How Can the Blade Be Strong?

[dark impaler]

I would be curious how most people feel about the size of the hole. I have fairly big hands but they aren't fat and beefy like some people. My thumb fits in the hole with lots of room to spare so my first impression was that the hole was too big. I wonder how many people would think it is just right and would be too small if reduced.

It's just right. I can still use it when I have gloves on. Then again, I can also use my delica with my gloves on.

Aesthetically, it speaks to the overall design of the knife as a tool for slicing. The proportions of the spydie hole and material left towards the spine evoke the same sense of design as the overall taper of the spine to point. Although not a delicate knife, there is a visual sense of a delicate balance- a finesse about it.

 

[elkins45]

I wondered the same thing the first time I saw one, but now that I've been using them for 15+ years I just don't think about it anymore.

I did some really dumb things to a Byrd folder once and the scales pried apart at the pivot before the blade failed from lateral stress.

 

[South]

I wondered the same thing the first time I saw one, but now that I've been using them for 15+ years I just don't think about it anymore.

I did some really dumb things to a Byrd folder once and the scales pried apart at the pivot before the blade failed from lateral stress.

Great testimony!

 

[arty]

I am not concerned about a hole in the blade of a pocket knife. Folders just don't get the same stress as a fixed blade, at least for my purposes - I tend to baby them.
The place where a knife may fail is where the blade joins the handle, or the tip. I have only broken one knife blade in my life, and that was a Gerber 3" paring knife with a 440C blade and a wooden handle. I was cutting chocolate at room temperature. This was not a difficult chore for most blades. The blade broke where the handle met the blade. The heat treatment must have been off. I sent the blade and handle into Gerber and they sent a replacement - which has been working fine for more than 30 years.
Personally, I wouldn't worry about the hole in the blade of a fixed blade knife, unless I wanted to use the knife for something like chopping wood - and that is something I would rather do with an ax.

 

[GRIM 62]

I use my folders to slice and cut things.I don't give the hole too much thought,as I don't abuse my folders.