Potential Pocket Clip DISASTERS???

[JD Spydo]

It's high time we've talked about this because for one big reason is that I know for sure I've lost one Spyder near and dear to my heart because of this subject matter >> and that is having the pocket clip on your Spyderco ( or any other brand of folder for that matter) latch on to certain items and be pulled out of your pocket unaware at the time and thus lose it to either a trash dumpster or somebody else's possession.

Just about a year ago I had my G-10 Harpy latch itself onto a coarse theaded potato sack but luckily the lady I was working with later on found it attached to one of the sacks and thankfully brought it back to me after I informed her that the knife might be on one of the sacks.

But since then I've had 2 of my Spyder Pocket Clips latch onto trash bags, milk crates, and laundry bags. Fortunately on those occassions I was able to see all of that first hand and was able to immediately retrieve my beloved Spyders and prevent them from being lost.

My question is this>> what materials or objects have you all had your pocket clips hang up on or latch onto items or materials and being unaware having the folder pulled out of your pocket and latch on to that particular item?

And what are other potentially disasaterous ways for your pocket clip to literally hijack itself out of your pocket and end up either in a landfiill or someone else's possession?

Also any ideas for prevention of such a disaster?

[BAL]

Last year I was cleaning the inside my truck out prior to a funeral, vacuuming
and polishing. I rememeber the next mornign picking out a knife to carry during
the funeral and couldn't find my Camo Para Military, the one that I bought from
a personal visit to the SFO at Golden.
It was driving me crazy that I couldn't find it, because I had it the day before.
I went on to the funeral and on the way home I kept going thru the day before
over and over in my mind, thinking that I had accidently threw it away while
cleaning the truck.
I decided to go on home, change clothes and go to the car wash and search the
trash containers. I was about ready to just drive on to Colorado, some 700 miles
away.

When I got home, I was getting up my suit jacket out of the truck and there on the
passenger side of the truck was the Para 2 hanging onto the seat belt. (Enter choir
music and angels now) Apparently while I was leaning into the front seat to vacuum,
the clip hooked onto the seat belt and pulled it out of my pocket.

I could have lost and replaced any knife, but this one would have been hard to
replace, because of where I got it.

[xceptnl]

... and there on the passenger side of the truck was the Para 2
hanging onto the seat belt. (Enter choir music and angels now) ........................
the clip hooked onto the seat belt and pulled it out of my pocket.

Happened to me as well. Seatbelts can be a clip destroyer too. I have straightened (almost) a wire clip before.

[JD Spydo]

Happened to me as well. Seatbelts can be a clip destroyer too. I have straightened (almost) a wire clip before.

Fortunately I've never had a seatbelt ever grab one of my Spyders but it's always been in the back of my head realizing that it's certainly a potential disaster in the making if you're not careful.

It seems like I get more of them hung up on plastic bags i.e. trash bags, rip-mart bags, big plastic shopping bags and just about anything with thin material has threatened my Spyder ownership on more than one occassion.

And from a preventative standpoint I'm not sure what the solution is. Just being mindful and watching at all times I guess. Which is why there are certain models I love to use but rarely do because of their rarity.

What's really baffling is that when trash bags get ahold of a clip you don't always feel it coming out of your pocket sometimes.

[xceptnl]

.......................
And from a preventative standpoint I'm not sure what the solution is. Just being mindful and watching at all times I guess. Which is why there are certain models I love to use but rarely do because of their rarity.

What's really baffling is that when trash bags get ahold of a clip you don't always feel it coming out of your pocket sometimes.

I don't really know why you can't feel it. I can only compare from my limited communication skills. I equate pocket clip retention to be just like blade retention (detent strength). I have pinched the leading edge of my hourglass and wire clips to make it less likely that they will snag the stray plastic bag, but this leads to problems with one hand reholstering (repocketing). It seems like each user must fint their own harmony between ease of putting away and clip snagability. Some users want the great clip retention, while other complain of destroying pocket edges.

[Evil D]

I've only ever lost one knife that was clipped. Most of the time I feel the snag immediately. This is also one reason I don't EDC lanyards on my knives.

[The Deacon]

Well, JD, I'm sixty seven years old, been carrying a pocketknife for sixty of them. I carry my Spydercos the same way I carried every knife before them, loose in my back pocket. I have yet to lose one. Perhaps that's just dumb luck, but I don't think so. Anything hanging out of a pocket can get snagged and is, IMHO, an open invitation to pickpockets. Granted, I've carried pens clipped for as long or longer, but those get clipped to shirt pockets where the risk of negative interactions with random objects and dishonest people is minimal. To me, clips on knives represent a tradeoff. You're trading security for ease of access and I've never felt an overwhelming need to play quick draw with a pocketknife.

