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

[udtjim]

When it comes to knives or any other tool, you can keep seeking the perfect tool for the job, Or learn to do the job with the tools at hand. As a family growing up just after the great depression, we were in the second group for sure.

 

[Cpl Punishment]

The OP has to be one of the most intelligent posts ever made. It must be deleted immediately.

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.

Like Hell! I want a sexy blade! Heck, KI bought my Hellrazor because it looks cool, my Battle Mistress because it's one hot piece of a-- er, steel -- and only found out they cut stuff later!!

Now, there's no such thing as just one of anything that can do everything the best. There's no such thing as one thing that does everything well, or even fair. As for knives, I think you really can pare it down to TWO blades that do everything you want very well. Look at all cultures through history, and you see they had one big blade and one small blade, and could do everything they needed to with that pair.

 

[Anrkst6973]

take it from someone who owns a large number of knives and has given away many many knives..the "grail" does not exsist. Then again...nothing but nothing (knife related) could replace the joy of opening the package of my very first ever custom hand-made knife..here was steel designed and built just for me,just the I wanted it. Its like your first child,there may be 5 more after that but that first one..that experience,that feeling cannot be duplicated. I offer my most humble thanks to Bryan Breeden/ Breeden Knives. My little knife is 6 inches of pure perfection. I love it.

 

[FortyTwoBlades]

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

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

Two of the best posts I've read on this forum. All absolute truth. :thumbup::thumbup:

 

[sicily02]

Tf, I think you said it well at the end of your post no one knife does it all. BUT we can come very close with the layering system. Carry several and you will have the best set up you can have.

Bryan

 

[hollowdweller]

Great thread.

Most of my favorite knives I have now are very comfortable and cut well.

I think for me the main thing is I like something that has a nice point and a thin edge but then you run up against rolling or chipping.

I've sort of come to the conclusion that I'll bring my whetstone and put up with some extra sharpening to make up for that.

Also I spent like a week camping and backpacking and it is sort of eye opening how much I use my knife more for food prep than anything else. Then a really thin blade is much more handy.

I really love the 3v and D2 for the stain resistance and they are pretty hard but I keep going back in between them and the 01 because even with the increased hardness I still have to sharpen them and I think if I have to sharpen something 2 versus 3 times in the same period but the harder steel takes twice as long to return to the same edge is that better or worse??

Know what i mean??

 

[adaman04]

Everything is a compromise in one form or another. We have to decide what is most important and go from there, I think. Prioritize items and work down.

 

[Bruce Culberson]

If one knife could do everything this would be a boring forum, and if everyone only needed one knife the knifemakers wouldn't have much to do....

This is a good thread:thumbup:

 

[darkwaters]

Know what you mean about sharping D2...my O1 enzo trapper might need 2 passes on a stone while I'm using hard a few times a day, while my D2 bhk workhorse might need to be hit with the diamondstone once a week or so but takes forever, I'd rather have ease of sharping over ubertoughness any day because no knife never needs to be sharpend

 

[theonew]

The difference in time to sharpen CPM M4 at 62 HRC vs. Bark River A2 at 59 HRC is extremely negligible using DMT diamond abrasives. If you factor in the ease with which a burr is removed on the higher hardness steels, the overall time may actually be less for the harder steel. As long as you're not reprofiling an edge, sharpening a slightly dull edge shouldn't take more than a few minutes. That said, I'm happy using just about any decent steel, but see a distinct advantage to greater edge retention, especially when out in the woods. If you're having trouble sharpening your D2 and other hard steels, you're not using the right sharpener.

 

[valcas1]

I agree with most that one knife will not do it all. I think that a 2 knife setup or a layering affect like Brian Breeden mentioned it the way to go.

Another one of my thoughts is this. We are all self proclaimed knife nuts, yet most of use are casual users of our tools. When I look at people that actually need a knife to survive they can do amazing tasks with what ever sharp piece of steel they can get their hands on.
The perfect knife to any aboriginal person seems to be the one they have in their hand.

I agree that you need a few knives to be almost task specific because the task defines what the knife needs to be. (If that makes sense)

Paul

 

[pitdog]

This camp knife by Dave Farmer comes very close to my idea of a perfect knife that will get me by for most tasks.
It's 1/8" stock 5" blade is still small enough for fine work but can tackle most larger tasks as well. It has enough depth to the blade to use in a pinch grip. The blade profile seems pretty much ideal for me.
So how to improve it:
The transition from handle to blade is too shallow and IMO should be vertical or maybe even curving back on itself slightly if you understand what I mean !
The handle could do with being a little fuller and more rounded. And finally I like a lanyard hole !