Less hyped or noticeable knife characteristics which are important to you

David Mary said:
Agreed. I might go about it differently than what you described though.

For example, my seven inch bladed Shranto has just a hair over 3/16” stock, but is more than strong enough for any kind of use a knife this size should be expected to fulfill.

It’s not a super wide blade, and is a full height grind I call flatvex. Just a gobbledygook word I started using for “convex that seems flat at a glance”.

And at an inch longer in blade than the G10 handled Ratmandu I used to own, it weighs the same with the sheath as that knife did on its own. Will the RMD be better at breaking cinder blocks? Yes. Will the Shranto out cut it all day and all night? You bet.
Click to expand...
A very interesting knife you made there.
There are many ways to get to the criteria of "light yet durable". Thank you for sharing your experience and opinion. My custom blade has a higher edge angle at the tip to reinforce it, still not intended for heavy prying like your American Tanto point.

Huntsman Knife Co. LLC. said:
2. LIGHT WEIGHT- this is such a big one. Most big knives are way too heavy. Making a big knife light weight without compromising strength is very challenging and costly. Most manufacturers just skip it all together and don't list the weight of their blades. A huge amount of the expense in my own knives comes from cutting out weight.

Also, thin stock. Making a thin knife is HARD. Harder to get right when grinding or milling, thinner steel is actually more expensive per/lbs, and warpage is a constant threat. When I see an ultra thin knife, I'm impressed.
Click to expand...

Thank you for the insight about making thin blades.
I see that blades around 2.5mm - 4mm thick are not uncommon, and blades at thickness is quite good for most tasks. I have a number of 10-12cm (~4") knives from 2mm to 3.5mm thick and they are plenty tough and sharp.

When some knives cost almost or even the same as a commissioned custom knife, I expect them to do better than just being thicker knives. I understand that some manufacturers have taken that path to be able to value their warranty and claims, but come on.
 
Deino said:
A very interesting knife you made there.
There are many ways to get to the criteria of "light yet durable". Thank you for sharing your experience and opinion. My custom blade has a higher edge angle at the tip to reinforce it, still not intended for heavy prying like your American Tanto point.



Thank you for the insight about making thin blades.
I see that blades around 2.5mm - 4mm thick are not uncommon, and blades at thickness is quite good for most tasks. I have a number of 10-12cm (~4") knives from 2mm to 3.5mm thick and they are plenty tough and sharp.

When some knives cost almost or even the same as a commissioned custom knife, I expect them to do better than just being thicker knives. I understand that some manufacturers have taken that path to be able to value their warranty and claims, but come on.
Click to expand...

I agree, Most knives we see are too thick.
 
I don't necessarily enjoy sharpening choils but it seems to be really difficult for knife companies to do the plunge lines correctly without them. Lots of smileys if you're sharpening freehand. Huge finger choils are gross and make no sense to me.
 
I like a knife that knows it's function.

Unless it's a show piece, it should be easy to sharpen. I have little use for design elements that make the knife look more aggressive that are just for show.

I also dislike anything fragile on a knife. I'm going to throw it in my pocket with keys and another knife. I'm going to drop it occasionally, I'm going to use it, and I am going to sharpen it.

But since I am a desk jockey, I don't mind a bit of understated bling.
 
I like a thin blade stock, as long as it has a good steel with an appropriate heat treat, AND a lack of abuse on my part then I should not need a thick blade stock, and it will cut much better. This is why I am a fan of hollow grinds, they are so thin behind the edge they cut like a dream.
Also, someone mentioned that they liked a strong pocket clip but I am the opposite. I want a "well tuned" pocket clip, tight enough that it will not fall out of my pocket easily, but not so tight that I am having to fight with the knife to get it out and back into my pocket. In my opinion the entire point of having a pocket clip is easy access, and some are way too tight so I end up bending them to loosen them up some :eek:
I also think it is important to have good thumbstuds. I realize this is a trick from a designers point of view, because they need to be large enough and accessible enough to be able to easily deploy the blade, but well placed and not so big that they get in the way of sharpening, take away from the effective cutting length of the blade, or hang on your pocket when trying to draw the knife. Some do a really good job of balancing this, some not so much.
 