[JD Spydo]

I don't really know why you can't feel it. I can only compare from my limited communication skills.

Well I wish I had an answer for that but right now I don't. Because on 2 occasions if I had not been watching completely what I was doing work-wise taking out trash on 2 recent occasions I immediately saw either my C-60 Ayoob or my Military model hung up on the trash bag and I swear to you and all of you >> I truthfully did not feel it being extracted from my pocket. Both times I was wearing Carhartt Bib Overalls which fit me closely around the waist area. And I'm the kind of guy that if my wallet is missing or out of my pocket for one second I immediately know something is very wrong or out of place.

I guess it's just so smooth when it's being extracted or it's just being pulled at an angle which doesn't create much friction. That's the best I can come up with. And I know that's how I lost one of my Calypso Juniors this past summer unfortunately.

[JD Spydo]

Well, JD, I'm sixty seven years old, been carrying a pocketknife for sixty of them. I carry my Spydercos the same way I carried every knife before them, loose in my back pocket. I have yet to lose one. Perhaps that's just dumb luck, but I don't think so. Anything hanging out of a pocket can get snagged and is, IMHO, an open invitation to pickpockets. Granted, I've carried pens clipped for as long or longer, but those get clipped to shirt pockets where the risk of negative interactions with random objects and dishonest people is minimal. To me, clips on knives represent a tradeoff. You're trading security for ease of access and I've never felt an overwhelming need to play quick draw with a pocketknife.

Well frankly Deacon I don't think age has much of anything to do with it. And yes you are extremely fortunate not to have lost a knife during that long period of time. I haven't lost many in comparison to all I've done with them and all the different types of demanding jobs I've had over the years. I'm to the point to where when I lose one I just consider it the cost of doing business anymore. It's the sentimental and emotional costs that get to me the worst. Because losing that G-10 Harpy a while back was like losing one of my fingers almost. It really bothered me but I'm now 99% convinced I even know who stole it.

But that's why I started this thread is to maybe get some feedback going and maybe learn what if anything I might be doing wrong that I can correct and how I can prevent it from happening again.

Actually over time I've lost far more pocketknives that didn't have a pocket clip than ones that do. And I mean many, many more at that. It seemed like in my younger days I would lose a Buck or a Ka-Bar ( which were my 2 favs in my younger days). about once a month. It sure kept the local hardware store owner happy I can tell you that.

But going back to when I lost a Spyderhawk model in the wetlands where I used to work ( 2004) I'm now more than sure it got snagged on some cattails or reeds which were very abundant there. I may just start using some type of a lanyard. I haven't liked the feel of most lanyards I've used in the past but I'm going to do some serious checking. Because again the loss of my G-10 Harpy even bothered me worse than the last girlfriend I broke off with.

So I'm going to try something for sure

[Evil D]

There are a few things you can do to help prevent coming unclipped, but they're going to come with some drawbacks. One is to take your clip off and bend it downward slightly so that it clips tighter. The drawback here is obviously that it'll clip to your pocket much tighter, making drawing and clipping more difficult to do. You can go a step further by taking the bottom side of the clip that touches the scale and cutting some cross hatch into it to add even more traction. The downside there is that it'll likely rough up your pants a bit. Another option if you wear jeans is to use my 5th pocket mod, since carrying your knife there puts it up closer to your waste and further from your hip, where it's less likely to be snagged.

The 5th pocket mod is the way to go if you wear jeans often enough to make a difference. Not only does it tuck the knife up closer to your waste and away from your hip, but usually the clip will also be tucked into your standard pocket, adding more snag protection. This is a Paramilitary in that pocket, and i've carried my Military there many times.

[jackknifeh]

I guess it's just so smooth when it's being extracted or it's just being pulled at an angle which doesn't create much friction. That's the best I can come up with. And I know that's how I lost one of my Calypso Juniors this past summer unfortunately.

I bet what happenes is the same thing as when someone pickpockets someone else. Distraction. When your knife was pulled from your pocket something else (more aggressive) was happening to another part of your body, or something was distracting you. Then a smooth extraction of your knife without you knowing it is easy to imagine I think.

I've never lost a knife but have snagged clips a few times. The worst thing that happened to me is the wire clip being pulled away from my Sage 4 cracked the wood as the wires spun under the clip screw. The wires didn't bend at all, the wood cracked first allowing the wires to seperate the wood and spin out away from the knife. The same thing happened (in the same chair) with my Sage1. The CF on the Sage didn't crack and the wire was terribly bent. Now I can't use the wood Sage 4 scales AND use the clip. I normally carry it in a pouch anyway. I also have made G-10 scales for it and carved the clip notches but still I like that knife in a pouch. I plan on making some dymondwood scales for the Sage4. I don't know if I'll cut slots for the clip or not.

