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Riflemans Knife

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Yeah, most any knife with a ball grip today is called a French knife, but they were just as common among the English and the NA's. The ball/pistol handle allows for a more secure grip in use, especially when the grip may be slippery with blood or animal fats. It also aids in retraction of a blade that is embedded in something, and in removal from the sheath. It may have originally been a French thing, but did not remain so for long. I would suspect that the basic theme might go far back in time as many knife designs, even modern designs, do, if one looks at knives from early history.
 
The problem with such grips is that they often are too short for big, wide hands to use. Unless you provide about 5 inches of grip surface, you shut out potential buyers of such knife handles.

Of more immediate concern is making some provision to keep the hand from sliding forward onto the blade, where fingers will be severely cut on the blade. Not every knife needs a Hilt, of course, but there are designs that provide a good grip to keep the hand from sliding FORWARD. Sliding backward is generally not a safety issue. :hmm:
 
You think like a lawyer Paul :haha:
If you look at utilitarian Scandinavian knives especially Finnish knives they seldom have guards. There is sometimes a taper to the handle which could aid against slippage though. The center being wider. I don't know but I assume Finns are taught from an early age how to handle knives safely. Just an observation of mine with little or no merit behind it. Sorry.
 
YOu are half right. I think like a lawyer, because I am one. But, long before I entered law school, or even thought about going to law school, I was trying my hand at making knives. I made my first knife at age 13. I had carved wooden models of knives for several years before then, trying to decide what would work right, and what left something to be desired.

My hands are fairly large- an XXL glove, if I can find them---- and I put my little finger behind the bolster to hold my hand from sliding forward when piercing something with most knives. My Bowie Knife has a hilt, and a choil in front of the guard, but when I re made the handle in 1965, I made it more "ergo-dynamic", altho that word would not come into use for many years to come. The Leather grip does NOT get slick with blood, and the belly on the finger side of the handle allow the whole hand to keep a good enough grip so that the hand is NOT going to slide forward.
 
Good point but I think guards just may not be very PC for this particular style of knife. I have big hands too and they are clumsey sometimes. I think the figured wood is perfect by the way! I was looking at some Finnish knives after I posted this and a form of "birdhead" handle is almost always there on them too. I really like the knife. :hatsoff:
 
Wick Ellerbe said:
There are few documentable knives, other than trade types, from that time.


That has been my problem. I have seen tons of knives from the 16th century, 17th century, and, of course, massive numbers of knives from the 19th century, but 18th century knives are almost non-existent! If we were to rely on existing examples alone, it would seem that the 18th century man never used a knife beyond a table knife! Very few "belt size knives" or "butcher knives" seem to exist from the period....at least not so as you would know (auction catalogs, museums, historical books/websites...) I have no explanation as to why. 18th century Table knives or smaller knives are not too terribly hard to find, but larger ones...

Of those that I have seen, they have been of two types. One, the full tang simple drop-edge knife (as shown above), which can have the ball-butt, a birdshead butt, or just a sort of flared shape. Some German knives like this I have seen (still relatively small in size, and not 7 or 8 inch "belt knives") have iron bolsters, either riveted on or integral with the blades. Lonehunter's knife is about as historically accurate as is possible.

The other is a "spike tang", with the same blade design. Handles are turned wood, maybe with a metal ferrule. There are known French "trade knives" like this.

The Dutch, and to a lesser extent, the Germans, liked "sheepsfoot" blades, but these that I see are more table knives (spike tangs and turned or octagon shaped handles).

I think that the common practice of wearing a sword in the 18th century greatly lessened the use of large knives, which was common in earlier centuries, but still, you would think that you would be able to find large numbers of full-sized butcher knives. :idunno: It's hard to slice a ham with a 5" knife blade!
 
An 18th century (fine) French table knife...with shagreen-covered sheath
01037_b.jpg


Isn't this thing beautiful?
40865.jpg

Problem is, it's late 1500's, not 1700's.... :idunno:
 
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