Serrated Vs. Plain

Lt.
This is a good question and yes it does get hit a lot but hey we get over it. You will see many people trash serrations that's for sure. Me personally I don't mind serrations, I believe you should carry at least one plain edge and one serrated knife at all times. A lot of people don't like serrations because they are "harder" to sharpen. Well get a Sharpmaker 204 and then serrations will be just as easy (if not easier) to sharpen. Normally I use my plain edge knives but for cutting stuff like zip ties, rope, and those annoying plastic packages that electronics and toys and knives (same thing as toys) come in, I perfer serrations.
Mykl

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Just because I'm paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get me.
 
Never choose a combo edge. You think it is a comprmise between slicing and push cutting till you use one then you realize you've bought the worst of both worlds. Too many military people buy these horrid knives (mostly Gerber) I did it too. Now I kick myself for it.
All or nothing.--Mykl

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Just because I'm paranoid doesn't mean they're not out to get me.
 
I own precisely one combo-edge knife, and I bought it for fun, not to use, so I didn't mind it. Actually, though, I may trade it in for a plain-edge. If a knife I want as a knife to actually use is available only in combo-edge, I just walk away. Worst of both worlds is for sure. For some tasks, a fully-serrated knife is good (my brother is getting a Spyderco Rescue Jr. for kayaking), but combo-edge? Never.

--JB

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e_utopia@hotmail.com
 
I'm wondering if some people reject serrated knives just out of traditionalism?

Serrated blades do not evoke the sense of the old Bucks, and Case knives grandpa used to carry. Instead, they remind us of the bread knife that grandma used to cut a french loaf with.

 
Nope, if you saw the kind of knives I had, you would not think I was being traditional. I reject combo-edge knives because they are a worst-of-both-worlds situation. For one, in 99.9% of situations, a plain edge will work better than a serrated edge (you just have to know how to sharpen the plain edge for a given task), including most rope. For those situations where the serrations are good, there aren't enough of them on the combo-edge to be used well. And combo-edge knives nearly always remove the most useful part of the plain edge (the area near the handle) in favor of the serrations.

As I said, there are cases where a fully-serrated knife is useful, but I would carry a plain edge if I was forced to carry only one knife. If you can't make a plain edge out-perform your serrated knives, you need more sharpening experience.

--JB

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e_utopia@hotmail.com
 
I totally agree with e_utopia, no combo edges, I have exactly one (got rid of the rest) it is a Spyderco delica I have had for years, at one time it was my only knife. The clip broke off long ago, it has been horribly abused. I would never part with it, wouldn't trade it for a sebenza.
Chad


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"People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf."
George Orwell
"Those who hold the thin blue line keep order, and insure that anarchy and chaos will not prevail."
 
I guess it really depends on the tasks most frequently performed. I personally favor the plain-edged. I was a Soldier for 6 years (a field communications specialist) and I did fine with a Swiss Army Knife and a Schrade LB7 (today I would get a large lock-blade SAK and drop the LB7). I did own a Leatherman but it turned out less handy than I thought it would. The most common tasks I used my knives for was: cutting paper or cloth, opening MREs, stripping insulation from commo-wire, scrapeing crud and dirt from gear, screwing and unscrewing (esp. phillips) screws, sharpening pencils, cutting 550 cord and rope, and cutting lots of "100mph tape". I also believe in the proper tool for the job (I would'nt try to hack through concertina-wire with my SAK, that's what wire-cutters are for).
I do think you could get the best of both worlds with the Spyderco Dyad. Think about it: plain-edge lock blade, serr.-edge lock blade, thumb-holes, and a pocket clip. What more could you want?

[This message has been edited by allenC (edited 08-27-2000).]
 
I noticed that the SOG Pentagon (?), a 5in two edge boot knife, has a plain edge on one side and a serrated edge on the other. Seems like a decent knife for the the Lt. originally asked about.
 
I need a plain edge. I need a serrated edge,

I NEED ACOMBO EDGE. Do we have a problem here?
 
Combo:
What you end up with is neither. You get 1/2 a plain edge and 1/2 a serr. edge. With the Dyad you get 2 separate blades. Plus you would'nt have to resharpen the blades as often. Of course, I personally don't need a serr. edge.

[This message has been edited by allenC (edited 08-27-2000).]
 
Lt,
What's the standard issue bayonet these days? I only ask because if they're anything like the ones they passed out 15 years ago, you might want to consider carrying something a little more reliable.

I can still remember that 17 degree December night in Quantico when I volunteered to collect branches to fuel the admin bivouac fire (yeah, the SPCs were feeling generous that night). Well, I was about two chops into this pine branch when the blade snapped off at the handle and went flying off into the night. And I never got the feeling that my bayonet was particularly defective, if you know what I mean
wink.gif
.

For what it's worth, the new Kabar with D2 steel is a fairly capable fixed blade knife that won't attract any undue attention.

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Semper Fi

-Bill
 
I think that overall, a partial seration is not practical on any folder. The blade is small enough that if you divide it into half or a third serated blade, you have no normal edge left worth using.
A partial seration can be very useful on a knife that is large enough to support it and still be a usefull knife, but not on a military. The only folding knife i have with serations is a BM 350. It is an old knife of mine and i am evtremely happy with such a small knife, but the serations waste the blade. It isn't big enough to be serated and have a normal edge. I do use the serations at times. I do computer work and i use the serations to cut network wires and stuff like that, but not like a saw, just so that it can catch the wire and cut it, and i expect a normal edge could do better. It isn't worth it on ANY folder i have seen yet.
 
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