Thick or thin handles?

As far as balance goes, that's preference. I like it in the handle. I prefer to feel the weight of the knife inside my fingers (where I, perhaps naively, think I can control it more) vs. outside of them.

But, to the "lighter" philosophy, there's not much you can do to lighten the blade on the ACTUAL blade. You can do a hollow grind or something, remove more stock from the cutting side...but most of your weight decisions are at the handle. type and size of the handle stock, tang style, skeletonized, etc... Andy's continued to move the dials on that side. Seems his preference is for lighter (he often says 'faster') knives.

I like the older ones, with a bit of weight. I like knives that feel a bit heavy. Andy say's lighter knives are 'fast'. I say heavy knives are 'full of purpose'. I've got a 2012 bushcrafter that I treat like an axe. I beat on it like a chisel.
 
Some of the older ones seem too thick and some of the newer ones are too thin. Maybe the coming seasons will continue to bring us a variety of choices.

I find the thicker handles to be uncomfortable in a prolonged pinch-grip but are better in a fist-grip. So for me the thicker handles are great by the campfire but not so much in the kitchen.
 
For me, thin handles please. I guess I have smaller hands than the average guy around here (medium glove) and I've had to sell a number of knives just because the handle is too big in circumference for my preference. There are plenty of knives around for bear-mitt folks, but not many for the others. . . Just my 2 cents
 
i like it thick in the swell and a fine taper on both ends. this is the best to me for prolonged use without fatigue or handle slip. The bushcrafter really fits the bill for this. One thing that i think is overlooked though when it comes to fixed blades and terms of handle desires... choils. Choils can make a huge difference in handle geometry, and how a knife functions when you have the ability to really choke up properly.
 
thurin said:
Regarding choils: Take a look at http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/s...knife-with-everything?p=13594778#post13594778 for Andy's opinion on what features make make for a good Bushcraft knife design.

That is the post that dashed my hopes of a Fiddleback with a pommel plate. :)
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I would say one way to look at a "choil" bushcraft style is one of Andy's own apprentices. Check out the Echo-5 by Dogwood Custom Knives. The way Dan tapers back the handle creates a semi choil you can really curl back on during some fine wood working :)
 
thurin said:
For me it depends on usage. I think maw mentioned in the other thread that for EDC type tasks thin is fine but for a user knife he likes a thick handle.

I'd have to agree on this. A thin handled Runt or EDK is great for occasional EDC use of opening the mail, cutting up an apple, etc. But if I'm going to be doing any extended work, it better have a thick handle on it or it becomes uncomfortable quickly.
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Well said thurin. I concur. :)

Mark
 
+1 thicker handles, I like the look of the thin handles and they are nice to carry but when it comes to actually using the knife I prefer a fuller handle.
 
I tend to like the thinner more oval shaped handles. They giver me better control and leverage when I am using the knife, and I am more accurate in chopping with them as the more round the handle the more it tries to turn in my hand.
 
My hands are on the large side so I do prefer thicker handles. That being said I do like thinner handles on the smaller Knives like the Bushboot and the F1. As far as balance I am a big fan of the the TT over the SFT. It always seems that no matter the size of the Knife if it has a TT the balance is right at the forefinger. The largest FB knife I have is the Woodsman so the balance may vary with larger models.
 
Thin feels more nimble and precise, but for harder/longer use I prefer a fatter handle. I have large hands (can easily palm a basketball) with long fingers.

Current knives are a mix of older fat handles and newer thinner one.
Hunter 3/16, Bushfinger 5/32, Recluse 5/32, Ladyfinger 1/8 and 3/16 Camp (old to newer)

 
I looked at the Echo-5 and I'm not seeing a choil. If you're referring to a tapered handle near the ricasso or grind plunge, that's something different altogether and probably only available on older Aretes. Andy has always been pretty clear that his handle designs purposely keep the fingers away from the blade and provide natural indexing without having to worry about the edge. He laid it out pretty clear years ago in the Arete design thread and even further back in a post about how he creates his handles. I used to prefer a tapered handle towards the front but after a few years with one of Andy's designs, I see what he means and now prefer his style, at least with bushcraft style knives and work. My hand feels more relaxed using a FF handle than one with a handle that narrows towards the edge. I would agree however, that the apprentices are doing some amazing work, spreading out the branches of the FF tree with different interpretations of functional tools.

This forum has evolved a lot in just the past year with a LOT of new members. This thread is very interesting to see some of the older posters, the varied preferences, and the widespread enthusiasm. On the continuum of Andy's work, I'd say that right now he's in a stage where synthetics are typically thinner and more ovalized in cross-section whereas the burls and hardwoods seem to be rounder and a little thicker. Perhaps that's why they're (wood handles) flying off the screen on Friday and in the Flea market or maybe it's just a sign of changing tastes. Perhaps it's related to the available materials. Either way it's always very compelling to see what's coming next.
 
couple pics of my echo 5 for reference:

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For what it is worth, I recently got a pantry to house all of my knives in (will post pictures when I get some time to process them). I have the big boys on the bottom shelf, (Camp knife through Bushfinger). I guess I need more larger knives because I do not consider the Bushfinger that large. Any way, the four variations of Bushfingers are sitting flat side by side except for an older model that originated from thurin. It is a scandi grind with a round handle that will role such that the blade's cutting edge is facing the shelf much more acutely. It really stands out the way that it sits compared to the more modern examples. I can role it with the palm of my hand back and forth from spine to cutting edge with only little effort. When I apply the same force to the modern Bushfingers, the knife does not move.

I must admit that in hand, I do like the feel of the rounder handle. It just fills my hand more securely, and I consider myself to have only medium sized hands. I also much prefer the Big/Bear Paw handle in a Kephart style blade as well. Perhaps when I get time I will put my modern and older Scandi Bushfinger to a hard use test to see if my initial impressions hold up regarding large and rounded.
 
As for the Echo 5, a choil is not a tapered handle so I'm not sure what you guys are referring to. Not seeing any pics catalystman80 but I've seen others of it. Anyways, the Arete has the most forward-tapered handles of all the FFs so look to it for Andy's interpretation of a "choil."

ETA: sorry if my verbiage sounds abrupt. I appreciate the lack of gimmicks in Andy's knives and hope that is something that never changes.
 
No problem man, you have a right to argue for or against any point you want, imo. However, i will admit that maybe i mis-used the word choil. We were having a discussion about handle preferences, and my main point was that I personally like a handle that has a large swell, but has a deep taper near the top. Along with that, i like a recess in the handle that can allow the bottom of the guard to be used in a choil like manner. In a buscrafting situation there are a multitude of occasions that can arise that can require fine work in which the extra choked up grip might be needed. That recess can make this a comfortable situation. Right now, I'm really digging the ergs on my echo-5 as an example.
 
mistwalker said:
I tend to like the thinner more oval shaped handles. They giver me better control and leverage when I am using the knife, and I am more accurate in chopping with them as the more round the handle the more it tries to turn in my hand.
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+1 this.. I couldn't agree more. Fat handles for a camp, bishop, cc, etc; sure, but 85% of Andy's knives are (IMO) precision tools -- the slimmer contoured handles provide maximum control and a bevy of grip options. I know that I'm in the minority here, but the slimmer handles also showcase Andy's refinement and control as a hand made knife maker. Again, I sympathize for the folks with bear paws (heck I'm a large in most gloves); perhaps as some have suggested Andy will deliver a batch here or there for you folks, but if we start seeing fat coke bottle handles all over the place, I'll be found trolling the flea market :D
 
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