swedge and false edge?

[Clint Simpson]

What, if any, is the difference between a swedge and a false edge? And is sharpened false edge an oxymoron or what? And what does one call it if the back isn’t tapered?

I’ve heard a swedge is dull, a false edge is sharp. (Then why is it false)
I’ve heard a swedge is sharp, a false edge is dull. (Sounds familiar)
I’ve heard a swedge is the taper leading to the false edge, which can be either dull or sharp!

I’m hoping there’s a consensus out here.

 

[cerulean]

Basically, the issue is so confused now that there is no consensus.

The term "false edge" has been used with swords for hundreds of years to refer to the back edge, but how sharp it would be varied. The false edge was usually sharp for a few inches back from the point and it was distinguished from the true edge which was sharp for most of the blade's length. They called it a "false edge" just because it was so short; not because it wasn't sharp. The false edge is also sometimes refered to as the "short edge" (or "upper edge" or "left edge"), while the true edge is called the "long edge".

I don't know when the term "swedge" came into use, but it probably came from the word "swage". Swages are a forging tool that you use to form the bevels behind the point.

Personally, I would vote for saying that knives with a false edge are sharp (at least to some degree), while ones that just have a swedge are not. However, it seems like most people have come to believe that "false" edge actually means a "fake" edge that is not sharp, so the confusion will probably continue for a long time.

 

[Gollnick]

I was taught by knowledgable authorities that a false edge is a sharp edge that does not run the full length of the blade. It it NOT called "false" because it's not sharp but because it does not run the full length. While false because it doesn't run the full length, it is still an edge and, therefore, sharp.

An unsharpened suggestion of an edge is called a "swedge".

 

[Crayola]

Take a Randall #1 and a CRKT Companion as examples. The CRKT has a swedge, and the Randall a false edge. You can put the CRKT swedge on your rist and vigorously pull back and forth, only to create a red line and possibly a friction burn. If you put the Randall on your wrist and do the same, you will produce red SPUTS and the only thing you will feel is, well, whatever it feels like to cut your own tendond, veins and flesh!

Swedge: thins the point for penetration, but can't cut. Flase edges thin for penetration and can cut.

 

[Don Rearic]

Originally posted by Gollnick
I was taught by knowledgable authorities that a false edge is a sharp edge that does not run the full length of the blade. It it NOT called "false" because it's not sharp but because it does not run the full length. While false because it doesn't run the full length, it is still an edge and, therefore, sharp.

An unsharpened suggestion of an edge is called a "swedge".

What Chuck said, as far as I know. This is why you see some people saying, "Sharpened Swedge" to sidestep the whole issue of using the word "false" because of so much confusion about what "false" means...