Random thoughts of a tired man.... what do I want from a knife?

[Diomedes Industries]

What do I expect from a knife? What am I looking for? Why do I keep searching?

Sometimes I wonder if what I am searching for is something impossible.

I want a comfortable handle that fits in multiple positions well.
I want a blade to cut deeply and be a very hungry blade when needed.
A blade that can baton easily and not be damaged.
I want a tip that is strong but drills well.
I want a blade that is wide enough to fit a thumb and finger on the blade in case it needs to be choked up on - but not so wide that thin cuts cannot be made in wood.
I want a blade that slices well.
I want steel that is strong enough to hold an edge well - but is easy to sharpen.


Here is what I am finding after over a year of searching.

I have many blades that fit some - but not all of these criterion.

My BRKT Kephart is awesome - but is not as hungry as my Scandi ground blades - and does not have as sharp of pointed tip as it could.

My Koster is awesome - but it does not slice as well as convex blades - and dulls easier than others. 01 takes an aweome edge - but dulls easier than CPM 154. S3V is awesome steel but you need to have a super sharpener - or an endless supply wet dry.

My BRKT H&K Forum knife is awesome - but not as nimble as my Gunny and not as good of a slicer as my Kephart.

Walt Davis made me some awesome knives - some were a little wide, some were a little thick - and frankly - I love to get more of his knives - so I sell others to make way for more.

Hell - my Mora is awesome - but the steel is not very tough in batoning - and is not as strong as other knives (lack of full tang - and thinner steel)

What the hell is my point?

Not that I should carry MANY knives - but that all of these knives do certain things VERY well - and other draw backs. Not one knife will do everything - nor will they do other things as well as other knives.

However - I have come to realize that every knife that I keep, that is well made and well executed, has its own personality and does its own thing

I should not try for one knife, that there is not one perfect knife, but always a compromise, and try, instead, to choose knives to do the things that I do with them, in the way that I do them. Not to find the perfect knife, but find the best knife, or a few knives, for me.

What do you all think?

TF

 

[dbltap45acp]

This is one of the best threads started since I joined this forum. We have many of the same thoughts my friend. Have some fun with your continued search.

 

[Masteroffajitas]

I here you. I don't have as much experiance with different blade shapes and style as you, but I also long for the perfect knife, which is why I carry more than one.

 

[LMT66]

As long as Bladeforums exists....the search will never end

 

[batosai117]

This already sounds like a great thread, I'm saving this for tomorrow (it's bedtime tonight :yawn

 

[Rotte]

I think at some level I've stopped searching for the perfect knife and now see all knives as being perfect in some way. The Wharncliffe is just as perfect as the trailing edge skinner. They are both perfect in their own way. Zen and the art of cutlery.

There are days when I think I'll give all my knives away but one. And learn how to use that one as well as possible. Really know that one knife. And then I visit this forum and think, "Ooohh, that looks great."

 

[Odaon]

We'll see what Andy makes for ya, maybe it's.... "The One".

 

[pitdog]

My thoughts ( for what they are worth ) is that you are never going to have all your knives with you and yet you can't always plan what will be required of them.
For this reason I am still searching for the ' grail knife ' it will not excel at every task but should perform many tasks to a high degree !

 

[Diomedes Industries]

I agree Pit - but what I find is that many knives fit the 'many tasks to a high degree' bill - they just do some things very well - and others not as well as others.

TF

 

[mtnfolk mike]

As long as Bladeforums exists....the search will never end

ha.. i hear you on this one man.. you are not alone... and yes the search will go on...

 

[XMP]

In a strange way I wonder if it wouldn't be easier to find the perfect knife if we didn't have so many choices. The mountain men had few knife choices so they learned how to use one or two basic styles of knives to process game, cook, do woodcraft, fight, etc. We have so many choices that if a knife doesn't excel at a task we move on to search for a new knife. But if we (or I) only had two or three knives I bet I'd learn how to use them efficiently for all the things I want a knife to do. I think most of us, myself included, don't live with a knife or two on a daily basis for an extended period of time. If we did I bet we'd find that miraculously they do all kinds of things well (because our skill with that specific knife would improve immensely).

I'm tempted to limit myself to a couple of knives for a year to see if my theory is true. Unfortunatley, I fail when I see something new that tempts me and my plan to limit myself falls by the wayside.

 

[mcjhrobinson]

i think brian andrews tonys bushcrafter is my grail knife....what sucks is im broke and he's not making knives....

i also drool over koyotes camp knife challenge....i actually dream about using it.

other than that on a recent trip my bushcrafter jr from fiddleback WOW'd me...no task was too big. i still dig my mora 510....cheap enough to carry 2 of them.

 

[Darbyfett]

I honestly think I have found THE knives for me. Comfort, cutting ability etc. While I haven't beat up on them much, I love em.

