THE Hollow Handle Knife Thread

Sam Wilson said:
This I agree with 100%. I also agree they are not for everybody. And I also agree (I'm a pretty agreeable guy) that Gaston is a real "special" guy. He and I have gone back and forth a time or two, and unfortunately for him he always ends with the short end of the stick, mainly due to living in a bizarro fantasyland and carrying 10" of hardened steel in a tubsock down his pants (not sure what's really happening there...).

I love the looks of the Buckmaster also, but it's almost as though they couldn't have made it perform worse if they tried. Every checkbox with a negative trait on that knife was pretty much checked off during its' design. But it sure does look cool, lol. Thanks for the pics and post.

Sam :thumbup:
Click to expand...

I think it was a case of form over function for sure.
I can't say too much about that though, because I have a few folders that were definitely designed that way too. :D
 
Sam Wilson said:
This I agree with 100%. I also agree they are not for everybody. And I also agree (I'm a pretty agreeable guy) that Gaston is a real "special" guy. He and I have gone back and forth a time or two, and unfortunately for him he always ends with the short end of the stick, mainly due to living in a bizarro fantasyland and carrying 10" of hardened steel in a tubsock down his pants (not sure what's really happening there...).

I love the looks of the Buckmaster also, but it's almost as though they couldn't have made it perform worse if they tried. Every checkbox with a negative trait on that knife was pretty much checked off during its' design. But it sure does look cool, lol. Thanks for the pics and post.

Sam :thumbup:
Click to expand...

You're good with me then Mr. Wilson :thumbup:

Might even consider a HHK. Nah, I won't, sorry. But to each their own. Enjoy what you like, but don't be Gaston and pretend it is the end all beat all.
 
craytab said:
You're good with me then Mr. Wilson :thumbup:

Might even consider a HHK. Nah, I won't, sorry. But to each their own. Enjoy what you like, but don't be Gaston and pretend it is the end all beat all.
Click to expand...

Lol, never said they were. But what I said is absolutely true. Go bait someone else. Forums are filled with guys who will give you the attention/drama you seek.

Sam :thumbup:
 
stabman said:
Other than the round handles (which I hate), I am not a detractor of HH knives.
I have fond memories of thinking how they were going to help me survive in the woods as a teenager. :)

But then Gaston goes and posts how sleeping pills are the benefit of HH knives; that is just plain silly. :D

BTW, my only remaining HH knife is both a "sharpened pry bar" AND it has a round handle.
It combines the horrid cutting performance of bad edge geometry with the awful chopping performance of a handle that rolls.
But I could fit enough pills in the handle for one hell of a party. :thumbup:

If it weren't for the nostalgia factor, it would have been sold to the pawn shop.
Here it is in all its glory:

http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...s-and-a-Hike-With-Both-Crappy-and-Good-Knives
Click to expand...

Now I understand your displeasure with hollow handle knives. :D
 
TAH said:
Now I understand your displeasure with hollow handle knives. :D
Click to expand...

I also experienced the joys of $5 Survival Knives bought at V Mart (and other cheap places) in the 80s. :D
Pleather sheaths, sharpening stones that didn't work, and wire saws that snapped the first time I tried using them.

Those imaginary fish I was going to catch with my fishing hooks and sinkers sure did taste good in my mind though. :)
We had great fun in our teen years trading knives back and forth, and those Survival Knives kept going round and round.

Fun fact: my dad took the $5 Survival Knife I had bought him as a birthday present on a bush plane into a region where if they crashed and survived the crash, he'd have needed survival items.
At least it was better than the even worse plastic handle versions they make today; he could have actually used it as a knife if need be.
 
It looks like to me like many of the nay sayers here (about pain pills and HH knives in general) are making at least a couple of assumptions. The first and worst is the assumption that you can plan when you might need some survival gear. We hear people say it all the time " When I go to the woods I have my back pack and my belt and...". Survival knives are made for what you don't plan for. We make knives that are carried on planned outings to remote places, of course, but it's the unplanned stuff that happens that they are intended for.

My customers carry my knives under the seat in their pick-ups and airplanes, in their boats and snow mobiles (We call them snow machines up here). The knives are always there if they are needed. Then if you're going fishing, flying or trapping all you have to remember is the necessary stuff for that trip and know if things go bad it's not really too bad. You still have a dependable knife and all the gear in it.

The other assumption that some of you are making is that you will be alone. Chances are that you won't be alone, and if someone is injured you will need to take care of them or they will need to take care of you. Pain management and sleep will become very important. I once had a woman become seriously injured on my remote trap line. Her arm was in a lot of pain and she was going into shock. The plane was not due back for a week and the nearest help was seventy miles away with no trail there. If I had not been able to ease her pain and get her some rest she could well have died from and injury that didn't even break a bone.

The subject of round handles is an interesting one. The handle of the HH knife I make is not round (and it carries a lot of stuff), I'm curious to know if there are other HH knives out there that do not have round handles.
 
