- Joined
- Feb 28, 2007
- Messages
- 9,786
I was thinking about Pitdog's test of the convex and scandi-grinds last week. Problem was I never had a scandi until yesterday's little score of that Jimi Wade necker. So today, after picking up 3 weeks of dog poop, I put the Breeden Kat and Wade Necker to a little contest.
The contestants:
Breeden kat: 3.5" blade, 3/32" thick O1 steel; full flat with V-grind secondary bevel at 15o per side. Osage handle material - nice and comfy.
Wade Necker: 2.5" blade, 0.125" thick, 1075 steel. Scandi grind with slight V-grind secondary bevel at 15o per side. Handle - originally OD green paracord. Replaced with yellow braid so my wife wouldn't keep telling me it was too tactical looking (Jimi's wrap was nicer looking).
The activity - just some notches and stick sharpening of a fresh American beechwood branch.
The necker's scandi grind really excelled at controlling the sliced cuts into the notch. The knife just seemed to want to lay flat against its bevel and it was easy to take nice even slices. Another bonus was the thicker blade (0.125") which was easy on the thumbs as I pushed against the sides.
The Breeden didn't perform quite as great at this activity. It did an adequate job mind you, but I had less control during the wood slice. The blade kept wanting to dig deeper in the wood as I sliced, not having that convenent 'scandi bevel' on which to sit and orient the blade through the cut. The thinner blade was also a bit harsher on the thumb at the spine.
Both knives were equal on the sharpening the points. The Breeden edged out here because of the comfort of that nice fat handle.
Overall - the Breeden is a far better general slicer and cutter in the kitchen and for twine and cords. The thin blade coupled with flat grind and comfy handle make it great at these tasks. Where it lost out was the comfort on pushing on the spine and control of it slicing in wood itself.
The Wade Necker really surpassed my expectations on its ability to slice into wood at notching. I just didn't believe that this thicker little chunk of metal would be able to cut wood better than optimized cutter but it was more controlled.
The contestants:
Breeden kat: 3.5" blade, 3/32" thick O1 steel; full flat with V-grind secondary bevel at 15o per side. Osage handle material - nice and comfy.
Wade Necker: 2.5" blade, 0.125" thick, 1075 steel. Scandi grind with slight V-grind secondary bevel at 15o per side. Handle - originally OD green paracord. Replaced with yellow braid so my wife wouldn't keep telling me it was too tactical looking (Jimi's wrap was nicer looking).
The activity - just some notches and stick sharpening of a fresh American beechwood branch.
The necker's scandi grind really excelled at controlling the sliced cuts into the notch. The knife just seemed to want to lay flat against its bevel and it was easy to take nice even slices. Another bonus was the thicker blade (0.125") which was easy on the thumbs as I pushed against the sides.
The Breeden didn't perform quite as great at this activity. It did an adequate job mind you, but I had less control during the wood slice. The blade kept wanting to dig deeper in the wood as I sliced, not having that convenent 'scandi bevel' on which to sit and orient the blade through the cut. The thinner blade was also a bit harsher on the thumb at the spine.
Both knives were equal on the sharpening the points. The Breeden edged out here because of the comfort of that nice fat handle.
Overall - the Breeden is a far better general slicer and cutter in the kitchen and for twine and cords. The thin blade coupled with flat grind and comfy handle make it great at these tasks. Where it lost out was the comfort on pushing on the spine and control of it slicing in wood itself.
The Wade Necker really surpassed my expectations on its ability to slice into wood at notching. I just didn't believe that this thicker little chunk of metal would be able to cut wood better than optimized cutter but it was more controlled.
