The "secret" of a comfortable knife

T

Tweakmeister

Joined
Jan 17, 2005
Messages
91
I've had the chance to handle quite a few different knives, and it seems like there are a few things that will always contribute to a knife that feels good in the hand.

Balance - I've found a blade heavy knife hard to manipulate. Example, the plastic handled Griptillian. Awesome knife, hard to use at times.

Handles - Unneccessary curving and rough textures are a pain. Many love the Spyderco Manix/Native and Strider SMF (Buck 882/889, etc.) - they have a finger grip right next to the blade. This brings the hand up and makes detailed work much easier. I also loved the Spyderco Rescue (bigplastic, knife finger grooves), and tapering out at the butt end also helps (when pulling during cutting)

What am I getting at? Without handling a knife, it's hard to know if you'll like it. It seems like there are some underlying design aspects to look for while window shopping.

What else seems to work for you?
 
I think one of the best handles ever made is on the Benchmade 910. Just about as comfortable as you can get with G10.
 
Hi Twiekmeister, don't know if I have welcomed you to the forums, but welcome aboard.

The way I look at it is that I would always prefer to handle a knife before I purchase it, but I have to admit, I have bought a few because they just looked killer from an Ad, and had excellent word of mouth by the fine folks here, or from a friend.

With the right research, and evaluation of reviews, you can hear a lot of the pros and cns from those who have them already. By doing this, I rarely regret a purchase or trade now (and God willing that will continue) mainly because I look at each purchase as a learning experience, meaning having had several different ergos on a knife, I am getting the feel for what may meet my needs/wants at a glance or 2.

Whereas in contrast of when I first started collecting, I jumped for a lot of things I had really not taken the time to here the good, bad and ugly on - so haste made waste for me, but now I take pleasure in doing my homework.

I am really speaking of Ergonomics mainly from this perspective, because if a blade does not have the specific type of steel/hardening I like, it goes out of the running pretty quickly.

Be Well,
 
I will often fatten-up a rubber handled knife with leather or cord wraps.
I have an extra- large hand, some handles are just too puny! Lol.
I'll often use a Dremmel tool & grind/sand finger grooves into wood or micarta.
The dremmel is handy for removing sharp handle edges or even adding jimping.
 
The most comfortable knife I own is probably the spydie native.
I like scandi style blades too...they're handle heavy and usually have large handles as well...
 
numberthree said:
The most comfortable knife I own is probably the spydie native.
Click to expand...

Aye, that is one of the best feeling knives I've ever handled.

But there's also something to be said for very simple handle designs. The Buck 110 and Benchmade 710 both have very comfortable handles that aren't overly curvey and "ergonomically" designed.
 
Some of the knives that I have that are a good fit for me (I have medium sized hands) are the BM910-has everything I want or need. Thumb slot to aid in opening, filed liner and backpiece in the right places to prevent slippage. Another is the BM710-a bit longer handle and blade, but comfortable in the hand. And surprisingly, the BM Rukus, alias the 610. For a very large and heavy knife, very easy to use. Also, the MCUSTA. Finger grooves and light weight. And easy opening. For me, first and foremost is how it feels and fits in the hand. Then, I consider the steel. As far as I'm concerned, it could have the finest steel available, but if it is uncomfortable or unweildy to use, why buy a knife just to sit in the box?
 
The manix is the most comfortable knife ive ever held. It feels very secure in my hand. The g10 handles and the heft that the entire knife has makes it feel like a quality knife. I dont like the way FRN and "plastic-y" handled knives feel. To me, FRN handles gives the a knife a cheap feeling in terms of quality. FRN is not as durable or grippy as g10 either.
 
For me it's a combination of lines and balance. If it doesn't have clean lines, I'm not even looking at it. Balance can usually be figured out from pics, I personally prefer 50/50 for the weight... but then I usually have smaller knives(my last customs are 2.5" of blade, 5.5" overall, balanced on my index)...

My "best" custom so far is the tichbourne h7... fat little bugger, 3/4 of the weight is all handle. Cuts all day without creating hotspots. Doesn't stop me from carrying my other customs with 50/50ish(balance on index or middle finger).


