Handle design questions

[flatgrinder]

When would you use a dropped handle? (I'm talking about angles, not literally "dropping" it! )

Could one be satisfactorily used on a hunting knife? Or is it more for power, not precision?

The reason I'm asking is that I made a hunting knife with a 3.5" blade and the handle is dropped approx. 15 degrees and it's just more comfortable for me and I find it harder to twist in my hand when in use, but I rarely see other makers drop the handle on a hunting knife. Am I the only one who notices this? Anyone else prefer dropped over straight handles for comfort and utility?

Thanks!

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

Ergonomics fit each user differently.Many like a small drop to the handle.

 

[peter nap]

Stacy hit that one on the head. I like some drop in my users also. The theory on handles I use is for knives that are stabbers, the centerline of the tip should be the centerline of the handle. On slicers, I like the angle.
Others think differently.

There are no absolutes!

 

[Todd Robbins]

I agree that it is a personal preference sort of thing on hunters and utility type knives. I use a handle that is in line with the blade on most kitchen knives, but most others have some degree of drop. It's more exagerrated on big choppers, and it makes a huge difference on them, for me.

More importantly for me is handle shape. I prefer to have some type of palm swell that fills my hand comfortably with a little flair at the butt on almost every knife I handle regularly. A paring/peeling knife I just finished for myself looks almost cartoonish because of the handle/blade size ratio, but it's the most comfotable knife of it's size I've ever handled.

Todd