Pantographic knife

A pantographic knife or (incorrectly) paratrooper knife is a folding knife whose blade is opened by a unique scissors method. The blade has a slightly longer tang than a folding knife heel. The handle is symmetrically segmented and articulated to fold away on both sides to grip the longer tang. The manner is similar to a balisong knife (also called a butterfly knife in western countries)—with which it is often confused. Unlike the balisong knife handles that swing freely and independently, the pantographic knife uses a pantograph linkage to keep the handles aligned during opening and closing. The pantographic knife is very strong when compared to most other folding knife designs, being joined at several points and along several planes—this increases the force required to break the blade away from the handle. By enclosing the blade on both sides, double edged blades can be used.

This knife is also known as a paratrooper knife, although it was never issued as such. The mechanism includes a collar that travels up the blade. This looks similar to an OTF gravity knife used by German paratroopers.

History

Examples of pantographic knives with patent markings D.R.G.M. (Deutsches Reich Gebrauchsmuster) indicate production in Germany during the war, but do not imply military issue. Although this design predates World War II, records of German paratroopers having genuinely been issued pantographic knives have not surfaced. To complicate identification, samples made with German army markings (brass handles with text in English language) seem to be post-war (1948) marketing attempts capitalizing on the term paratrooper.

Function

In this illustration:

Figure A shows the closed knife, with blade retracted.
Figure B shows the pantographic legs opening. The collar is shown sliding down the blade.
Figure C shows the blade almost extended.
And finally, Figure D shows the pantographic legs folded together, making a handle that is half as long as when the knife was closed.

References

Knives and daggers
List of daggers List of blade materials
Kitchen and table knives	Boning Bread knife Butcher knife Butter knife Case knife Cheese knife Chef's knife Cleaver Electric knife Fillet knife Grapefruit knife Lame Mezzaluna Parmesan knife Pizza cutter Splayd Steak knife Tomato knife Japanese kitchen knives Deba bōchō Maguro bōchō Nakiri bōchō Santoku Sashimi bōchō Udon kiri Unagisaki hōchō Usuba bōchō Yanagi ba
Other knives	Aircrew Survival Egress Knife Athame Balisong/Butterfly Ballistic Ballpoint pen knife Bayonet Boline Bolo Boot knife Bowie Cane knife Ceramic knife Clip point Combat knife Commander Corvo CQC-6 Deba bōchō Diving knife Drop point Fairbairn–Sykes fighting knife Gerber Mark II Ginsu Golok Gravity knife Guna Hacking knife Higonokami Hunting knife Jacob's ladder Karambit Kard Kīla Kirpan Kitchen knife Kukri Laguiole knife Machete Mandau Marking knife Misericorde Mora knife Multi-tool Navaja Neck knife Nontron knife Opinel knife Palette knife Pantographic knife Parang Penknife Penny knife Pirah Pocketknife Putty knife Puukko Rampuri Resolza Sabatier Sami knife SARK Scalpel Seax Sgian dubh Sharpfinger Shiv Sliding knife Smatchet SOG Knife Straight razor Strider SMF Survival knife Swiss Army knife Switchblade Taping knife Throwing knife Trench knife Tumi Ulu Utility knife Warrior knife X-Acto Yatagan
Daggers	Anelace Applegate–Fairbairn fighting knife Arkansas toothpick BC-41 Bagh nakh Balarao Baselard Bichuwa Bollock dagger Cinquedea Dirk Ear dagger Emeici Facón French Nail Gunong Hunting dagger Janbiya Jile Kabutowari Kaiken Kalis Katar Khanjali Khanjar Kris Kunai Mark I trench knife Parrying dagger Poignard Push dagger Rondel dagger Seme Shobo Sica Stiletto Marine Raider V-42 Tantō Yarará Parachute Knife Yoroi-dōshi
Manufacturers	Aitor Knife Company Al Mar Knives American Tomahawk Company Aritsugu Benchmade Böker Buck Knives Camillus Cutlery Company Cattaraugus Cutlery Company Chris Reeve Knives CHROMA Cnife Clauss Cutlery Company Cold Steel Columbia River Knife & Tool Cuisinart Cutco Dalian Hanwei Metal Dexter-Russell DOVO Solingen Due Ancore Ek Commando Knife Co. EKA Emerson Knives F. Dick Fällkniven FAMAE Fiskars Gerber Legendary Blades Füritechnics Glock Ges.m.b.H. Imperial Schrade Ka-Bar Kershaw Knives KitchenAid Korin Japanese Trading Company Kyocera Leatherman Mad Dog Knives Marble Arms Medford Knife and Tool Microtech Knives Morseth Muela Murphy Knives Olfa Ontario Knife Company Opinel Randall Made Knives Rösle Sabatier Shun Cutlery Slice, Inc. SOG Specialty Knives Spyderco STI Knives Strider Knives Thiers Issard TOPS Knives Tramontina Victorinox W. R. Case & Sons Cutlery Co. Carl Walther GmbH Wenger Western Knife Company Wilkinson Sword Wüsthof Yoshida Metal Industry Global Zero Tolerance Knives Zwilling J. A. Henckels
Knifemakers	Rex Applegate James Black Blackie Collins John Nelson Cooper Ernest Emerson Jerry Fisk Bill Harsey Jr. Phill Hartsfield Gil Hibben Jimmy Lile Bob Loveless William F. Moran Ken Onion Ralph Osterhout Bo Randall Chris Reeve A. G. Russell Jody Samson William Scagel Mike Snody Robert Terzuola Michael Walker Buster Warenski Daniel Winkler
Associations	American Bladesmith Society Cutlery and Allied Trades Research Association Knifemakers' Guild
Book:Knives and daggers Category:Knives / Daggers

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