Some makers know exactly what you need in smaller knives, CKE on here recently started making customs... I have 3 of his so far... my last ones are just about mirror image right/left twins. Small knives but balance on the index, enough weight to toss between grips, and light enough to carry high & tight on my belt.
 
For some reason I like the balance of the knife to be 50% handle and 50% blade or a little more towards the blade. I like the feel the weight of the blade behind the cut and to me it makes it feel better for some reason. Right now i would say my mini-skirmish is my most comfortable knife I own with the Manix and Rukus right behind it. The Rukus is another knife with a heavy blade and I love that feeling which explains why I love the knife even though I have small hands.
I hate when theire ar any kind of abrupt edges towards the bottom of the knife because when cutting it puts leverage on the blade which is transfered to the end of the handle and can put a beating on your hand.
 
I like the way the nice rounded curves of a good knife feel in my hand.
 
The most comfortable handles and best gripping handles I have found on a production knife is the handle of a Buck Nighthawk. :thumbup:
 
I agree with you 100% BUT, where I live there are no quality knife shops. You have the usual assortment of Dick's, Bass Pro and that's about it. I noticed that the inventory at the Bass Pro is starting to go towards the cheaper end; besides you can never find someone behind the counter to help you.
 
Appreciate the warm welcome Barrabas - I've been a lurker for a while.

The reviews from forum members have been very helpful indeed.

Knife steel also plays a big role in my purchasing decision.

To expand on my examples above:
Grip (551SBT) - great handle but didn't like the balance

Buck 889 - bought cheap to try the Strider design, love the finger groove cut close to the blade and the balance. Hate the rough/cheap plastic and finishing. Solid knife for the money.

BM 710HS - solid knife, great balance. Grip is comfortable but would like a little more tapering to prevent the hand slipping during use.

Spyderco Delica - awesome knife. a little blade-heavy and thin handled, but these are part of the design. fits comfortably in my hands.

I just ordered a Manix - looking forward to trying it out. I'd also like to order a Paramilitary...seems like it has all the right design aspects (except perhaps the locking mechanism).

It's been interesting to see the arguments for different steels. I love M2 so far, although we'll see how my opinion changes once it starts to rust :p . Buck's 420HC on the 889 has been suprisingly robust and very resistant to edge chipping (tank of a knife). The VG-10 in my Delica has been incredible - excellect edge retention.
 
Welcome aboard, Tweakmeister.

I cannot say for sure what makes a knife hilt comfortable, but I had a memorable experience with one that was decidedly uncomfortable for me. That was an Elishewitz designed BenchMade folder, 830 or 930, I can't recall, but it had this great swell at the back of the hilt that rubbed against an arthritic portion of my palm. I actually hurt to use the damned thing, so I traded it away.

Here are some thoughts on comfort. No sharp edges to cut into my hand, especially on Multi-Tools. I HATE the Leatherman tools for just that reason and love the Gerber Multi-Plier. The hilt should be large enough to fill your hand but not so large as to be awkward. It should, by preference, not have any too sharp texturing to it, although some texturing is good, especially if your hands get wet using the knife or if you expect to be using it wearing gloves. On the whole, I have found the Spyderco handles to be very ergonomic and comfortable to use, although I did find the stainless steel police to be a bit of a handfull when wet.
 
The secret to comfortable knives is easy--spyderco.

My top three most hand friendly knives in order from good to greatest:

3: Paramilitary
2: Manix
1: Dodo
 
Naturally a fixed blade has more of a chance to have a comfortable handle than a folder if for no other reason than they have no blade slot. I think the type of handle you find on a Dozier Yukon Pro Skinner or a Krein TK-3 is the best. The whole thing smoothly tapers out into a palm swell, and then tapers back in at the end of the knife. Fits my hand like a glove.
 
The most comfy folder I own is my Lone Wolf T2 with cocobolo handles. I held a Manix at a knife shop and it felt great too.
 
I hate corners on the handles of hand tools. I don't have any corners in my hands. As far as handle comfort goes, my Newt Livesay knives have the most comfortable handles
 
Don't like the Para too much. Very nice knife but it just doesn't seem to fit my hand just right. My favorites are Dragonfly, Caly Jr., and Manix for their respective sizes. The Manix is like custom made for my hand.
 
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