while carving).

Full or mostly full tang with some pommel exposed for hammering.

High impact steel - I generally prefer carbon steel.

Good palm swell and some swell at the end of the handle for light chopping.

Lanyard hole for light chopping (with a lanyard around my thumb and choked back on the handle).

No-hot-spot ergonomics

Flatish handle sides (rather than roundish) to improve indexing.

Balance just in front of the guard.

Low “center of gravity”, so the knife wants to sit in your palm rather than roll off.

Distal taper and tapered tang.

Here’s my most recent purchase:
316CD71D-4F08-4D79-8C4B-C4113E327A52.jpegEF1C9B79-6398-4D8E-94F6-7033B4AA27EA.jpeg
Mini Ang Khola Bowie made by Kumar at Himilayan Imports.

Checked all my boxes at 11oz., and for $68 I couldn’t pass it up, even though I have several knives in this category…
 
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I thought that I was going to have to figure out a way to make my own knives. I couldn't find any that looked like what I wanted. Then I found Carothers Performance Knives. It was love at first sight. 😍
 
The one thing I'd personally like to see come with more fixed blades, is quality molded leather sheaths, (with a retention strap). Even if they were simply offered as an add-on option for addition $. Kydex is the current trend that is commonly found everywhere, lesser plastics just suck, and you still see a fair amount of nylon options around as well, and most included leather sheaths that do come (from production knives at least) are just not very good quality at all: too thin, poor retention, bad stitching, etc.
I'm actually considering stopping my knife purchases for a bit, (got 3 or 4 on my radar at the moment), and instead spending a year or so investing in top notch leather sheaths for (nearly) all my fixed blades. That, or the other option is maybe when time frees up a bit for me next year, after I finish my last classes, maybe teach myself the craft and make some for myself.
 
There are quite a few knives that I deem quite amazing, but just a bit different would be perfect for me...

1. BK14 with the handle of the Izula 2 - that'd be awesome - Magnacut
2. BK2 with an 8 inch blade - CPM3V
3. Full width tang Kabar
4. Spyderco endela slipjoint - Saber ground
5. 93mm ALOX with a deep carry wire clip
...

All the above knives are exactly what I'm looking for now...
 
strategy9 said:
The one thing I'd personally like to see come with more fixed blades, is quality molded leather sheaths, (with a retention strap). Even if they were simply offered as an add-on option for addition $. Kydex is the current trend that is commonly found everywhere, lesser plastics just suck, and you still see a fair amount of nylon options around as well, and most included leather sheaths that do come (from production knives at least) are just not very good quality at all: too thin, poor retention, bad stitching, etc.
I'm actually considering stopping my knife purchases for a bit, (got 3 or 4 on my radar at the moment), and instead spending a year or so investing in top notch leather sheaths for (nearly) all my fixed blades. That, or the other option is maybe when time frees up a bit for me next year, after I finish my last classes, maybe teach myself the craft and make some for myself.
Click to expand...

Making your own leather sheaths is fun. There are many videos and help to get you going. There's also a lot of great info on the "Sheaths & Such" sub-forum.
 
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