Wharncliffe's

[vivi]

I have always loved wharncliffes, especially in smaller blades. I know I sound like a broken record but I'm very excited for the wharnie swicks in LC200N.

[Igi964]

I love wharncliffe blades. Last year and a half I carry a Delica wharncliffe in Salt handle. Jazz is a genius. Right now I am planing to buy an Endura wharncliffe I wish they give us some colour and steel options sa well. Right now almost all wharncliffe knives are only black, VG10, S30V and some yellow H1. If you ask me, a wharncliffe blade is ONLY one that I buy and will buy. So more steel options, colours and models for me, PLEASE. Don't care much about grind.

[RustyIron]

Although I own no Spyderco Warncliffe's, I appreciate the utility of the flat edge that I've experienced in some small Warncliffes and tantos. I've never had a hollow/flat like you describe, but it sounds like an improved chisel grind. I LIKE a chisel grind, as long as it's in the standard orientation, which is perfect for left-handers. Honestly, I don't understand why it's not typically reversed, which should appeal to right handers. Anyway, being left handed, I'd like this new knife your pondering to have a CBBL or back lock. Frame and liner locks made for right handers get a knife crossed off my list right away. I'm eager to see what you're working on.

[Bemo]

I've really fallen in love with Wharnie's. There's an elegance to the blade design that nothing else has. I enjoyed this blade on my traditionals (Case, GEC) before collecting Spyderco's. I think Wharnies are a great way to increase sales on almost every model without having to do a whole redesign. I'd love to see a Wharnie version of a Stretch 2 or Caly Jr. for example. Heck a Wharnie UKPK? Just take my money now.

[fixall]

Now this is my kind of thread! The wharncliffe is most definitely my favorite blade shape. Especially if it’s thin an slicey. For me, it’s reall all about the ergonomics. Where I work, I cut open dozens of poly wrapped pallets every day. This involves making a cut from chest level to ankles, and a wharncliffe allows me to keep my wrist locked in one position which really makes a difference. It is also much easier for me to make the shallow cuts required to open tape sealed boxes with the tip of a wharncliffe blade. Same with opening clamshell packages. I’ve really been enjoying the Rock Jumper at work lately. Wharncliffe’s just seem to offer me so many benefits with very little trade offs.

A full-flat/hollow combo blade is an interesting idea! I’d definitely be game for trying something like that out.

[Wartstein]

.......
The first advantage is that the cutting edge is consistent in it's force against the material being cut from the heel to the tip. As opposed to a blade shape with a "belly" that reduced the force (angle of attack) that changes towards the tip. Cutting materials like rope, the straight edge will prevent the rope from "rolling" off the blade.
....

Maybe not totally on topic, but folks, whoever loves the specific wharncliff advantage Sal mentions above, but still also wants some belly on a knife:
Have a look at the Stretch, especially the discontinued Stretch 1.

Why?

The Stretch is the only NON wharnie Spyderco I currently own that has a pretty long, totally straight section of edge (about 4cm = 1.6") before the belly starts to rise
All other Spydies I own (even the Endura, though just very subtle) actually have a more or less slight curve in the edge, pretty much starting from the heel of the blade.

So: With the first 1.6" part of the Stretch blade one can do real "wharnie style" cuts on rope and the like.
The long perfectly straight section is also noticeable when for example whittling wood, especially when compared to something like a Manix.

[benben]

Got my Rockjumper in yesterday, Sal you hit a bottom of the 9th homer out in dead center field with this one! It’s going straight in my pocket!

The size, the handle shape, the lockup, the action......yes the action!! Out of the box it’s so smooth, like it’s already been opened a couple hundred times and broken in perfectly! And it’s SHARP!

I had been looking at both a Delica and Salt 2 wharncliffe, no need to now. Just need to decide on which is next, a Siren or the new green Pacific Salt SE?

[ABX2011]

I do like the Wharnies that Spyderco is putting out. A high hollow/ flat grind would be interesting. Anything that results in a more slicey knife is appealing to me. The uniqueness of that grind would have some extra appeal.

[Evil D]

Big fan of wharnies here, and the Yojimbo 2 was definitely a part of that but also just the basic blade shapes of the Delica, Manix 2 and some others that have a shallow belly and a low blade tip. The low blade tip is really more important to me than the amount of belly because it provides much better ergonomics for cutting with the tip, and in a slashing motion (such as you'd use in self defense) a low blade tip is going to work the same as a wharnies in how it transfers the power all the way through the cutting motion.


What i really prefer is something in the middle. I like how most sheepsfoot blades have just a wee bit of belly, and then I reprofile the spine down to have more of a wharnie point. I call it a sheepscliffe. It does everything a wharnie can do but having that little bit of belly makes it a bit more versatile. I think blade angle and low blade tip are more important than having a totally straight cutting edge.

If you look at the tip of my Caribbean, it's a bit lower than the centerline of the grip and is angled down a bit. That's going to make it slash even more aggressively than a wharnie.



The amount of belly isn't much but it does make a difference when you're making cuts flat against a surface.

[RadioactiveSpyder]

Olamic Cutlery has been offering the “Sheepscliffe” blade style for a while now. I agree it’s a fantastic blade shape.

