Finger guard: yes or no?


If you could only have 1 knives would it have a guard?

  • Guard yes

    Votes: 41 52.6%

  • Guard no

    Votes: 37 47.4%
  • Total voters
    78
riokid87

riokid87

Scout
Banned
Joined
Apr 16, 2018
Messages
760
Likes
2,749
I've tried the last couple years to get into the Mora, woodlore, you name it fixed blade that has from a little bump to a large curve as a "guard." And I really like the kephart clone I made. But if I was really out on an overnight wilderness adventure,
I just can't see it. Or get totally comfortable with it. Maybe its just me and my 1911 thumb and grip safety vs a glock safety upbringing.
I know there are a lot of good gardless knives but I can't see them as much more than an accident waiting to happen. Good for a lot of cutting tasks but if I was really out in the wilderness, slipping my dominant hand down on a sharp edge and cutting it badly would be really bad.
I don't think a modest finger guard ever got in my way. But I have been cold to the point it was difficult to keep a good grip on things, esp a small nail to adjust the front sight post of an m16a1.
IDK, just thinking about it while it's frozen outside.
 
I hear ya on the 1911 vs Glock comparison. It’s all in technique and line of fire. With a guarded knife or saw or pistol you can take “dangerous” chances with grip and finger placement.
An unguarded knife gives you zero luxury. It also makes you keenly aware of other chances like cutting toward yourself.

Bushcraft is all about risk mitigation. What is risky enough? Bow drill, Flint and steel, bic lighter and road flares are all ways of starting a fire. Which you choose up take into the woods is your Call. Same with your blade.
 
I like a lower guard or at least a handle with enough contour that it will keep my hand from creeping towards the blade.

I find with my Mora HD, after long periods of use, it is not uncommon for me to find my index finger hooked over the edge near the handle. I have yet to cut myself this way, but I do recognize the potential for leakage.

The Buck 119 is the only knife I have with a top guard, and I don't like it at all. After the one knife challenge I'm going to take it to a buddy's place and remove it with his bench grinder. The bottom guard stays though.

:44:
 
I use lots of knives with no guards in the woods but I don't do a lot of stabbing with my knife when out in the bush (still waiting for that hand to claw combat with a bear to happen) but if I had to choose only one knife, that blade would at least have a bottom guard. This "one knife" would be used for everything so I'd have to take into account any possible defensive or offensive actions that it may be called upon.

Note of interest: I did have to stab a wild animal multiple times once, and the knife had no guard but it did have a deeply contoured finger groove. Hand slippage was not an issue in that case.
 
I used to be totally anti-guard. Then I got a new-issue Mora 511. Their cheapest knife, their most basic knife. I kept using it because that little blade is so capable and well shaped for so many things.

And the in the process, I noticed something. The guard is fine. It’s actually good.
 
It is so much more comfortable and pleasurable working with knives without guards, and generally prefer them.
However, I'm not a fan of the way certain knives taper toward the blade, inviting the hand to slide toward the edge. I'm looking at you Mora classic.

I've learned enough times that being safety conscious most of the time doesn't help me that one time I let my attention slip for a second. That's when I've cut myself, gotten into a car accident, burned myself, had children.....:54:
 
shaped handle (finger groove or the like) yes. true guard, no-it always gets in my way, based on the way i grip a knife when i carve. i have an old mora that had a double guard, and it freed me up so much to remove the rear guard. i also shortened the front guard so it was something i could work with more.

PB250238.jpg

P1071034_zps13478c2f.jpg
 
Guards have their place.
Double guards are probably more common on military type knives.
Single front guards are probably more common on hunting/general use type knives and also appear on military type knives. I've made and used both and like both. Double guard is in a way when you try to put your thumb on the spine, sure, but I doubt JPK is a knife that someone is supposed to do that much carving with anyways.
"But if I was really out on an overnight wilderness adventure" there is no way carving knife without a guard is coming along when backpacking for few days unless the adventure is a planned activity. Mors Kochanski's "no guard" thing is good when you carve IMO but not when he advertises "no guard" Mora type as a survival knife. I love that guy but we disagree here :) But even SBT has enough contouring to hold on to instead of a Mora Classic for example even though SBT has no actual guard. Regardless if someone is stabbing something or not, guard is a safety feature no doubt about it. If it helps someone be more safe, by all means. There are knives with deep/deeper choils and those are probably best bet if someone wants to be safe. Again, guards are nice on some knives, some knives need them for looks, some for performance. I love my Mora 511 and 760MG. Both have guards incorporated into the design being part of the handle, not separate piece. True guards looks awesome though ;) Many flavors to choose from. Good topic.
 
BradGad said:
I used to be totally anti-guard. Then I got a new-issue Mora 511. Their cheapest knife, their most basic knife. I kept using it because that little blade is so capable and well shaped for so many things.

And the in the process, I noticed something. The guard is fine. It’s actually good.
Click to expand...
The 511 defies all price-to-quality laws. It’s crazy.
 
I've never been a real fan of what I would call a cross guard. 'Not "anti-guard", just not a fan. They have their place and purpose, but my usage hasn't required the need as yet.

I am a fan of finger grooves and a double tapaer in the handle which IMHO gives the knife "palmability" and reduces fatigue. The groove helps indexing in the hand so that you can pretty much grab the knife while your eyes are on something else and know where the edge is.

I steer away from minimal/grooveless handles for fear of tendon damage in the bottom of the first two fingers of my hand. ( that thought gives me the willies :eek: )
 
I don't find a need for them, and my folder and fixed blades for a number of years now haven't had them. Simple cutting tasks they don't get in the way, but there are a lot of grips where they do. The way I use a knife I find I'd rather not have even a modest one. Thankfully we live in a free society and we don't have a planned economy where knife designs are dictated by the state. That is to say we get to choose what we want in a knife and that's a good thing.
 
Last edited:
No guard makes fine carving and crafting tasks much easier.

Guard makes more sense on a fighting knife or on a larger chopper.

Mora knows how to do it.

7A7B2220-E839-4043-B5C2-B4574C20790B.jpeg

If you are stabbing something, why havent you carved a short spear, or a club? a strong pointed wooden stick, or a stick with a club end is more formidable than a knife of any size, imo.
 
Last edited:
I prefer a guard of some sort, deliberate, or in the handle/blade geometry.

I ran my hand up a sharp blade cutting hay bales in the MT winter. Hands numb cold. Lucky I only cut through the gloves. Also nice in a bloody slippery field dressing use, with knife and hand out of sight inside the critter disconnecting the innards.
 
For a fixed blade, I like a guard on the blade side only. Having no guard on the spine side serves a couple of purposes. First, I can put my thumb on the spine for push cuts. Second, there's no guard to get in the way of battoning. Third, it makes a quick and accurate way to orient the knife: guard is on the cutting side, so I can't hold the knife backwards, with my thumb on the cutting edge, I don't have to check which way the blade is facing if I grabbed it quick, or it's dark out (this really only applies on symmetric handles).

Edit: mobile decided to post before I finished typing
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top