Originally posted by King Grinch
I am confused. Isn't the knife a food prep/kitchen knife? What would you chop that would mess up the talonite edge?
Talonite is definitely weak, and it's not just chopping that can mess up the edge. Torquing the edge too much will also cause problems. I recall Steve Harvey's test of cutting the bottom from a plastic soda bottle, and having the edge practically strip off. To counter this, with talonite you'll use a thicker edge than with steel.
I initially intended this knife to be a small camp knife. And since food prep is my prime use of a small camp knife, I made some design decisions that are targetted towards kitchen use. For example, instead of a formal guard, which can get in the way, I used a drop-blade format, which still provides finger protection without interfering with kitchen use. The drop-point blade is also a good kitchen format, with a controllable point and plenty of belly for slicing, or rolling chopping if your knife is big enough. And a full flat grind is what works best in the kitchen, for an all-around knife, IMO.
On the other hand, if kitchen use was the only thing I was thinking of, the TTKK would have looked exactly like any other kitchen knife. The features on the TTKK, I hope, make it a great all-arounder as well. The drop-point blade is generally useful, as is the drop-blade format. The thin blade, coupled with a full flat grind, combine to provide excellent performance. The handle shape provides extended-use comfort but excellent security for a variety of tasks, from hard utility use to defensive use. And best of all, this is a true custom knife, so you can tweak and tune the design to your liking. Want your TTKK to be more of an awesome kitchen knife? Ask Trace to make the blade with less belly, use talonite, and perhaps straighten out the handle a bit. Want to stick with an all-arounder but target it towards harder use? Ask him to use slightly thicker stock and go with D-2. Want a knife that will be ready-for-action, but not frighten the sheeple as much? Maroon micarta handles, mosaic pins, and less belly make it look like just a fancy kitchen knife.
I'm hoping people use this as their small camp knife, but also as an all-around high-performance utility knife, all in a format that isn't as alarming to most people, but doesn't compromise on cutting performance at all. While the knife is definitely not a purpose-designed fighter, is there anything about it that might make it particularly bad in that role? High-performance blade format, finger protection, secure handle in both forward and reverse grip. These are good features on a fighter. It may not
look high-speed-low-drag, but wait 'til you cut with it! And hey, if you like the overall design but want it more targetted as a fighter, then you can ask Trace to add things like a false edge, more blade length, narrower blade and less belly if you're looking for better piercing, perhaps make the handle curves more subtle for better carryability, etc. It already has multi-carry sheath options.
Joe
I've told the story of once lending out my Deerhunter to someone so they could cook dinner, then finding it the next morning, soaking in the pan they'd squirted lemon juice on (!!!!).