I also love the true wharnie blades as well, especially when they are offered in slimmer packages like the Slysz Swayback and the Bradley Air. I’ve tried to love the Yo2 several times but I’ve found it’s just a bit too “menacing-looking” as an EDC blade to carry in public (not my word), and it wasn’t until Jazz convinced Sal to make the “Jazzlica” that they broke into the more general Spyderco market as a Delica variant. I’m also a big fan of wharnie Northwoods Knives (RIP Derrick Bohn) so I think a slip joint version of the Air would likely do well in the UK and EU (and here ). I do like Sal’s tongue in cheek comment in the first post about how the blade shape “looks” but as the king of form and function, it’s hard to deny the raw physics of the blade shape.

[JuPaul]

Big fan of wharnies here, and the Yojimbo 2 was definitely a part of that but also just the basic blade shapes of the Delica, Manix 2 and some others that have a shallow belly and a low blade tip. The low blade tip is really more important to me than the amount of belly because it provides much better ergonomics for cutting with the tip, and in a slashing motion (such as you'd use in self defense) a low blade tip is going to work the same as a wharnies in how it transfers the power all the way through the cutting motion.


What i really prefer is something in the middle. I like how most sheepsfoot blades have just a wee bit of belly, and then I reprofile the spine down to have more of a wharnie point. I call it a sheepscliffe. It does everything a wharnie can do but having that little bit of belly makes it a bit more versatile. I think blade angle and low blade tip are more important than having a totally straight cutting edge.

If you look at the tip of my Caribbean, it's a bit lower than the centerline of the grip and is angled down a bit. That's going to make it slash even more aggressively than a wharnie.



The amount of belly isn't much but it does make a difference when you're making cuts flat against a surface.

Your sheepscliffe looks just about perfect to me. The more blunt tip on the sheepsfoot Caribbean was what stopped me from getting one. But the lower pointy tip is the feature I find most useful on both wharnie and hawkbill blades.

[dj moonbat]

I love wharncliffe blades, and I love the negative blade angle on a lot of Spydercos. But at longer blade lengths, I think that geometry gets weird—If the blade comes out of the handle at the same angle as a leaf blade, the tip comes too far south. It makes these knives nearly useless if you ever need to cut on a surface. I generally think it’s better to look for knives that were designed as wharnies from the ground up, rather than leaf/drop point models where a wharnie is dropped into an existing chassis. For instance, the Endura wharncliffe looks terrific for powerful slicing through cardboard or rope, but I’d probably want the tip a few degrees north of where it is for general use.

Like Evil D, I also really like the modified wharncliffe shape that has just a touch of belly to it. The Bradley Air had this shape, and it was great. And that Caribbean mod of Evil D’s should definitely be a thing. It gets the blade shape and blade angle combo pretty much exactly right.

[RadioactiveSpyder]

I also forgot to mention the McBee, which is also an amazing little knife. Something a bit more akin to a Sheepscliffe in recent offerings is the Watu, which is an incredible slicer.

[Dazen]

While my first love will always be a Sheepfoot blade, probably from my time in the USCG, the Sheepscliffe looks very enticing. I do really enjoy the edge of the Watu with the slight upswept tip, and I think a little stronger tip you would get with a Sheepfoot or Sheepscliff would be fantastic!

BTW; is it Sheepfoot or Sheepsfoot? I’ve always seen it both way!

[VooDooChild]

I like wharncliffes, except on a cutting board.
I really like them for the self defense application.

[Abyss_Fish]

Wharnys are wonderful! I’ll put in my two cents here saying it’s wonderful as a happy medium between tip strength and piercing ability. My experience is with the seki wharncliffes though, I hear the yonimbo’s tip is somewhat delicate.

[benben]

David, your modified sheepsfoot looks fantastic!

[spoonrobot]

I love using wharncliffes (my edc is a non-spyderco one now) but I tend not to buy them as the aesthetics often just aren't that great. A shallow driver of my purchases but an important one I suppose. My favorite has been the original C85 Yojimbo. It had some of the best directional control I've ever experienced due to the handle and blade shape/grind. I wish we could get a sprint run so more people could experience the knife. It's extremely rare on the secondary market and I think the original run wasn't so popular (IIRC the IBM blue handle wasn't very well received). Through no fault the great utility was also lost in the design marketing, it's a great design for MBC but coincidentally is also a great general EDC knife.



Here's a pic from the 'net to show the differences in handle and blade. The Yo2 is good, just a very different knife. The long tail on the Yo1 makes a huge difference in all types of cutting control.

[samdasnake]

David, your modified sheepsfoot looks fantastic!

Agreed. That really is a beautiful blade shape, and a beautiful knife generally. Nice work!

[Christian Noble]

Another advantage (to an extent) is knowing exactly where the tip is located without looking. Some tips are center-line with the blade, some inline with the spine, and some are not at all. Obviously with a Wharnecliffe, when not looking or using in the dark, there can be an advantage to knowing where the tip of your knife is located; and if you use that same knife over and over it more quickly becomes an extension of your hand if the tip is inline with top, center or bottom of the blade. Smaller advantage than those previously mentioned by Sal, but an observation of knife use I've made over the years, especially when piercing or drilling.

Interestingly, my wife and son won't use anything but the Wharnecliffe Salt 2 now and I believe it is because of it's simplicity (a great thing).

In woodcraft (bushcraft), having a belly is more efficient in carving wood, but for some notches, particularly small ones that need to be fitted such as in deadfalls, having a portion of the blade perfectly straight is better, and totally agree with sharpening, especially with a small stone in the field.

Last but not least, when looking at the Yojimbo, to me it looks so much like the end of Viking broken-back seax; which one must suspect was very effective considering the history. And then reading the articles on Michael Janich's knife development and the advantages of a Wharncliffe for self-defense, in my totally amateur opinion it just kinda all makes sense as to the effectiveness.