Reverse S Dragonfly?

[steelcity16]

I am not sold on the reverse S design, but I might be missing something. Or, perhaps it is because it does not fit into my lifestyle.

Think hard about the cuts you do in day to day life and I bet you could make most of them just as easily with a reverse S. Now think about the things that most users probably do the most on a daily basis, opening boxes and that PITA blow molded clamshell packaging. The little hook tip grabs on and allows you to really keep the blade on the material as you pull through it.

[steelcity16]

I just opened a bubble mailer and wished I had a Reverse S Dragonfly in my pocket.

[A.S.O.K.A]

I think the blade that the meerkat has looks more like something the dragonfly could rock for sure

[zhyla]

I am not sold on the reverse S design, but I might be missing something. Or, perhaps it is because it does not fit into my lifestyle.

I don’t think there’s anything amazing to say about it. It’s a useful blade shape. It gets the job done. I don’t think a regular leaf shape can do anything the stubby S can’t do.

[ladybug93]

I am not sold on the reverse S design, but I might be missing something. Or, perhaps it is because it does not fit into my lifestyle.

i would’ve been dead set against anything like this until i got a sharpmaker. now i’m happy to try out recurves and s-curves again.

[Doc Dan]

I am thinking the new wharncliffe might be more to my liking than the reverse S. Still, I am always open to learning new things.

[TomH]

I'll take at least one or two of these.

[Jazz]

I think the wharncliffe will do it all but better than a reverse s.

[Robbob]

A wider tip and more belly.

I would vote for something in between

Tough crowd

Now that's something.

[Surfingringo]

I think the wharncliffe will do it all but better than a reverse s.

I think you are right that a wharnie D’fly will do most of what a reverse s would. I think the two blade shapes are more similar to each other in use than either is to a traditional blade shape. Each will still have certain advantages over the other though. I tend to do a lot of scoring cuts with the tip of a knife on flat surfaces. A Wharncliffe works great for that kind of cut but a reverse s will offer even more leverage for that type of cut without having to raise the butt of the knife. Of course the Wharnie will offer more tip strength in the same cut. For a shallow, controlled cut like opening a clam shell or scoring though the skin and scales of a heavily scaled fish the reverse s will work more safely and effectively. Mainly because the butt of the knife doesn’t have to be elevated and the rest of the hand can remain on the material you are cutting for control. I like to use a small reverse s the same way I’ve seen you using a wharncliffe sometimes. Forefinger on the spine. The knife effectively becomes a claw. A wharncliffe will make the same type of cuts but you will need to raise the butt more to get it to grab in certain types of media. The Wharncliffe will excel over the reverse s in other ways like more traditional slicing/chopping cuts. I feel like the reverse s is a more specialized blade shape than the wharncliffe but less specialized (more versatile) than the hawkbill.

Anyway, not trying to change your mind, just offering some of my thoughts on why I like using the reverse s shape.

[bearfacedkiller]

I use my PE Lil’ Matriarch in the garden a lot and occasionally use the Cricket. The PE Lil’ Matriarch is my favorite gardening knife. I would be interested in a reverse s Dragonfly if it had the Lil’ Matriarch shape.

[Jazz]

I think you are right that a wharnie D’fly will do most of what a reverse s would. I think the two blade shapes are more similar to each other in use than either is to a traditional blade shape. Each will still have certain advantages over the other though. I tend to do a lot of scoring cuts with the tip of a knife on flat surfaces. A Wharncliffe works great for that kind of cut but a reverse s will offer even more leverage for that type of cut without having to raise the butt of the knife. Of course the Wharnie will offer more tip strength in the same cut. For a shallow, controlled cut like opening a clam shell or scoring though the skin and scales of a heavily scaled fish the reverse s will work more safely and effectively. Mainly because the butt of the knife doesn’t have to be elevated and the rest of the hand can remain on the material you are cutting for control. I like to use a small reverse s the same way I’ve seen you using a wharncliffe sometimes. Forefinger on the spine. The knife effectively becomes a claw. A wharncliffe will make the same type of cuts but you will need to raise the butt more to get it to grab in certain types of media. The Wharncliffe will excel over the reverse s in other ways like more traditional slicing/chopping cuts. I feel like the reverse s is a more specialized blade shape than the wharncliffe but less specialized (more versatile) than the hawkbill.

