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To Tanto or not to Tanto??
- Thread starter medic1
- Start date
- Joined
- Feb 21, 2001
- Messages
- 1,981
I think it primarily depends upon the uses to which you plan to put a tanto blade. Few people doubt it's efficiency in self defense situations. Few people find it very effective for fine, delicate cutting. That is due both to the design, and the fact that most tantos are ground with a single, chisel edge. A large percentage of those are ground on the wrong side for right handed persons. It is hard to track straight when cutting with a chisel grind.
Sorry, but don't know if the Soccom is chisel ground, or ground on both sides. Very few -- not sure I remember more than 1 or 2 -- people badmouth the quality of MicroTech knives. They won the Blade Quality award something like 3 years running. The SOCCOM is regarded highly.
The other question, perhaps that you didn't ask, is the effectiveness of combo edges. I personally am not particularly fond of serrations. I can see using them in a pure defense oriented knife. They do flat cut through leather and similar obstacles better than most plain edges. The big knock on combo edges is that you don't get enough of either edge to effectively do much of anything. Others love them, and buy most of their knives with that edge. Other than Spyderco, not too many fully serrated edges are produced. CRKT used to do it with the Mirage, but have discontinued that knife. SMKW -- Smokey MOuntain Knife Works -- had the large Mirage fully serrated for sale the other day for $10. Started to order one, til I remembered I had one already.
Back to your suggested knife. I'm sure it is a good knife. But, whether it is well suited to what you intend to use it for is a bit up in the air, until you examine/state the ways you plan to use the knife.
Sorry, but don't know if the Soccom is chisel ground, or ground on both sides. Very few -- not sure I remember more than 1 or 2 -- people badmouth the quality of MicroTech knives. They won the Blade Quality award something like 3 years running. The SOCCOM is regarded highly.
The other question, perhaps that you didn't ask, is the effectiveness of combo edges. I personally am not particularly fond of serrations. I can see using them in a pure defense oriented knife. They do flat cut through leather and similar obstacles better than most plain edges. The big knock on combo edges is that you don't get enough of either edge to effectively do much of anything. Others love them, and buy most of their knives with that edge. Other than Spyderco, not too many fully serrated edges are produced. CRKT used to do it with the Mirage, but have discontinued that knife. SMKW -- Smokey MOuntain Knife Works -- had the large Mirage fully serrated for sale the other day for $10. Started to order one, til I remembered I had one already.
Back to your suggested knife. I'm sure it is a good knife. But, whether it is well suited to what you intend to use it for is a bit up in the air, until you examine/state the ways you plan to use the knife.
- Joined
- Mar 2, 2000
- Messages
- 1,526
Medic 1,welcome.If its for use on the job,I think the tanto is not a bad choice.It will give you an option of prying if the need comes up(yes I know knives are not for prying
).Heres my take on it,in an emergency your going to use what ya got.
Awhile back we went for a child struck call.Narrow inner city street,large crowd.We had to park the rig a ways from the sceen due to traffic blocking the road.I grabbed the trauma box and went to the sceen.When I tried to open it the latches would not release,now what do I do leave to go back to the firetruck for a screwdriver? No flicked open my tanto Voyager and popped both latches with a hard fast twist.At the time a carried either the Voyager or an AFCK,this would have broke the thin tip of the AFCK.The a tanto does give you a lot more room for abuse of the blade,if that matters to you.
).Heres my take on it,in an emergency your going to use what ya got.Awhile back we went for a child struck call.Narrow inner city street,large crowd.We had to park the rig a ways from the sceen due to traffic blocking the road.I grabbed the trauma box and went to the sceen.When I tried to open it the latches would not release,now what do I do leave to go back to the firetruck for a screwdriver? No flicked open my tanto Voyager and popped both latches with a hard fast twist.At the time a carried either the Voyager or an AFCK,this would have broke the thin tip of the AFCK.The a tanto does give you a lot more room for abuse of the blade,if that matters to you.
I carry a medium Voyager (a little under 3 inches), and couldn't decide on which shape, so I got one of each. I carry the tanto 9 times out of 10. It is much easier to sharpen, handles abuse well, and I think that delicate cutting is easier thanks to the lack of a belly. Other than the tip, it's a lot like a Wharncliff.
I love mine.
I love mine.