Last edited:
Mark Knapp said:
It looks like to me like many of the nay sayers here (about pain pills and HH knives in general)
Click to expand...

I don't nay say pain pills.
On the Winter Camping Contest last February for the BK7 (which I won! :)), luckily my friend was coming out there...I had forgot the muscle relaxers and pain pills I needed to be functional. He had to drive to my place, to get the pills from my wife, going quite a bit out of his way.
Since I would have ended up curled on the ground in the fetal position by morning without them (I love my stupid back...it's so great), those pills are almost never forgotten; I have actually forgotten my knife at home and remembered to bring the pills.
 
Sam Wilson said:
I love the looks of the Buckmaster also, but it's almost as though they couldn't have made it perform worse if they tried. Every checkbox with a negative trait on that knife was pretty much checked off during its' design. But it sure does look cool, lol. Thanks for the pics and post.

Sam :thumbup:
Click to expand...

Well at least it won't break... My Oryx 10" clone has amazing edge geometry, but I doubt the Buck is as good...

Other than that, I have to agree that 24 ounces for a 7.5" blade is horrendous, and they then went on to worsen this with a very heavy sheath that weights a whole ten ounces by itself...:rolleyes:

However, if you look at another well-regarded hollow handle knife, the Robert Parrish Survivor, that one weights 20.5 ounces, and -judging from looks alone- the bare handle is probably less secure in the hand than the Buck (Parrish used to sell separately a neoprene handle wrap to make it more secure). Probably the Parrish edge geometry is better, but in a nice leather sheath I would not rate a re-bevelled Buck as that huge of a step down... A lot of its useless junk, like the anchor pegs, the heavy sheath and the tab, can be left off or corrected... The Parrish sawback is adequate for notches, and nothing that special either...

I remember reading an article of an experienced outdoor "adventurer", an ex-military type, who seriously trimmed down the Buck's buttcap: That alone would be a large improvement...

I am a bit mystified at the Buck's popularity as a collector item, since compared to most they are quite common... It is indeed not a "bright" design for the most part, and that is why I never owned one...

As to being in fantasyland for carrying IWB, I have seen a large fixed blade carried on the outside of a belt once in my entire life, a 6" blade Cold Steel Tanto, about 30 years ago, and it looked pretty absurd... I think the only other fixed blade I ever saw carried openly was a small 4.4" blade Katz dagger like this:

116207_116236.jpg


It didn't look absurd this time: It was mounted on the webbing of a Police SWAT member in full gear... It was a bit strange to see 3 of them in full gear at a fast food, but other than that I honestly can't remember ever seeing a fixed blade openly carried...

As to seeing other people in the woods carrying them, where I go I never see other people in the woods... And if I did see a lot of people openly carrying them in the woods, I think I'd go elsewhere...

So I really wonder in what fantasy land do you guys live in, 'cause it's not around where I live for sure...

Gaston
 
Gaston444 said:
Well at least it won't break... My Oryx 10" clone has amazing edge geometry, but I doubt the Buck is as good...

Other than that, I have to agree that 24 ounces for a 7.5" blade is horrendous, and they then went on to worsen this with a very heavy sheath that weights a whole ten ounces by itself...:rolleyes:

However, if you look at another well-regarded hollow handle knife, the Robert Parrish Survivor, that one weights 20.5 ounces, and -judging from looks alone- the bare handle is probably less secure in the hand than the Buck (Parrish used to sell separately a neoprene handle wrap to make it more secure). Probably the Parrish edge geometry is better, but in a nice leather sheath I would not rate a re-bevelled Buck as that huge of a step down... A lot of its useless junk, like the anchor pegs, the heavy sheath and the tab, can be left off or corrected... The Parrish sawback is adequate for notches, and nothing that special either...

I remember reading an article of an experienced outdoor "adventurer", an ex-military type, who seriously trimmed down the Buck's buttcap: That alone would be a large improvement...

I am a bit mystified at the Buck's popularity as a collector item, since compared to most they are quite common... It is indeed not a "bright" design for the most part, and that is why I never owned one...

As to being in fantasyland for carrying IWB, I have seen a large fixed blade carried on the outside of a belt once in my entire life, a 6" blade Cold Steel Tanto, about 30 years ago, and it looked pretty absurd... I think the only other fixed blade I ever saw carried openly was a small 4.4" blade Katz dagger like this:

116207_116236.jpg


It didn't look absurd this time: It was mounted on the webbing of a Police SWAT member in full gear... It was a bit strange to see 3 of them in full gear at a fast food, but other than that I honestly can't remember ever seeing a fixed blade openly carried...

As to seeing other people in the woods carrying them, where I go I never see other people in the woods... And if I did see a lot of people openly carrying them in the woods, I think I'd go elsewhere...

So I really wonder in what fantasy land do you guys live in, 'cause it's not around where I live for sure...

Gaston
Click to expand...

