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Spear-point: ( dagger )
Better for thrusting; easier and deeper penetration due to double-edged profile. Double edges also cause it to do very nasty things once inside a target. Not a very practical utility knife, however, as there's no really safe way to choke up your grip for detailed work, and they tend to break a little more easily, esp. around the tip.
Tanto: Better cutting/slashing tip, but suffers on the thrust due to unsharpened back edge. More difficult to dislodge if you get stuck in ribs, tendons, etc etc. Stronger cross-section due to unsharpened spine, but edge is more delicate due to beveled profile. Not heavy enough for heavy-duty cutting, but more suited to detailed work than is a dagger.
Bowie/Drop-point:
Retains most of the Tanto-styles tip-cutting ability, while augmenting it with a "false" edge along the fron 1/4-1/3 of the spine, which can be sharpened if needed. Stronger edge than a Tanto, but stronger blade overall than a dagger. Best all-around fixed-blade design, IMO. Well-suited to heavy cutting, and the fact that most of the spine remains unsharpened allows you to choke up grip for detailed work.
The 'spine' is the thickest part of the blade, BTW...the central ridge on a dagger, or the back edge on a Tanto or Bowie.
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