Glossar

Glossary - List of expressions used on my homepage
(would be happy to have suggestions and additions here)

German term	american term	Explanation
Rohling	blade blank	Unfinished knife blade, without fittings
Blatt	blade	The part of the knife that cuts, chops etc.
Fehlschärfe	choil	That unsharpened, not ground part of the blade between the cutting edge and handle. Also called choil which can be used to ‘choke up’ on a knife blade to allow finer control of the blade
Schneide	edge	That part of a knife that cuts
graviert	engraved	Designs or pictures done with a engraving tool (by machine or hand)
geätzt	etched	Acid is used to etch a picture, design or text onto the blade
Falsche Schneide	false edge	Usually unsharpened top edge grind used for better penetration,often used on fighters or Bowie knives
Flachschliff	flat grind	Blade ground with a steady angle from spine to edge
Flacherl	flat tang,full tang	The flat handle extension of the blade. The handles are attached with rivets, screws or pins. Sometimes tapered towards the pommel to reduce weight/improve balance
Beschläge	fittings	fitting (usually metal) for guard and/or pommel
Rahmen	frame	Also used to describe the handle part of an interframe or integral knife
Fingerschutz	guard	usually from metal made front part of the handle, to keep the fingers off of the blade
Parierstange	guard	protection for fingers and handle (usually metal) between blade and handle. A full guard can be used to parry another knife blade (fighting knives)
Heft	haft	knife handle
Hohlschliff	hollow grind	hollow grind, usually symetrical, of the blade
Integral	integral knife	blade and handle including guards and possibly pommel are done from one piece of steel. Handles are inserted between guard and pommel.
Interframe	interframe knife	Similar to an integral knife but the handles are inlaid in the knife frame
Platine	liner	inner part of a folder frame, usually metal
Linerlock	linerlock	Modern folder lock designed (and registered as trademark) by American knifemaker Michael Walker. Sometimes called Walker-lock. Adapted from an old design often found on old electrician’s folders. The ‘liner’ is pre-bent so that when the knife is open the liner pushes against the blade end thus locking it open.
Körnung (z.B. Korn 400)	mesh (p.e. mesh 400)	Reference for the grain size used on sanding/emory papers. 400 refers to 400 grids per inch. Can be obtained in grits up to 10,000 with correspondingly small (2.5 µ) grain size. Diamond grit to 0.5 µ is also available. The larger the number the finer the grit.
Spitzerl	narrow tang, stick tang, rat's tail tang	This tang can be hidden or extend through the handle and can be fastened by a nut, dome bolt or threaded pommel
Vollgriff	one piece handle	one piece handle used in conjunction with a narrow or rat tail tang
Stifte	pins	Pins made of thin metal rods (app. 1/32" to 3/32") used to fasten handles
Gelenkbolzen	pivot pin	Pin, usually steel, on which a folder blade pivots
Pommel,Knauf	pommel	end of the knife handle
Klingenspiegel	ricasso	The ricasso is the area on the side of the knife between the guard and the edge bevels
Griffniet	rivets	1/8" to 5/16" pins used to fasten handles
Griffschalen	scales	slabs made of wood, Micarta etc.used for handles
Nadelgravur	scrimshaw	Old Eskimo technique often also used by sailors for decorating bone or ivory with scenes or patterns. A pin is used to make a trace which then can be filled with black (or other color) ink
Scheide	sheath	used for belt, pocket or other (backpack ?) knife carry. Usually leather. Be sure to remove your knife from the sheath when in storage
Angel, Erl	tang	The ‘tail’ of the blade, to fasten the handles