Reality check -- grip comfort

[chopchop]

I've been going through my knives to try and weed out the non-users. I had a bunch of them laid out today, a number of customs, a few plastic handled moras, a few other wood handled production scandis, a grohmann #4, and some kitchen knives.

It turns out the most comfortable in my hand after ~10 min of cutting are this dexter russell pairing knife and this dexter russell butcher that I cut down. Obviously, these are slicers and the butcher's guard gets in the way for many things, but the handle shapes are super comfy for me. I have some customs that are really well constructed with top notch ergos, but the shapes just don't seem to feel as good *to me* as these two.

It's sort of eye opening.

Do you have any knives that just fit right or are surprisingly comfy?

 

[RescueRiley]

feel the same way about a few of my moras... great grips. very comfortable to use for long periods of time

I was playing around with lighting feather sticks with a ferro rod last night. Needles to day Ineeded allot of finely mae feather sticks. so I grabbed a bunch of knives.
I used 2 customs
and a few stick tang production (higher priced) scandis
an a mora carbon companion..
the mora made comparably thing shavings to the higher end knives, maintained its edge better than 80 percent of the knives used, and was only rivaled in comfort by one custom.. at about a 10'th of the price..
I know I can;t abuse them but for most tasks they are right on.

 

[Mannlicher]

the most comfortable grip I have found yet is on the Spyderco BushcraftUK knife. I have large hands, and this one is thick enough, and long enough, that I can get a good grip on it. I have spent a lot of money having handles replaced with decent size ones. Busse, ESEE, and a number of customs that I bought, but did not commission.
When I order a knife, I specify the handle dimensions.

When I ordered this one, I failed to make my needs known, and bought it thinking the handle would be ok. The grip was too short, and way too thin. I just got it back from being re handled, and now it's a user.

 

[TattooBlade]

Grips are where it's at. Even with my smallish hands I like a full belly, thicker grip to hold on to. Some folks love the thinner grips even with giant meathooks. Just get what fits you well and you'll use it more!

 

[DrivebyTrucker]

I kinda care. I kinda don't. When my Scrapyard 511 came in, I immediately compared it to my scrapper 5. I feel I prefer the grip on the scrapper 5. Though I do like the blade profile on the 511. I wish Scrapyard used the grips of the scrapper 5 on the 511. But they didn't. The 511 feels a little small in my hand, but I'm not sure that it matters really. Maybe if I'm carving with it. I have gloves I can wear or not wear depending on the knife. I'm not seeing any pictures of folding blades. Folding knives for very practical reasons are usually not as comfortable as even the worst fixed blades. But they still work just fine for most cutting task.

 

[dbltap45acp]

The ones that stand out in my mind that just fit well are my spyderco bushcraft, brian andrews terassur and bushcrafter, and my BHK bushcrafter. I think I would like the BHK a bit more if the finger indent wasn't there though. I have spent thousands trying to figure out what fits, and these ones just fit well.

 

[PayetteRucker]

The Condor Rodan and the Cold Steel Finn Bear are two of the most comfortable knives I own, and some of the cheapest. One day I'll have Grey Wolf or one of the other capable scandi makers build me a custom knife with the rounded diamond shape handle. The Mora 840 is also undeniably cozy for bushcraft use. Ope, another one that comes to mind is the CRKT First Strike. The fake rayskin wrap sucks but the handle profile is fantastic. Gradual indexed sweep with all the curves in the right places.

 

[FortyTwoBlades]

The handle on the Rodan seems to be a "love it or hate it" thing for some folks, but I agree with you--I find it to be a VERY comfortable handle in extended usage.

 

[chopchop]

Thanks for your comments, fellas. The most surprising thing to me was that the cheapo's were that comfortable in comparison to the more expensive ones.

the mora made comparably thing shavings to the higher end knives, maintained its edge better than 80 percent of the knives used, and was only rivaled in comfort by one custom.. at about a 10'th of the price..
I know I can;t abuse them but for most tasks they are right on.

I've had a similar experience. I keep refusing to admit it though!

the most comfortable grip I have found yet is on the Spyderco BushcraftUK knife.
When I ordered this one, I failed to make my needs known, and bought it thinking the handle would be ok. The grip was too short, and way too thin. I just got it back from being re handled, and now it's a user.

I keep hearing that about the spyderco. I might have to trade for one sometime. I like the idea of rehandling my customs, but I feel like they would probably be just fine for somebody else. So, I'll eventually sell/trade them to a happy home.

Just get what fits you well and you'll use it more!

agreed :thumbup:

I'm not seeing any pictures of folding blades. Folding knives for very practical reasons are usually not as comfortable as even the worst fixed blades. But they still work just fine for most cutting task.

I don't usually expect my folders to be as comfortable. I have a ritter mini-grip that works well for me and is probably the most comfortable folder that I've owned.

I have spent thousands trying to figure out what fits...

Oh man. Don't tell my wife that!

The Condor Rodan and the Cold Steel Finn Bear are two of the most comfortable knives I own, and some of the cheapest.

The handle on the Rodan seems to be a "love it or hate it" thing for some folks, but I agree with you--I find it to be a VERY comfortable handle in extended usage.

The Rodan looks like it might be comfy. I might try one of those out too. So many knives, so little money!! Ha.

 

[kgd]

Ergos is something everybody develops their own peculiar tastes for. I think its a tough call for a knifemaker to try and produce a knife that fits everybody. I have my preferences and they tend to be larger handles that have very little or limited contouring. My B.Andrews hybrid was the best handle I've ever used and its matched pretty close by the Barky Aurora on comfort and dimensions. The way the OP did it was a good job. Run a prolonged carving trial. I usually make a bowdrill kit from start to finish with a knife before I begin to judge how well it fits in the hands. Or make a tonne of shavings with a hardwood like oak and pretty soon you get value good handle comfort.

 

[Shotgun]

The mora companion mg I just bought is the most comfy I've owned. Damn cheap knives.

 

[TwinStick]

I have been lucky i guess, maybe because i am so picky, IDK. I love the handle on my Mora Bushcraft Forest, all my Ontario Spec-Plus series, all my Beckers, Condor Boomslang, Gerbers, ect.. If they are not to your liking, a Dremel tool is your friend. LOL