coke bottle handles

[Bill Burke]

That would be Bill Burke.

I thought that I recognized that handle.

[ThEoRy]

I made this one. I like it.

[keithsaltydog]

well, it depends on your grip and what you find to be comfortable. Comfort effects performance in my world.

I go for comfort as well.Do not like sharp edges on handles.Some coke bottle esp. wt. out any bolster can be uncomfortable using pinch grip,Randy Haas handles are thinner at the blade look to me to be very well designed & shaped.Some overdone coke handles don't feel as natural.

[Crothcipt]

The thing about coke bottle handles is they feel great if you use a hammer grip. But when you move your hand up onto the blade the position for the handle to be "comfy" is off. That is why you don't see many knives with this grip. for this to happen with pinch grip you have to put the swell further to the up to the blade, which creates a weird look that we usually don't see.

One handle you don't see is a upswept, bent handle. (no idea what really to call it) I am talking about this handle



better pic of how the bend will fit in the palm.


I am not sure why there isn't many more like this handle either. I hope I didn't hijack the thread to bad here. Its just something I have thought about for a few months.

[keithsaltydog]

Agree I've been thinking what works wt. western handles.Like a slight drop at end,less press. on the palm of hand.No highjack at all.I think that the high point of handle curve being higher than the spine at choil is not a bad idea either.Still works well wt. a pinch grip,which I use on Gyuto & Cleavers.

[Marko Tsourkan]

Correct. But for slicing and pull cuts I think I would like it.

I put some time thinking about coke bottle handles and talking to pros, and from all the input and testing, I arrived at the same conclusion - the shape works best for slicing cuts. For a gyuto, a bulkier, rounder handle would work as well if not better.

Adding curvature to the shape, like in the pics Shane provided, makes a handle a bit more ergonomic.
M

[keithsaltydog]

A respected forum member turned me on to the Kanetugu Pro M,when was looking for less expensive quality student knives.JCK sells them.I liked the knife 240mm 193g,thin behind the edge convex grind.A bonus was the comfortable handle,one of the best I have felt as cheap Japan western handles go.

I sold it to a female student,she really liked the lightness of the blade & the comfort of the handle.Plus it comes wt. a saya.

[JohnnyChance]

I love wa handles. I hardly own any westerns, but the only ones I really like are coke bottles. In fact I like them as much or more than a lot of my wa handles. I find them incredibly comfy, both in pinch grips and when pulling/slicing; in all situations basically. The people who don't like them either have used bad examples of them, have deformed monster hands, or are wrong.

[keithsaltydog]

Johnny I like Wa Handles too.One reason is because I have wide hands,not deformed monsters though.I have seen poor examples of cokes wt.deep groves.I think they work better wt. bolster knives.

[ejd53]

I can tell you from experience that Bill's handle is very comfortable in almost everything I do. I think it just comes down to how your hands fit that particular handle.