Bitten by P'Kal

Spyderknife · #1

Anyone else been bitten by their P'Kal opening in pocket. I was driving and felt something sticking into my groin area. Stuck my hand in pocket and got sliced by my P'Kal. Now not badly enough to be put off the knife for good, but hope to remember to be more careful next time. Still not sure how it opened by itself. The wave must have caught onto the pants lining while getting into the SUV. Anyone identify with this experience?

mark greenman · #2

Yup, my Pkal opened up while I was sitting down in my car. The razor sharp tip poked through the exterior of my pocket and pierced my wrist, missing a vein by about 4mm :eek:

Now I stick with the waved E4 and D4.

JaM · #3

Not since I've replaced it to my backpocket, against the seam.
In my RFP it did open a bit, once. But I think my keyes got stuck on the little wave.

donutsrule · #4

I've EDC'd my p'kal nearly every single day since they first came out and it's never bitten me ::knocks wood with both hands:: It's about a 50/50 split between loose-in-front-pocket and clipped to the back of my front right shorts pocket.

I do try to be extra careful extracting it from my pocket, but it's not a big problem, and I've even gotten away with putting my keys in the same pocket below the clipped-in knife.

Also, after an episode years ago where my other constant EDC (a Dodo) tried to bite me when I stuck a hand in my pocket, I always double check whenever I'm reaching into a pocket. :o

RIOT · #5

better you hand than your nuts

i was just we bowling and trying to do some reverse spin on the ball, my thumb knuckle clipped my Delica clip and ripped off a huge chunk of skin, frickin hurt

lol

spyderHS08 · #6

RIOT wrote:i was just we bowling and trying to do some reverse spin on the ball, my thumb knuckle clipped my Delica clip and ripped off a huge chunk of skin, frickin hurt lol

Hate to laugh at that..but I agree the bowling can get pretty intense. I hit myself in the face doing that exact thing lol back spin on the ball. it was funny but truly hurt :D

Oh and i dont own a p'kal...but good luck and I hope they all stay shut when they should!

Spyderknife · #7

[quote="RIOT"]better you hand than your nuts

LOL! So right on this one! :D I'd happily sacrifice 10 fingers than that :D

#8

I've found that carrying all the way forward in the pocket allows the pocket to apply pressure to the bac of the blade to keep it closed. There's no room for the blade to open. This carry also ensures that the horn will engage on the draw and not slip past the pocket lip. Very importantly, it also allows access to the pocket without grinding your hand on the knife.

I hope this helps.

Stay safe,

Mike

donutsrule · #9

Michael Janich wrote:I've found that carrying all the way forward in the pocket allows the pocket to apply pressure to the bac of the blade to keep it closed. There's no room for the blade to open. This carry also ensures that the horn will engage on the draw and not slip past the pocket lip. Very importantly, it also allows access to the pocket without grinding your hand on the knife.

I hope this helps.

Stay safe,

Mike

It can all depend on the pocket, so it's best to practice and test with whatever you're wearing.

I've found that a "perfect" opening with a lot of my cargo shorts (what I wear to work most of the time) occurs with the knife starting at the back of the upper pocket (it's more of an "up" motion without needing to sweep it forward to the front of the pocket to catch and open).

With jeans (usually a smaller, tighter pocket), forward-positioned as mentioned above does work better. But I don't wear long pants that often. :o

YP[ants]MV :D

2cha · #10

Funny, bitten yesterday! I just slipped it into my pocket so it wasn't riding all the way toward the crotch (as is necessary to employ the opening feature anyway). If it had been seated properly, couldn't have happened. I think I must have nudged the wave pin while digging for keys.

Spyderknife · #11

Thanks for the advice all. Yip, rule of thumb then.... keep it close to the crotch! I'll remember that one :D

Shanklick · #12

First, sorry to hear about anyone getting accidentally poked with their P'kal. I hope mine is never required to cut anything living, human or otherwise, but certainly not myself.

I'll just add my experience with the P'kal so far. I carried it every day for a while until I got a Disciple but it still sees a lot of carry. Most of the pants I wear allow the knife to be pushed all the way to the edge of your pocket closest to your centerline and stay there. Even with the pockets that tends to allow it to creep away from this position I have not yet had an issue. When I examine it there definitely is not a lot of tension keeping it closed on its own so I don't have a problem understanding how it could be and has been an issue.

Just thought I would also add that I have found that it does not need to be in the optimal carry location to deploy it properly with the wave feature. I can deploy it with the same level of reliability from the opposite side of the pocket if drawn as intended. My understanding is to push outward on the knife with my thumb and pull it upwards quickly as I have both read and been shown as the way it is supposed to be done. The small wave post is still able to grab the pocket because it is being pushed under the pockets outer seam from the outward pressure.

The only times I have had failures to correctly deploy in practice from any position in my pocket was because I got sloppy and executed the draw improperly.

donutsrule · #13

Shanklick wrote: Just thought I would also add that I have found that it does not need to be in the optimal carry location to deploy it properly with the wave feature. I can deploy it with the same level of reliability from the opposite side of the pocket if drawn as intended. My understanding is to push outward on the knife with my thumb and pull it upwards quickly as I have both read and been shown as the way it is supposed to be done. The small wave post is still able to grab the pocket because it is being pushed under the pockets outer seam from the outward pressure.

My experience, as well. In fact a lot of times the knife will be loose in my pocket (when I can't have it visibly clipped), but I can still "wave" it open pulling it upwards out of the pocket. Again, this is with loose fitting cargo shorts (TADgear, Old Navy, REI), not jeans. YPMV :D

dragonram7 · #14

Thanks for the heads up. I was looking at the P'kal but will probably wait for MIKE'S next iteration.