Codger_64
Moderator
- Joined
- Oct 8, 2004
- Messages
- 62,324
I'll be the first to admit that I am a newcomer to the wide world of knife collecting, and to the associated terms. I learned legalese while working as a patent illustrator. I learned quoin and sconce while doing architectural historical surveys. And construction terms, car collector terms, muzzleloading terms, coin terms and on and on. Every genre nowdays has it's own special language. And the circle of knife manufacturers and collectors is no different.
But I continue to be confused by some cutlery terms. Clip, spey, sheepfoot, droppoint, guthook, awl, and bowie are pretty straight foreward. Crink, walk and talk, liner lock, frame lock, cable lock, are easily enough understood with simple explanations. Jigged and smooth bone, sambar stag, a hundred species of wood, and propriatary plastics and rubber, celluloid, mop, osic, mammoth, horn, and other handle materials once seen are fairly easy to distinguish.
Where the terms seem to blur is in some of the knife type definitions. I have a "bird and trout" knife, and a trout knife, so those differences are more than apparent. I have upswept skinners, drop point skinners, and guthook droppoint skinners so those are easy to recognize. The names denote shape and the designed function. The dive knife I have is also quite obviously properly named for it's intended use as is the river knife. I have a slew of hunting knives and fillet knives, and while those terms do cover a fairly broad spectrum of shapes and styles, again, form follows function. I have a couple of military knives and yes, whether they were picked up as a military contract or passed over in favor of another design, their intended use is obvious in their heft, added features, and sometimes bayonet attachment means.
I see tactical knives and fighting knives. I am certainly confused as to exactly who would use a tactical knife for what tactic? Does painting a knife black make it tactical? Adding serrations to cut rope? Making it conceilable? Am I remiss if I own one and fail to include it in my daily work tactics? Or are they de rigure for SWAT officers? What tactic of takedown requires a black pocket knife?
Then there are fighting knives. Again, am I remiss by not strapping one on and going to a bar on Friday nights to fight? Or are they meant to be military knives? I see these weekly and they look like run of the mill 497, 498, 171UH, 153UH and XT hunting knives to me. I guess I have a lot to learn!
Codger :footinmou
But I continue to be confused by some cutlery terms. Clip, spey, sheepfoot, droppoint, guthook, awl, and bowie are pretty straight foreward. Crink, walk and talk, liner lock, frame lock, cable lock, are easily enough understood with simple explanations. Jigged and smooth bone, sambar stag, a hundred species of wood, and propriatary plastics and rubber, celluloid, mop, osic, mammoth, horn, and other handle materials once seen are fairly easy to distinguish.
Where the terms seem to blur is in some of the knife type definitions. I have a "bird and trout" knife, and a trout knife, so those differences are more than apparent. I have upswept skinners, drop point skinners, and guthook droppoint skinners so those are easy to recognize. The names denote shape and the designed function. The dive knife I have is also quite obviously properly named for it's intended use as is the river knife. I have a slew of hunting knives and fillet knives, and while those terms do cover a fairly broad spectrum of shapes and styles, again, form follows function. I have a couple of military knives and yes, whether they were picked up as a military contract or passed over in favor of another design, their intended use is obvious in their heft, added features, and sometimes bayonet attachment means.
I see tactical knives and fighting knives. I am certainly confused as to exactly who would use a tactical knife for what tactic? Does painting a knife black make it tactical? Adding serrations to cut rope? Making it conceilable? Am I remiss if I own one and fail to include it in my daily work tactics? Or are they de rigure for SWAT officers? What tactic of takedown requires a black pocket knife?
Then there are fighting knives. Again, am I remiss by not strapping one on and going to a bar on Friday nights to fight? Or are they meant to be military knives? I see these weekly and they look like run of the mill 497, 498, 171UH, 153UH and XT hunting knives to me. I guess I have a lot to learn!
Codger :footinmou
