- Joined
- Nov 29, 2000
- Messages
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Recently I purchased 3 Taylor Brand Schrade Walden 65th Anniversary knives with stag handle scales: a so called cattle knife (actually a two blade large jack knife with one clip point and one spear point blade) and two 3.5" jack knives.
I like stag handled knives, I wanted to try out the jack knife pattern and bought these as cheap users.
The knives are relatively cheap (they are made in China), have good fit and finish and acceptable stag scales.
However they are nail-breakers, almost impossible to open. I had to use pliers on all the blades on all 3 knives to be able to open them safely. While trying to open them without pliers, they repeatedly slipped off my grip and shut closed like a bear trap or gator jaws, almost cutting off the tip of my fingers. I am used to stiff and strong pocket knife springs, but these were an entirely different category: you might call them finger-mutilators rather than pocketknives.
I tried the usual regimen of flushing out the eventual grit from the joints and oiling them, but unlike in former cases, things did not improve at all.
Upon closer inspection it turned out that there is a common design problem in all of these knives. The blades were designed with half-stop style square-end tangs, but unlike the knives with true half-stops, the spring on these were not tuned appropriately.
Is it possible that somebody at Taylor's designed some knives on the computer screen and gave them to the Chinese who manufactured them exactly to the ordered specs? I have seen many other recent Chinese production knives and those have no such problem whatsoever.
I spent a few hours trying to round the corners on the tangs with needle files, but that still did not help: the main problem seems to be that the tangs are just too long for the tight springs.
An additional problem is the type and position of the nail nicks on the blades. The cattle knife has match-striker type nail nicks, but the one on the clip point blade is partially obscured by the other blade and is put so close to the tang that one cannot employ enough leverage without literally breaking one's nail, and even that would not lift enough the blade.
The main blade on the jack knife has a long pull, but that is also put so far behind that it would require unnecessarily large force to open the blade even in a smoothly operating knife. Clearly, some armchair (or computer screen) "designer genius" drew something elegant looking fantasy piece, but never bothered to apply even the most basic principles of ergonomics or basic mechanics which common sense would dictate.
The result is a "limited edition, knife-like-object collector item" which cleverly resembles a true pocketknife, but is impossible to use like one. :thumbdn::thumbdn:
I recently saw that Taylor sells almost the same objects under another line called "Schrade® Walden® Republic Of Texas 175th Anniversary Commemorative" knives. I would not be surprised if those had the same problem.
I want to make clear that this is not a post about Taylor brands or made in China knives in general, but about the poor design features in this "pocketknife" line which renders those "knives" useless, at least as cutlery items. (They still serve their primary purpose of making profit for Taylor and his Chinese trading partners.)
A pocketknife which cannot be opened is a bad joke at best, and an insult to common sense. :thumbdn::thumbdn:
I like stag handled knives, I wanted to try out the jack knife pattern and bought these as cheap users.
The knives are relatively cheap (they are made in China), have good fit and finish and acceptable stag scales.
However they are nail-breakers, almost impossible to open. I had to use pliers on all the blades on all 3 knives to be able to open them safely. While trying to open them without pliers, they repeatedly slipped off my grip and shut closed like a bear trap or gator jaws, almost cutting off the tip of my fingers. I am used to stiff and strong pocket knife springs, but these were an entirely different category: you might call them finger-mutilators rather than pocketknives.
I tried the usual regimen of flushing out the eventual grit from the joints and oiling them, but unlike in former cases, things did not improve at all.
Upon closer inspection it turned out that there is a common design problem in all of these knives. The blades were designed with half-stop style square-end tangs, but unlike the knives with true half-stops, the spring on these were not tuned appropriately.
Is it possible that somebody at Taylor's designed some knives on the computer screen and gave them to the Chinese who manufactured them exactly to the ordered specs? I have seen many other recent Chinese production knives and those have no such problem whatsoever.
I spent a few hours trying to round the corners on the tangs with needle files, but that still did not help: the main problem seems to be that the tangs are just too long for the tight springs.
An additional problem is the type and position of the nail nicks on the blades. The cattle knife has match-striker type nail nicks, but the one on the clip point blade is partially obscured by the other blade and is put so close to the tang that one cannot employ enough leverage without literally breaking one's nail, and even that would not lift enough the blade.
The main blade on the jack knife has a long pull, but that is also put so far behind that it would require unnecessarily large force to open the blade even in a smoothly operating knife. Clearly, some armchair (or computer screen) "designer genius" drew something elegant looking fantasy piece, but never bothered to apply even the most basic principles of ergonomics or basic mechanics which common sense would dictate.
The result is a "limited edition, knife-like-object collector item" which cleverly resembles a true pocketknife, but is impossible to use like one. :thumbdn::thumbdn:
I recently saw that Taylor sells almost the same objects under another line called "Schrade® Walden® Republic Of Texas 175th Anniversary Commemorative" knives. I would not be surprised if those had the same problem.
I want to make clear that this is not a post about Taylor brands or made in China knives in general, but about the poor design features in this "pocketknife" line which renders those "knives" useless, at least as cutlery items. (They still serve their primary purpose of making profit for Taylor and his Chinese trading partners.)
A pocketknife which cannot be opened is a bad joke at best, and an insult to common sense. :thumbdn::thumbdn:
I guess I'll see if its all that bad and send it back if it is.