Swick Thoughts (with pics)

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aicolainen
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#21

Post by aicolainen »

JRinFL wrote:
Mon Aug 01, 2022 6:03 pm
I'm wondering about using a steel like LC200N for breaking tempered glass in cars. Most glass breakers for that purpose are hardened much harder that LC200N or are made from carbide. I wonder, has anyone tried it on junk yard glass?
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.
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#22

Post by JRinFL »

I have seen more than one video of police trying to break the side glass of cars by using full force swings with their batons and the glass not breaking.

One of the best tools for breaking glass is the automatic center punch. The tools and knives that advertise a glass breaker function all share a similar hardened point for that purpose, much like the center punch. I think the pommel of the Swick is too rounded and too soft for the purpose.
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#23

Post by curlyhairedboy »

From a materials perspective, trying to break tempered vehicle glass requires a concentration of force that can cause deformation of the glass structure. Tempered glass is pre-stressed to resist deformation. Thus, the more focused the force is and the harder the material (relative to the hardness of the glass), the less force you need to disrupt the glass structure.

embedding a ceramic detent ball at the end of the swick might be your best bet.
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#24

Post by elena86 »

What about the Swick 6 ?
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#25

Post by jwbnyc »

Yeah! What about the Swick 6?
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#26

Post by Buddafucco »

RamZar wrote:
Fri Jul 29, 2022 5:14 pm
What do you find different with this sheath as opposed to other such sheaths from Spyderco?

I was wondering if there was going to be any noticeable difference due to the sheath delay stuff but physically the sheath is the same as the Boltaron Mule sheaths and I can't tell any difference in quality or craftsmanship. The thumb push off aspect is nicely executed. It slides maybe a quarter inch and then pops off. I wouldn't say it shoots across the room, but it easily pops off to clear the blade.
With the G-Clip removed, the Swick w/ sheath is slimmer than my phone and slides in my pocket right next behind the phone very nicely. It also fit's reasonably well in the 5th pocket of my Dickie's work shorts. I'm still figuring out which carry option I like best.
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#27

Post by Buddafucco »

Not ideal and I'm not even sure if it would work to break automotive glass, but this is what it might look like...

Image
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#28

Post by Buddafucco »

I've only had it a few days but I learned on day 1 that the ability to let go of the knife, without putting it down, is an awesome feature. I made swick work of a box that contained several bags of nuts & bolts. Having all ten finger tips to sort and pick through them while cutting them open was very convenient. The handle is weighted so that the blade stays mostly pointing up when it's dangling on my finger. I could imagine this would be a great feature for anybody working on or around the water that doesn't want to lose a knife.
Admittedly, it's been hard to resist the temptation to spin it around on my finger. Probably wouldn't end well if I do. :tonque-out
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#29

Post by Woodpuppy »

Maybe “glass breaker” was code for “skull cracker”.
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#30

Post by sal »

We use formed carbide for our glass breakers. I don't recommend steel for glass breakers. I've spent a great deal of time in junk yards breaking windows.

sal.
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#31

Post by RamZar »

elena86 wrote:
Tue Aug 02, 2022 9:02 am
What about the Swick 6 ?
jwbnyc wrote:
Tue Aug 02, 2022 12:53 pm
Yeah! What about the Swick 6?

The July 2022 Spyderco byte mentioned (see below in quotations) that Swick 6 will ship in early August 2022 with Swick 5 to follow. However, thus far we’ve only seen Swick 5 SpyderEdge at a few US dealers. The month is young!

“Due to unforeseen challenges, the release of the Swick 5 and 6, which were unveiled in Reveal 5 [May 5, 2020], have been delayed for quite some time. We are finally pleased to announce that initial production of the Swick 6 will be shipping in early August [2022]. We are also working hard to follow that with the Swick 5. As always, we appreciate your patience and continued interest in our products.”
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#32

Post by Evil D »

If you wanna break a window just find yourself an old spark plug and break off the porcelain part and when the time comes chuck it into the glass. Old school and very effective.
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#33

Post by JRinFL »

sal wrote:
Tue Aug 02, 2022 10:29 pm
We use formed carbide for our glass breakers. I don't recommend steel for glass breakers. I've spent a great deal of time in junk yards breaking windows.

sal.
I almost want to add this to my sig line. Out of context it's kind of funny.
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#34

Post by JRinFL »

Evil D wrote:
Wed Aug 03, 2022 2:21 am
If you wanna break a window just find yourself an old spark plug and break off the porcelain part and when the time comes chuck it into the glass. Old school and very effective.
LOL, good to know!

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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#35

Post by JSumm »

On fire! :rofl
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#36

Post by jwbnyc »

Video?
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#37

Post by StuntZombie »

I'm kind of glad I ended up deciding against this one. I think I would have rather had a normal handle style without the finger hole.
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#38

Post by mikey177 »

I received my Swick 5 today. Thanks to bbturbodad who posted in the other thread that it was in stock at DLT.

I'm excited to see how well it does for yardwork in the coming days.
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#39

Post by legOFwhat? »

Buddafucco wrote:
Tue Aug 02, 2022 2:09 pm
I've only had it a few days but I learned on day 1 that the ability to let go of the knife, without putting it down, is an awesome feature. I made swick work of a box that contained several bags of nuts & bolts. Having all ten finger tips to sort and pick through them while cutting them open was very convenient. The handle is weighted so that the blade stays mostly pointing up when it's dangling on my finger. I could imagine this would be a great feature for anybody working on or around the water that doesn't want to lose a knife.
Admittedly, it's been hard to resist the temptation to spin it around on my finger. Probably wouldn't end well if I do. :tonque-out
Intentional or happy accident? Either way, brilliant! :winking-tongue
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Re: Swick Thoughts (with pics)

#40

Post by SchoonerBum »

I wrote a few days ago in the "what's on the way" thread:

Swick 5. I wasn't terribly interested in it until I read in the latest Byte about how Fred Perrin developed the finger hole while he was doing scaffolding and rigging work, so he could tie knots and such without putting the knife down. It sounds like it could be brilliant and I'm excited to try it out.

I said I'd post about it over here - so here it is:

My Swick arrived a couple of days ago and I've been playing around with tying knots and doing random chores with it in my hand. It's brilliant. I wish I'd had one of these when I was regularly doing a lot of rigging work. It does require some additional situational awareness but with practice I feel like I'll be able to do quite a lot with it in my hand. It seems like it will really speed things up when working aloft. I can certainly see where the idea came from and now I can confirm that it works. I'm really impressed with this little knife that was barely on my radar a couple of weeks ago. It don't think it will ever replace my rig knife but as a secondary rigging tool I love it.

I should add that I'm impressed with the sheath. I can see why it took a while to get the unusual shape right and with good retention. It is a little tricky to re-sheath the Swick as the blade angle has to be right or the edge of the bevel can get hung up on the lip of the sheath. At first I thought might chamfer out the insides of the mouth just slightly to help smooth out re-sheathing but it has become a lot easier in just a few days and I'm going to hold off for now. If I still feel that would help in a couple of months I'll think about it then, but I don't want to compromise the security of the sheath accidentally.

Naturally, now I want a Swick 5 with a sheepsfoot blade similar to the Atlantic Salt so I can use it alongside my regular rig knife when I'm at sea.

Thanks Sal! The Swick is a knife that I never knew I needed but I'm really stoked to have it.
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