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Who the hell needs a Glock? the only reason to have such a gun is to kill someone, and therefore I'd prefer my Remington model 700...
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The BladeForums.com 2024 Traditional Knife is ready to order! See this thread for details: https://www.bladeforums.com/threads/bladeforums-2024-traditional-knife.2003187/
Price is$300$250 ea (shipped within CONUS). If you live outside the US, I will contact you after your order for extra shipping charges.
Order here: https://www.bladeforums.com/help/2024-traditional/ - Order as many as you like, we have plenty.
Whaddya think of tanto blades?
- Thread starter Runs With Scissors
- Start date
Who the hell needs a Glock? the only reason to have such a gun is to kill someone, and therefore I'd prefer my Remington model 700...
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- Nov 28, 1999
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I love the traditional style Japanese tanto blades, and those pics look great. I also like this particular model of tanto from Bob Dozier. I believe it to be a Keating design, but the knife is all Bob Dozier. I sold/traded this to a good friend of mine, and he will NOT give it back.
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really good looking knife! Think I'd be missin' it too...
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Bob Lum first introduced the American tanto to the public in the late 70's as a fixed blade. He did not start making folders until 7 or 8 years ago, and of course he adapted his popular blade style to the folder. Ray Beers, Pat Crawford, and others have been making folding tanto's for a much longer duration.
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I really love tanto's. They are one of the most versitile blade styles. You gotta love the armor piercing point!
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I actually like the Americanized tanto.
There are tasks to which I think the style is well suited. However, there are also tasks to which the style is not suited. And by not suited, I mean REALLY not suited.
I find the Americanized tanto great for opening boxes. The secondary point, combined with the triangular tip, is pretty similar to a triangular box cutter.
Box cutting is somewhat specialized, as you are trying to cut something that is both flexible and cut resistant (tape) without going too deeply into the box, and damaging the contents. The easiest way to do this is to penetrate the tape using a tip.
Holding my wrist straight, my Rekat Pioneer II tanto is generally far easier to make shallow cuts into boxes than with my Spyderco Wegner/Benchmade 710. These cuts could also be done with the primary point, but the risk of deep penetration is greater, and the angle is more awkward.
The secondary point is very low on the blade, and very strong, as it is surrounded by steel. Because the secondary tip is so low, your wrist and arm can be almost straight, making for easy, controlled pull cuts.
For many other applications, however, the shape is very non-ideal. A great example is skinning animals.
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Some say that the Americanized tanto is superior for self-defense. I'm really not qualified to comment on that.
I will comment on the "Armor piercing" abilities of the Americanized Tanto, however. (Regardless of my meager qualifications.
)
The tip is thick, which makes it resistant to breakage. However, it also lowers its penetrating abilities. Logically, a well made, thinner standard point should take far less force to penetrate to the same depth because there is less drag from the thickness of the knife.
Even if the thinner knife breaks on the first try, one 3" depth penetration may be far better than fifteen 1" depth penetrations. Unless of course, you are up against multiple armored opponents and can't have breakage.
How often do you encounter multiple opponents wearing "hard" armor, such as metal plate or chainmail? Perhaps far in the past, but not really today. Modern armor, such as Kevlar, is soft and easily penetrate-able by standard points, and may actually be more difficult to penetrate with a thicker point.
I can't think of many modern applications, beyond defense against armored opponents, where one would need to penetrate thick metal in self defense. Remember, most car doors are 3-6" thick. Do you really think you could stab someone through them? Especially with a 4" folder?
If the intended use is not emergency self defense, I would suggest using a tool more suited to the task. For penetrating 50 gallon drums, I would use a good hammer and a nail or chisel.
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Anyways, my point is, the Americanized Tanto is not "all hype". There are uses to which I think it is well suited. But, I do believe that some of the hype is basically false.
-- Rob
There are tasks to which I think the style is well suited. However, there are also tasks to which the style is not suited. And by not suited, I mean REALLY not suited.
I find the Americanized tanto great for opening boxes. The secondary point, combined with the triangular tip, is pretty similar to a triangular box cutter.