I live in Fairbanks Alaska (when I'm in Fairbanks) where it's common to see belt knives carried, at least in the circles I'm in, but not big survival Bowies and they never look absurd to me. It's also not that uncommon to see open carry firearms and suspicious bulges under shirts.

I think the people that think survival knives only exist in fantasy land will never understand anything about them. In our day to day lives, on the trap line, or the hunting and fishing expeditions that I go on, life can change from thriving to surviving in a heart beat and then change back again sometimes as fast. That's the reason we do what we do.

I understand that it's so far removed from the average life that most people live, that it's a hard concept to fathom. Some people carry the equipment and skills just because the like to, others carry them in case they need them and some of us carry them because we are going to need them.
 
Sam Wilson said:
Lol, never said they were. But what I said is absolutely true. Go bait someone else. Forums are filled with guys who will give you the attention/drama you seek.

Sam :thumbup:
Click to expand...

I think I might have not made that post clear enough. I'm not saying you are like Gaston. Quite the opposite. You know what you are talking about. He doesn't. I may not agree with you on some things you say but what you say is at least reasonable and your knives look to be of great quality though not my bag exactly. No offense meant to you.
 
Mark Knapp said:
I live in Fairbanks Alaska (when I'm in Fairbanks) where it's common to see belt knives carried,
Click to expand...

It's common enough here too.

Gaston claims to live in Canada and go in the woods, but other than the infamous tube sock photo, there is little documentation of him doing much with knives (other than ruining them).

He pops in, derides other's "ridiculous" carry methods and choices, but shows us nothing to back up his ideas...

And no one has cared when they saw my knives, which generally are large and out in the open.

Last time we ran into someone, it was woman with her (large) dog, and she stopped to talk for us for about 40 minutes.
Turns out she went to the same university as me, and thought it looked like we were having a good time.

In Gaston's world, she should have ran away screaming, and called the cops...
I prefer my "fantasy" to his. ;)

wi2X5fC.jpg


cPqKK07.jpg


tChJGJe.jpg


FOKVmoW.jpg


We had all those knives, and no RCMP response teams appeared...weird! :D

These pics are from the first time we ran into the woman with her dog; last time was in January:

TmOxBZ4.jpg


Note the wonderful January, deep sucking mud. :)
Weird winter we've been having.
 
I see what you mean now. My apologies, no offense meant or taken. That has been my position since post #1 when I started this thread a couple of years ago. If HH knives aren't your thing, by all means get whatever you like.

There are a ton of options on the market. HH knives aren't for everybody, I just don't get the dogmatic responses from both sides, for and against.

Sam Wilson

ETA: For the question about non-round handles, Mr. Gil Hibben and I both make HH knives with handles that aren't perfectly round. He has a model (The Rescue Knife from Rambo III, stunning knife) that has finger grooves and I offer a "mycarta" sleeve option on mine that gives them an oval shape in the hand. Also gives a much improved handle in the event the cord wrap has to be removed, insulating the hand from heat/cold and shock, and keeps the knife from rolling when chopping.





craytab said:
I think I might have not made that post clear enough. I'm not saying you are like Gaston. Quite the opposite. You know what you are talking about. He doesn't. I may not agree with you on some things you say but what you say is at least reasonable and your knives look to be of great quality though not my bag exactly. No offense meant to you.
Click to expand...
 
Sam Wilson said:
I offer a "mycarta" sleeve option on mine that gives them an oval shape in the hand. Also gives a much improved handle in the event the cord wrap has to be removed, insulating the hand from heat/cold and shock, and keeps the knife from rolling when chopping.
Click to expand...

Got a picture of it?
 
No, I don't have a good one. If you look on this knife handle you can kind of see the profile on it. It really changes the feel in-hand of a HH knife, in my opinion.

20161220_010315_zpsyldb2ngy.jpg


Sam
 
Sam Wilson said:
No, I don't have a good one. If you look on this knife handle you can kind of see the profile on it. It really changes the feel in-hand of a HH knife, in my opinion.

20161220_010315_zpsyldb2ngy.jpg


Sam
Click to expand...

Aaah THIS is a great HH knife.... It's a long time that I'm looking to buy one.. However, my 2 cents on this topic.
I fully agree with Mr.Knapp, when you find yourself in a survival situation, maybe (most likely) you do not have with you all your equipment, you do not have your backpack and your pockets full of survival objects..
Remember that a "survival situation" may not only be in a forest, but also in a city, maybe for an earthquake, or other natural disaster (or caused by humans......) and if at that time you have only your knife with you......
You'd be happy to have some small useful objects in the handle!
 
TAH said:
These old Smith & Wesson knives come to mind.


smithwesson-survial.jpg


KLC08251.jpg
Click to expand...

I remember seeing adds for these knives in the American Rifleman magazine in the late 1970s/early 1980s. I wanted to get one, but being a kid, there was no way I could afford one.

Does anyone know who made these for Smith and Wesson?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top