Spyderco Forums

Which model is best for seat belt cutting? Either your own, your passenger, or another cars driver and / or passenger.

Pics with suggestions please!

i don’t own one, but if i had to buy a spyderco knife for this purpose specifically, it would be the assist without question. it has a very nicely blunted sheepsfoot style blade and spyderco’s spyderedge is the best for the job. the assist also has a nice fat handle with finger grooves to give a full and secure grip. it’s an awesome knife for emergency use. there are some videos on youtube of mr. janich demonstrating it's design features. check it out.

the only reason i don’t have one in my vehicle at all times is because i went with a different kind of product for this role from another manufacturer. i’d have been equally please with the assist though.

oh, actually, the sheepsfoot se caribbean would probably fill this role well also and be a better edc than the assist.

Same answer as "what's the best gun for self defense?" The one you have with you.

The Deacon wrote: ↑

Sun May 19, 2019 3:49 am

Same answer as "what's the best gun for self defense?" The one you have with you.

342 Centennial AirLite.

ladybug93 wrote: ↑

Sun May 19, 2019 3:33 am

i don’t own one, but if i had to buy a spyderco knife for this purpose specifically, it would be the assist without question. it has a very nicely blunted sheepsfoot style blade and spyderco’s spyderedge is the best for the job. the assist also has a nice fat handle with finger grooves to give a full and secure grip. it’s an awesome knife for emergency use. there are some videos on youtube of mr. janich demonstrating it's design features. check it out.

the only reason i don’t have one in my vehicle at all times is because i went with a different kind of product for this role from another manufacturer. i’d have been equally please with the assist though.

I like the assist. And at $110 I like the price for the H1 C79PSYL.

The Deacon wrote: ↑

Sun May 19, 2019 3:49 am

Same answer as "what's the best gun for self defense?" The one you have with you.

shield 9mm.

i actually like the rescue model 79mm. want to get 2 one for each of our cars currently. i was hoping and still am that they would make a df size with serated edge. like the rescue is a delica size.

I may well be wrong but I think any sharp pocket knife will cut seatbelts and if you find yourself in a situation where your seatbelt does indeed need cutting a “rescue” knife in your glovebox or even in your pocket is likely to be handy like a hip pocket on your tee shirt.

Just my $AU0.02c worth. :)

Any knife is better than no knife, better a sharp than a dull knife, etc., etc.

Having said that, in an emergency you have to be fast, so pick a knife you are very comfortable with.

Best serrated, like either of these two :) And the longer the blade, the better.



Obviously, unless the knife is in your glove box, you need to compromise with other EDC tasks. So, if you don't want to EDC serrated, pick a recurve. If you don't want to EDC a recurve, at least pick a Wharnie. :) Like this guy:



Of course, you could also pick a Spyderco, like Smock, Endura Wharnie or Yojimbo.

Roland.

ferider wrote: ↑

Sun May 19, 2019 6:20 am

Who serrated the Manix? Looks good. Don't know if it would be difficult to resell because it's serrated or easy because it's unique.

Any serrated hawkbill shaped blade will make short work of that belt, you get a lot of power and leverage out of that type of knife. I am constantly amazed at how well my very cheap Byrd Hawkbill deals with all the rope and plastic wrapping I throw at it at work.

Whatever you choose, I believe anything serrated is the way to go. Depending on how sharp or dull a plain edge blade is, there could be a chance that it slides off the belt while trying to cut it, while a very dull serrated hawkbill will still get the job done.

For reference, here's the one I use at work:

koenigsegg wrote: ↑

Sun May 19, 2019 7:46 am

Who serrated the Manix? Looks good. Don't know if it would be difficult to resell because it's serrated or easy because it's unique.

<josh@razoredgeknives.com>. I have yet to resell one of my knives ....

Bloke wrote: ↑

Sun May 19, 2019 5:34 am

I may well be wrong but I think any sharp pocket knife will cut seatbelts and if you find yourself in a situation where your seatbelt does indeed need cutting a “rescue” knife in your glovebox or even in your pocket is likely to be handy like a hip pocket on your tee shirt.

