Spear Point - Best Utility?

J

JDBLADE

Joined
Dec 8, 2003
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The other day I laid out all my knives on the table and one thing struck me - of all the designs the one that was most prevalent was the Spear Point. The next thing I noticed was that they were all what I term as my utility blades. These are the knives I use for all those little jobs you take for granted eg opening parcels, cutting up cardboard and leather etc. Giving it more thought I realised what a good design the spear point is: it gives you plenty of cutting edge, a stout point and ease of sharpening. It falls down as a hunter in that it does not have enough belly for skinning althoug it will do in a pinch.

So whether it be a folder, small fixed blade or large camp knife is the Spear Point the best Utility shape.
 
Spear points are good,
However Drop points, while not as nice looking,
give you more curvature on the end of the blade,
and a very strong, but not too pointy, tip
 
If both edges of the spear point are shapened that means when one side gets dull you can just flip over the blade and use the other side. You can then keep yourself from shappening twice as much.
 
Spear blade is definitely my favorite. The may not be more efficient than a drop point in certain cutting motion, but I like the fact that the spear blades have a pronounced tip. It really comes in handy when I have to poke and pry.
 
The spear point is my number one pick for least practical design. I'm not sure when that idea developed in my head. My early interest in knives was for what we would now call "tactical", but were more more likely to be called fighting knives when I was a teen. My first love were razor sharp double-edged daggers and spear points seemed like such a crummy come down. When it came to switchblades with spear points it seemed like the tips were weak and would get broken. You couldn't even sharpen the back edge, so they seemed pointless. I found that I got better tip strength and a more practical full grind in blades without the forced center line symmetry of the spear point. I wanted a higher grind than the spear points offered.

About this time I started experimenting with rubber knives and knife fighting. I discovered that an awful lot depended on slashing and that slashing efficiency depended a lot on the belly of the blade. With a spear point I had to give up half the belly that I could get with a straight backed blade. I experimented with slashing various materials and found that my trailing point skinner was the best slasher I owned (so much for the tactical look).

I also was doing a lot of knife throwing at this time. Most of the official throwing knives had symmetrical blades, but you couldn't throw from the blade if the back edge was sharpened for more than about 1/2-inch. I went through a lot of bayonets and didn't see benefit to having a false edge on the point. I also found that the tip was weaker because of the spear point.

I didn't develope a real conscious aversion to spear points, but I just defacto preferred other blades.

Since moving to Colorado my focus is shifted to hunting knives. On a hunting knife I want belly on the blade and I want to avoid a sharp back edge. If I want a blade that can handle medium game like a deer and also small game like rabbits I wanted a fairly narrow tip. What works best there is a clip point or narrow-tipped straight back like a Buck 110. For medium to large game (deer to elk) I want a less accute point and I prefer a back tilted blade. So I go for a drop-point or preferrably a semi-skinner. I don't want any false edge and a spear point is still at the absolute bottom of my list. So even though I would like to try S30V you won't see me buying a Spyderco native, but I own a couple Calypso juniors.
 
I might be splitting hairs here, but a true spear point would have symmetrical primary bevels, top and bottom of the blade. You don't see too many blades like that out on the market.

There are however, plenty of drop point blades (point centered on the height of width of the blade) with a swedge which come fairly close to a true spear point, but without the ridge at the center of the blade, which acts as a splitter - not too great for utility in most cases.

Yeah, I like spear points for utility too, but I prefer a blade where the point is dropped further, toward a wharncliffe shape, but with a bit of belly to keep it from being like a needle. I have seen this shape referred to as a "radical drop point".
 
just as some anecdotal evidence -

The most used knive are probably kitchen knives -
most cooks/chefs and the most used paring knives are mostly spear points .....

40601_l.jpg


The world's most popular pocket knives are the SAKs - both Victorinox and Wenger in their standard and smaller sizes use spear point main blades.

The Victorinox Classic is probably the world's top selling folder:
53001_l.jpg


--
Vincent

http://UnknownVincent.cjb.net/
http://UnknownVT.cjb.net/
 
Vincent, I would call your paring knife and SAK "drop points" rather than "spear points". We are talking about the kind of point on a WWII-vintage US bayonet with a symmetrical double-edge bevel at the tip.
 