Anyway, not trying to change your mind, just offering some of my thoughts on why I like using the reverse s shape.

That’s cool, bro. What do you say I find my SE Cricket, dust it off, and carry it a couple days? The hawkbill part I get, especially on clam packs, but the rest... well, I’ll try again.

[steelcity16]

The renewed interest in the Cricket is making me really want a Dodofly and a Reverse S Dragonfly. I really think both of these would do quite well. The Dragonfly is super popular right now with the recent Wharnie and Teal S30V releases.

[steelcity16]

Bumping given recent interest in this design

[wrdwrght]

In. A Salt?

[steelcity16]

In. A Salt?

Yes, my first choice would be LC200N Salt form. PE and SE Cricketfly Salts and Dodofly Salts. These would be such great companion blades, small utility blades, tackle box knives, etc.

[Surfingringo]

In. A Salt?

Yes, my first choice would be LC200N Salt form. PE and SE Cricketfly Salts and Dodofly Salts. These would be such great companion blades, small utility blades, tackle box knives, etc.

I’m a big fan of lc200n but I would definitely vote for H1 for this design. H1 is FAR tougher than lc200n and that seems like a very desirable trait in a pointy tipped design that will be seeing a lot of stress at the tip in everyday use.

[steelcity16]

In. A Salt?

Yes, my first choice would be LC200N Salt form. PE and SE Cricketfly Salts and Dodofly Salts. These would be such great companion blades, small utility blades, tackle box knives, etc.

I’m a big fan of lc200n but I would definitely vote for H1 for this design. H1 is FAR tougher than lc200n and that seems like a very desirable trait in a pointy tipped design that will be seeing a lot of stress at the tip in everyday use.

Good point (ha!) Lance! How would you suggest sharpening something like a Dodofly? H1 would dull much quicker than LC200N, so while I totally agree about the toughness of H1 helping in strength at the tip, I wonder how easily and quickly you could touch up this blade?

[Surfingringo]

In. A Salt?

Yes, my first choice would be LC200N Salt form. PE and SE Cricketfly Salts and Dodofly Salts. These would be such great companion blades, small utility blades, tackle box knives, etc.

I’m a big fan of lc200n but I would definitely vote for H1 for this design. H1 is FAR tougher than lc200n and that seems like a very desirable trait in a pointy tipped design that will be seeing a lot of stress at the tip in everyday use.

Good point (ha!) Lance! How would you suggest sharpening something like a Dodofly? H1 would dull much quicker than LC200N, so while I totally agree about the toughness of H1 helping in strength at the tip, I wonder how easily and quickly you could touch up this blade?

With the corners of the Sharpmaker rods. I touch up my lil matriarch all the time with the corners of the brown rods. It is quick as quick and easy as touching up any microbevel, you just have to take great care about releasing pressure as the tip comes off so as not to round it by dragging it over the side of the stone.

I actually reprofiled my lil matriarch two days ago on the corners of the diamond rods. It works, but you have to use VERY light pressure when using the corners or you will quickly rip the diamonds out. I have reprofiled several knives with light pressure though and they are still cutting fine. Less is more. I will also admit that the corners of the diamond rods are not the ideal tool for reprofiling. The surface area is small and you have to go very light so it can take a LONG time. A set of cat’s eye diamond rods would be ideal for this blade shape I think.

[steelcity16]

Here were my very crude mockups from my Dodofly and Cricketfly threads. I would love both of these in PE and SE, but I would take any just one of them at this point to get the ball rolling!



Cricketfly - viewtopic.php?f=2&t=84073

option a



option b (elongated blade)





Dodofly - viewtopic.php?t=84079


option a



option b (elongated blade)