Knife
A knife issharp object usedcutting things, based onsimple machine concept ofwedge. The most common design forknifethat ofsharp metal blade attached tohandle by means oftang. Knives have been used as weaponstools sincestone age,various developments includesword andmachete.
traditional Norse knife (photo Uwe Kils)
Together withforkspoonisvery common eating utensil. Accordingetiquette itheld inright hand, andfork inleft.
A knifesuchbasic tool that ithelpfulalmost any environment.
Knives were amongfirst tools used by man inStone age, originally consisting ofsingle piecesharpened flint.
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2 Sharpening 3 Knivescarry 4 Anatomy ofKnife 5 Blades 6 Typesknives |
Using knives
Keepknife clean, drysharp. Ifblade can rust, oilingwill helpstay sharp.
Never useknifepry or asscrewdriver. A piecelikelybreak offblade.
Inwoods, useknife astoolmake tools, rather than asonly tool. For example, rather than usingasskewer, use itcut skewers fromnontoxic wood.
To cut thick wood, chopping withknifealmost always faster than usingsaw onback ofknife.
Sharpening
The trick iscontrolangle betweenstoneknife. It should be constant. A toolvery helpful. Very sharp knives sharpen at 12 degrees. Typical knives sharpen at 22 degrees. Knives that chop may sharpen at 25 degrees. In short,hardermaterialbe cutlargerangle ofedge.
Removewire edge if one forms during sharpening. Use 30 degreesdo so. If not removed,will break offuse, andknive will instantly become dull.
The best sharpening stonesindustrial diamonds embeddedplastic. Thesemore expensive, but affordable. They cut about twice as fast as other stones.
Knivescarry
Many authorities recommend carryinglockback knife, about 4" (10cm) long. It should be one which can be openedone hand. The main use istool, notweapon.
One authority recommends,wilderness use, carryinglarge knife likemachete or kukri,chopping wood, serious fightingheavy camp chores,6" knifedressing animalsuse asspear-head, andback-upfighting knife,lock-back folderlight tasks,Swiss Army knifealllittle tools.
The best placecarrylarge knifeinback waistband, or underskirt strapped tothigh. A sheath forback waistband can be heldplace withsmall button that keepsabovewaistband. Tactical nylonstronger,more water resistant than leather.
Carryingknivespublicforbidden by lawmany countries. Exceptions may be madehunting knives,for knives usedwork-related purposes (eg.chef's knives). Knivesforbidden on aeroplanes andamongillegal imports that may be confiscated at airports by customs staff.
Anatomy ofKnife
A knife hasblade,tang andhandle. The tangan extension ofblade intohandle, so thathandle can be strongly attached toblade.
Some knives have quillions betweenblade andhandle, so that fingers cannot slip ontoedgebe cut. Quillions should be rounded so thatdo not cut fingers,strong enough so thatdo not bend beforeknife breaks. A nice feature iscurvetop quillion sothumb can be placed on it.
Some knives havechoil,crack, finger-hole or other space betweenedge andhandle. A functional choil iscircular cut-out betweenblade andhandle. It's often knurled. A functional choil letsuser gripknife withbottom quillion betweenindexmiddle finger. This lets one useindex fingerfeel whereedgecutting. For less-delicate cuts,index fingerkept safe behindquillion. Some pocket knives have onlychoil,no quillion, socan slip easily intopocket.
A blood groove islarge groove upside ofblade. According topopular myth,lets bleeding occur from an artery without removingknife. In reality, its only function ismake larger knivesswords lighter; on smaller knives it's purely decorative.
Some knives also haveshoulderwhichblade thickens asmeetshandle. This helped keepknife from jammingbone. In kitchen knives,keeps chopped items from moving back towardhand.
The handle should be thick enough that one's fingers just meet one's palm whenknifegripped as tightly as possible. Most knife handlesmuch too thin, andknifeserious use may needhave its handle built upcordtape. A favorite handle material issticky non-slip rubber material called Kraton.
Almost all knivesimproved whenhandle hashole inend. Cookingutility knives can be hung, which helps preserve their edge. Fightingsurvival knives can be placed onlanyard. A lanyard can be usedpull knives out (withlever, if necessary) whenjam. It can also prevent loss.
For whittling (artistic knife carving)blade as short as 25mm (1 inch)common.
On folding knives,tang has special features. The kick isfront (edge) locking surface ofblade. The back squarewherebladelocked inback.
Serrations onblade help keepblade sharp. The points protectslicing areas from nicks. A good serration pattern will helpknife stay sharp threeten times asasstraight edge. Theyalso difficultsharpen at home.
The edgesharpened at different anglesdifferent purposes. 1525 degrees isgood all-around angle. Slicing knives should have sharper angles, downten degrees. Chopping knifes need blunter angles, outthirty degrees.
Blades
Blades should be rust-proof. The current (2002) recommended material issteel called ATS-34. A former favorite was 440-C stainless steel.
City knives should be four inches or less. Country or fighting knives should be six inches.
