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Zodiac Killer Knife

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r8shell said:
How likely is it to accurately count the rivets in a killer's hand while being stabbed?
Wood slab handled knives with two or three brass rivets is the most common type of kitchen knife. Cheap, for sale in every hardware store back then, basically disposable.
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I'd say rather unlikely. And Yes, the possibilities for what this knife was is basically endless.
 
Too much...more than likely, it was a common kitchen slicing knife. He wrapped taped around the hilt, to act like a makeshift finger guard.
 
Well, I am late to this discussion, but I will pile on...

I'll say first that the comment that the knife was "sturdy" (thick) pretty much rules out an actual "Bread Knife as bread knives are almost without exception made of rather thin steel (1/16"). Also the description of 3/4" wide sorta rules out a "Bread Knife" which is more typically 1-1/4" to 1-1/2" wide.

When anyone says "Bread Knife", what comes to my mind is my 70 year old Burnes Bread knife.
which as what some would refer to as a "Sheeps foot" tip profile and in actually since he tip is so blunt you'd be in danger of dislocating your wrist trying to stab anything more substancial than a ripe tomato or an unsliced loaf of "Wonder Bread"

3/4" wide suggests more of a boning knife. but "sturdy" also suggests a "stiff" inflexible boning knife.

And has been stated there are hundreds if not thousands that fit the description.

Lastly, Multiple ineffective stab wounds suggests someone who has little functional knowledge of anatomy, which suggests that the subject was NOT a hunter as all large vertibrates are possessed of a general similarity, as things that came from the same design team... So the original perpetrators claim of having experience as being a hunter is questionable.

Does playing Call of Duty teach anyone how to clear a jammed M1918A4?
 
Allan DeGroot said:
3/4" wide suggests more of a boning knife. but "sturdy" also suggests a "stiff" inflexible boning knife.
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Autopsy said "from nine to eleven inches in length, one inch in width"
That's based on actual measurements. Eyewitness description of dimensions (where the 3/4" came from) is highly subjective.
 
Chaucer1 said:
No. I'm right here.

There's nothing untoward going on. I'm merely a researcher who was hoping some insight about the knife might provide some context to the killer. Seems like this thread has gone a bit off the rails in that regard though.

Perhaps this can re-rail it: one detail to consider is that the killer had the surgical tape wrapped around the knife where the crossguard would be - at the meeting of the blade and handle. I assume it was a crude attempt at a slipguard, but others have suggested that it means the knife was homemade or haphazardly repaired.

Would tightly wrapped surgical tape be enough to hold a long blade like this in place?
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From my perspective the tape would be an easy and quick way to make the knife you are already using friction fit into a homemade sheath. It also would keep it from rattling inside the sheath and making noise or potentially losing it if the need to move quickly should arise.
 
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they say he may have been some minor noble with medical training that "slummed" in the Whitechape..whoops, wrong killer.
 
Another thing to consider:

Zodiac seemed to like to buy things mail order. The pistol used in his first confirmed murder was a JC Higgins .22 caliber that was sold through the Sears catalog. It's possible he also purchased this knife from a Sears catalog or similar mail order service. Are any of you familiar with the types of knives sold this way back in the 1960's?

Also, is there anyway that a large Bowie knife could be confused for a bread knife? Could a Bowie knife make the same kind of wounds as described in the autopsy reports?
 
I'm not asking random people. I'm asking people who consider themselves experts in knives - something I admit that I am not. If you would like to help, I'm appreciative. If not, then why bother posting negative things?
 
Chaucer1 said:
I'm not asking random people. I'm asking people who consider themselves experts in knives - something I admit that I am not. If you would like to help, I'm appreciative. If not, then why bother posting negative things?
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Its a large community. You will always find a few that simply enjoy ridiculing others. I would just ignore the negativity.
 
Chaucer1 said:
I'm not asking random people. I'm asking people who consider themselves experts in knives - something I admit that I am not. If you would like to help, I'm appreciative. If not, then why bother posting negative things?
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Negative things?

You are asking random people on the internet. If you are truly a serious investigator, you should be talking with experts, face to face hopefully. Ask that knife cut question to a verified ME. This thread is a farce at best. Your questions are unsolvable here, or likely anywhere else. Again, sorry.

357snubnose said:
Its a large community. You will always find a few that simply enjoy ridiculing others. I would just ignore the negativity.
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And you will find a few who don't do anything but stir the pot even when the truth is clearly obvious.
 
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