Just my $AU0.02c worth. :)

What?? This is crazy talk! If any knife would do who is going to buy all the rescue knives??? :)

Sadly “any sharp knife will do” is not a popular saying among knife enthusiasts.

ferider wrote: ↑

Sun May 19, 2019 7:53 am

koenigsegg wrote: ↑

Sun May 19, 2019 7:46 am

Who serrated the Manix? Looks good. Don't know if it would be difficult to resell because it's serrated or easy because it's unique.

<josh@razoredgeknives.com>. I have yet to resell one of my knives ....

And that's great that you like them, just instantly what popped in my head was how no other mod I can think of would lower resale so much. To each his own for sure

If I were to buy a knife to sit in the car just for this purpose I'd go with the Meadowlark 2 rescue.

Bloke wrote: ↑

Sun May 19, 2019 5:34 am

I may well be wrong but I think any sharp pocket knife will cut seatbelts and if you find yourself in a situation where your seatbelt does indeed need cutting a “rescue” knife in your glovebox or even in your pocket is likely to be handy like a hip pocket on your tee shirt.

Just my $AU0.02c worth. :)

This is true. I know of a guy who had to cut his seatbelt with his SAK (standard non-serrated blade) without a problem. Of course, like any knife, had it not been sharp, it probably wouldn't have worked so well.

I would just use whatever knife I have on me. If you keep a rescue knife in the glove compartment and you're ever in a crash, I don't know how easy or difficult it would be to access that knife. Better to just have the knife you carry (or at least one of them) in a location that would likely be easier to access from a disadvantageous position with a stuck seatbelt, when you're probably disoriented. The blade doesn't necessarily have to be "the longer the better," just sharp. A D4 or a SE Tasman Salt, or even a SE Dragonfly could do.

Jim

I have a VG10 Assist. Very thoughtful design and well-made. Surprise, surprise!

For extracting someone from their crumbled vehicle, it’s a no-brainer, especially when on some remote road away from EMTs. Whatever vehicle I’m driving on a road trip will have my Assist.

For self-extraction, the Assist (or any tool with its purpose) is a bit puzzling. Where do you put it so you can reach it after things in your crumbling cabin have become missiles? It may end up out of reach...

So, any sharp knife in your pocket may be your best bet to cut a belt (any sharp knife will), but only if you aren’t so injured or pinned that you can reach it.

I still have the Victorinox Rescues and Swisstools with seatbelt cutters in my cars. I may buy the Spyderco Rescues and velcro them under my dash so they are still easily accessible in an accident. Who knows where all the crap in my console and map pockets will be if I crash or roll over??! :eek:

wrdwrght wrote: ↑

Sun May 19, 2019 8:38 am

For self-extraction, the Assist (or any tool with its purpose) is a bit puzzling. Where do you put it so you can reach it after things in your crumbling cabin have become missiles? It may end up out of reach...

So, any sharp knife in your pocket may be your best bet to cut a belt (any sharp knife will), but only if you aren’t so injured or pinned that you can reach it.

A good point.

I keep a 93mm rescue in my center console and I've cut seat belt material with it. Also have a spyderhawk handy at all times and it handles seat belt webbing very easily. When the strapping has tension on it it cuts a lot easier.

I'd like to get an assist salt eventually but having the 93mm rescue means it's not a priority. I would definitely recommend it though even without personal experience with it.

I would guess a hawkbill Spydie Edge would be the best for cutting a seat belt. But having a dedicated seat belt knife doesn't seem practical to me.

My wife is a paramedic. She carries a 3.5" plain edge and has a lot of seat belts with it. Doesn't seem to be a problem. If I didn't keep it sharp she'd probably carry a serrated edge. She cuts too much other stuff where she doesn't want serrations to carry a serrated knife.

Edit: Just watched that video. Assist is a pretty cool knife!