How important are safety features on a knife?

Buying a knife without choil/guard?

  • Definitely no

    Votes: 3 6.0%

  • Only for specific purposes

    Votes: 25 50.0%

  • I prefer knives with no guard/choil

    Votes: 6 12.0%

  • It doesn't matter

    Votes: 16 32.0%
  • Total voters
    50
E

EatingSarma

Joined
Jun 22, 2020
Messages
607
I see growing trend of knives with no safety features.

I personally wouldn't buy such a knife, as I see no benefits with removing the hand guard, but I do see plenty of potential dangers.

I would say I'd consider one if I wanted to start carving, yet the finger choil on ESEE3 is more than good enough for that too (tested it few times just for fun), so there's that solution to it.

But then again, that's just me, and I did plenty of stupid shit with my knives - so that safety is a good thing for me. I never needed stitches for a knife injury, and yet friend of mine had to go for a surgery because of Puukko knife and he never did any of plainly stupid things I did.

I'm aware that Puukko and similar knives have been used for hundreds of years, but I'm also aware that hand guards appeared and took off for a reason. Everything evolves with time.

What's your opinion though?
 
I was always told, "keep your hand/fingers away from the sharp end/blade". So now, I truly don't understand a finger choil right on the blade. And I've never heard of "choking up on the blade" till these last few years. Maybe..."I'm gettin too old for this :poop:!"...R. Murtaugh
 
Fixed blades don't really need a hand guard unless you're fighting bears and such. If you're using a puukko for woodcrafting you shouldn't have any problems. You are the primary safety mechanism when you use a fixed blade and that could be said with any knife. You always need to be mindful that the tool you're using is sharp and pointy. Never absent mindedly handle a knife, without focusing on what you're doing. Don't move faster than you can control a blade. That's where I see people tend to get cut.

For folders, safety abounds with all their various locking mechanisms and even safety buttons. That or you can live dangerously with a slip joint, which I have never cut myself with.
 
I don't like fixed blades so I'm going to say safety features are absolutely not needed and not preferred for me 🙂
 
The best safety feature is the one between your ears. Learn to use it and you won't have any issues.
Knives have safety features on them mostly because one, bowie knife/zombie killer/tactical crap, and two because the industry is always looking for a leg up on the competition, a new gimmick or design, and promoting safety is always a good avenue to go down when chasing sales. However, millions upon millions of knives have been made over the years and used safely.
 
Talking fixed blades only here...

If there is a chance I am going to be thrusting/puncturing, then a guard is a necessity. A guard is also a requirement (for me) if I am using an icepick grip for whatever reason.

On knives that are not "hard use", I have no need for a guard as it often is uncomfortable, and I like being able to rest my thumb on the spine in a sabre grip.

I don't mind choils on a knife, but I don't consider them safety features necessarily.
 
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OP: You need to include another choice -- "It doesn't matter."

It's a knife. The sharp part will cut you.

It's not like a gun that'll go bang if you're not careful and into which gun mfgers have to design in safety features order to protect themselves from lawsuits from stupid people who shoot themselves (and/or others) because they don't know better than to pull the trigger unless they actually intend to fire that gun.

Listening, Baldwin?

Auto knives, like guns, "should" have a safety (because of the above; not because I think I need one but because stupid people really cannot be prevented from doing stupid sh*t w/their knives (or guns).

Choil/guard, no coil/guard . . . who cares?

If it's a unique, well "designed" (for its intended use) and reasonably priced knife that I like, then I'll buy it, regardless.
 
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It really depends on how stupid one is….
Slipjoint s are all good to go if you used them for the right purpose
The more you are forced to abused your knives the more safety you need
Ultimately you will need to have a fixed blade
A safety is really required when you use a tool for a task it is not designed for.

I have carried a SAK for years without any issues
I still carrry slipjoints, folders and fixed blades depending o the task
I had a severe I jury only once and it was because I haven’t use the knife properly, not because of the locking system
 
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For a “fighting knife” a guard is a must in case your hand slips during a thrust. I don’t buy knives to fight with, so a guard adds aesthetics, and not much else.

I do enjoy a finger choil on smaller knives for a more detail oriented grip. Most handles are designed with secure grip over blade dexterity(?) in mind, so a choil gives a bit more control over the tip of the blade.
 
I prefer a finger groove or guard unless the knife is of a specific design/purpose. I don't own a puukko style knife because of this ( though I do have some scandi blades).
I don't buy off the shelf anymore but if I did it would be a deal breaker.
 
You only really need a guard on a fighting or stabbing knife. Knife fighting and murder are both inherently unsafe activities. Just use your brain and you can use a knife safely.
 
Steely_Gunz said:
I can take or leave moat safeties on a knife.

A quality handle shape and proper use. The seax seemed to handle most jobs around the north sea for centuries without sporting a guard.
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Same thing with kukris. Generally safe to use if you know what you’re doing even without a guard.

On topic, I can appreciate a well-designed guard like on the SRK knives or Bushcraft Black. Not too big to impede anything, yet effectively stops your hand. Some knives opt for a “bump” rather than a guard per se. Check out the Mora Kansbol or Garberg. The handle “tells” you when you’re about to touch the edge. These knives are perfectly safe too with a responsible user.

Completely guardless knives can be iffy I’ll admit, but a user familiar with his knife shouldn’t hurt himself with it. Usually though, I prefer the two kinds of knives previously discussed.
 
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