I'll get roasted for this, but that's OK. 🤣 If we were all the same, the world would be a boring place.

Just give me a decent nail notch. I don't have any interest in thumb studs or big holes. :D
 
Triple_D said:
I'll get roasted for this, but that's OK. 🤣 If we were all the same, the world would be a boring place.

Just give me a decent nail notch. I don't have any interest in thumb studs or big holes. :D
Click to expand...
Whatever you’re roasting…I’ll be there. HA!
 
Hmmm…there’s a brand whose identity is based on holes in the blade. Also, every folder has a minimum of one hole in the blade.
 
chevyrulez1 said:
I like a thin blade stock, as long as it has a good steel with an appropriate heat treat, AND a lack of abuse on my part then I should not need a thick blade stock, and it will cut much better. This is why I am a fan of hollow grinds, they are so thin behind the edge they cut like a dream.
Also, someone mentioned that they liked a strong pocket clip but I am the opposite. I want a "well tuned" pocket clip, tight enough that it will not fall out of my pocket easily, but not so tight that I am having to fight with the knife to get it out and back into my pocket. In my opinion the entire point of having a pocket clip is easy access, and some are way too tight so I end up bending them to loosen them up some :eek:
I also think it is important to have good thumbstuds. I realize this is a trick from a designers point of view, because they need to be large enough and accessible enough to be able to easily deploy the blade, but well placed and not so big that they get in the way of sharpening, take away from the effective cutting length of the blade, or hang on your pocket when trying to draw the knife. Some do a really good job of balancing this, some not so much.
Click to expand...

I guess I've run into a few too many that were under-tuned, and if the Goldilocks Zone is not an option, I'll take too much.

Now I think about it, there is another thing about pocket clips, which is just as difficult to describe.

Some pocket clips seem to snag on everything. Some stay nicely out of the way.

Benchmade clips, for example. They bend up at the end instead of having a flat tab, and it seems like it wants to reach out and grab everything I walk past, if it doesn't already have ahold of the hem of my shirt.
 
David Mary said:
I like thin knives and thick knives. But the thick knives need due attention to their geometry so they will still cut, and their balance so they will still sing.
Click to expand...
Thick knives do have their place. I'm looking for something similar to the Austrian M1853 Pioneer sword, a heavy short sword, mostly for fun.

Larrin said:
I will add one more that drives me crazy from an engineering perspective: stress risers. I see too many knives broken at sharp jimping and holes in the blade.
Click to expand...
The mention of stress risers, I would say that durable hidden tang blades is really underrated. Without sharp cut (stress riser) and thick enough tang and good length, hidden tang is light and also durable, plus it is warm in hand. Nevertheless, it is harder to make handle for it. The full length and width tang is kind of overhyped/overrated.
 
Deino said:
I'm looking for something similar to the Austrian M1853 Pioneer sword, a heavy short sword, mostly for fun.
Click to expand...

Cool that does sound fun. I’m making something similar for a friend. Hope you’re able to find one too!
 
Deino said:
Thick knives do have their place. I'm looking for something similar to the Austrian M1853 Pioneer sword, a heavy short sword, mostly for fun.


The mention of stress risers, I would say that durable hidden tang blades is really underrated. Without sharp cut (stress riser) and thick enough tang and good length, hidden tang is light and also durable, plus it is warm in hand. Nevertheless, it is harder to make handle for it. The full length and width tang is kind of overhyped/overrated.
Click to expand...

Hidden tang isn't harder to make, it's just different.

-It's great we have choices, and makers who do them.
 
Deino said:
Thick knives do have their place. I'm looking for something similar to the Austrian M1853 Pioneer sword, a heavy short sword, mostly for fun.


The mention of stress risers, I would say that durable hidden tang blades is really underrated. Without sharp cut (stress riser) and thick enough tang and good length, hidden tang is light and also durable, plus it is warm in hand. Nevertheless, it is harder to make handle for it. The full length and width tang is kind of overhyped/overrated.
Click to expand...
The CS Recon Tanto is pretty darn thick but still cuts decently. Thick knives can be dumb fun too. Not every knife needs to be a LAZERRR SWORD.

Thin blade stock knives I prefer on folders and smaller fixed blades.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top