Article on the Rawk in Blade Magazine in September 2008
"hawk talk by Brendan O'Brien"
Click the link to see
A Graham Razel Review
by David Grant (EDC Magazine)
Tuesday, October 17, 2006
Some Lessons in Blade Geometry: The
Dynamics of Cutting
To view entire post see http://whiteshadowdojo.blogspot.com/2006_10_01_archive.html
(The White Shadow Dojo is a Martial Arts
school
run by Gwynne and David Decker in Addison, NY.)
The
last weapon I want to discuss is the popular Razel™ from the Graham
brothers. Although the Graham brothers describe their invention as the
most useful tool you’ll ever own, this razor-chisel utility tool has
some very interesting possibilities as a weapon. It doesn’t take much
imagination to recognize it as a “slasher”. After all, the blade is
nothing more than a truncated straight razor. My Razel also has a slight
belly, but is this the source of its phenomenal cutting? After forty years
of playing with knives, knowing beyond a doubt that curved blades cut and
straight blades puncture, I had to question whether I was right or wrong?
I hate to admit it, but I was pretty much wrong. What was also surprising
is the Razel’s impressive capacity to create large holes during a thrust
but I’ll discuss that last.
So where does cutting power really originate from? If, as Mr. Janich said,
a curved blade is not the most effective shape, why isn’t it? It’s a
matter of PSI, pounds per square inch. That sounds boring already
doesn’t it? Consider for a moment the lowly single-edged razor blade,
the same one used in utility knives and scrapers everywhere. If you take a
test medium and place a razor blade with the full edge in contact and push
down with all your weight, how deeply will that blade cut? Not very deep I
would guess. Ok, now perform the same test and slide the blade along the
surface[1].
You should see a difference, because now you have pressure and 
movement.
Finally, apply the same pressure, cock the blade up forty-five degrees so
that only the corner or tip is contacting the surface, and slide it along.
If the tip doesn’t break off you will see a huge increase in the depth
of the cut. Why would the tip break off? Because the PSI are very high
when you apply the same force on a very small area, in this case just the
tip of the razor blade. It doesn’t matter how long or short the razor
blade is since you are only cutting with the tip. There is no curve to the
tip of the razor blade either, it is just like the point of the Ronin, the
JuJu, and the Razel. Therefore, I am not so sure that it is the curvature,
or lack thereof, that makes the difference in the blade’s cutting
performance. It is more the fact that the curved blade does not allow the
fullest application of PSI that can be developed with the tip of the
wharncliff style blade. With a curved blade the tip may never come into
contact with the cutting medium at all. In essence the best cutting is not
actually done with the edge, straight or curved, and therefore the blade
length and shape have little influence on cutting performance.
I said I would address the thrusting capabilities of the Razel later, so
here goes. Many people have looked at the blade of the Razel and
arbitrarily decided that it cannot be used to puncture or thrust. These
people must not have experimented at all with the knife or they would know
how stupid that statement is! When the Razel is held naturally, in the
right hand with the wrist held straight, the knife is angled about
forty-five degrees to the left. This means that during a thrust the
sharpened flat end of the blade is not striking the target squarely. In
fact what you have is a very wide tipped blade something like a Roman
pugio (dagger) or a hunting broad-arrow. Since both edges are razor sharp
this knife will definitely penetrate, and in the process leave a very wide
wound channel. So much for arbitrary determinations and that is what this
whole article is about.
David Decker
White Shadow Dojo
CRKT Catalog featuring Razel Line to be available in 2008
Article in Blade Magazine - January 2008 issue.
The Ringed RazelTMSS3
Article in book entitled Tomahawks - Traditional to
Tactical by David Grant - 2007
Click to view color pictures of the Rawk
and Ram
Article in Blade Magazine - April 2007 issue.
Article in Blade Magazine - February 2007 issue.
Our Razel SS5 on the cover.
Article in Tactical Knives - November 2006 issue.
