What small details are done really well?

M

MarkN86

Joined
Sep 3, 2012
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Its easy to focus on the negative aspects of things and miss the nice little details that work well for us. Maybe its a half stop on a slip joint or a particularly well done pocket clip. Maybe its the way a knife carries in the pocket or it has a really well done sheath. It could be a scale material that really catches your eye.

What thoughtful little details have you found, be it from a functional or aesthetic standpoint, that are done really well that you feel deserve recognition?
 
On Victorinox Swiss army knives:
  • The implements and blades are ground at angles (as viewed from the side of the knife while closed) so that they can close within fractions of a millimeter of one another
  • Parts that tend to break are replaceable:
    • Scales
    • Scissor and plier springs
    • Batteries
    • Detachable implements (toothpick, tweezers, straight pin, micro screwdriver)
    • Different implements are hardened to different levels, appropriate to their use
Cold Steel Grik has an option of using the thumb ramp or removing a setscrew to remove it and make it into a round deployment hole.

Mora Eldris - Small fixed blade (2-1/8" blade) yet the handle fills the hand. That, combined with the scandi-ground blade means this little knife can be used harder than any other knife I know of with a blade this size.

Spyderco Spydiechef - Blade and handle geometry are such that there is knuckle clearance when cutting against a surface. Not many folding knives have this useful feature.

Scale Materials - Antlers vary from knife to knife, giving some uniqueness. Same for wood. I have a Victorinox Executive that has scales made from mammoth ivory; I think that's ultra-cool.

Glock Field knife - the sheath is one piece polymer with a good latch, and there is an option to lock the belt loop on one's belt as well. The handle is the same polymer, and it is also the same polymer that is used in their pistol frames.
 
I noticed my Para3 choil grabs my finger if the lock ever were to inadvertently disengage rather than having edge coming straight down and cutting me.

Same with larger flipper tabs, the finger guard they create in the open position helps prevent that as well.

Not sure if they were intentionally designed that way but I like it.
 
One of my all-time favorites is the milling ProTech did on the Cambria's handle, specifically the area where the clip sits. The whole design is fantastic, but look how they've made the "step" adjacent to the mounting point on the clip the exact thickness of the clip, nested it flush, and then used flat screws. Perfection!

oYrxviL.jpg
 
Small ones that comes with lanyard or at least a hole to put one. It just act as extension of handle. Design on spine of knife, or on blade. Folder deployment signature.
 
I rotate the knives that I keep by my recliner. Right now my Cold Steel Ti-Lite is there. The fit and finish on it is very good. It is smooth and locks in place with a dependable sounding click. Needless to say, it is scary sharp right out of the box.
 
I like when the knife is closed and the back square is not sticking above the bolster. In fact I’m against any sharp edges or corners on a knife. A sharp exposed back spring is a real annoyance

The only sharp edge on a knife should be the actual cutting edge.
 
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Milled out handles for the liners. I like liners on my knives. Also a few holes/grooves in the liners to reduce weight doesn't hurt either.

Different colored back spacer or liners on a fixed blade to give a splash of color.

I don't use pocket clips all the time but a nicely thought out pocket clip helps. I also love that Spyderco offers 4 way pocket clips on many of their models.
 
Rounded spines, inside of Ti handles milled out and chamfered handle edges.
 
On some of my GEC folders, during finishing at the factory they made sure to really polish up the transitions between the bone scales and bolsters. They even polish little divots into the bolsters to match the cuts in the bone so there's no sharp edges. Not sure why, but i always foud that little detail striking.
 
Avoiding a "double clutch" situation on closing.

Love my ZT 0450....except that the detent ball hangs up on the frame lock bar, requiring you to pull again...or hold for a longer time than you really want to. My Kansept Gremlin gets it right.

Don't have enough frame locks to comment on how common, or uncommon, the issue really is....
 
Love the details, it show someone care about the work:

nA7oCj5.jpg

ZT470, just look at the lines, it explains itself.

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This is a Victorinox Swisschamp I've taken apart. One will not fully appreciate how much engineering and details go into this, until you take it apart. I mean how often do you see tweezer, toothpick and a pen all fit into the scales?

sraXpVQ.jpg

BK62. Simple knife perfectly done. Taper tang, perfect balance, crown spine, leather sheath clicks-in like kydex, and this is a replica of the real deal near 100 years ago.

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Civivi Rustic Gent, lockback well executed. Perfect fit and finish, everything fuse together seamlessly, and comes with an extra half stop too.

pofCZLL.jpg

CPK DEK1, who'd imagine there would be a 'S' grind to optimize cutting performance on the primary grind? Again, perfectly balanced, great ergo in hand and the D3V heat treat, that's detail you cannot see but will fully appreciate once start using it.
 
MarkN86 said:
Its easy to focus on the negative aspects of things and miss the nice little details that work well for us. Maybe its a half stop on a slip joint or a particularly well done pocket clip. Maybe its the way a knife carries in the pocket or it has a really well done sheath. It could be a scale material that really catches your eye.

What thoughtful little details have you found, be it from a functional or aesthetic standpoint, that are done really well that you feel deserve recognition?
Click to expand...
Rounding off the handle where there otherwise would’ve been hotspots.
 
Sunken joints; so hard to find many "knife guys" don't know what they are, and others will tell you that's strictly a custom feature. Her a couple show what can be achieved by proper engineering and design.

Here's a very well made Scout knife of the kind sold by the millions:

gQG3E4J.jpg


Here's a Scout knife (made in Italy) with sunken joints. Notice how no sharp edges on the back of a blade sit tall, where they can rub, or cut you when using the other blades.

NrOd0iE.jpg


Another issue I have is with blades that sit higher than they need to. Sometimes it's the design of the blade, but mostly it's attention to detail. This is especially true with multi-bladed knifes, where the blades have to be "reachable" so they can be used. But compare the two knives in this picture, both factory made, both the same pattern (admittedly different in size), a judge for yourself which show greater attention to detail:

LK9PkV8.jpg
 
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