Knife reviews

[Gary]

A strange thought struck me today and made me stop to ponder it (two odd events at once) anyway I thought Id seek your opinions on it too.

The old saying is the best knife in a survival situation is the one you have - meaning make do with what you got!
By this same token surely someone who is competent with a knife should be able to make any knife work for him. Baring failures of edge or materials of course.

Now this was my thought, would it therefore be right to assume that someone who in competent with a average knife will be able to produce good results and as such said average knife would in fact be deemed better than average while someone inexperienced with knives would deem the same tool as below average.
And if that were the case who would be the better reviewer of the knifes performance? Would the experienced person know he was compensating for a weakness in design say while would the inexperienced person realise how to improve the tool or how to use it to is best ability?

I think it an interesting cunumdrum - your thoughts..........

 

[jamesdevine]

I will retire to my retreat in the montains and meditate on this master.

Seriously do as a person with no knowledge of knives other there then which end cuts you and which end doesn't and being totally confused by all the terminalogy and jargon I would have to say that the only requirement could test or review a knife on would if it does what I wanted it to do. It thats to sharpen the point of stick for a peg, make a spoon or carve a survival bow with out breaking and without needing any major sharping or other major care I would consider it a good knife.

I have a Helle Eagen which I used through out my recent course it worked well but slowly developed a small bit of movement in the handle. I did not use it for battoning and would not. to me with not technical knowlodge this knife has failed and is being returned to the manufactures.

Is that a review that is worth reading.

James

 

[dataphage]

Hmmmmmmm....

I guess that a person who is competent with an average knife would probably notice the difference with a good knife. Whereas someone incompetent with a good knife would probably not notice the difference with a bad one.

If you are reviewing a knife then you probably have others, good or bad (probably both). If you don't have a drawer full of cutlery or a bit of experience then a comparative review with 2 or more is probably better (and more fun anyway!).

This will have varying degrees as with anything subjective. I would probably know if the the blade was too long or too thin but I might not know if I was compensating for it with its use, it might take a maker to know that on some levels. Equally I would probably notice if the steel was too soft for the intended use of the knife but even my little sister would be able to tell you that it gets blunt after peeling apple.

 

[george]

I used to collect parangs (s.e. asian machetes) and I was always facinated by the subtle differences in design for different uses. The thing was that I couldn't tell how good one design was for a given use compared to another - quite simply because I didn't use them all my life, every day a hundred times a day. For the people that did use them this much then a subtle difference could be the difference between finishing the day tired or not. Blade designs varied from region to region according to the type of forest likely to be encountered and the sort of work they would be used for. I used a Javanese Golok design in Sulawesi and as far as I was concerned it would do what I wanted - until locals pointed out that it was too short to let me reach some of the vines that commonly grew there (different type of forest cover) and that were used every day - when I started using a longer bladed Sulawesi design I found that although it took some getting used to it saved me energy in the long run. I would never have realised that without it being pointed out to me cos I would have shied away from having to carry the bigger blade.

I suppose what I'm saying is that someone who knows what they're doing is probably going to be able to recognise the strong points and weaknesses in a knife better than someone who doesn't.

As long as they're good at writing it up I suppose

George

 

[Gary]

OK I see where your all coming from with this and I agree, someone who knows knives is best to review them and weight up the pro's and co's, but as this is a theoretical debate lets take it a stage further.

Using daysacks as an example, but still erring on the side of the knowledgable person reviewing them is their conclusion going to be always right? For example, I have grown up wearing daysacks and backpacks both civilian and military. I must have owned 100's over the years, my wife even says I own more sacks than she has pairs of shoes! :yikes: Now I have tried out some excellent sacks and I have owned some truly bad ones but regardless of good or bad I always go back to my PLCE jet packs. These aren't the most comfortable to wear, nor the most spacious or practicable and yet they are the ones I use all the time, why? Surely (using the knife example) if I had tried good sacks I would go with using these and not go back to a less than perfect sack and (by default) surely my choosing to use a more mediocre sack means that others (say my students) would think this a very good sack for themselves to own - (the same could also be said of knives or clothing for example). Would this be right or wrong?

 

[Squidders]

I also use the PLCE jet packs... in DPM (for all you olive drab people to laugh at).
I agree, they're not the best... but more importantly, they're not the worst. I compare them to the old pair of trainers that I have worn through the soles of. They have served me well and I feel attached to them, I know where I stand with them, I know their weaknesses and strengths. What I have found is that the better something is or seems to be, the less adaptable it actually is when you ask something strange of it.

