Quarter Moon Knife

[Schpacko]

Hi guys

Yeah, it's me again...

Can anybody tell me the difference between a quarter moon knife like this

and a normal head knife like this:

except for the shape, of course

I've been cutting my leather with a utility knife so far, but i feel like i need a "real" knife. I know the head knife is much more popular, but i'm kind of drawn towards the other one...

I want to use it as an all around knife, for general cutting and skiving purposes. Any tipps? Pro's and Con's?

[bruce johnson]

If you only have one, you will like the one on the bottom a lot more. If you have never used a round knife before, you will like it to be about 2/3 the size of the one on the bottom.

The top one is called by a few names. Some people call it a French pattern head knife (different from what Osbornes call a French head knife) and others call it an Enchancree knife. The top can be sharpened on the hook and it can be turned over to cut curves. The long trailing edge on the bottom makes it really track greatt for long straight cuts. It also makes it pretty impossible to get back on track if you get off just a bit. It has the advantage though of really making a nice knive for push-skiving down an edge. I like them to cut fringe with - not much rolling, just heel-to-toe rocking. They look cool and generate questions when people see them.

The bottom one is a nice pattern - can do curves and straight cuts pretty well. Some people prefer a large knife like that. I think I have a little better control with something around 4-5" for general use on the bench. A wider knife puts me a little higher above my leather and just not quite as comfortable for me. I use a large knife for rolling. One of the safety deals is that if you roll a knife to never get past vertical. If you do it can kick back and that point can bite your wrist. I like a wider knife for push-skiving an edge too. They also work well for doing some trimming off the bench.

[Tannin]

Joseph Dixon Ltd in Walsall, England make both styles: they call the upper style a "French Pattern knife" (#84 below) and the lower one a round knife (#72) or, perhaps, double head knife (#75). The upper one looks like it might be intended to incorporate both a curved clicking knife & head knife capability (e.g. for pull cutting and push cutting) - just guessing though.

http://www.josephdixon.co.uk/products/Saddlers_Tooling/Knives.html

Interesting post on the origin of round knives here: http://www.knifenetwork.com/forum/showthread.php?t=33543

Edited July 29, 2014 by Tannin