Thumb ramps and jimping... I don't get it.

The little cosmetic jimping on the back of the handle does nothing at all if you want to slide your thumb up and down the spine of the blade and handle but the finger groove does work good. How much my thumb freely moves along the spine of the blade or handle doesn't matter much either for what its worth. The pinky is the real strength of your grip and my hand is completely locked, thumb only plays a part in reverse grip with thumb capping the butt, replacing the bottom of the palm.
 
GWashington1732 said:
Really, I've had knives with no guard or choil since Cub Scouts. I've gutted fish, cut just about anything you can imagine, and have never had one instance where I've felt a choil or thumb guard was necessary.



Have you ever been in a situation where you've really needed them?
Click to expand...

Damn if anyone knows about high intensity situations require traction on a knife handle, it's a cub scout. I give up you win.
 
I don't like "jimping", "thumb serrations", or whatever you call them.

I used a simple Buck 110 for 20 years and never once said "Damn, I just can't keep a grip on this knife, I just have NO control over it whatsoever!" That old 110 served me well in a wide variety of uses before I switched to "modern" folders.

If jimping helps you then I say more power to ya. I'm not saying that they're worthless or not useful. Just not my thing.

I don't like the looks of jimping and it's a pain to have to clean out all those little notches.

I believe that in many cases jimping is added just to make a knife appear more "tactical".
 
stabman said:
If a thumb ramp and/or jimping is done right, it can be comfortable and useful.
If it's done wrong, it doesn't help at all (for anything), and may just act as a thumb shredder.
Many manufacturers get it wrong; therefore, many people won't see the use for it.:)

I don't look for it, but it doesn't ward me off either. The whole knife must be taken into consideration, rather than individual features.
Click to expand...

Agreed! Unfortunately there's only one maker out there doing a thumb ramp in a way I agree with: Dylan Fletcher. Great guy who makes great stuff, and it's surprising that he's alone in making knives with thumb ramps farther forward. Some folks do jimping a lot better than others as well, though I've yet to see a situation where good handle ergos wouldn't make them unnecessary. But I never let a ramp or jimping get in the way of the purchase of an overall great knife. Like you say, you have to consider the whole. :)

Seems like a lot of folks have butthurt over this issue. Use what you like, guys! Haters gonna' hate. :D
 
Not necessary but i find it more comfortable for cutting tasks.
I can't see the utility for sd, I preffer a full hammer grip, but... give to the blade a tactical look that I like a lot :-)
 
IMO if ergonomics and handle material are right, thumb ramps and jimping isn't needed. I do like choils for cutting smaller things tho.
 
I hardly ever use spine jimping. I like the way it looks, but has minimal function to me. I will say this with 100% certainty, if you ever have to use a folder for self defense. You never want to put your thumb on the jimping. Hold your knife with your thumb on the jimping as hard as you want, and with your other hand you can push the entire knife out of your hand, by pressing on the side of the blade, towards your body. Put the thumb down over the other side of the knife like your holding a baseball bat, and it's locked in. You loose some dexterity, but keep your knife. I have disarmed people with training blades this way. Of course they retain the knife with a full grip. And I kick the blade out, not grabbing at it. Just my opinion. But still I like the cosmetic look and don't mind them. YMMV but only slightly. :)
 
cpmsteel said:
I hardly ever use spine jimping. I like the way it looks, but has minimal function to me. I will say this with 100% certainty, if you ever have to use a folder for self defense. You never want to put your thumb on the jimping. Hold your knife with your thumb on the jimping as hard as you want, and with your other hand you can push the entire knife out of your hand, by pressing on the side of the blade, towards your body. Put the thumb down over the other side of the knife like your holding a baseball bat, and it's locked in. You loose some dexterity, but keep your knife. I have disarmed people with training blades this way. Of course they retain the knife with a full grip. And I kick the blade out, not grabbing at it. Just my opinion. But still I like the cosmetic look and don't mind them. YMMV but only slightly. :)
Click to expand...

Thanks for saying this more articulately. As I said in post #1 and #4, putting your thumb on the spine is a weak grip.
 
cpmsteel said:
Hold your knife with your thumb on the jimping as hard as you want, and with your other hand you can push the entire knife out of your hand, by pressing on the side of the blade, towards your body. Put the thumb down over the other side of the knife like your holding a baseball bat, and it's locked in.
Click to expand...

That disarm works when the knife is held in hammer grip also.
The thumb adds a bit of grip strength, but not a great screaming load of it.
 
Thumb ramps and jimping look good and, well, that's all the explanation I need for them.
 
nightman said:
Thumb ramps and jimping look good and, well, that's all the explanation I need for them.
Click to expand...

I think that's it. Different strokes for different folks. I may never grip the knife that way, but apparently other people do. That is good enough an explanation for me.
 
stabman said:
That disarm works when the knife is held in hammer grip also.
The thumb adds a bit of grip strength, but not a great screaming load of it.
Click to expand...
If you have a strong grip, which I do, I will retain the knife unltil my hand is broken. A baseball bat would work, anything less and I will retain the knife.
 
cpmsteel said:
If you have a strong grip, which I do, I will retain the knife unltil my hand is broken. A baseball bat would work, anything less and I will retain the knife.
Click to expand...

Unless you're stronger than my friend who was 315 pounds of roided up muscle, I doubt it very, very much.
 
HuntBomb said:
Finger choils and jimping improve control.
Just because it isn't absolutely necessary, doesn't mean it isn't useful.
Click to expand...

Exactly... Both jimping and choils allow the fingers and thumb the most leverage over the blade and, therefore, control.
 
In FMA, you keep your thumb along the top of the blade and the ramp/jimping gives you an index for where it should be. Useful with sweaty hands or bloody hands. If you've not studied FMA or similar knife arts, you may not understand the reason, but it does help your hold and grip for thrusting.

When caping, I have choked up on a blade and used the jimping as an index for the web of my hand.
 
2 cents or less.....every feature or function has a purpose. Whether it is from a manufacture to target a market, a maker to fit a need or custom designer to embellish with art work. I'm glad everyone has an opinion and the right to choose what he or she likes and looks for in a knife. I've made EDCs w/out jimping and included it for the Hunter that will have bloody hands when skinning a deer. Real appreciation, accepts all facets of what goes into a subject before making a judgement.
 
CWL, I studied Okinawan Karate. The only thing I know about FMA is from the book "Modern Arnis" by Remy Presas. Not to discount what you said; I'm sure there are other styles and philosophies.

In the page titled "the grip," it reads: to grasp the arnis stick properly, hold it firmly as if shaking hands and fold your thumb on top of your first finger. Do not leave the thumb exposed on top of the stick, as this may cause injury.

The photo showing how not to hold the stick is exactly how a knife would be gripped using thumb ramp/jimping.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top