The hot knife is a historical method that predates dab rigs. Two knives were heated on a hob, the concentrate went between them, and the vapour was caught through a tube or a cut-down bottle.
Why nobody does it now:
- Temperature cannot be judged even roughly. The hob runs flat out and the flavour burns off before anything vaporises.
- Vapour escapes into the room because nothing is holding it in.
- Red-hot metal in your hand next to flammable things. A burn is a question of when, not whether.
The term is worth knowing for the history of the scene. As a method, no — a basic kit with a banger and a torch does the same thing better, cheaper and more safely.
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