Thereseveral basically different typesknife blades: normal, spey, clipped, sheeps-foot, tantoulu.
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A normal (1) blade hascurving edge,flat back. A dull back lets one use fingersconcentrate force,makesknife heavierstrongerits size. The curve concentrates force, making cutting easier. Therefore,can chop as well as pickslice. The single edgealso less expensiveproduce thandouble edge.
A curved or trailing-point (2) knife hasback edge that curves upward. This letslightweight knife havelarger curve on its edge. Suchknifebetterslicing thannormal knife.
A spey (3) blade has two curved edges. The idea ismakeblade that sliceseither direction, withstrong sharp point. This isstrongest traditional styleknife. It's usedfighting knives (dagger, switchblades, etc.) becausecan cut both directions, haspointis strong. Many persons believe thatbest all-around bladean asymmetric spey, withlarger curve onlower side. Thiscalleddropped spey.
A clipped (4) bladelikenormal blade withclip offtipmaketip thinnersharper. The back edge ofclip can have"cut swedge" that can be sharpenedmake second edge. The sharp tip makesblade exceptional aspick, orcuttingtight places. Ifclipsharpened, thisan attemptmakeworking knife double asfighting knife. Thisanother favorite knife shape, although itnot as strong asspey. The Bowiean attemptmakeclipped blade that's goodfighting,as strong asspey.
A sheepsfoot (5) knife hasstraight edge, andcurved dull back. It givemost control, becauseback, dull edgemadebe held by fingers. It's goodwhittling, including sheep's hooves.
A tanto (6) knifethick, almostbar. The edgestraight. The pointactuallysecond edge onend ofblade, swept back frompoint at 80-60 degrees.
An ulu knife issharpened half-circle. It's all edge,no point, andhandle inmiddle. It's goodscraping,sometimes chopping. It isstrongest knife-shape.
Typesknives
Solid tang knives arestrongestsimplest type.
A lockback knife isfolding knife withlock. One should be ableopenwith one hand, usingstud or fingerholeget leverage. If one must carry just one knife, many authorities agree that this isone.
A hunting knifenormally useddress large game. Itoftennormal, mild curve orcurvedclipped blade.
A trapper's knifemadekilldress small animals,helpsimple machinery. It'ssmall folding knifethree blades:clip,spey andnormal. Itone ofmost popular folding knives ever made.
A pocket knife isfolding knife, without locks. Some brands, such as Victorinox, havewide variety or tools available.
A classic lady's knife issmall curved knife that folds intohandlethen resemblessilver leaf.
Pure fighting knivesalways speys, so that either edge can cut. Modern fighting knives have large curves,concentrateforcepermit slicing. Classic fighting knives have straight edges andvery strong point.
A machete islarge normal blade, usedchop through brush. Interestingly, some expertsnow arguing thatlong, very sharp bladesuperior totraditional heavy machetecutting brush.
A kukri isfighting knife withdeep forward curve. In use,swings intoperson. The kukrialso goodchopping. Some shapes actually chop better thanhatchet, becausebalance better.
A survival knife issturdy knife, sometimes withhollow handle filledequipment. Inbest hollow-handled knives, both bladehandlecut fromsingle piecesteel. The end has an O-ring sealkeep water out ofhandle. Oftensmall compassset ininside, protected part ofpommel/cap. The pommel may be adaptedpounding or chipping. Recommended fillings forhandle:compass (usually inpommel). Monofilament (for snares, fishing), 12 feetblack nylon threadtwo needles,coupleplastic ties, two barbedone unbarbed fishhook (unbarbed doubles assuture needle), butterfly bandages, halizone tablets, waterproof matches.
Knife modifications
Most knives needfatter handlefit most people's hands. The handle should gethole, ifdoesn't have one. The handle can havecouple notchesmakeeasier-to use plastic tiesmountonspear.
The tang should be covered onhandle, so thatcannot burn, freeze or electrocuteknife's user.
The pommel might be modifiedbe sturdy enoughpound or chip. One can drivelarge machine screw in. The sheath should permit oneholdbladepoundingchipping.
One side ofblood groove or blade could be polishedmakesignal mirror. If thisdone, drillsmall holeact asaiming hole. One aimssignal mirror by looking throughhole,movingreflection ofbeam throughhole overtarget seen throughhole.
A knifesimple surveying instrumentsmore useful. One standard system putssighting hole inupper quillionaim overpoint. A weighted string draped onnotch isindicator. A sundialhalf-circle degree protractormarked onright side ofknife. Inafternoon, sightingsun,sundial should showhoursdarkness. Onleft side, put two trig scales. Sighting up givessine scale,percent ofdistance,measure height. Sighting down givestangent scale,percent ofdistance,measureobserver's height. A main usethese isnavigation. Another isestimate rope use,climbing effort.
Books:
The Knife Bible by Don Paul
Knives designedspecific purposes existlarge numbers. Some examples include butchering, hunting, curing, fishing, woodcarving, cookingcombat.
