Knives with gut hook useful for seatblet cutting???

[Kaizer]

Hi gang,



Well i was just wondering if this is possible. If a folding knife has a gut hook can we not use the gut hook for slicing seatbelts? I mean it's ideal. Place the seatbelt in the gut hook "notch" and yank hard...i'm sure it will slice through.



I dont have experience with gut hook knives but i would imagine that the gut hook is sharpened too.



Just a thought that struck me out of the blue.



Have a great day,

Kaizer.



A door half open is a door half closed. But a knife half open is a knife fully closed.

[Ted]

Hi Kaizer. The Impala (hunting knife) has a guthook, but since it also has a sharp point, it might be dangerous to use that in a rescue situation. Imagine your car upside down and you need to manouvre upside down to slice the seatbelt with a very sharp pointy knife.

One of the <img src="spyder.gif" width=15 height=15 align=middle border=0> Rescue models might be a better choice for that purpose, due to the blunt tip. They are meant for cutting 'something', not 'someone'.
I recently got a 79mm rescue, and that has a permanent place in my car now.

Ted

[Kaizer]

Hi Ted,

Hey i got an orange one too! It's my EDC right now and it rocks!

The reason i asked about this is that there are a few seatbelt cutting devices around that are not knives at all...they have a round handle and the business end is shaped much like a gut hook.

Thanks for your response though.
Have a great day
Kazier.

A door half open is a door half closed. But a knife half open is a knife fully closed.

[Simple Man]

The hook style seatbelt cutters I have seen do have the sharpened inside on the hook but also have a flat or smooth surface on the backside of the hook. This is in order to slide the hook between the seatbelt and your/someone else's body and not get cut. With a guthook knife you would end up slicing the trapped with the backside while cutting the seatbelt with the front side.

Of course that is not to say it wouldn't work in some situations......

“…tractors don't have to look like Ferraris” – Sal <><

[JBE]

It would work in a pinch...But I would personally prefer something with a bevel on one side only, like the BM Rescue Hook (not that I have one, just trying to give an example! <img src="smile.gif" width=15 height=15 align=middle border=0>) Heck, that would be an interesting concept for a new Spyder, a "rescue"-style SPOT!<img src="wink.gif" width=15 height=15 align=middle border=0>

[redline]

A guthook knife just wouldn't be safe.
To cut a seatbelt effectively (trust me - I'm a professional!) you need to slide the knife/tool you are using under the seatbelt, and pull towards you.
I own both the Spydie Rescue Jr & the BM rescue hook, both are great in different ways, but to slide a guthook knife under the seatbelt would mean sliding the cutting edge along the trapped person's body. Not ideal.

[dhpd9807]

In 10 years in the field I have never had to cut one. Where have I been?

[JBE]

lol..I know what ya mean! I got 12 years in the field and I can count on one hand the seatbelts I've actually cut.

[Peter LC]

I actually wondered the same thing when my guthook'd Impala arrived. I think however that because the sharpened section is rounded, it'd be hard to make a "start" with the cut. And ofcourse, I already have a 'beltcutter within arm's reach in both of my cars - my classic Lancia has only recently been equipped with 'belts, BTW. Lenient safety regulations for classic cars made me roar around for 1,5 year while sitting on a very cute, though rather slippery vinyl seat. Common sense eventually won over the feeling of freedom and beating the system - "Look! No belts! And legal!" ;-)

[Stevie Ray]

Seatbelts are tough stuff ... A gut hook might do it with some work, but it's not gonna beat a SE Rescue through a automotive safety belt.

The gut hook is intended for soft tissue. It takes the place of having to run your finger in front of the point of your folder while slitting the gut of a deer ... or whatever .... Sorry to be graphic, but ... that's what it's for, not safety belts ...

SR

Edited by - stevie ray on 5/15/2004 6:47:50 PM

[steve andrews]

The advantage of the hook found on devices such as the Benchmade Rescue Hook is that there is no sharp blade present to accidentally cut the casualty with. To use a gut hook the knife will have to be open/unsheathed - so the main blade will be in close proximity to the casualty.
A safety-type cutting device should be used at an RTA (MVA).
However, I have cut plenty of seatbelts during RTA training with no casualties present.
Seat belts are not at all difficult to cut.
A sharp plain edge will breeze through them.