Off Topic What methodology is acceptable/useful for proof testing of "hard use" marketed knives ?

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DocJD

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Just an example of testing . Not about the knife !

I don't know if "vininull" is even still actively testing this way . But really not about him either , in particular .

But is this level, and kind, of testing useful ? Too much, or not enough ?

Are there better examples of such tests / testers ?
 
DocJD said:
Are there better examples of such tests / testers ?
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Not any more.......
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This has been going on for decades. You can find vids from the 90's. Lyn Thompson, Noss, Cliff Stamp. It's like fashion, it has cycles of popularity.
 
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There has never been a standard because most knifemakers would not want it. I bet most of those knifemakers that hated cliff, wished he was back as he was reasonable and used more science in explaining tests. Now people just destroy stuff with no parameters. Look at cliff and later on noss.

The russian guy above was pretty good. He did lots of stuff with folders. Or does. I have no clue of he is still around.
 
It "used to be" that a knife would develop a reputation as being good for this and that. Folks knew not to break a tip or put side pressure on them. They soon realized that "stainless steel" meant junk and at least looked for high carbon stainless steel and knew that carbon steel would rust if not taken proper care of. We bought a knife and used it for years and sometimes decades. Now, there is a whole entertainment industry that has sprung up. The world is led by "experts" who should probably just get a real job that produces something or helps someone. How hard is it to figure out that you need a different design for different tasks and then to treat your knife with a certain amount of care? Oh well, it's a different world now. Enjoy.
 
Grizzly3 said:
It "used to be" that a knife would develop a reputation as being good for this and that. Folks knew not to break a tip or put side pressure on them. They soon realized that "stainless steel" meant junk and at least looked for high carbon stainless steel and knew that carbon steel would rust if not taken proper care of. We bought a knife and used it for years and sometimes decades. Now, there is a whole entertainment industry that has sprung up. The world is led by "experts" who should probably just get a real job that produces something or helps someone. How hard is it to figure out that you need a different design for different tasks and then to treat your knife with a certain amount of care? Oh well, it's a different world now. Enjoy.
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Very well said and true. Geometry is king. Tough steel certainly helps. Also tough on paper is not always tough in use. A charpy sample is a square piece. Knives are triangles. Someone should have created a charpy triangle sample, notched at the spine, for testing to really simulate what happens to the same steel in a shape that comes to a point. Just an opinion. I wanted to do this 10 years ago but it is an expensive venture.
 
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Even done correctly with intent and planning, I wouldn’t particularly care or place value in these tests.
I believe most knives limits can be noticed in hand .
I have not had a need to push a knife to the breaking point . I do use them on more than tape and boxes as well.

And a knife pic just cause.
 
I feel that knives (and guns for that matter) have always been wrung through the "what if..." Machine. What if I were trapped in an elevator with nothing more than a Case Medium Trapper? Could it be used to pry open the doors? No...well what COULD I carry that would stand up to the reasonable use of prying open elevator doors? THAT'S what I need.

I get wanting a knife that will hold up to hard use, but trying to take a sample size of one and extrapolate it into meaningful data is foolhardy. I think the late Cliff Stamp was about as scientific as you could get, but even his stuff needed to be taken with a grain of salt. Performance artists like Noss were the next generation, and it has only gone more extreme since then.

Does it cut? Does it hold up to reasonable abuse? Yes and yes, you have yourself a knife. It boggles my mind that my grandfather could carry a cheap stockman for well over 30 years, cutting and prying as need be and never break a blade, yet we need to push knives to the extreme to see what WILL break them lest we know what WILL destroy them rendering them useless.

I carry a pretty stout frame locks folder as an EDC. I have no doubt that this knife will cut what needs to be cut AND hold up to abuse. For me, that's good enough.
 
Right now I like this reviewer. He's allegedly a degreed mechanical engineer, a production engineer and a certified machinist, and he can walk the walk and talk the talk. He's the only reviewer (that I know of at least) that will call out issues face-to-face with the manufacturers. He's directly responsible for getting Microtech to fix their ram-lock issue and getting Greg Medford to correct their sharpening process.

 
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Ok, so what about the infamous spine wack test on a folder. Framelocks use the pressure of my hand to maintain the lock. I habe never had one fail. Then I see people do a spine wack and it fails. Utterly ridiculous. That simulates no use at all. Flame guard on
 
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