The people that were most adamant about needing a modification were the folks that were advocating batoning. Their claim was not that they damaged the grip with the baton (yeah, right), but rather that the knife pivoted downward into the log when struck, damaging the grip. Wouldn't that mean that the modification would be needed on the sharp side of the the blade? Possibly the "batoners" would want it on both sides? I think that it is amazing that Dan would try so hard to accomodate everyone's wishes. Bravo, Dan.

First off, I don't appreciate your "yeah, right" comment - it is trivially easy to damage the guard without hitting it with a baton. If you want to be rude and call me a liar, that's your prerogative, but I don't think that comments like that fit in with the spirit of the yard. Ignorant and rude tones like yours are EXACTLY what drove me to argue this point so often and what drove the tone of conversation around here into the ground.


This is the situation, which has been explained ad nauseum: Knife is deep in log, so you can't hit the middle of the spine, so you hit the tip of the knife with a baton, while pushing down on the handle with your hand. Normally, the knife moves deeper into the log and splits it further. However, if the knife binds up, and doesn't move deeper into the log, since you are hitting the tip, the tip pivots downward, while the handle pivots upward, potentially driving the top guard into the log. To drive the BOTTOM guard into the log in the same fashion, you would have to be hitting the handle with the baton, which we all know is a bad idea since it's made from rubber.



Since you use the term "batoners" with a seemingly derogatory tone, perhaps you've never tried it yourself, and shouldn't be attempting to judge the outcomes we have seen while engaging in this very standard, common, and accepted use of a hard-use woods knife. Just a thought.