I haven’t dived into the science of glass breakers, it just doesn’t interest me that much, but I have almost fallen for the marketing side of it a couple of times (Benchmade Triage and LM Skeletool RX in particular). So I’ve given it some thought.
In general one would expect that a abrupt point is more effective than a less abrupt point, so it makes sense to use a hard material that doesn’t deform under impact forces.
But one would also expect the kinetic energy to play a part, so while the Skeletool RX comes with a dedicated carbide glass breaker bit, I can’t imagine my regular Skeletool with a hardened PH1 bit @150+ grams being much worse at breaking glass than for instance the Houge Trauma with a dedicated carbide glass breaker @133 grams.
How good (and safe) of a grip you get, may also influence the net amount of energy your able to transfer into the point of impact.
My Raptor shears are heavier than the Skeletool and has a carbide tip, but I feel like I can deliver a more capable blow with the Skeletool.
To pull this back in; based on my own logic, with zero basis in available science, the butt end of the Swick doesn’t seem to be a very suitable glass breaker. The point doesn’t appear to be very acute, and even with the sheath attached it’s a very light tool.
That being said, in a pinch you use what you have, and I wouldn’t hesitate to give the Swick a try if that was my only option. And with the point being so rounded, I don’t think the lower hardness matters, as it’s quite unlikely to deform anyway.