As the below mentioned parang, the golok did the job but wasn't AS good as it could have been in that specific environment... would the long parang have been as good in the goloks perfect environment?

When I look for kit, I always look for the average... I want kit that's going to be completely mediocre at everything... I'd rather own 60% less kit for 15% extra effort, one knife, one axe, one pack etc.

Joe
_____________________
- Insert witty footnote here -

 

[SquirrelBoy]

Ive a confession to make.

All of my life I have bought the best I can afford, TV, PC, Kit etc.
My choice has been made by carefull research and dosent mean I buy it `cos its expensive so it should be good`.

I bought an Alan Wood Woodlore many moons ago (when they first appeared @ £150) BUT I havent even used it, not even once :shock: What I have used is a cheap Frosts knife for £10... Am I mad ? Probably

But the thing is, it has served me well. I dont have the experience to tell what is a good or bad knife, what steel is the best etc.. It has done what I asked so to me its all I need. Obviously the price of it affects how I will treat it too, and boy it has done serious service. I wouldnt treat the A.Wood the same.

I think for those who can afford to chop and change kit like I change my socks - go for it - find out whats best for you by all means.

But when reviewing gear it will be the best for him who reviews it - were not all the same and as such can only make an educated guess if it will do what we want.

Think ive rambled on a bit, so wont be reviewing stuff :rolmao:

 

[Lemoneyewash]

I used to collect parangs (s.e. asian machetes) and I was always facinated by the subtle differences in design for different uses. The thing was that I couldn't tell how good one design was for a given use compared to another - quite simply because I didn't use them all my life, every day a hundred times a day. For the people that did use them this much then a subtle difference could be the difference between finishing the day tired or not. Blade designs varied from region to region according to the type of forest likely to be encountered and the sort of work they would be used for. I used a Javanese Golok design in Sulawesi and as far as I was concerned it would do what I wanted - until locals pointed out that it was too short to let me reach some of the vines that commonly grew there (different type of forest cover) and that were used every day - when I started using a longer bladed Sulawesi design I found that although it took some getting used to it saved me energy in the long run. I would never have realised that without it being pointed out to me cos I would have shied away from having to carry the bigger blade.

I suppose what I'm saying is that someone who knows what they're doing is probably going to be able to recognise the strong points and weaknesses in a knife better than someone who doesn't.

As long as they're good at writing it up I suppose

George

BRILLIANTLY PUT. :biggthump

 

[Gary]

Those of us with green jet-packs will be getting fewer and fewer as it appears they are now sold out at the MOD - wont be long before the only ones you can buy are the Karrimor ones! But thats besides the point.

Nigel, you just did your own review - you reviewed the Frost and the WL, you might not have added techno talk and such but you were still able to review the subject matter and your reasons would be just as valid as any knife expert.

So where does that leave us?

Someone who knows a daysack (though no expert) chooses a less than perfect sack while some who claims to know nothing about knives chooses his preference and more than adequately reviews it.

Interesting isnt it!!

 

[Squidders]

I would say it's more confusing... all future gear choices will be frought with angst over making the right decision! :shock:

 

[Gary]

Exactly - thats what my initial thought was about knife reviews - how do you decide?

Interesting thought eh! No right or wrong answer either as far as I can see although I don't profess to be wise or all knowing - hence my asking.

 

[bushwacker bob]

to think outside the box a minute,you need to consider the 3rd party.ie the person who is going to read the review.
They would probably not be reading it unless they had some requirement for a knife.
They would probably have some idea of what they wanted even if its only the size or fixed blade or folder.
they would read the review subjectivly and if the review was positive it would probably increase their desire for it.A poor review,such as some of the objections to the quality of finish of the WS woodlore wont nessicarily put off the purchaser immediately,but it will sow a seed of doubt which if left for a period of time and fed with other negative feed back would put them off.
I dont often see a negative review, but note comments over time and as I'm usually skint,i try to research as much as possible before purchasing.This means if I do make a purchase it is usually well informed, but based nearly always on reviews by 'experts' that can tell a good un from a duffer

 

[Martyn]

Exactly - thats what my initial thought was about knife reviews - how do you decide?

By reading a lot of em from a lot of different people ...and taking any one of em with the very large pinch of salt they all deserve.