Swamp Fox belt knife. May not look it but that stag feels like it was fit to my hand

And this little beauty, shes not as pretty anymore

...not that these knives will stop me from buy more lol

 

[mcjhrobinson]

In a strange way I wonder if it wouldn't be easier to find the perfect knife if we didn't have so many choices. The mountain men had few knife choices so they learned how to use one or two basic styles of knives to process game, cook, do woodcraft, fight, etc. We have so many choices that if a knife doesn't excel at a task we move on to search for a new knife. But if we (or I) only had two or three knives I bet I'd learn how to use them efficiently for all the things I want a knife to do. I think most of us, myself included, don't live with a knife or two on a daily basis for an extended period of time. If we did I bet we'd find that miraculously they do all kinds of things well (because our skill with that specific knife would improve immensely).

I'm tempted to limit myself to a couple of knives for a year to see if my theory is true. Unfortunatley, I fail when I see something new that tempts me and my plan to limit myself falls by the wayside.

i agree...when given a bazillion choices the grass could ALWAYS be greener. i think this is why im fascinated with large bowies...or any big knife

 

[Rick Marchand]

I see what the problem is, TF..... you just haven't designed your own knife yet. I know a few makers that can make your dreamknife a reality!

Rick

 

[SouthernCross]

G'day TF

I must be lucky.

I've found the knife that suits me perfectly and meets all the criteria you have outlined well enough for me to not bother searching for something better.

Good luck to all those who continue to search :thumbup:



Kind regards
Mick

 

[koyote]

What do I expect from a knife? What am I looking for? Why do I keep searching?

Sometimes I wonder if what I am searching for is something impossible.

I want a comfortable handle that fits in multiple positions well.
I want a blade to cut deeply and be a very hungry blade when needed.
A blade that can baton easily and not be damaged.
I want a tip that is strong but drills well.
I want a blade that is wide enough to fit a thumb and finger on the blade in case it needs to be choked up on - but not so wide that thin cuts cannot be made in wood.
I want a blade that slices well.
I want steel that is strong enough to hold an edge well - but is easy to sharpen.

I like the list, it's really close to mine. Several of those items were why I started in the first place! I don't think there's an absolute- there's a gradient on some aspects. Oh, you can definitely have a thin slicing blade that will baton well all day long and hold a good, solid, easy to maintain edge. Some of the other factors involve some give and take-

There's a tripod of drilling/poking tip, a broad blade for choking up, and good baton performance that tend to have the most tradeoff for me.

 

[Skimo]

My personal opinion is that the perfect all around knife cannot exist in a 3 dimensional world.

Great handles abound, perfect handles must be custom made.

As far as performance goes, I'd say go for the "Daniel Day Lewis of Gangs of New York" approach. carry what you are going to use.

My Craftsman tools aren't customized to work perfectly with minimal space between my sockets and my drivers. I don't expect my drill to act as a spiral saw.

I guess what I'm saying is having a few knives to carry really isn't a bad deal, at lest in my opinion.

 

[kgd]

Scientists are used to giving philosophers sound advice about the truth so here it goes. The reason you love knives only has partly to do with its performance characteristics. At first you only see the technical details of the knife. As you grow to learn more about technicalities you are start to consider more subtle aspects of form for function. Eventually you begin to learn more and that once utilitarian aspect in a fuzzy way starts to become superseded by an aesthetic sense. What once was a functional aspect, lets say a handle contour for comfort, now becomes part of an aesthetic aspect and the aesthetic aspect wants a little bit more, smoothing or curvature apart from the actual function. Your search image begins to slowly transform mixing functional and aesthetic aspects. You begin looking at cutlery with art, beauty, emotional responses while the rational mind tries to temper this with function.

Here in W&SS we resist the aesthetic sense using mantra's like form for function. We focus our discussion and reviews on performance attributes and ergonomics as it applies to utilitarian outdoor tasks. We do this all the while choosing, non-utilitarian but eye pleasing handle materials. I think it is safe to say that handle materials and wonderful leather sheaths are compromises to utility. They have their merits in function, but micarta and kydex (apart from noise) are about as perfect utility as you can get. Yet I love desert ironwood and a leather sheath. Even the smell of a leather sheath has aesthetic attributes.

"I'm a user and I don't have any safe queens" our rational mind insists. The rational mind is an obnoxious brute most of the time, you have to admit. Fortunately, the aesthetic sense is a sneaky bastard. Its able to subtly manipulate and twist those rationalities. Most times the rational mind doesn't even know why the heck it is rationalize things, other than to mold the criteria and parameters to fit what the aesthetic sense wants.

In the end, we are knife lovers. We came to the hobby because a very base part of us recognized the tool for more than a tool. We frequent W&SS because our aesthetic sense has twisted and perverted our love for the outdoors as much as our love for cutlery. Yeah, sure, its all about the survival skills, not dreamily staring off into your campfire flame at night, smoking your cigar while contemplating the only view of stars that can be had any longer or sliding your canoe through an early mist. Nope, its all about survival and that desert iron wood blade with turquoise spacers sporting a 3 layer patina with initials etched into the hilt and $75 leather sheath is all about function

 

[Diomedes Industries]

I think this is partially true for me KGD. It reminds me of reviewing Stompers knife - most of my criticisms pertained to aesthetics.

However, the other portion concerned the usability of this item. I think that form should come first, but it can't look poor to me either. However, a Kephart is a pretty ugly knife in my opinion - but it works SO well that I use it.

All great thoughts.

TF