Question about GEC Sunfish

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davide

Joined
Apr 5, 2009
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I saw this note on http://www.collectorknives.net/greateastern.html about the GEC Sunfish:

"For safety reasons, these GEC Sunfish knives do not have the closing snap of other patterns. They are radius cut and the closing action is very slow. It is not a defect, but something the buyer needs to be informed about."

What does radius cut mean? Does the knife act more like a friction folder with minimal back spring tension?
 
I don`t really know. My sunfish walks and talks like any other knife. It snaps shut a little closer to the handle,Maybe thats what it means. Less chance of getting your finger in the way?
 
The blades have a "cam end" tang - not square end. Depending on how a rounded end tang is designed though, the snap may or may not be softer than a square end tang -- but the rounded end tang will start it's snap somewhat closer to the handle. I prefer this behavior - I've never nicked myself with a cam end tang blade, since I naturally move my hand out of the way of the blade as it gets closer to the handle.
 
zerogee said:
The blades have a "cam end" tang - not square end. Depending on how a rounded end tang is designed though, the snap may or may not be softer than a square end tang -- but the rounded end tang will start it's snap somewhat closer to the handle. I prefer this behavior - I've never nicked myself with a cam end tang blade, since I naturally move my hand out of the way of the blade as it gets closer to the handle.
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I've noticed that the bottle opener on Victorinox Swiss Army knives closes that way as well, which is to say that it does not start to force itself down until it is almost all the way back in the handle. Do those have a cam end tang as well?
 
i noticed the dfferent closing action right away & certainly liked it since that master blade is a big chunk of carbon steel. my curoiousity was'nt enough to inquire since fit & finish are all about gec knives. members certainly know how impressed i am with the edge holding of the 1095.i'm sorry i have'nt been diligent enough to test the 440c [probably because of a long bias against that alloy].however the magic they do with 1095 may carry over to the 440c.
 
I think your question has been answered quit nicely. If you have half stops on GEC backsprings, there is a significant amount of pressure to close once you pass the 45degree mark. With radius cut (cam) that pressure is more evenly disbursed thru the closing motion. But if you are accustomed to GEC's snap from 45degree, you need to be aware these are more like historical Toenails.

Mike Latham
CollectorKnives.Net
 
I sure as heck wouldn't want a wicked snap on my GEC Sunfish!

That big main blade would be like a mini guillotine. :eek:
 
Thanks for the responses guys. It sounds quite well designed. So the three options for slipjoints and their respective opening/closing actions are

1. Normal: snaps open->snaps shut
2. Half-stop: snaps to 90 degrees, snaps open->snaps to 90 degrees, snaps shut
3. Radius cut: snaps open->closes slowly

?
 
davide said:
Thanks for the responses guys. It sounds quite well designed. So the three options for slipjoints and their respective opening/closing actions are

1. Normal: snaps open->snaps shut
2. Half-stop: snaps to 90 degrees, snaps open->snaps to 90 degrees, snaps shut
3. Radius cut: snaps open->closes slowly

?
Click to expand...

Ummm, no, not quite -- a "radius cut" tang (awkward term, only ever seen GEC use it - usually it's called a rounded or cam end tang) is normally the same as #1 -- snaps open/snaps closed, no half stop. It's main characteristics are that it has a smoother feel without the half stop (some people feel half stops are rather like a scratch in a record - and if the spring is overly strong, I tend to agree) and that it starts it's downward snap (either to open or to closed) closer to the handle. While a square tang/half stop tang blade will start its snap from just past 45 degrees, a rounded/cam end tang starts its snap at more like 30 degrees or a bit less -- since the blade is accelerated by the spring for a shorter distance, the snap is normally not as hard as an equivalent square end tang (and since the blade is a lot closer to the handle before it begins the snap, you're much more likely to have naturally moved all your assorted body parts out of the way already).

There is another tang style out there that I absolutely *hate* -- it's a rounded tang with a flat spot in the center. So you have something that feels either like a square tang with worn off corners, or a rounded tang that someone really failed to finish shaping properly. Sometimes it's not a full flat, but it's flattened enough to give a weird pause in opening/closing. It's a soggy, nasty feeling action regardless.

-- Dwight
 
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zerogee said:
Ummm, no, not quite -- a "radius cut" tang (awkward term, only ever seen GEC use it - usually it's called a rounded or cam end tang) is normally the same as #1 -- snaps open/snaps closed, no half stop. It's main characteristics are that it has a smoother feel without the half stop (some people feel half stops are rather like a scratch in a record - and if the spring is overly strong, I tend to agree) and that it starts it's downward snap (either to open or to closed) closer to the handle. While a square tang/half stop tang blade will start its snap from just past 45 degrees, a rounded/cam end tang starts its snap at more like 30 degrees or a bit less -- since the blade is accelerated by the spring for a shorter distance, the snap is normally not as hard as an equivalent square end tang (and since the blade is a lot closer to the handle before it begins the snap, you're much more likely to have naturally moved all your assorted body parts out of the way already).

There is another tang style out there that I absolutely *hate* -- it's a rounded tang with a flat spot in the center. So you have something that feels either like a square tang with worn off corners, or a rounded tang that someone really failed to finish shaping properly. Sometimes it's not a full flat, but it's flattened enough to give a weird pause in opening/closing. It's a soggy, nasty feeling action regardless.

-- Dwight
Click to expand...

That was very helpful, Dwight, thank you. Just one more thing (of many) that I fail to understand: why is it that the bottle opener on my Swiss Army Climber has half-stops but almost no spring tension at all when closing it? Is that due to the fact that it is sharing a spring with other tools?
 
davide said:
That was very helpful, Dwight, thank you. Just one more thing (of many) that I fail to understand: why is it that the bottle opener on my Swiss Army Climber has half-stops but almost no spring tension at all when closing it? Is that due to the fact that it is sharing a spring with other tools?
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I don't have one so I can't say for sure. It may have a shortened/reduced tang to make it easier to open (it's a very short blade, so you don't have any real leverage at the nail nick - shortened/reduced tang means spring gets moved less) -- if so, just about anything could keep it from snapping -- it could be its spring's a bit too thick on that end and is getting pinched a little.
 
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I only own one toe nail so far, a fight'n rooster, and that huge blade scares me as I close it. I would prefer a smooth action with light snap to close, to keep the perspiration down.
 
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