Long Blade Folder Guys ... what you cutting?????

[Joshua J.]

If anyone is wondering about the efficiency of sharpening large blades, that problem is easily solved with an 8"x8" Diamond Plate: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32839483369.html

[Wartstein]

Actually this is where folders like Caribbean or Tenacious (no choil, no ricasso) have their place: If one wants the benefits of a long edge, but still a compact, short carry.
Though: The additional benefits of a long blade (so as long as the edge PLUS an added choil would be) are not there of course (more reach, more clearance for the hand when cutting on a board, easier to keep the pivot clean, more grip options and - area (including the choil)

[Matus]

While for most of my EDC use a knife with a cutting edge around 2.5" - 3" does the job, there are times where longer blades bring added value. Long slicing cuts come to my mind.

[Evil D]

Actually this is where folders like Caribbean or Tenacious (no choil, no ricasso) have their place: If one wants the benefits of a long edge, but still a compact, short carry.
Though: The additional benefits of a long blade (so as long as the edge PLUS an added choil would be) are not there of course (more reach, more clearance for the hand when cutting on a board, easier to keep the pivot clean, more grip options and - area (including the choil)

This is where the Caribbean design absolutely outclasses the Military and everything else in this edge size, it has the same cutting edge as a Military but in a significantly smaller package overall. It's really the final answer to this entire debate. The basic design could even be made more compact if they tweaked the handle shape a little, and they could even add a wee bit more blade length into this same handle.




They could easily squeeze another 5-6mm more blade length in there.

[Matus]

I agree - knives like Chief would make a little more sense without the forward choil - either the cutting edge could be a bit longer, or the handle could have been a little shorter. Arguably, there are other knives from Spyderco that fit in that description.

[ThomC]

As has been said by other forumites, it's down to comfort first. The Millie is so far the best handle I've used in a folder.

It doesn't slip, it fills my hand and allows all sorts of grips.
The longer blade is a consequence of the handle length but is also useful for my daily cutting tasks (plastic wrapping and bands, cardboard of all grades, paper, string, rope and sometimes food).
I EDC'd the Para 2 for 5-6 months and felt its shortcomings more than once.
The C36 has been in my pocket 95% of the time since last March, and I never thought "man I wish I'd taken another knife this morning".

Sure, it gets a raised eyebrow once in a while, but I don't whip it out and in my line of work it makes sense to have and use one. My boss is okay with it, and people who know me beyond niceties know I always carry.

It's a tool I carry and use everyday, as I have for the last 10-12 years of my adult life. Y'all like nice and functional tools, don't you ? There you go :D

Tl;dr : long knife good for hand and cuts everything same but easier than small knife.

[ladybug93]

so, while i agree that longer knives are great and useful, let's not get too hung up on grip size having to equal blade size for a knife to be useful or comfortable. long blades are not always the best and the ratio between the handle and blade length isn't always important. carving knives come to mind... any serious carving/whittling knife is going to have a full sized, comfortable handle and a very small blade. big blades can get in the way just as much as small blades can be inadequate. it's like the steel debate... better and worse depend on a lot of variables.

you're better off carrying a variety of tools. if you find you need a larger knife more often, carry that in your pocket and have a smaller knife in your bag or somewhere else accessible. if you find you only really need a smaller knife, keep that in your pocket and carry something more robust and longer in your bag. if the law prohibits you from carrying a larger knife in a bag, carry that in your pocket where it's not considered concealed. if the law prohibits you from carrying a larger knife at all, carry the largest knife you're allowed to carry and still carry something small as well, if necessary.

it's funny to me that, with the crazy amount of variety offered by spyderco and the proclivity of members here to own far more knives than hands or pockets, we're arguing about what is best. just buy and carry both. it's very simple.

i have five knives on my body right now.
pacific salt se - waistband
kershaw dividend composite - right front pocket
crkt ceo d2 - pen pocket
ladybug salt hawkbill se - wallet
victorinox rambler - wallet

i don't need all of these. honestly, i might not cut a single thing today. but, the wallet knives are always on me, the ceo is always in my pen pocket for work, and the others are just what i grabbed to carry for the day. just carry knives you like and have some variety. you never know what scenario might present itself.

oh, i also have a leatherman wave and raptor in my bag, speaking of never knowing what scenario might present itself.

