How much does a Ratweiler chopper weigh compared to a DF??
I'm sure the DF weighs more. How much more is the big question. I sold my DF not to long ago because it just sat there and looked pretty. It was too big a knife for my purposes. However, HornDog or someone else who has both could probably answer that.
My Dog Father has a swedge cut in the clip point and some steel removed during polishing, so it is a little lighter than standard at 20 oz. My scale shows the Ratweiler at 19 oz. But the DF has even more of a blade heavy feel than the Ratweiler. The DF is a bit "slow" in cutting the light stuff because it is hard to get enough blade speed for good machete work. It will wear you out quickly chopping through dense undergrowth as I found out last Spring. It is a better pure chopper, but less useful as an all-around knife, IMO. For an all-around knife, the Scrap Yard S6, Guard, or Hook would be a better choice. Or an S7!
Well put.
Certain knives are going to have certain compromises.
6.5" - 7.5" (maybe/sometimes 8.0") knives seem to have a pretty good balance if still needing to chop. They are not as good at heavy duty chopping as larger knives, but they will still chop. And this size is much more capable at a much larger variety of tasks.
If not needing to chop, I still prefer 4" - 5" blades.
Big 10" blades are really pretty darn narrow focused: chopping. They can muddle through "some" other tasks, but they really aren't too great at most other tasks. 10" and larger blades are just too long, too heavy and too bulky for most knife usage tasks short of chopping and whacking.
I generally think the best two knife combo is a 4"-4.5" knife and a 7" - 8" knife. Both sizes can still do multiple tasks.
Still, if you want the best knife for chopping, it is VERY hard for ANY 7" - 8" bladed knife to compare to a well designed 10" chopping machine like the DF.
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