by Hugh » Wed Dec 04, 2002 8:39 pm
Hi, Gene and Bram. I have carried a Gunting as a utility EDC for some while. You see, I converted to being a Quaker some while back and, while I may have some difficulty with the Testimony to Non-Violence as it applies to national self-defense, since that choice also affects many milions of others, I have made that choice on a personal level. That said, I also have arthritis at a level sufficient to render defense without a weapon impossible and without a firearm very difficult, if you follow me. In any case, I chose a Gunting in January of 2001 as a utility blade based upon a gentleman from BladeForums allowing me to take one on trial. I found it to excel in that area simply because Bram had designed it with very large controls, including the hilt, sort of like those expensive ergonomic tools that you see in the very expensive catalogues that come out around this time each year. There seems to be at least one other over at BladeForums who carries a Gunting as a utility blade, or so he has posted recently, and I remember others doing the same in the past, so it isn't such a wierd idea, really.
The following is for any considering a Gunting for any reason but is mostly for the general public and not so much for the Martial Arts masters:
One word of warning: the guy who sold me the knife insisted that I buy the tape that Spyderco put out with it where BRAM shows off the knife's capabilities when used correctly AND ITS DANGERS IF MISUSED. This tape is very clear as to why they have a Red Drone version of the Gunting for practice workouts. I remember, and I bet Bram does, too, about all the damned fools who did not pay attention to the copious warnings about not trying Kinetic Openings on themselves or their friends and wound up in the hospital emergency room getting sewn up. Please, people, this is a serious tool and not a toy; it requires the same level of serious attention that any serious tool would require to keep it from biting. I also suggest that, unless you carry it in a holster in your pocket as many have decided to do, keep the pivot screw fairly tight, as the ramp can catch on things and start the blade to open in your pocket, even with the knife carrying tip down, and I assure you that you do not want this to happen. The easiest way to prevent it is to keep the pivot tight enough that you need effort to open the blade. This is not a bad idea in any case, as it makes the knife less likely to offend an "overly sensitive LEO" looking for a gravity blade. There are some clowns out there who have asked Sal Glesser of Spyderco to make the thing tip up carry and I shudder at the thought.
Trying to Walk in the Light, Hugh
1 John 1:5