Box cutting is somewhat specialized, as you are trying to cut something that is both flexible and cut resistant (tape) without going too deeply into the box, and damaging the contents. The easiest way to do this is to penetrate the tape using a tip.
Holding my wrist straight, my Rekat Pioneer II tanto is generally far easier to make shallow cuts into boxes than with my Spyderco Wegner/Benchmade 710. These cuts could also be done with the primary point, but the risk of deep penetration is greater, and the angle is more awkward.
The secondary point is very low on the blade, and very strong, as it is surrounded by steel. Because the secondary tip is so low, your wrist and arm can be almost straight, making for easy, controlled pull cuts.
For many other applications, however, the shape is very non-ideal. A great example is skinning animals.
------------------
Some say that the Americanized tanto is superior for self-defense. I'm really not qualified to comment on that.
I will comment on the "Armor piercing" abilities of the Americanized Tanto, however. (Regardless of my meager qualifications.
)The tip is thick, which makes it resistant to breakage. However, it also lowers its penetrating abilities. Logically, a well made, thinner standard point should take far less force to penetrate to the same depth because there is less drag from the thickness of the knife.
Even if the thinner knife breaks on the first try, one 3" depth penetration may be far better than fifteen 1" depth penetrations. Unless of course, you are up against multiple armored opponents and can't have breakage.
How often do you encounter multiple opponents wearing "hard" armor, such as metal plate or chainmail? Perhaps far in the past, but not really today. Modern armor, such as Kevlar, is soft and easily penetrate-able by standard points, and may actually be more difficult to penetrate with a thicker point.
I can't think of many modern applications, beyond defense against armored opponents, where one would need to penetrate thick metal in self defense. Remember, most car doors are 3-6" thick. Do you really think you could stab someone through them? Especially with a 4" folder?
If the intended use is not emergency self defense, I would suggest using a tool more suited to the task. For penetrating 50 gallon drums, I would use a good hammer and a nail or chisel.
-------------
Anyways, my point is, the Americanized Tanto is not "all hype". There are uses to which I think it is well suited. But, I do believe that some of the hype is basically false.
-- Rob
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- Jul 1, 2001
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Originally posted by baraqyal
I will comment on the "Armor piercing" abilities of the Americanized Tanto, however. (Regardless of my meager qualifications.
The tip is thick, which makes it resistant to breakage. However, it also lowers its penetrating abilities. Logically, a well made, thinner standard point should take far less force to penetrate to the same depth because there is less drag from the thickness of the knife.
Even if the thinner knife breaks on the first try, one 3" depth penetration may be far better than fifteen 1" depth penetrations. Unless of course, you are up against multiple armored opponents and can't have breakage.
How often do you encounter multiple opponents wearing "hard" armor, such as metal plate or chainmail? Perhaps far in the past, but not really today. Modern armor, such as Kevlar, is soft and easily penetrate-able by standard points, and may actually be more difficult to penetrate with a thicker point.
I can't think of many modern applications, beyond defense against armored opponents, where one would need to penetrate thick metal in self defense. Remember, most car doors are 3-6" thick. Do you really think you could stab someone through them? Especially with a 4" folder?
Anyways, my point is, the Americanized Tanto is not "all hype". There are uses to which I think it is well suited. But, I do believe that some of the hype is basically false.
The point is the tip strength is superior to many other blade styles. I have used my cold steel tanto's to penetrate the steel of car doors, the trunks and the hoods, with no damage. I think if you have experimented with one you would have to agree with me and you'll fast become a big fan of the tanto!
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Originally posted by Bladeswinger
Originally posted by baraqyal
The point is the tip strength is superior to many other blade styles. I have used my cold steel tanto's to penetrate the steel of car doors, the trunks and the hoods, with no damage. I think if you have experimented with one you would have to agree with me and you'll fast become a big fan of the tanto!
The tip strength is superior. But, it comes at the cost of more force required for penetration. I have quite a few Americanized tantos, and I do like them.
I could also penetrate a car door with a big screwdriver.
Tip strength is nice, but my point was - why would you need to penetrate a car door?
IMO, its always better to use the right tool for the job, unless it's an emergency and you don't have the right tool.
I just don't see many emergency applications where tip strength is paramount. At least, not for civilian use.
-- Rob