 

[trakker409]

I guess I'll throw out my opinion too since I am a hardcore knife user. I own quite a few styles of blades now. Some are the "tactical" (I hate that word)types that I use on duty simply because I need a beefier blade that can take lots of abuse. I also have three bush style blades that all see different uses. I currently use a semi "Nessmuk" blade from Idaho Knife Works for dressing and butchering fish and game. I do a lot of that in season averaging ten deer per season, lots of small game and fish in summer. I use a "Cliff" model knife from Idaho Knife Works for a lot of other chores around home and camp. The blade is very thin and it slices incredibly well. I don't use it much as a game knife although it is excellent on fish due to the thinness of the blade. My favorite bush knife though is a custom made by Dale Chudzinski and patterned after the Bison Bushcraft blades at a considerably lower price. This knife is an excellent wood carving knife but performs poorly on fish and fairly decent on large and small game. Overall it's the best because of the designs of the other knives (for their purpose) and because it still does everything I need it to do.

I guess the point to all this is that someone who uses a variety of knives for a lot of different uses will most certainly be able to tell the difference in a good knife from a bad one, at least from the standpoint of design/usage. In other words while my Nessmuk does excellent on deer the point is thin so I wouldn't stick it into a tree or log for fear of breakage. A good reviewer should spend enough time with the knife to know this and include it in the review. My Bison designed blade will stand up to about anything yet it still has a thin blade. It's of course all in the design. A knowledgeable knife person would probably be best. I think. I'm just rambling now!!

 

[bushblade]

I remember reading a review recently between A gransfors SFA and the equivalent Wetterlings, I can't remember where but the link was either from here or BB, perhaps someone else has the link?
Anyway reviews like this I take with a big pinch of salt, it was clear from the photo's taken that both axes were not used correctly. just for example I recal the reviewer cutting a log in two but cutting the V from the top to the bottom of the log (towards the ground) :yikes:
If the reviewer clearly has little experience of the tools they are reviewing and the way in which they are supposed to be used can you real trust their findings?
An inexperienced reader would not know any better and would probably take the review as gospel. Perhaps its better to be an experienced user of tools reading reviews then you see which is a bad review and a good review.

 

[Gary]

Excellent point Will - and this brings a whole new question into the equation, IF THE READER IS MORE EXPERIENCED THAN THE REVIEWER DOES THAT MAKE THE REVIEW OF A GOOD AXE BAD OR DOES IT MAKE THE GOOD AXE SEEM BAD even to an experienced eye?

Sorry for being so awkward but its fascinating, its a matter of prospective etc but its interesting to see how people perceive things. More interesting is the fact I read the same review, i think it was on outdoors.com or whatever it was called - it was linked on here, anyway I never noticed any of the finer detail of the review so what does that tell us about me or the review?

Very interesting.

 

[george]

When I was a lot younger, I trained as a builder - I always remember my boss shouting "Use a bigger hammer son! Your muscles will soon grow to the size of yer hammer, you'll get the job done faster and we'll all make more money!"

The same with using some knives or axes - at first you might shy away from using a different one when you're learning a new skill. Perhaps you'll blame the knife because it doesn't "feel right" because you're not used to it. I know that when I was learning to carve spoons I found using a bent spoon knife really awkward, I kept trying to find some other way of doing it and wondered why people had put up with such crap design of tools for so many years. Needless to say it was nothing to do with the knife - it was my crap technique! Once I learned to use the knife things came clear and I could really appreciate the subtle differences in different makes of carving tools. It's only after you've got used to the tool that you realise why a specific tool is better for that job.

With that in mind I would suggest that someone who doesn't know the ins and out's of the specific jobs that the knife or axe is made to do won't give it a fair review. How can they?

George

 

[Gary]

I like the sound of that boss!!

 

[george]

I like the sound of that boss!!

Built like a bear he was - about five foot two high and about the same round his chest - red hair, red beard and a voice like gravel! He was a good guy underneath all the bluster though.

George

 

[alick]

Thought: chatting with The General and JimFSC down at the BCUK weekend we compared a handful of knives - Ingram, BRKT's , Spyderco, Alan Wood, Kukri, axe etc - side by side on light and heavy cutting jobs. It was immediately clear what effect different characteristics had on the performance of the blade. Finer vs more abrasive edges, larger vs smaller handles, curved vs straight blades, scandi vs full flat w. secondary bevel grind, steel edge holding etc.

Just like differences in wine or whisky are far easier to recognise compared side by side, the same goes for knives. It should be informative to compare new knives against the popular designs that people are more familiar with.

Cheers