My latest...

[Phillip Patton]

Not just the length (Which may be OK) but the width and thickness are suspect. Love the blade..not sure of the handle..

Philip, don't be a slave to the BOLTS..take that blade and make it stick tang, one piece handle, single pin
Make the handle fit the blade...not the handle fit the bolts..

Nice effort

I guess I should have made it more clear in the original post, that this was a custom order. The customer wanted a full tang knife, so I had to work around that. I do agree the handle should be a little thicker, but the customer let me know he's happy with it the way it is.
What thickness and width do you think the handle for a blade this size should be? This handle is 11/16" at the thickest, and I could have actually had it 3/4"... It's 1-1/4" wide at the inside of the finger groove.
Thanks for the input, I do appreciate it. :thumbup:

I'm gonna go out on a limb here and share some constructive criticism
Here I go;

1-The choil seems to me to be too large lengthwise

2-Width across the ricasso is a smidge fat, a slightly slimmer profile here might be nice

3-The recurve seems to go a little deep, either that, or where it meets the choil drops too far down

4-Lanyard hole is either too big or in the wrong spot

5-If a fighting knife, 440c is a great choice.

6-I'd like the top swedge to come further back towards the ricasso

7-And my personal preference would be for a slight S shaped guard.

I dig the handle and the overall profile. It looks well made and seamless. The finish is super nice, that blade seems to shimmer.

I really love most of all your knives I've seen in here. I hope my comments are taken as they were intended, and as my personal opinions, keeping in mind I'm certainly no expert. But you asked for constructive criticism, so...

Hi Lorien,
I've numbered your points for ease of discussion.

I agree with point #1, the choil could be shorter, and that would give us more cutting edge, too.

#2 Personally, I don't think it looks too wide, and anyway, with a full tang, I can't do much to narrow it, without also narrowing the handle.

#3 Again, this more subjective, and I like it this way. So does the customer.

#4 I've settled on 5/16" tubing for lanyards, because I find it difficult to thread paracord through 1/4" tubing. Maybe I'm alone on this?
Where do you think the hole should be?

#5 Yup. I don't think it will be for fighting, though. The customer lives in Hawaii, and he wanted something that would be moisture resistant. I'm not sure what he wants it for, probably hacking through the jungle, or fighting raptors that escaped from the park.

#6. I agree here. Bringing the top grind closer to the guard would shorten the ricasso. Right now it is a lot of "empty space".

#7 Personally, I don't care for S guards.

I do take your comments as they were intended. Thank you for joining in this discussion. I value opinions, as well as "facts". Keep 'em coming.

Phillip

 

[Lorien]

Thanks for taking the time to acknowledge my post Phillip And to provide background for some of my comments. 'Good critique' requires exchange

I figured with all this talk on the forum about constructive criticism, critiquing and plain ole criticism, your invitation to comment on your latest knife couldn't be more timely. I wanted to have a crack at an honest chance to critique someone's work who I really like, (I'm a sucker for big knives, especially recurved ones). Actually, it started as constructive criticism, and now that you've responded, we're moving towards a critique

As for the lanyard hole, as the customer, I would have spec'd either a front lanyard or one at the bottom, (opposite side of where it is) of the handle.

I use a big knife when I build trails, which is something I do frequently and for long periods of time. Hotspots on handles really piss me off. I thought that the extra large lanyard hole, coupled with a placement that would put the lanyard under your palm would be problematic. However, I rarely use a lanyard anyway. But my new knife which is in Burt Foster's queue will have a front lanyard because I think there may be some leverage advantages to be had from that design.

Anyway, thanks again. I really do admire your general design influences and your talent at design and manufacturing execution. And as I develop into a 'collector', I'm hoping that at least one of your knives will become part of my collection.

 

[guysmalley]

Phillip
Love the knife (& your site) as a lay person I would buy the knife because of design & workmanship. I have been a cartoonist for over 36 years, work I have done years ago I appreciate for the time I made it , you are young but very good, years from now you will be even better but in a refined way. I just need to sell more drawings to buy one of you knives !!
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