Knife "features" I fail to understand

[Yo Mama]

Bic gets around 3000 sparks, a ferro rod normal size is 20000. Add magnesium and the fire starts in about any condition. And it weighs close to nothing. I carry one of each, and I don't smoke.

 

[Wild Willie]

That's easy. It means you have a reason to edc it.

What if I am at a barbecue and need to open a beer?

Therefore camp shovel.

Well now it's going with me to the next BBQ... Thanks for the advice.

 

[Bastler]

I’m not sure you understand what a ricasso is, or perhaps my understanding of what you’re saying is off. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a knife without a ricasso. It’s literally just an unsharpened flat used to provide a buffer between the blade edge and the handle, so you’re not shredding material from your handle.

I've never seen a puukko with a ricasso.

 

[Arathol]

I've never seen a puukko with a ricasso.

I don’t think I’ve ever seen a knife without a ricasso.

Now, you have.............

 

[OrangeBlueOrangeBlue]

Scandi grinds are the easiest to sharpen, and are very good at their intended use (woodwork).
Lanyards are primarily a safety thing for fixed blades. I don't see a benefit on most folders, but on very small ones, a lanyard can extend your handle length.

 

[000Robert]

Bic gets around 3000 sparks, a ferro rod normal size is 20000. Add magnesium and the fire starts in about any condition. And it weighs close to nothing. I carry one of each, and I don't smoke.

Whether I have a Bic or not, a good firestarter and compass are part of my EDC.

 

[sixplymaple]

Lanyards get my vote. But that’s just personal taste. I don’t mind lanyard holes…

 

[Lesknife]

A sharp spine isn’t necessary for a ferro rod. I have used the swedge or false edge at the tip end to strike a shower of sparks. Just about any hard object even a piece of glass will throw sparks off a ferro rod.

Scandi grind on very thin blade stock is not to bad for slicing and food prep but a thick blade scandi is of little use to me as I do woods/ bushcraft stuff differently than the fad stuff.

A lanyard hole with a lanyard attached is good if you’re working in an elevated position and don’t want to drop your knife or tools. Especially if other people are working below.

I agree about round handles for most knife use but it’s sometimes better when carving with a short blade and wanting to roll a circular cut.

I think most knife guards are just way to big and most knives really don’t need them anyway. I don’t mind a small finger guard by the cutting edge and I don’t like finger choils at all except on a draw hook knife.

 

[Lesknife]

About bic lighters. I’ve had some that when wet they wouldn’t spark and some that were in a backpack somehow bled the fuel out. That’s when a ferro rod saved the day as we were cold and wet. I still carry a bic to lite a fire and my smokes. They are just so much handier.

 

[vinprom]

Mora Classic 1/0 came in mind when I was reading the opening post. The handle is oval, but quite roundish, no ricasso, and scandi grind. As Lesknife has already mentioned, the blade thickness makes big difference. Mora 1/0 is 2mm, whereas most of the Moras have either 2.5mm or 3mm tickness. 2mm stock with scandi grind slices noticeably much better than the 2.5mm. Mora 1/0 is quite capable and proper for variety of task in my opinion, even with all the presumed "flaws" initiated for discussion by the OP.

 

[DocJD]

Now, you have.............

I gotta love them "elf shoe" sheaths !

I'm not really that into knives, I just use my stuff, I often lurked on here in the past and I mostly looked about steels.

If you check some videos or reviews on knives you find interesting you can notice few things:

1. Sharp spine?
I get it that you can scrap ferro rod with it, but I also know every ferro rod comes with scraper. Also, why don't they just use a lighter? Ferro rod comes from factory just like the lighter does. If you really want to flex then make friction fire...
I never wished my knives were uncoated with sharp spine...

2. Scandi grind?
It's not really slicey if blade has any kind of thickness to it and edge suffers damage more easily, plus you have to remove a lot of material to take the damage out once it happens.

3. Lanyard hole?
I never put string on any of my knives and I can't see point of it for anything except larger fixed blades you can chop with.

4. Really round handle?
I'm not talking about oval like Ka-Bar has, it has some indexing, I'm talking about more round shape. It'll twist and rotate in your hand.

5. No either choil or guard?
How am I supposed to know where edge starts? What if I ever need or wish to stab something?


I'm just new and kind-of a "knife noob" so excuse me if some of these questions is off point.

Knives also serve functions other than just as a cutting tool .

Art , bling jewelry , fidget toy etc .

 

[Natlek]

I don't understand why there's a bottle opening notch on so many products... I get that we're spoiled with twist offs here in the states, but why did the condor camp shovel I bought have a bottle opener? If I feel the need to open a bottle with a knife I'll use the spine or handle. It's not rocket science.

Are you kidding us ? Bottle opener on camp shovel

 

[Wild Willie]

Are you kidding us ? Bottle opener on camp shovel

No joke. I like the shovel, just don't understand the need for a bottle opener on one

 

[Danke42]

 

[EngrSorenson]

1. Sharp spine?

I like to engage the spine when I'm using a knife for certain cuts, particularly if I'm using a knife that's much too large to do a small task, so I prefer rounded edges. At the same time, having additional edges to scrape stuff, take a burr off your fingernail or make tinder is kind of nice. Tree bark usually contains a lot of particulates and minerals which can dull edges faster- it's nice to use the spine to knock that off.

