What’s the stupidest thing you’ve ever heard about blades?

Too many to list

460Shooter said:

I'm just curious now if you gents bother to try and correct these notions at all, or just walk away.

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If it’s just someone spouting, I generally ignore, smile and nod, maybe a “that’s an interesting perspective.” Remembering the sound of my Grandmother saying “bless his heart.”, being that’s all she had that wasn’t negative to say.

26:4 “Do not answer a fool according to his folly, or you yourself will be just like him.”

If it is someone in learning mode, I might dive into things deeper.

The Japanese katana has a lot of mythology behind it. I used to read of accounts where Japanese Officers chopped the barrel off a machine gun with their katana. Read it in a National Geographic that claimed the machine gun was in a museum. Seems the Japanese military had a thing against machine guns, based on the number of stories where the samurai sword cuts the barrel in two.

this is typical of what you read:

Perhaps the strongest swords ever made were the weapons of the samurai in Japan. As far back as the eighth century until the end of the feudal period in the nineteenth century, Japanese smiths made blades of exceptional hardness by welding strips of iron and steel together, then folding the resulting sandwich over on itself and pounding it flat again. This process was repeated from 12-28 times. Old blades were passed down in families, and some were still in use in World War H. These swords were so sharp and strong they could cut through a machine gun barrel.

http://www.madehow.com/Volume-5/Sword.html

Mythbusters tested this, and the sword broke.

MythBusters Episode 64: More Myths Revisited

Ranger99 said:

Too many to list

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Ditto.

Concur on "read your audience." "Sharpen your keys" is one of those. Or "get box cutters."

So many knives, and even animal or fish teeth, being described as "razor sharp".

Hmm, no.

I remembered another: the blood groove. How many times have you been told the "blood groove" prevents suction inside the victims body from trapping the blade?



This is one you were you have to be a bit of a history buff to know. Pre WW1 Pioneer troops were issued a saw tooth bayonet as a multitool. The saw teeth were there so the back of the bayonet could be used as a saw. This is a Swiss version. With "blood groove"



German Pioneer troops had the things, and the Allies developed an atrocity myth that the saw teeth were on the bayonet to create a terrible wound. As if getting one of these all the way through you was not bad enough, the saw teeth were supposed to rip and tear the poor victim to pieces. The Horror's! If Allied soldiers caught a German with a saw tooth bayonet, they shot him out of hand. Word got out on the German side, and it is hard to find a German saw tooth bayonet, or one with teeth. I have one where the teeth were ground down, for obvious reasons.

Those were the good old days

The stupidest thing I ever heard about blades is true. Sir, you can't take your pocketknife with you on the airplane.

rust collector said:

... Many have bought the hype and now feel obligated to defend it. ...

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<nodding> I think that aptly describes many of the inexpert Internet Experts one encounters.

Blood groove on the Kabar is based on the original Marbles knife - which used that recess to lighten the weight and still have stiffness in cross section. It used less material which during WWII with metal rationing was a plus.

Other than that, meh.

RE: the OP, use of the word "devastating." The recent flooding in central TN with 22 dead was devastating. A knife? Compared to what? I would suggest that a magazine of 9mm might be devastating, or the use of a mace, war hammer, or sword - as it usually has 3x the sharpened edge and momentum.

If you can wade thru the hyperbole and constant machismo of knife enthusiasts you'll find the tech interesting and much deeper than the "dumb" steels and lack of sophisticated alloys and treatments in firearms. Knives are literally weapons - a gun isn't, the ammunition does the damage. A gun is just the mobile launcher platform, like a battle tank or aircraft carrier. At least with knives you pay attention to the shapes, grinds, etc as they are critical to how it works, and looks. A gun? Tube on a handle in its basic form, no changing it.

There is a significant factor to where knives rank as a weapon, and that is stand off distance. It's why people tend to be somewhat sarcastic about bringing a knife to a gunfight - only if the gunfighter somehow loses the advantage of distance can a knife combatant win. The 21 foot rule was all about how it was done, and why you shouldn't let them closer. This is where the justification to shoot a knife wielding person is derived - if closer than 21 feet, they can be lethal, therefore, treat them as such.

It's the less educated who have no clue over it who complain, and you get to see who is and isn't the sharpest knife in the drawer.

my favorites are as follows:

- small knives are better than larger knives

- you cant conceal a large blade (meet Mike Sastre)

- super steels are better than carbon for tool work

- a good large knife can chop and baton as well as any axe

Well, she was not wrong, a dull edge does more damage, hence the adage a sharp knife is a safer knife. Serrated blades are amazing cutters. That said, what the heck is she planning, is she the next Dexter or something? If someone thinks it's a good idea to bring a sword onto an airplane I'm not sure there's much of anything you're gonna be able to say to get through to them.

460Shooter said:

Well, when I think about this, I guess I think a dull, jagged, or even a serrated blade is going to do worse surface damage, and create an uglier wound that is harder to repair. But I wouldn't think that it would be better for self defense. I mean I don't think Michael Janich designs a self defense knife for Spyderco, and then says "Ok now make it a dull jagged blade." A scary sharp knife is going to cut deeper, with less effort, which means potentially severing more muscle, tendons, and certainly more veins, arteries, and capillaries in a well placed slash. I would think it would lead to more profuse bleeding, and perhaps more debilitating wounds than a dull or jagged blade would produce.

If that's incorrect thinking, please correct me. Like I said, I'm not an expert by any stretch of the imagination.


I thought this referred to the safety of the knife user, in that a sharp blade will cut with less effort, and therefore there is less possibility of the user applying too much force and slipping with the blade, and cutting themselves.

Again, If I have this backwards or incorrect, please, someone with more knowledge correct me.

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This is true, about cutting safer, but it's also due to chances of less nerve damage and disruption. Think of using a serrated knife to cut steak vs a plain edge. Much less damage to the beautiful steak with a plain edge.

Boattale said:

The stupidest thing I ever heard about blades is true. Sir, you can't take your pocketknife with you on the airplane.

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"Take your pocketknife back out and leave it in your car." Overheard at the Social Security Office.