[Wartstein]

.....
it's funny to me that, with the crazy amount of variety offered by spyderco and the proclivity of members here to own far more knives than hands or pockets, we're arguing about what is best. just buy and carry both. it's very simple.

...

A sensible approach, no doubt.

But for me it is just enjoyable to do every task that might occur that day with one single folder and by that "getting to know" it really well.
And if/since I carry only one: A longer blade is always more versatile, even if there might be occasional tasks where short blades could be a tad more convenient (though I find it perfectly comfortable to just pinch grip a longer blade if needed).

[ladybug93]

.....
it's funny to me that, with the crazy amount of variety offered by spyderco and the proclivity of members here to own far more knives than hands or pockets, we're arguing about what is best. just buy and carry both. it's very simple.

...

A sensible approach, no doubt.

But for me it is just enjoyable to do every task that might occur that day with one single folder and by that "getting to know" it really well.
And if/since I carry only one: A longer blade is always more versatile, even if there might be occasional tasks where short blades could be a tad more convenient (though I find it perfectly comfortable to just pinch grip a longer blade if needed).

this is the problem here. everyone is concerned with what is best for themselves and trying to convince everyone else that their way is better. my point is there are too many variables to say one way is better than all others. just because you can pinch grip a long knife doesn't mean everyone else will be comfortable with doing that. just because you find that longer blades are better for the cutting tasks you do, doesn't mean that is the same for everyone else.

for the record, this isn't meant as a slight against you. i'm just responding to you because you responded to me. it's really not meant as an attack or anything against anyone here. i just want to say that there's no reason we shouldn't carry whatever we're most comfortable with within legal limits. i also prefer larger blades, but i recognize they're not always the best answer for a given task.

[Mr Blonde]

I mainly enjoy having a longer blade on me from time to time, even for smaller cutting tasks. The most practical cutting purpose for me, for a longer blade, is food prep.

[James Y]

I like, carry and use long blades. But there are some tasks where (FOR MYSELF) short blades offer better control. It depends on the task, and it depends on the person.

Jim

[Wartstein]

A sensible approach, no doubt.

But for me it is just enjoyable to do every task that might occur that day with one single folder and by that "getting to know" it really well.
And if/since I carry only one: A longer blade is always more versatile, even if there might be occasional tasks where short blades could be a tad more convenient (though I find it perfectly comfortable to just pinch grip a longer blade if needed).

this is the problem here. everyone is concerned with what is best for themselves and trying to convince everyone else that their way is better. my point is there are too many variables to say one way is better than all others. just because you can pinch grip a long knife doesn't mean everyone else will be comfortable with doing that. just because you find that longer blades are better for the cutting tasks you do, doesn't mean that is the same for everyone else.

for the record, this isn't meant as a slight against you. i'm just responding to you because you responded to me. it's really not meant as an attack or anything against anyone here. i just want to say that there's no reason we shouldn't carry whatever we're most comfortable with within legal limits. i also prefer larger blades, but i recognize they're not always the best answer for a given task.

Hey Ladybug, no worries, I know that this can´t be meant against me...

I actually never try to "convince everyone else that (my) way is better". Not generally, and not here. I even literally said that your approach of carrying more than one knife is sensible!
For me, and perhaps ONLY for me, it is just enjoyable to experience one knife in every single task of a day - one approach of many, I do like it, but even admit that carrying two rather different folders would often make more sense practically speaking...

Actually, and no offense meant: I can´ really find anyone in this thread (and most times on this forum generally) who "tries to convince everyone else". Just replies and explanations to the question of the OP, why "Long blade Folder Guys" happen to be just that. I don´t think anyone showed any intention to "convert" Short Blade Folder Guys"...

