XLG Recurve TNT OAL 10.375"

[sigsauer]

I have a few questions about this knife. I'm looking for a large custom knife. I want it to be comfortable for daily carry. I tend to like large folders. At this time the largest I have is a BM 710 and MT Socom Elite, which is perfectly comfortable for me. I wear my knives in my front right levi pocket. If anyone carries one this size could you let me know if it is comfortable to carry. From the specs on this knife if I am figuring it correctly the handle is 6" and the blade is 4 3/4"

This may seem like an odd question but at the price of this knife, and the fact that it will probably be my last custom folder for a long time, I want to be sure that this knife will see daily carry without being an inconvenience.

Has anyone who had one feel this knife is thick enough to stand up to hard use. Not abuse but heavy rope cutting and slight side to side pressure. My knowledge of talonite is limited. I recently read an article where it described a person hanging off of this material without bending it. I then read in the same article where a fairly large individual was able to bend a piece with a bar for leverage. Neither times was the actual width listed. I don't plan on bending or applying pressure from the side of this particular knife, but I believe like most out there I like to have a knife that can handle an emergency which may call for just this use of the knife. Could someone give me an idea of about how much pressure it would take to bend talonite of this thickness.

Thanks

 

[tom mayo]

the guy to answer this question is Rob Simonich....but IMHO......yes, you can bend it......especially the thinner the easier. I have some material that is almost .200"/ dont think you could bend that......and the 5/32" stuff is extremely bend resistant, however Rob has done a lot more extensive testing that I have......I like it for its wear resistance, rust proofness and ease of maintanence (anyone can sharpen this stuff.) It does have drawbacks.....and your reference is one of them....

You can read more at http://www.carbideprocessors.com/ and at Rob's website.

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http://www.mayoknives.com
John 1:14
Love is Stronger than Death!

 

[kawanin]

Sig,
I have one of Toms XLG TNT Recurve folders and it rides so nice in my right front pocket I forget it is there!! (almost

) It really rides nice, the clip is up as high as it could be and it is tip down carry and comes out really nice on the draw.
the rounded handle slabs really help make it comfortable also...The most I know about talonite is the same thing you have read..follow Toms advice for more info..I purchased mine on looks alone from his web site and I am really pleased with it! In fact I am working with him right now on making me a larger folder..( I like em BIG too!!) I also own a Mad Max by Darrel Ralph if you want to check out another large folder, but the Mayo TNT rides really nice and the action on it is super smooth...ZERO blade wobble and I have been flicking mine hard and often..not abuse, just alot of open and close and it remains tight...0f course its not a fixed blade, but its the next best thing....I HIGHLY recomend you check one out, and Tom is a pleasure to deal with...(I<m not brown nosing Tom

, just being truthful

..) wish you well in your decision VERY NICE SOLID DEPENDABLE BIG FOLDER THAT RIDES REALLY NICE IN YOUR POCKET...I GAYWONTEE IT!!!!!!!!

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as iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another....Pr.27:17

[This message has been edited by kawanin (edited 03-15-2001).]

 

[booshank]

Can't go wrong w/Toms XLG TNT. Its not quite as "mega" as some of the crop in the genre but it does carry extremly well and its certainly large enough. The radiused handles are a big plus in terms of carry as well as hard use. The talonite seems durable enough especially in the thicknesses Tom has available.
Also the talonite seems to work better w/a bit more shoulder than you can get away with on some steels.

 

[tom mayo]

I should add, I carry the first one I ever made (pictured below) with a 5/32" blade, and I cant imagine it bending... I carry it at all times and use it constantly, but I have never used it as a pry bar, and it is like the proverbial bunny!

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http://www.mayoknives.com
John 1:14
Love is Stronger than Death!

 

[C4]

Tom,

That TNT that you carry every day never seems to age!!!!

How old is it and let's see a current pic!!!

Michael

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He who has smelt the smoke is never free again...

 

[kawanin]

A THUMB stud!!!!!! where is the hole in your blade Tom!!!!!!!! what are the dimensions on this one?....very nice knife..looks like the one I want you to make for me, but make mine bigger

...be talking to you.....



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as iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another....Pr.27:17

 

[sigsauer]

Thanks for all the help everyone. I'm pretty set on buying one. I'm still deciding on blade style though. I think the one that Mayo pictured below would be nice in a larger size.

From some of the research that I have done, I have read that it is not the best for cutting rope. Would some of you be so kind as to go out and slice up some different kind of ropes. I do allot of rockclimbing and this is one feature that is very important to me. So any test on heavy duty rope cutting would be greatly appreciated.

 

[kawanin]

From some of the research that I have done, I have read that it is not the best for cutting rope. Would some of you be so kind as to go out and slice up some different kind of ropes. I do allot of rockclimbing and this is one feature that is very important to me. So any test on heavy duty rope cutting would be greatly appreciated.[/B][/QUOTE]

Sig, check out my review in knife reviews and testing forum on TNT cuttin test...it is not the best for rope...Not sure why,but my test proved it to me...one reason on my blade is the "thicker" bevel on edge to maintain blade tuffness I think..if talonite is ground thin I think its subject to chipping....you might want to get a TNT with another blade steel from Tom that would be a better rope cutter...also on the nylon type ropes...the rope just seems to "melt" on to the blade edge puting a coating on it that dulls it until you get the "coating" off...other than that, His folders are fantastic!!!!! ( I,m not a rock climber, so can live without having to cut rope

..)

 

[ptpalpha]

Well, I had to do it. I just went out to the garage and cut up some climbing rope. Not sure of the diameter or brand, but this is heavy-duty climbing rope used by my company for fall-protection while installing lightning protection on top of commercial buildings.
I cut off a piece about 4" long by making a loop and pulling the knife through it. This was awkward, as the rope was bundled up tightly and I didn't feel like unrolling/untying it. (lazy). It took two passes to make the cut. (the rope is approximately 3/4" thick). I then took the four foot piece and stepped on one end while holding the other end taught. The knife went through it three different times cleanly, easily, and fast. The cut end looked like a razor blade cut. Extremely clean. I would have no qualms about carrying this knife to use in a climbing situation, especially since most incidents which call for a knife involve taught rope (at least in my experience). YMMV. I do think that you should consider the suggestion to check out Tom's VNT models if you're not comfortable with Talonite. I will stick to my original assessment that what we really need are both a TNT and a VNT. And nothing else.

-Paul (kind of wishing he hadn't cut up his climbing rope...)

 

[sigsauer]

Thank you very much for the help.

kawanin, thanks for the great review.

ptpalpha, thanks for sacrificing your climbing rope.

I think that considering a VNT would be a good idea. I'd still like to get a talonite blade though. I think I am going to be looking more for a fixed blade though.

I have a friend who is getting me into scuba diving. I love having new exuses to get knives.