Jeff Clark said:
Vincent, I would call your paring knife and SAK "drop points" rather than "spear points". We are talking about the kind of point on a WWII-vintage US bayonet with a symmetrical double-edge bevel at the tip.
Click to expand...


I stand corrected -

but I plead my mitigation
is FAQs like this one by Joe Talmadge:

QUOTE:
- The Spear Point

A "real" spear point is what you would find on a spear -- point exactly in the center of the blade, both edges sharpened. But when knives are described as "spear point", this describes a special case of a drop point. In a drop point, the point drops slightly from the spine of the blade. In a spear point, the point drops all the way to the center of the blade. Point controllability is excellent, and the point is strong (but dull if not double-edged), and with the point so low the belly is rather small.
UNQUOTE

ref:
BladeForums.com: Blade Geometry FAQ, by Joe Talmadge

Most folders would probably NOT be spear points by the strict definition, since there aren't that many with double sharpened edges....... (please refer to opening post)

--
Vincent

http://UnknownVincent.cjb.net/
http://UnknownVT.cjb.net/
 
I guess the real question here is what JDBLADE had in mind. He could have been thinking about your definition. I guess I am guilty of assuming. Well JD...?
 
Jeff my interpretation of a spear point is where the point is in the centre of the width of the blade and in most circumstances the width of the blade is the same for the length of the blade as per a vicnox thus excluding what we would commonly call daggers although I believe the Californian dagger would fit my description as would most bayonets. The Vicnox would be a prime example on a folder whilst the Rio Grande Camp Knive would be a large blade. Such Spear Points may or may not have a false edge or swedge but as the main thrust of my post was Utility Knives I would leave double edged spear points out. I hope this clears up what I call a Spear Point - to me a drop point always has the point above the centre line whether it be minimal or not - anything with a point above the centre line will provide positive "lead" whereas anything at the centre or below will create negative "lead" that's why such blades are not good for skinning.
 
Ok, I guess that I stand corrected. Particular apologies to Vincent and JD. I have to admit that I have carried a SAK that fits this spear point definition every day of my life for about the last 35 years...
...but I still don't see much reason for having the point on the centerline. That's just the way that they come. For years I always tucked a Mercator K55 knife behind my wallet which would also be a spear point by this definition, but I would alway regrind the tip to make it a clip point.

http://209.35.185.42/ShopSite/Mercator_K55K_Solingen_Germany.html
 
I find them unaesthetically simple... I prefer a Bowie or Clip point in it's many different incarnations.
 
I like big fat drop points ala Mike Obenauf's drop point on the Model 2. Aesthetically pleasing with lots of belly for cutting. Function *and* fashion all in one portly package!

To me, long skinny blades just don't look right :barf:

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picture.JPG


picture.JPG
 
For me the one advantage of the Spear Point is the stout point - you can have a clip point or a bowie with the point at the centre but the point is weaker, in my view anyway, and I think that is an advantage in a Utility Knife. I do a lot of cutting of leather some of it about 1/4" thick and find that with a "Spear Point" you get more cutting power as you able to exert more pressure at the point which is in the right place although I will admit a Wharncliffe, Lambsfoot or Sheepsfoot is better for the purpose. For my part I have never been enamoured with "Spear Points" - ugly plain looking things but when it comes down to it I found that I had a number in my collection that I continually use and I think it would be the case for a lot of people. We probably pick up a "spear point" in the kitchen everyday and never think about it.

Patrickb - bit hard to measure on the screen but that knife seems to fit my definition of a "Spear Point".
 
I think the differences in point strength for many knife shapes are mere ounces. but then, I think we revisit the prying dilemna.
 
My favorite blade shape for utility use is the Wharncliffe or modified Wharncliffe. Modified either with a slight belly ala Kershaw Leek or a slight concave edge like the Microtech Kestrel. For utility I like being able to choke up on the blade and use the point like a scapel and I usualy don't have a use for a whole lot of belly normally( don't skin many animals on a day to day basis. :D)
 
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