5 Reasons Why You Need a Spear Point Knife in Your Life

If you’re a fan of camping, hunting, or just love the great outdoors, you know how important it is having the right gear. However, did you know that a spear point knife can be a versatile and essential tool that any sensible knife owner should have?

Whether you are dashing through a forest Rambo-style and need a defensive option, or you just need to slice up some vegetables for dinner, a spear-point-style knife is a versatile and reliable tool that can easily handle nearly any task. Here are my top five reasons why this blade shape is a must-have in your outdoor gear collection.

1. Most spear point folders are lightweight and easy to carry. Your typical folding spear point knife is small enough to fit in your pocket or on your belt, making it easy to carry with you at all times. Of course, not all spear point knives are lightweight, but most manufacturers know their customers don’t want to carry a MASSIVE blade, and the blade shape uses less steel than many other blade shapes, such as a sheepsfoot knife, which tend to have a thick spine.

2. It’s durable and can withstand heavy use. Despite using less metal, the geometry of a spear point knife allows it to have quite a bit of strength for its, usually, lightweight. With a strong and durable blade, a spear point blade can be used to cut through large diameter branches, carve wood, and even slice through thick meats with ease.

3. It’s versatile and has a multitude of everyday-life applications. Not only is a spear point knife essential for camping and outdoor survival, but it can also be used for typical kitchen tasks. The blade shapes also lends itself to have a good prying ability.

4. It’s easy to clean. The spear point design makes it easy to clean and maintain – a simple wipe-down with a damp cloth and it’s ready to go. I would recommend lightly oiling your blades too in order to avoid them rusting.

5. It’s safer to use than most blade shapes. Since a spear point has a straight and tapered blade, a spear designed blade is easy to handle and use, making it safer to use for complete beginners and experts alike.

It’s a must-have for everyday use, camping, and survival purposes. Whether you’re exploring the wilderness, learning the basics of outdoor survival, or staying in a cozy room with a cup of hot tea, a spear point knife is a must-have knife design for any knife lover.

Aaaaannnnndddd…. that’s all I’ve got for today folks. Those are the TOP FIVE REASONS that I own MANY drop point style knives in my collection. Thanks for reading, and as always, have a lovely day!

I was recently walking to my local gym and low and behold I ended up finding this little gem on the ground.

At first, I thought it was a Spyderco. I was STOKED! Unfortunately, I picked up a ‘Maxam’ branded knife. So, what do I think of it? Meh… It doesn’t impress me.

Overall, the knife screams cheaply made Chinese mass-produced crap. Nothing against Chinese knives. As of the time that I am writing this article (Year 2020) the Chinese are making some quality blades. This Maxam knife, however, is not one of those high-quality pieces.

The black handle is made from cheap plastic, not the Zytel or G10 quality plastic that many knife-collectors are used to. The pocket clip… I actually like. Sure, it isn’t deep carry, but the “springiness” of the pocket clip is perfect. The knife-hole opener is more of a Byrd knife shape rather than your typical Spyderco circle.

Since I picked it up from off the ground, I wanted to test the sharpness of the blade. This bad boy has gone through quite some use. The smooth edge was so dull that it could barely cut paper even when I laid it flat-down on my table. The serrated edge is still in pretty decent condition.

The blade steel is trash. Very soft steel. It took me a few passes on my sharpening system to get this blade razor sharp, aaaannnndddd… it was dull again after cutting rope for less than 10 minutes.

In summary, if you see a Maxam knife at your local sporting goods store and it is over five bucks… save your money. This knife may be okay to shove into your fishing tackle box or in the glove compartment of your vehicle. But, as a knife snob, I would recommend you skip out on these Maxam knives. The quality is seriously lacking.

Knife batoning is when you use your knife in the same fashion that you would use an axe – to split wood. The difference between using an axe and using your knife is that, for the most part, your knife doesn’t have the weight and blade geometry of an axe.

In order to make your knife function more like an axe, a piece of wood or other heavy club is used to provide more force to the wood you are trying to split.

What Is The Best Knife For Batoning

There are many good choices. Our personal favorite is the Becker BK9. Ethan Becker is well known among knife fanatics and he designs some of the most robust blades on the market today.

The Becker BK9 is a knife that has stood the test of time. We here at I Luv Knives believe that the BK9 is not only the best knife for batoning, but also the best bang for your buck if you are looking for a blade that will last you a lifetime.

The main thing about a batoning knife is that it needs to have a heavy blade in order to chop through wood. The entire premise of batoning is to chop or hack through. You are mimicking the action of an axe.

This is a very common question many knife owners have asked. The “Paper Cut” test is commonplace in the knife community to get a good glimpse on how sharp your blade is. But does cutting paper actually dull your knife?

Short answer: For most instances – No. The average piece of paper with a razor sharp knife will be sliced like butter.

However, there are a lot of assumptions being made there. There are so many factors that go into the “Paper Cut” test that will determine the end result of your knife blade’s sharpness.

For instance – What type of paper are you cutting? What is the hardness of your blade? Angle of the blade edge? Geometry of the blade?

I could go on and on, so let’s set some “average knife” parameters and continue from there.

Let’s say our average pocket knife has a drop point blade as shown below

The angle of the blade is a common 20 ° and the hardness at HRC 58.

How well would the knife hold up versus the following paper products?

Printer Paper – Your knife will stay plenty sharp. You most likely could cut soft printer paper for an hour straight and see no discernible difference in sharpness.

Glossy Photo Paper – Alright, now you aren’t only cutting paper, but a glossy layer on top of it. Your knife will dull much faster with photo paper because not only is it thicker, harder, and made of different materials – but there is an adhesive layer between the paper and gloss as well.

3-Hole Punched Binder Paper – You might as well be slicing butter. You could cut binder paper all day and not see a difference in sharpness.

In conclusion, most readily-available types of paper won’t harm your blade’s sharpness so feel free to do the “Paper Cut” test regularly.

First of all, let’s start out with the bottom line deal – Who is CPM-S30V Steel best suited for?

CPM-S30V is best for those who want a tough knife that is also incredibly resistant to rust and takes a long time to dull.

Here is the breakdown of the S30V

Carbon 1.45%

Chromium 14.00%

Vanadium 4.00% 

Molybdenum 2.00%

This combination is what makes CPM-S30V what is considered a, “Premium Steel.” Most knives that use S30V tend to be a bit pricier due to their higher quality and the fact that S30V is much harder to work with due to its tough properties.

Examples of some, “Premium Knives” that use S30V are shown below

Biggest Benefits of CPM-S30V Steel

Probably the biggest benefit of having a knife made from s30v is the all around utility. The steel, in our opinion, gives the best of all worlds. It is resistant to rust, the steel is super tough and takes forever to dull, and it is flexible enough not to shatter easily. The original creator of CPM-S30V is Crucible.

How is CPM S30V So Tough?

The chemical makeup of CPM S30V is a martenistic stainless steelm Meaning that it has a chemistry that has been specially balanced to promote the formation of vanadium carbides, which are more effective and much harder than chromium carbides in giving the steel wear resistance.