New design, critique welcome.

Well you asked. I believe the handle is too long and the blade too short. As well I don't believe you have given it any styling or practical purpose by leaving the top of the blade extended like that. Still, it's YOUR design and that's good. Frank
 
Before I saw Frank's post I was thinking the same thing. Too much handle too little blade. It's a great idea to make sure that your designs have enough handle to be comfortable and useable, but you can overdo it and I think this is one of those times. I'd love to see a bit more edge on this one.

Even though you aren't using it in the in hand pic, the cutout/finger choil you have at the ricasso area is big enough that you could safely choke up and use it as part of your grip, giving you plenty of space to shorten the handle.

I think with a few tweaks it could be a wicked looking mini cleaver, chopper, whatever. Like Frank said, it's your design....take it and run with it wherever you like:thumbup:
 
The idea with the long handle is that I can choke up for fine work or slide my hand back for chopping. I'll try a longer blade and shorter handle on the next one though.
 
Sounds good!:thumbup: I'm a big fan of experimentation, and despite what Frank and I thought initially when seeing the design, it could still be very viable. You don't know until you put it to work, so I say go for it.

.....I'd still love to see it with some design tweaks though ;)
 
Consider this. Keeping your over all length you could've shorten the handle and lengthen the blade and not need to slide you hand back for chopping.

Also if you drop the tip a bit and grind a nice clip it will give the blade even more character.

Good work and keep us posted.
 
While the hook at the back of the belly adds interest to the design it will have a tendency to catch and tear if you use the knife for slicing. On the other hand if your intention is to use it like the dogs on a chainsaw then it might be useful. The advantage of your tanto design is that you can have 2 very different bevels on the blade without worrying to much about the transition. The belly for chopping and the point for scraping.
 
Spent about 10 min rough grinding the bevels in here are the results.



I really like the idea of adding a clip but I'm not sure how well It will look.
 
scs.knives said:
Spent about 10 min rough grinding the bevels in here are the results.



I really like the idea of adding a clip but I'm not sure how well It will look.
Click to expand...

Now that you have a picture, a simple thing I do is open the pic up in Paint and erase the part of the blade you would clip. Then I can stand back and look at it before making a permanent decision.
 
Also if y'all have any ideas on hole placement feel free to share. All I know is that I want a lanyard hole on the end of the handle.
 
scs.knives said:
The idea with the long handle is that I can choke up for fine work or slide my hand back for chopping. I'll try a longer blade and shorter handle on the next one though.
Click to expand...
Have you considered the blade thickness and grind when thinking about fine work and chopping? It looks like it will be a pretty unique chopper/ camp style knife, but if the intent is to be used in a kitchen, it might function better if the grind is higher or ground both sides vs. chisel ground. Otherwise, keep truckin'!
 
Its not intended for kitchen use, but it is only slightly thicker than 1/8 so it should work fine if needed.
 
I really like the blade design, kind of reminds me of DJ Urbanovsky's knives. I'm not a fan of the handle though, I would shorten is a little and flare out the end of the handle. It's like there is really good flow to the knife and then it just drops off into nothing at the end of it.
 
I've never had an ax or clever beveled on only one side, which seems to be somewhat popular these days. Does it cut/chop any better or worse than when it's beveled on both sides? I guess I don't know what, if any, benefit there is in a single sided beveled blade.

I think I remember reading that a convex grind is better for chopping than a flat or concave grind, or am I just making this up?

- Paul Meske
 
I'd say rough-finish it out, then take it and use it hard for the tasks you want it to be good at. You will learn a lot more after trying to use it than you will be able to predict without using it. I keep re-learning that lesson with gun grips - what seems like a good idea at the workbench may just not work out right once you get it in the field. Also it will help to take another knife you like out into the field with it, so you can compare their pros and cons.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top