ABX2011 wrote:My concern with the design has to do with the deep finger groove. Hard to tell from pics obviously, but I wonder if my index finger knuckle would bang into the front of the handle or flipper tab.
Howdy ABX2011,
As with all knife designs, ergos are a pretty personal area, so don't take my comments as gospel for your hand size and finger width. The Sliverax prototypes all worked really really well for my hands (large-side of medium, but with fairly thin fingers) in a saber grip (which is the primary grip it was designed for). Here, the handle rests on the meat between the middle knuckle and last knuckle, and the guard is deep enough to accommodate most any size finger. If you have thick fingers, and want to go with a throttling sort of hammer grip, the thin handle of the design sort of dictates that the flipper will rest inside the middle knuckle, towards the base of the index finger; and I can see how some users may experience some contact on that middle knuckle. The Spyderco team rounded all the edges of the flipper tab (mostly for comfort when articulating the flipper), so there shouldn't be any really sharp points, but a few individuals could still feel a hot-spot.
Hopefully that explanation was coherent enough to understand... talking about ergos is harder than designing around them. As always, checking a new knife out at a brick and mortar store is best, if you have the option. Even the reviewers can be a bit sketchy with an atypical design and how they want to grip it; I saw more than a couple videos on the Ouroboros (my other design) where the reviewer refused to hold it in the more relaxed, pistol-like grip it was designed for, and it ended up being sort of like reviewing the performance and feel of a hammer if you held it in a saber grip.
Bottom line: Nothing related to ergos can be said with 100% certainty for all, but I think you'll be able to get some good feedback here on this forum when the Sliverax eventually drops.
Take care,
- Paul
