Pocket ware and wear...where?

Spyderjo · #1

Hi guys. Spyderco knives are great pocketware. I have noticed a lot of wear on the material of my pants pocket where the handle scale meets the material. For example, on the pair of Old Navy denim jeans I am wearing right now, the stitching has pulled loose and the denim is beginning to unravel. I think most of this has happened while carrying my Delica 4 with the bi-directional FRN. Any experience and/or ideas on how to prevent this?

bh49 · #2

I agree with you on wear. I used to love Spydercos G10 before Caly3.5 killed my new jeans within a month. And I always thought about Levi's like a good brand. :eek:
Sorry, I have no idea on how to prevent this, except to replace or sand scales.

defenestrate · #3

Be a man and reinforce your pants, or pull that clip off and sand it and the frn at its tightest point smoother than a baby's you-know-what. You will learn yourself a valuable lesson, I guarantee it

Jet B · #4

Knives with smooth scales and wire pocket clips don't wear the pockets out.

Sage 1 and Caly 3 (CF/ZDP) are the two models I have that get carried if I'm wearing nice pants. Otherwise, my work pants do get the exact same worn pockets.

I know it's not a solution but hey it gives you an excuse to shop for a new knife.

defenestrate · #5

Be a man and reinforce your pants, or pull that clip off and sand it and the frn at its tightest point smoother than a baby's you-know-what. You will learn yourself a valuable lesson, I guarantee it

I'll take shredded pants pockets over a triple-digit loss any way you can slice it, and you can take that to the bank!

Joshua J. · #6

With G-10 I loosen the clip until it's a few thousandths of an inch off the handle (you can just barely see a space), I carried the Military like that for years without a problem (my pants never last more than a year anyway so YMMV).
With FRN I tend to carve out the texture under the clip, though I'm not entirely sure if that was absolutely necessary in hindsight (when using a loosened clip).

MtnMan · #7

My G-10 scaled Military was tearing up my pockets too so I sanded (400 wet/dry in water) the G-10 and the problem was solved. The knife looks more refined, the traction is still good and no more shredded pockets.
You could probably do something similar with FRN or maybe even use heat. If you took a chisel point soldering iron and made a light pass over all the little texture volcanoes it would soften their points.

Like already mentioned, it also helps to loosen the pocket clip.

DRKBC · #8

I know what you mean, I have an Emerson that the G10 is about the same texture as a cheese grader and it drives me crazy. I guess with the G10 I could sand it (I haven't) but I don't know what you could do with FRN that wouldn't wreck the look of the knife.

Other than buying something smooth like a sage 2 or a CF Caly I don't know what the answer would be. Come to think of it, I may have used that excuse before to buy another knife ... if I haven't I will.

DeathBySnooSnoo · #9

Sanding is the way to go. Also...better quality jeans. A heavier fabric will wear less quickly, and old navy jeans are pretty thin...

The Deacon · #10

Spyderjo wrote:Hi guys. Spyderco knives are great pocketware. I have noticed a lot of wear on the material of my pants pocket where the handle scale meets the material. For example, on the pair of Old Navy denim jeans I am wearing right now, the stitching has pulled loose and the denim is beginning to unravel. I think most of this has happened while carrying my Delica 4 with the bi-directional FRN. Any experience and/or ideas on how to prevent this?

I solve the problem the simple way. Remove the clip, put clip and screws in a ziplock bag, seal and store bag, put knife in back pocket. The result is 100% certainty I won't unintentionally "key" furniture or vehicles, break the clip off, rip my pants, or lose the knife when it snags on something.

Blerv · #11

I've yet to experience much (if any) wear from FRN. G10 on the otherhand is horrible. Luckily I'm not a model for a blue jeans company

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jackknifeh · #12

The FRN handles I have have the Spyderco logo directly under where the clip and handle meet. So it's not the bi-directional grip of FRN that causes the damage I don't think. One thing I have noticed BIG TIME since I got my Dragonfly is the jimping for the thumb rubs the pocket when putting the knife in my pocket. I think that is more harmfull than the clip meeting the handle. That part of the blade spine protrudes more on the D'fly when closed than a lot of Spydercos it seems. G-10 OTOH is bad because it is rough under the clip. I have Cold Steel knife that the roughness on the G-10 is about 100 times as rough as it is on Spyderco's G-10. I removed the clip and applied glue of some sort on the handle where the clip makes contact to smooth out the handle at the appropriatee spot. I'm sure this is less damaging to my pocket but I didn't carry the knife clipped enough to prove it.

Jack

tobii3 · #13

(awkward silence)

I spent over 20 years as a Paratrooper. Carried a knife in my pocket wearing BDU's, DCU's, ACU's, UCP-D's and Multicams. Deployed throughout the world wearing khakis, Royal Robbins and 5.11's while carrying a knife in my pocket as well.....yet, in 24 years, I've never worn out a pocket on ANY of my uniforms OR clothes, which begs the question...

How often are you dragging the knife in and out of your pocket on a daily basis?

How many times are you taking it out to actually USE it?

Pardon me if this appears to be brash, but quit playing with it!!

:D

FroOchie · #14

I like worn jeans and strive for their fraying. I'd rather I wear them out then have to pay for them styled that way. A pocket clip helps me in that department so we're all good. :)

Bradley · #15

It's the Old Navy jeans.

jackknifeh · #16

tobii3 wrote:(awkward silence)

I spent over 20 years as a Paratrooper. Carried a knife in my pocket wearing BDU's, DCU's, ACU's, UCP-D's and Multicams. Deployed throughout the world wearing khakis, Royal Robbins and 5.11's while carrying a knife in my pocket as well.....yet, in 24 years, I've never worn out a pocket on ANY of my uniforms OR clothes, which begs the question...

How often are you dragging the knife in and out of your pocket on a daily basis?

How many times are you taking it out to actually USE it?

Now there's no need to get personal. :) I think a lot of people here have just been busted. Not me of course. :)

Seriously, I do pull mine out more than I need to.

Jack

mikerestivo · #17

I wear Carhartt jeans and I don't have any issues. They aren't cheap, though.

I did own a pair of Old Navy jeans years ago. I recall that they were not very robust.

Bradley · #18

I used to wear old navy jeans when I was younger (single digits) and I would tear them up weekly. Not the strongest denim out there. Now I wear levi's and I haven't experienced any pocket wear from repeated knife retrievals.

gbelleh · #19

For me, it's not the clip that wears out my pockets, but the edge of the handle that can wear holes from the inside out. I used to frequently carry a Military in my right rear pocket, but the bottom of the handle wore a hole right through the pocket. I tried to carry my Phoenix once, but that sharp corner on the ti frame started wearing a hole within a few hours.

OldSarSwmr · #20

gbelleh wrote:For me, it's not the clip that wears out my pockets, but the edge of the handle that can wear holes from the inside out. I used to frequently carry a Military in my right rear pocket, but the bottom of the handle wore a hole right through the pocket. I tried to carry my Phoenix once, but that sharp corner on the ti frame started wearing a hole within a few hours.

This is what I run into. I wear 5.11s at work and the pockets are reinforced wear the knife clips but the part inside my pockets tends to work its way through eventually.