How can I design a custom ergonomic knife handle?

Steel_Magnet77 said:
Also, what do you guys think of indexing handles? Reasons? Good shapes?
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Some makers do this, and a basic D-shaped handle is the norm, with variations on the roundness of the 'D'. In my experience, this is mainly done on kitchen knives where someone will be using one knife for the same task (ie, mincing onions) for hours on end.
I've made a couple, but found that the market for this handle is limited. Don't forget that you would have to have 2 versions of the same knife for it to be marketable to the entire population (leftys and rightys). It's easier, quicker, and more profitable to make one knife with a standard WA handle that appeals to both right-hand and left-hand dominant folks.
My suggestion for you (I'm assuming you are a newer maker) is to focus on the 'basics'/entire process of making a knife (forging, profiling, grinding, heat treating, handle shaping, etc) first to get proficient at this. And only after all of the above is easy for you then you might try to shake up the knife making world with something new.
As an analogy, there's a good reason why humans learn to walk proficiently before they can run proficiently.
 
Steel_Magnet77 said:
It seems like I am getting a "Don't do that vibe" 😅. I was wondering the best way a knife maker can make an ergonomic handle for the customer. From what I am understanding from these replies, I should just make a lot of handles and use classic handle profiles and that will be good for the customer. I will say that I really don't want to reinvent the wheel. I just wonder if biomedical handle ideas could add to the comfort and ergonomics of a knife handle. I also realize that I could be in for a let down after I implement these shining scientific ideas and that it might not be any better than a classic shape XD. I was wanting to remove some of the guess work when I make a handle for a buyer.
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It is that sort of vibe but not for a bad reason, I think people are trying to help. One time as a new maker I asked how to make a sword and people thought I was nuts, it came out awesome and I learned a lot. I think they thought I was just winging it, I had spent quite a bit of time reading but just like to discuss things like that here.

Like... I don't even take orders and I do not recommend them to anyone that makes knives.
 
so the advice you seek has been given.. the only way to "Customize " a handle is with clay/playdough molded by each customers hand
the fact is based off of thousands of knives made for tens of thousands on years .... "Common" things that people like/dislike have been figured out
as several here have already said a "WA" stick style "Asian "handle has been used forever by man kind... other "European " handle designs have been forever
used on Swords/hunting/fishing/kitchen knives..... iy is funny you never mentioned what style of knife you wanted to make these for ????
 
A proper knife handle normally indexes itself pretty easily. Most are slightly egg shaped and the thinner bottom side indexes into the fingers. This works for most any size hand. This is why we generally don't recommend putting individual finger grooves in a knife, as they will only fit a hand with that finger spacing.
There are specific Japanese shapes/styles that index in use. like D, wa, and oval.
 
Here’s what I do and what I’ve done to develop my handle shaping process.

Step one use a lot of knives and make note of the what you like and what you don’t like and be very critical about it. It’s best to use them side by side with the exception of the terribly uncomfortable ones.

Step two take some measurements of the basic shaping and contouring.

Step three when shaping your own handles I find it’s useful to layout so some rough guidelines. However one of the best things you can do is really fondle that handle as you shape it and make minor tweaks as you go until it feels as near perfect as you feel you can achieve.

I find for me in kitchen knife I like just a basic tapered octagonal handle.

In other fixed blades I like some aggressive contouring with a thicker handle for outdoor use and a thinner handle for EDC use.
 
There are plenty of people out there that will rave about handle shapes that will cause most real tool users to roll their eyes.

But many of the knife community are only opening boxes and occasionally cutting an apple and they all have strong opinions and buying income.
 
Seedy Lot said:
There are plenty of people out there that will rave about handle shapes that will cause most real tool users to roll their eyes.

But many of the knife community are only opening boxes and occasionally cutting an apple and they all have strong opinions and buying income.
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Which shapes do you roll your eyes at?
 
Seedy Lot said:
Besides what Stacy said, handles that lock my hand into only one postion and sharp lines that will cause hot spots with use.
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Agree with Stacy and Seedy.....mostly/usually.

I'm probably more extreme with my disdain for handles. I'll side with the OP. You Should design whatever YOU think is the "perfect" handle.

Because I think Most of the knives out there, their handles Suck. If we had 10's of thousands of years, and all these knives, why are they all So Bad??? (My) Hands must be really odd shaped?

I'd love to see what You come up with.

The whole reason I wanted to start, is because of a lack of good handles.

I'll add to the list of atrocities.....
I Hate exposed pommel/butts. Or sharp edges and coke bottle rears.

I like butts smooth, soft, and round.
Fitting nicely in my grasp.
*No innuendo
 
I like big butts and I cannot lie.
 
I think you also need to consider the use of the knife. I remember seeing Tod Cutler talk about historic dagger handles and how the purpose is to give a very secure grip for a few minutes rather than be comfortable per-se
Likewise I've seen video of a custom racecar control grip that was moulded to the person's hands, but it was designed to be used for 10 minutes. Would make a terrible solution for longer races or daily use
A lot of the medical ones I've seen are designed for people with particular injuries

Seems to me we're back to either working in detail with the specific person to understand their specific situation, or doing something simple that will work for most people
Also considering balance point of the knife is important here, that has a big effect on how it feels in your hands
 
Alex Topfer said:
Also considering balance point of the knife is important here, that has a big effect on how it feels in your hands
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I 100 percent agree! From what I've dug up the balance point for a rather heavy duty knife should be around the users index finger. It is also important to remember that the balance point will move depending on how hard the user is cutting material. Obviously whether the knife will need to be more finnese or have a better chop will also determine the balance point.
knivesandstones.us

Ergonomics and Knife Balance

“What makes this knife different to that one?” It’s a question on everyone’s mind when choosing between knives that would serve the same purpose in the kitchen. Two knives might seem practically indistinguishable especially to a first-time buyer, and it’s honestly difficult when you don’t...
knivesandstones.us
That article was pretty straight forward about it.

On the Spyderco forum Michael Janich explained it well too.
"When it comes to knife balance in general, I find that the proper balance for a particular knife varies with its intended application. Knives that require extreme control, like scalpels and wood carving knives, have most of their weight in the handle to allow precise application of the blade.

General purpose knives typically do well with a neutral balance right near the index finger. This allows the user to feel the heft of the knife and make use of the entire length of the blade while still maintaining a high degree of control.

Blade-heavy knives are typically choppers. They have a weight-forward balance that allows them to be swung with greater momentum and power."
 
OP, what is the knife's purpose ?

For general bushcraft (you mentioned in the now killed thread) / wood working, there are at least half a dozen important grips that have to be accomodated, see for example https://canadianwoodworking.com/techniques_and_tips/7-great-knife-grips-to-get-you-started/

Consider these two knives, for example: same designer, same blade length, same materials, similar blade-shape, but two different purposes and handles. Many people here will tell you that these are amongst the most ergonomic fixed blades in existence - for what they were made for.

i-kbh7Vwk-X2.jpg
 
David Mary said:
S Steel_Magnet77 just use your knives. You'll figure it out.
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I do think watching others using their knives will be helpful, too. Not everything must be self-taught. For example, my father taught me not only to use the power grip:

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But also the scissor grip, that in my use is even more powerful than the above ....

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... but counter-intuitive. And the two grips require different handle shapes to be optimal.

Funnily enough, if you equally accommodate the different grips useful for "bushcraft"/wood-working, you'll end up with a non-descript handle like in a Kephart :)
 
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