"shock resistance"?

the main reason for a "choil" is being a relief cutout in a high stress area of a chopping blade where cracks tend to start and cause major blade malfunction and or breakage. any chopping type blade would benefit from a choil.,,,VWB.
 
I agree that where the sharp edge 'stops' (near the handle end of the blade) there should be a small cut-out area to help prevent cracks forming.

This cut-out should be smooth with no sharp corners.

When I recently received my new khukuri I got some fine emery paper and smoothed the inside of the cho cutout and rounded off the corners. This was probably completely unnecessary because I am a careful knife user, the blade is so thick, and the temper seemed to be 'just right' in this area. However because of my metalworking/engineering background I simply took the precaution of doing it.

This is a similar principle to that used elsewhere. If a crack starts near the teeth of a circular saw blade at a sawmill, the saw doctor or maintenance fitter might drill a hole at the end of the crack to help prevent the crack travelling further. Similarly an aircraft engineer might drill a small hole at the end of a crack in non-critical parts of the fuselage or plexiglass parts as a temporary 'fix' to help stop the cracks growing.
 
Yes Cpl Punishment....otherwise we'd eventually split right up the middle as we walked.
 
Different strokes for different folks. Personally I really dislike having a choil, as it's called there since there are a couple of descriptions for it.
IMHO they are a pita and don't need to be there if the juncture between edge and ricasso is properly made, which is a nice rounded or ground radius instead of a sudden square.
Knives, and swords, have been made since the beginning of the iron age without them and they have stood up just fine.:)
Besides even if a knife has that sort of choil it will eventually be ground away over the years as the blade is continually sharpened so I can't see the point in having one to begin with.
The main reason I don't like them is because they can get hung up on hide or fur, and clothing if used for such a purpose, and can be difficult to get loose.;)

Definitions from a search on Google.;) :)
Glossary:

Choil
A choil is a round cut out seperating the cutting edge from the ricasso. It is also used to describe a cut out, molded or formed area where the handle and blade meet which positions/guards the index finger while gripping the opened knife.
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- Choil

The choil is an unsharpened section of the blade. If a guard is present, the choil will be in front of the guard on the blade itself. The choil is often used as a way to choke up on the blade for close-in work. The index finger is placed in the choil, and this close proximity to the edge allows for greater control. In addition, the choil is just in front of where the blade itself becomes part of the handle, an area often prone to breakage due to the blade-handle juncture. The choil leaves this area at full thickness and thus stronger.


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I agree that a choil can be a nuisance on a working knife Yvsa...especially if it is deep and has steep sides. Similarly a guard of any sort between the blade and the handle can get in the way (plus it makes the knife harder to 'sheath'). This would be particularly true for somebody who had to cut a lot of netting or something similar.
 
Ever see a photomicrograph of a T. Rex tooth? They have serrated edges, and between each sawtooth is a perfect teeny choil.
 
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