What if I told you that modern knife is one of the greatest inventions through our history? Knife was a very important tool that helped our ancestors to survive. They used it as a weapon to defend themselves against wild animals, they used it as a hunting tool and they used it in eating.
If you look at any old invention, you will realize that it is useless now and always there is something more useful than it. Let’s take the typewriter as an example. When the typewriter was invented, it made a large change in the shape of the world and it was the best invention during this time of history. But what happened to the typewriter then? It diminished and no one use it now.
This is not what happened with the knife which still has its role in our life since the primitive life. Now, let’s talk about some unique and different types of knives emphasizing the use of each one.
1) Ballistic knife:
A ballistic knife is a knife that has a detachable blade which can be ejected by many ways such as by operating a lever or switch on the handle or pressing a trigger, this blade can be ejected for different several yards.
From a theoretical view, the blade of a ballistic knife, in its spring-propelled form, can be fired to a range of 5 meters (about 16 feet) and its speed would be 63 km/h. In addition, there is a type of ballistic knives which uses compressed gas or air propulsion to fire the blade, the thing that make it more powerful and can’t suffer from spring fatigue over time.
More than gas, spring, or air propulsion, we can propel the blade of a ballistic knife by an explosive charge, such as a blank pistol cartridge. However, using knife as a weapon is not a good thing. I just want you to know how the knife was developed.
2) Electric knife:
An electric carving knife used in kitchen for slicing food, commonly known as electric knife. So, after cooking your food in a very good deep fat fryer, which is a amazing electric knife. This unique device consists of two serrated blades which are clipped together. When you switch on the device, the blades move lengthways continuously so it can do the sawing action. These knives were very common in the United Kingdom in 1970s.
Jerome L. Murray is believed to be the inventor of the electric knife however there is someone called Clem E. Kosterman filed a patent in 1939 saying that he was the inventor.
Electric knives can be corded or cordless. Electric knife has other useful purposes, also. It can be used for cutting metal, cutting wood, and other semi-solid or solid materials and substances. In addition, it can be used for sculpting polyurethane from rubber.
3) Balisong knife:
The balisong knife, also known as butterfly knife, Batangas knife or fan knife, is a Philippines knife which is a folding pocket knife.
This knife has some distinct features, it has two handles and these handles are counter-rotating around the tang. When it is closed, the blade is hidden within grooves inside the handles. The latch of the balisong knife is typically on the handle facing cutting edge, so it is commonly called the bite handle. So, balisong modern knife was used commonly by Filipinos, especially people of the Tagalog region.
It was used as a pocket knife and for self-defense. Also, there was those Hollow-ground balisongs which were used as straight razors before conventional razors were available in the Philippines.
The knife blade, in the hands of a trained user, can be brought to bear in no time by using one hand. In addition, the knife can be used for some manipulations, called “flipping”, which are performed for amusement or art. And there are blunt versions of these knives, these versions called “trainers”, which are for sale to avoid the risk of injury during the practice of tricks. However, this knife is restricted and illegal in some countries these days even in their country of origin.
4) Palette knife:
A palette knife is a knife with flexible steel blade. The special thing is that this knife is a blunt tool not a sharp one as it is used for applying or mixing paint. Essentially, it is used in mixing paint colors, paste, etc. Also it can be used is marbling, decorative endpapers, etc. So, do you want to know what the word “palette” refers to? It refers to an artist’s palette which is used in mixing acrylic paints and oil paint.
Basically, art knives are two main types:
• A palette knife that resembles a putty knife but it has a rounded tip which is suited for mixing paints on the palette;
• A painting knife which has a lowered and pointed tip, like a trowel, suited to painting on canvas.
Although palette knives are made without sharpened cutting edges, they could turn into sharp edges due to prolonged use and this is the effect of the abrasive pigments like earth colors. In addition, palette knives have other uses as they can be used in cooking.