2. Scandi grind?

I like them just fine- is it high performance? nah, but in some tasks Scandi grinds excel. It's my opinion that it takes a little to get used to if you're accustomed to full flat grinds, but the scandi grind persists because it's useful. Even now with all the advancements in knives, the humble Scandi grind continues.

3. Lanyard hole?

Of all the features you list, this one is the most harmless. I can imagine a situation in which I enter a cabin and hang my knife on a nail, or tether the knife to my belt if I'm out on the water. Sometimes lanyard holes are just plain good looking.

4. Really round handle?

Most of my "really" round handles are oblong, but I like the symmetry. The knife feels comfortable to me in various holds.

5. No either choil or guard?

No problem. guards can sometimes get in the way, and choils can waste blade real estate.

I totally appreciate you don't really like these features, but most of these knife features have stood the test of time for a reason.

 

[afishhunter]

3. Lanyard hole?
I never put string on any of my knives and I can't see point of it for anything except larger fixed blades you can chop with.

Lanyard holes, bails/shackles come in handy for knives and tools that you may be using in a situation where dropping it would be catastrophic, such as on the water and the knife could go overboard, working on a ladder or scaffolding (or worse, hoisted up a 60 or 70 foot mast to replace a bad sheave and pin or Halyard)
I keep a 32 inch chain lanyard on those that dropping and/or losing would be a bad thing.
View attachment 1792189
32 inches is longer than my reach, so I don't have to remove the lanyards. Swivels at each end prevent the chain from twisting when turning screws or nuts/bolts.

EDIT:
BTW, I've never had an Opinel or Ontario 499 "Jet Pilot Survival Knife" turn in my hand when cutting something. Off hand, I can't think of a knife with a rounder grip than those two. .

 

[killgar]

There's no way I would head out into the wild with just a disposable lighter for a fire starter. I've had them come apart in my hand, seen the same happen to others, and seen them break into pieces when someone accidently dropped one and stepped on it, or stuck it momentarily in their back pocket, forgot it was there, and sat on a rock.

I learned to start a fire at the age of twelve with just flint and steel, no magnesium, just natural tinder. And during my camping/hiking days fire starting equipment was one of those vital areas of gear that I carried multiples of- lighter, flint, and waterproof strike-anywhere matches.

As for the topic of "knife features" that I don't get- deer hoof knife handles.

Not only do I find them downright macabre, but they seem very impractical, especially for an "outdoors" knife. I assume a hair-covered, petrified deer foot would absorb water, blood and other animal fluids, and that the shape would be awkward to grip. I'd rather cut a branch from a tree and carve a handle out of that. I would also think that they would be a magnet for beetles and other critters that like to munch on hair, dried flesh, and hoof material.

Not for me. But hey, if others like them, more power to you.

 

[Dergyll]

Triad Lock.

There, I said it. My body's ready for the hatemails.

 

[Gabriel Velasco]

1. Sharp spine?
Scraping without dulling your sharp blade. Personally, it seems lazy to me when they don't grind a good 90 degree edge on the spine. It seems like they just wanted to leave out a step to save time and money.

2. Scandi grind?
You usually see scandi grinds on thinner blades. Blade makers know that scandi doesn't work as well with thick blades. The thinner the blade, the better suited it is for scandi, hence scalpels. You tend to see scandis on "workers" knives that are pretty much disposable or designed to be quickly and easily sharpened by a worker on the field with nothing but a stone or the edge of their automobile window. They won't necessarily have the time, the tools, or the skill to make a good hollow grind. Scandi tends to be popular with wood workers doing fine detailed work with soft woods.

3. Lanyard hole?
Ask a diver about lanyard holes, or a lineman, or an astronaut. I'm sure they put them on lots of knives that don't really need them, but there's a good reason for many knives to have them. If you're in any situation where you might lose grip of your knife and you don't want it to fall out of reach, then you'll want to put it on a lanyard. All neck knives are on a lanyard even if the hole is in the sheath instead of the knife, but I've seen workers in forests and fields carrying their machetes across their shoulder on a lanyard.

4. Really round handle?
Wood workers like a tool that will twist and rotate in their hand.

5. No either choil or guard?
I haven't checked all of my knives to see how many are missing a choil, but it seems to me that it's pretty obvious where the grind ends and the ricasso begins. Not all knives are made for stabbing things. Many woodworking knives are missing a guard.

 

[jiggyfly16]

About bic lighters. I’ve had some that when wet they wouldn’t spark and some that were in a backpack somehow bled the fuel out. That’s when a ferro rod saved the day as we were cold and wet. I still carry a bic to lite a fire and my smokes. They are just so much handier.

It would be funny if someone asked for a light and get a face full of ferro spark