Wood processor/weapon knife. Design advice needed.

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Feb 3, 2006
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So my girlfriend and I are getting into backpacking and my setup now is just too heavy. Right now I'm sporting a tomahawk and want to switch that out to a medium fixed blade with the addition of a saw possible in the winter. What I want is a knife that is a wood processing machine but can also double as a good last ditch weapon. My experience is the farther down the trail you get the less you find undesireables so the weapon part is definitely a secondary concern. As to wood processing, mostly it's going to be batoning with the grain, avoiding knots, to split out kindling however I want the knife to be able to baton cross grain to make shelter poles, splints, etc in an emergency so a little extra insurance in strength is desireable. Also, the knife may be called on to do light prying to get at fatwood in rotten stumps. I'm still in the early stages of the design so I'd really like to hear everyone's input on this. Note, this is not a "bushcraft" knife as I'm not a bushcrafter and if I wanted to do bushcraft I'd just throw a mora in my pack. Which at 4oz, really is no bid deal.

What I'm thinking so far is a knife that's kind of a cross between a traditional tanto and a leuko. Something with a straight spine.

Blade length in the 5-6" area. I'm leaning toward 5" but open to thoughts on going longer.
NO choil. Blade will come right into the guard so the 5 inch blade will actually be 5 inches.
O1 steel or something stronger?
Blade width 1-1.5" wide with a thickness of 5/32-3/16". Not sure on this. I want strength but I also want light weight. Any ideas?
Brass pins. Loving brass at the moment so that's a for sure.
Handle material. I think ideally I'd want orange G10 for visibility but I'm a little apprehensive on the grippiness of it. Does this get slick when wet? If so tan canvas micarta would be my runner up.
Palm swells I'm torn about. Swells can be hit or miss because everyones hands are different. I'm not going to use this for any prolonged carving projects so I'm thinking just a simple oval cross section on a straight handle would do. More like the traditional tanto with maybe a swell at the butt.
Oh, and did I mention NO CHOIL. :D I just don't get choils on small knives.
 
Blade shape like this?
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G10 is a little slippery, but not as bad as linen micarta. My choice is canvas micarta.
 
Yep pretty much. That amount of belly is about what I had in mind. In between the pointy tanto and the round skinner leuko. What are the dims on that one, 1.5" wide by about 3-4" long?

That pic also brings up another point and it's one of grind. Given I want light and strong would something akin to the convex saber grind like above in 5/32" thick be more or less strong then a full convex in 3/16" or is it a wash?
 
That one was a 1 1/2" x 4" blade. I would say the strength would be about equal.
 
As much as I hate to give them any press, the Cold Steel Konjo II seems like it might have the right look. No guard, so maybe not much of a fighter, but then again, a traditional tanto or leuku wouldn't have one either ;) It may be a good starting point in building a design.


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As much as I hate to give them any press, the Cold Steel Konjo II seems like it might have the right look. No guard, so maybe not much of a fighter, but then again, a traditional tanto or leuku wouldn't have one either ;) It may be a good starting point in building a design.


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Thanks for the suggestion. Something like that but with a guard. And of course better quality through John.;)

I think i want to go slim on this one. I've been seeing the 1.5" width knives and they just aren't what I have pictured in my head. I'm leaning more and more toward 1" wide by 3/16" thick. I need to get the sketch pad out.
 
You're thinking about something like a full-tang leuku, with fingernotch and convex grind. I would say also 140x25x4 mm blade, 12 mm heigh grind...
 
Here's another one John made that might fit the bill with thicker stock. Same handle as the Kentucky Woodsman, which is comfortable.

Here are the specs:
10 1/4" overall
5 1/2" blade
1/8" thick
1 1/2" tall blade
O1 steel
green canvas micarta handles

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John's photo
 
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rather than 3/16 x 1", I would look at 1.25" x 5/32, slight straight drop point, and a convex saber grind.
O1 is plenty strong, although I am in the process of developing a fondness for W2 in larger knives. :)
 
KY,
I think I know where that knife sleeps... :)

I am really digging that clip point Phoenix. A slight modernization of a Kephart and addresses a couple of my dislikes over the traditional design.- I prefer a little sharper tip and some swell/contour in the handle.
A 5/32 5" blade Phoenix would be a great all rounder rough duty trail knife for my use.
Bill
 
Hmm...none of my drawings are striking my fancy. I ordered a bushcraft basic 5 from condor to try out. It was close to what I want and cheap enough for a tester. We'll see how it goes next week while camping.
 
JK big bushcrafter on the left, Original on the right
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stretch the JKO 1/2-1" and it might be what you're looking for.
 
You mentioned a Tanto, how about getting John to do a variation of this knife ~

4355S.jpg
 
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