The great cardboard war: folder battle

DRider · Jan 24, 2005

The other day I had to break down a large quantity of very sturdy shipping cardboard to fit into a recycling container that was not real big. So this meant I had to cut all this large tough stuff down into pieces about 2' by 3' each. Lots and lots of cutting. Why not have a knife test?

So I brought out several folders to try out, and I wanted to share the results of this informal competition. It wasn't really fair, the knives are so different in format. But who cares? They were all sharpened to a level just under a crisp hair shaving sharp. The competitors:

Cuda Maxx, D-2, plain edge. All knives are about 4 inches except this one, its, 5.5 inches.
Benchmade AFCK axis lock, D-2, combo edge. Black teflon coated blade.
Spyderco Military, CPM440V, plain edge.
CRKT Kasper Krawford, AUS 6, combo edge. This is their larger one.

Here's a photo of the Maxx, a Skirmish that I didn't test, the Benchmade, and the Kasper. Sorry, no photo of the Military...

Method: this was cutting very large sheets of very sturdy cardboard used for shipping things like large TV's. I was cutting straight down the pieces, then pieces of pieces, to end up with my 3' by 2" sections.

Results:

Most comfortable handle: AFCK, "hands down." . That handle is just wonderful for extended cutting sessions... its broad and has a solid spacer and the ergonomics are great. The Kasper comes in second, but you can't change you grip style on it much at all due to the way the handle is shaped. The Military has a pretty thin handle width and was the least comfortable.

First to give up its edge: the Kasper. Guess that stuff they say about AUS-6 is true. Then the AFCK, then the Military, and then the Maxx. They say that the heat treat is crucial to D-2 performance, maybe that's true.

Best cutting: All cut great for about a minute. The Kasper was the first to peter out as the edge died. The AFCK went further than the Kasper but the problem with both of those knifes was the grind - it widens fairly abruptly and doesn't slash through the cardboard so well - these knives tended to stall in the cut. The serrated edges were not such a benefit as I would have thought since they were such a short part of the blade - and the stroke tended to stall at the transition. They are probably better as shallow slicers than deep slashers. The Military and the Maxx cut great with their flat grinds but the Maxx was way, way better than all the rest. It's the length of blade plus the really excellent flat grind. Felt a lot better in the hand than the Military too. After the others had given up, the Maxx finished the job for me.

It was a lot of fun! I hope this info is of interest to some of y'all...

allenC · Jan 25, 2005

Thanks for posting the comparsion.

I am surprised that the Military handle did'nt perform better, it always seemed to be large and comfortable--but I don't own one and so have no firsthand experience.

Thanks,
Allen.

DRider · Jan 25, 2005

I'm glad you liked it. I wanted to post it because comparisons like that are what help me decide on new knives a lot of times...

Regarding the military, it was just so narrow across the handle, width wise... I really like the knife, otherwise, except for the lack of any front guard to keep your hand from slipping forward onto the blade, and it carries great in the pocket... because its so flat!

Spydiefan04 · Jan 25, 2005

Awesome comparo, I'm not used to seeing Spyderco lose in a competetive trial but if it must be so I'm glad it was to a Cuda. I like the looks of the Dominator, Maxx is a bit big for my tastes, but want to know more about ROBO before paying that much for one. How does the Robo system work for you and does have much of a likelihood of accidental opening? I have a Heat (and like it) but always carry my Delica bc I only want a knife that opens when I want it to.

French Kiss · Jan 26, 2005

Good test, although from the start you know the knives with a flat grind perform much better, I think a CUDA edc would perform very well too in such test, with its high saber grind and recurved edge

Xavier.

allenC · Jan 26, 2005

DRider,
I was just wondering, did your hand cause any of the liner-locks to disengage or start to disengage?
Did they seem as secure as the Axis-lock Benchmade?

Allen.

TOB9595 · Jan 26, 2005

Well done comparison review!
I think it is mighty valid as we have some of these tested knives and I would have liked to think that the AFCK would fare better.
Sigh!

Tom

Stockman · Jan 26, 2005

A fun read DRider and always like seeing pics of knives lined up against each other.
I am a little curious if the 2 worst faring knives, the CRKT and the 806 would have performed better if they were plain edged, not combo. Although they are all approx 4", except the Cuda, the Combo edges would only have about 2" of plain edge, this might of had some bearing in your results.
Would have also liked to see how that big Skirmish destroyed the cardboard.

DRider · Jan 27, 2005

Spydiefan04 said:
Awesome comparo, I'm not used to seeing Spyderco lose in a competetive trial but if it must be so I'm glad it was to a Cuda. I like the looks of the Dominator, Maxx is a bit big for my tastes, but want to know more about ROBO before paying that much for one. How does the Robo system work for you and does have much of a likelihood of accidental opening? I have a Heat (and like it) but always carry my Delica bc I only want a knife that opens when I want it to.

Thanks! But my Maxx is a manual opener. Almost as fast as a switchblde in my opinion though. I don't really think you need an assist on a flipper knife, they are so fast anyway... and there might be some jurisdictions that will frown on them...

DRider · Jan 27, 2005

allenC said:
DRider,
I was just wondering, did your hand cause any of the liner-locks to disengage or start to disengage?
Did they seem as secure as the Axis-lock Benchmade?

Allen.

I have to say that I had no problems with any locks. So much so that I didn't even think to write about it. And I was whaling away with some pretty good force there... the Military has the most exposed area of the liner, making it easy to close, but possibly a hard twist of the hand with the blade locked in by what you are cutting could lead to problems... but that's hypothetical, I've never experienced it...

DRider · Jan 27, 2005

Stockman said:
A fun read DRider and always like seeing pics of knives lined up against each other.
I am a little curious if the 2 worst faring knives, the CRKT and the 806 would have performed better if they were plain edged, not combo. Although they are all approx 4", except the Cuda, the Combo edges would only have about 2" of plain edge, this might of had some bearing in your results.
Would have also liked to see how that big Skirmish destroyed the cardboard.

For you Stockman but also for TOB9595:

I think if the combo edges were plain edged they would have done better. It really wasn't a fair test, but more of "hey those are in the cabinet" test. I think that the grinds of the CRKT and the AFCK are steep - they move to their widest point very quickly and that leads to stalling.

This came out also in my (world famous but never reported on) "Apple Test." I like Granny Smith apples, they being the green, sour, and quite hard type of apples. A flat grind will usually slice off a nice piece but a really chunky blade or one that abruptly goes from edge to full width, like a hollow grind does, will cause the piece of apple to crack off half way through the cut.

CRKT and AFCK cause apple crackage. Not so the Military, the Maxx, or the Skirmish, for that matter.

So although the AFCK is a great knife, great lock, really outstanding ergonomics on the handle, the relatively abrupt change from edge to full blade thickness plus the combo edge led to its downfall compared to the flatgrinds!

Re the Skirmish: I bet with the relatively flat grind, long edge, and recurve, it would have destroyed that cardboard near or even equal to the Maxx. But I finally got a really hair-popping, cut-you-when-I'm-bumped edge on that thing and since its my everyday self defense carry folder, I didn't want to have to resharpen it!