Knives with questionable design

JustinMFrost said:
This is an interesting one... I think there's also a good conversation to be had about what you're calling questionable design. I'm the first to admire that I like unorthodox/out-of-the-ordinary design so long as I find it usable in one way or another. Prime example is anything by the late Elijah Isham. Some people here likely despise his outlandish designs, however many of them are quite functional. I own a WE Pleroma, and a Kizer Minitherium and both work quite well — the Kizer makes for a decent camp food prep chopper, and the Pleroma is quite daily carry friendly. A good Wharncliffe goes a long ways.

If talking about poor design choices, the handle of my Chaves Redencion 229. Way more chunky and heavy than they need to be. Genuinely debating having the handles reprofiled into something usable.
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Some of Elijah's designs definitely fall under the this is cool, but not necessarily something I'd use category. I really like my Civivi Plethiros and the Kizer Megatherium is a model I have a lot of interest in getting at some point. I love the design of the Reticulan but it's just too small.

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SomebodySomewhere said:
I love quirky designs, but the now-discontinued Kizer Crocotool always struck me as kind of crazy -- the blade served as the handle for a prybar. It had a Kydex cover, but call me paranoid, I’m just not good with applying force with a sharpened object pointed right into my palm, even if there is a plastic sandwich around it.
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There's just too much stuff that can go wrong with it.
 
All pocket knives with thick or steep grind angles. To me a pocket knife is intended to be a slicer primarily, stabber a distant secondary, but not a chopper and not even a cutter. Nope, for me a worthy pocket knife should be like a small chefs knife, with a super shallow grind, either a thin hollow or full flat. Took me a long time and a lot of failed experiences to realize and determine this. It's why I have such a love affair with Spyderco, they simply get it.

I do agree about cleavers though. Partly because they're designed to be choppers with steep angles, and partly because a knife should still be able to stab, so a pointed edge is important and necessary.

Also slip joints are a terrible design flaw for anything outside of the simplest of box opening tasks and on anything larger than a small SAK.
 
The Grendels said:
Some of Elijah's designs definitely fall under the this is cool, but not necessarily something I'd use category. I really like my Civivi Plethiros and the Kizer Megatherium is a model I have a lot of interest in getting at some point. I love the design of the Reticulan but it's just too small.

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That's fair. The mini Reticulan (the 2") is quite silly but the "standard size" looks just about right for me. I'm a city dweller, so anything of mine that's over 3" doesn't come out of the house unless I'm heading into the woods. I do really want to pick up an Arrakis at one point — also not SUPER usable. I've heard the Aeterna is pretty functional though!
 
I have a Spyderco Lil Native with a compression lock. When I try to close it, the blade bounces off my fingernail. This annoys me greatly. The Para 2, PM3, Sliverax, and Caribbean Salt close fully without any problem.

Apparently the Shaman has the same problem. I have seen Youtube reviews where the guy repeatedly opens and closes the knife and the blade keeps bouncing instead of closing properly. Also see the review, "The Spyderco Shaman is Overrated," by 555 Gear.
 
What's our definition of cleaver? This, to be certain.
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See this Kizer? I am not really one for brands like this, but fact is, it's 10V and I do one stab for every 10 cutting tasks, this can still stab, though, and, surprisingly thin. Just looks sweet and does a good job of being a knife, its thin as hell at the edge and spine. Thinner than my Spydercos, most, or as thin, at the edge. Reason I have a few is super steel beaters, 10V is near K390


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K.O.D. said:
In all my days as a professional assassin, I've never had my hand slip onto the blade while stabbing someone. Maybe its that I'm just THAT good. Not sure, but seems a non issue.
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I actually prefer not to have a guard so I can follow the blade with my hand and pull the still-beating heart out. But that's just me.
 
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Or these, my Janich Wharncliffes which sometimes get called cleavers, or "Batman knife" as my fiance calls the blacked out Jumbo.


These are very useful for multiple purposes though, have an acute stabbing point, very thin at the edge.. I have heard the argument around here a lot lately, how much stabbing does one usually do who isn't a radish farmer or doing whatever obscure thing? I am glad they put the version in Cruwear out. Good counter to the S90V (which I do not have, and sold my 20CV Jimbo).
 
Is this a thread about personal opinions, or opinions towards knives carried for EDC or camp? Because we have talk of wood cutting to slitting throats.

I understand that the people recruited to fight as soldiers in dire times like in Finland back in the day, you use anything, but why, in our day of choice, would a simple overmould for a guard, which you can get in a Mora, the cheapest Mora, be neglected? That is if you absolutely must have your Puukko double as a stabbing, fighting knife, which I understand wanting to have, too. I do more with the tip when carving than just about any other time, and I like a hand guard just for stability. I can do without, though. I never, ever would fight with the Puukko by choice, but a few I have could make the mark.

The BudK Mora Companion ripoffs that sell for like 5 bucks and sometimes get reground to a tanto or whatever and sprayed black w/ USMC insignia is the first thought I had when tactical Puukko was mentioned. I have a Santoprene-grip Benchmade Puukko that is very, very secure in the hand, to support stabbing, so that is the closest to a "tactical" Puukko I have... though it has no guard. Neither does my Mora 122, which has a much smoother grip, smooth wood, than the Benchmade, but I can fix that, and it is a great carver.

Some of my fave Puukkos, none with tactical intention. The 122 on the left is discontinued and a favorite carver, as is the purple Precision. The Benchmade 200 is a sweet general purpose knife, and the Companion HD is something I have had sitting in an emergency bag that I want to try out.
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Drop bear said:
I have a folding cleaver and found it surprisingly useful.

Think sheepsfoot not chopper.

It handles clamshell packets really well.
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Yeah, I used to think folding cleavers were silly. Then I got a Kizer Sheepddog. In use, it acts like a Sheepsfoot. That's something I already liked.

The added surprise was how much I enjoy the action. Using a flipper tab to fling out that relatively large rectangle of steel and the sound of lock-up are more satisfying than I expected.
 
JayDeep said:
Also slip joints are a terrible design flaw for anything outside of the simplest of box opening tasks and on anything larger than a small SAK.
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Dunno about all of that, I've done quite a lot of heavy work with a douk douk. Most slip joint knives will do darn near anything you can do with a lock blade that involves separating material.
 
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