To each their own. If someone wants to limit themselves to full tang, that's OK. If hidden tangs were all that bad, they wouldn't be predicting $20,000 bids on the Scagels coming up for auction next month. What the heck did Scagel know, or Bill Moran for that matter? Heck, they were doing it all wrong. Take a bar of steel, grind a couple of angles on it, glue some plastic on and rout the edges to make a handle, and it's all good.
(cue the David Letterman Top Ten List theme music)
...and the number one reason to make hidden tang knivesis.....
Perception of value to collectors.!!!!!!
I still am also a newb at hidden tangs but after just attending the AKA show and being on hand for the judging part of the banquet I must say that the knives percieved as the best looking and most valuable were at least 90% hidden tangs.
Walk around a high end show such as this and ask each maker to hand you most expensive fixed blade and keep track of the ration between hidden and full tang knives and I believe it will be hidden tang 9 out of 10 times.
Of course this has no bearing on durability or strength, just a matter of preference.
Just my opinion,
Steve
Looks like its all been said, thanks Gent's. Sometimes I just want to make the properly made stick tang knife, to me, they are more fun to make.