[vivi]

How did a thread asking why people carry big knives turn into a thread telling people not to suggest other people carry big knives? :p :D

[Hopweaver]

Sammiches! And sometimes steaks and pork chops too. Plus I open the occasional box.

[ladybug93]

How did a thread asking why people carry big knives turn into a thread telling people not to suggest other people carry big knives? :p :D

it seemed like people were getting really defensive about their own preferences and at least implying that smaller blades were not a good choice. i will say, at the time of my posting, i was also involved in a debate on social media, so that may have affected my reading here. sorry if i was off base.

[JD Spydo]

This is a most interesting question you pose. And it's one that deserves a well detailed answer. About 4 & 1/2 years ago I obtained an M390 Military model in a trade. I liked the performance of the M390 blade steel so well that I immediately started EDCing it. We have a 4 inch blade length limit in the state I live in ( Missouri) which gave me the ability to carry it with no worries.

Up till that time I had pretty much EDCed many mid sized models. I even EDCed a C-52 Caly Jr ZDP-189 for about 2 years at one point for instance. But when I started EDCing my M390 Military I immediately was able to do a lot more and I found that extra blade length quite handy at times. I've recently semi-retired my M390 Millie but I will some day again have a C-36 Military as a main carry when newer/better blade steels are available. I reently switched to a C-60 Ayoob Sprint Run with the G-10 handle ( 2011 era). I've found the C-60 Ayoob to have more overall versatility and the ergonomics are stellar. Needless to say it's got a long blade similar to the C-36 Military model.

The ergonomics of that C-60 Ayoob model has spoiled me so much that I probably won't be rotating anything else in my "user rotation". And when the new C-60 Sprint Run comes out this year I'll immediately switch over to that one. It's going to be offered in PE & SE both. Even my fully serrated companion blade ( Stainless RESCUE ATS-55 model) has a blade about 3.75 inches long. I could go smaller on that one but I really enjoy using that Stainless handled RESCUE model.

If your knife laws are user friendly for pocket knives then I highly encourage anyone to go with a bigger blade. Unless you just prefer small or mid sized blades. Even with food prep the extra length is just so handy.

[vivi]

How did a thread asking why people carry big knives turn into a thread telling people not to suggest other people carry big knives? :p :D

it seemed like people were getting really defensive about their own preferences and at least implying that smaller blades were not a good choice. i will say, at the time of my posting, i was also involved in a debate on social media, so that may have affected my reading here. sorry if i was off base.

Well if I said anything that came across that way I'm sorry. Everyone here is capable of figuring out what size works best for their pockets, their grip and their local laws.

I just personally found it ironic that a thread that began questioning why people carry big knives took that specific turn.

[Wartstein]

öoj

....
I just personally found it ironic that a thread that began questioning why people carry big knives took that specific turn.

But it did not "take any turn" - ?!
Question was why "Large folder guys" carry large folders and some "Large folder giys" replied and explained why / the reasons for their personal preference...

Perhaps I am missing something, but it's not important anyway..

[Albertaboyscott]

I really got into larger blades because of work. I have to cut up lots of rags and cardboard in a day and short blades just don't do it as well. Long blades do everything short ones do plus a whole lot more imho. I dont have restrictions for blade length either so carrying a pocket sword like a military isn't an issue

[toocool006]

This is where the Caribbean design absolutely outclasses the Military and everything else in this edge size, it has the same cutting edge as a Military but in a significantly smaller package overall. It's really the final answer to this entire debate. The basic design could even be made more compact if they tweaked the handle shape a little, and they could even add a wee bit more blade length into this same handle.

They could easily squeeze another 5-6mm more blade length in there.

I'm right with you - edge length to handle ratio on the Caribbean is amazing. I personally prefer backlock to comp lock, and the pocket carry of the chief is way better than the Caribbean for me, nice and slim. A choil-less Chief would be my "final answer" dream knife.