In addition to a knife being pulled from something grabbing the clip I've worried about getting something from my pocket and my hand pulling the knife out. It also seems hard to believe I could do this without knowing it. But,,, strange things do happen.

[jackknifeh]

There are a few things you can do to help prevent coming unclipped, but they're going to come with some drawbacks. One is to take your clip off and bend it downward slightly so that it clips tighter. The drawback here is obviously that it'll clip to your pocket much tighter, making drawing and clipping more difficult to do. You can go a step further by taking the bottom side of the clip that touches the scale and cutting some cross hatch into it to add even more traction. The downside there is that it'll likely rough up your pants a bit. Another option if you wear jeans is to use my 5th pocket mod, since carrying your knife there puts it up closer to your waste and further from your hip, where it's less likely to be snagged.

The 5th pocket mod is the way to go if you wear jeans often enough to make a difference. Not only does it tuck the knife up closer to your waste and away from your hip, but usually the clip will also be tucked into your standard pocket, adding more snag protection. This is a Paramilitary in that pocket, and i've carried my Military there many times.

Did you have to cut a slot out of the 5th pocket? I don't think mine would hold a knife that long. Maybe my Chaparral but not a PM.

[SolidState]

I wish I could bicycle with the fifth pocket mod. That would be great, but the hip mobility isn't that great for on bikes.

[Pockets]

I carry my knives IWB or in-pocket, so I've never had one snag. I also tend to check that they're still there when I'm in an environment where there is a high likelihood of loosing them.

[kbuzbee]

A couple years ago I "lost" a blue Dodo... Couldn't find it anywhere. My wife found it hanging on a mesh bag in the laundry room.... No idea how it happened, exactly, but I was so happy to get it back.

Ken

[JD Spydo]

A couple years ago I "lost" a blue Dodo... Couldn't find it anywhere. My wife found it hanging on a mesh bag in the laundry room.... No idea how it happened, exactly, but I was so happy to get it back.

Ken

That's exactly one of my main points Ken is that when these pocket clips get snagged at just the right angle they will be extracted so smoothly that you won't even know you're losing it out of your pocket. I sometimes wonder if 2 of my Spyders that I've lost this year aren't just hanging on something I got too close to.

Hey I'm not knocking pocket clips at all I truly think they are a great idea/invention/innovation. I won't hardly carry a folder without one anymore. But like any device that makes life easier it has it's drawbacks. So I'm hoping this thread will shed some light on what to do about it. I'm tending to believe that a lanyard system might just be the cure-all.

[Evil D]

Did you have to cut a slot out of the 5th pocket? I don't think mine would hold a knife that long. Maybe my Chaparral but not a PM.

Yeah, you just cut the bottom out of that little pocket so the handle can slip through.


As for biking, yeah it's not the most comfortable if you wear tight jeans, I usually just wear my knife in the usual pocket when I ride since there's little chance of snagging on anything. That's where a good tight clip comes into play.

[JD Spydo]

Like I said earlier this is not by any means an "anti-pocket clip thread" at all. Actually it's just the opposite>> I'm looking for a way to make pocket clips more fool proof and to make them safer to carry. I think that Spyderco's pocket clip is a grand idea and I don't know what I would do without them.

I'm wondering if a pocket clip of different construction might be of help. Like a wire clip used on some models with the botton end more rounded off making it less easy to snag up on clothes and items in general. Because it's the disaster of Spyder-loss that I ultimately want to avoid.

[kbuzbee]

That's exactly one of my main points Ken is that when these pocket clips get snagged at just the right angle they will be extracted so smoothly that you won't even know you're losing it out of your pocket.

I know. I was kinda freaked to see where it wound up. (good post, btw)

I'm tending to believe that a lanyard system might just be the cure-all.

I'll be interested to see what you come up with. I've never liked any of the lanyards I've tried either.

Ken

[Koen Z]

About a year ago I was attending a party at somebody's home. Most of the people there where scouts or people with an agricultural background. As a knifenut, I was quite welcome. I carried my DMT Diafolds with me, and sharpened some knives that night. At some point, somebody challenged me for a wrestling match. I like those kind of things. We had a nice match, and a while later I left to go home. The guy I wrestled with came after me and gave me my knife back, an Extrema Ratio BF2. It clipped to his belt during the wrestling.

A thing happening quite often, is during cycling. When i step of my bike, my throwsers glide along my saddle, and the clip of my knife catches the soft gel saddle and my movement causes the knife to come up a bit or even to come lose.

Another thing happening is an elastic band of my winter jacket catching the clip.