One-hand opening and locking blades

[jackknifeh]

I have realized for a pocket knife to be considered a one and only EDC knife I require a pocket knife to be able to be un-pocketed, opened, used, closed and put away with only one hand. I also have gotten used to not worrying about a pocket knife accidentally folding on me. These two features, for me, have become standard for pocket knives just like an air conditioner is standard on a car. Can you get anywhere with a car with no A/C? Of course. Can you get through life with a pocket knife that requires more than one hand to open and is a slip-joint (non-locking)? Of course. In fact 45 years of my life were with a traditional slip-joint pocket knife (Case, Schrade, Old-Timer). If you had owned a car with no A/C and didn't really know about A/C you would be happy. Then you get a car that has A/C. Would you ever go back? Not likely. There would need to be something very special or desirable about a car I would want if it didn't have an air conditioner. Likewise, there would need to be something I really like about a knife I would carry if I couldn't use it one-handed and the blade didn't lock open. I recently bought this GEC Northfield Buckaroo with burnt stag. It is 3.5" closed. I really love this knife for a traditional style pocket knife. It has the blades I'd choose for a knife like this. It's the perfect size and the handle is beautiful. Being a new knife I use it most even though I have a Spyderco or three on me as well. Right now I even have a Manbug in a neck sheath. Neck sheath is another way to carry I've gotten spoiled by. That's another story. Anyway, here's the GEC. Pictures aren't the best. Sorry.

1. GEC Buckaroo (#68) front m-bld open.jpg (51.6 KiB) Viewed 3138 times

There isn't anything about this knife I don't like. I like everything about it in fact. However, by it's design it doesn't have important features that (for me) make a perfect EDC pocket knife. One-hand operation and locking blades. I carry this knife for several reasons. But if I had to answer that old question "What would you carry if you could only carry one?", the GEC would not even make the first cut. OTOH, I think this knife can be carried about anywhere in the world. And, it would get the job done even if I needed both hands to open it and had to be a bit more careful not to let the blade fold on me.

Blades closing accidentally is a safety thing. If I don't take the care I need to when I'm using a slip-joint knife and it closes accidentally, it's my fault. It's not the knife's fault. It's a matter of knowing how to use the tool in your hand at the moment. I will admit however that I've accidentally partially closed slip-joint knives when wiping a blade off. Since I'm accustomed to not being concerned with a knife folding on me I get careless. When wiping off a blade I always use enough pressure in the direction that will close a blade. This is no problem with a knife that locks but with a slip-joint I need to apply less "toward the edge" force.

I figured I'd post this to share why I like Spyderco knives more than any others I've tried. There are lots of good knives out there but from my experience Spyderco's satisfy more of my desires or requirements in a pocket knife. This post is only about ease of use and safety. Spyderco has that covered. In addition to that they also use high quality materials and the manufacturing is as good as it gets in the production knife world IMO. I can't say enough about their eagerness to use different blade steels.

If I did have to answer the "what if only one" question I could at least say it would be a Spyderco.


Jack

[yablanowitz]

Thinking back, I've had several cars and pickups with A/C. I even remember running it from time to time. When it quit working, I didn't bother to fix it. It wasn't important enough to me to be worth the expense to do so. I feel the same way about one hand opening and locking blades. They're okay, sometimes nice to have, but neither is vital. My answer to the eternal (and in my personal opinion, stupid) question "If you could have only one" would probably not be a Spyderco at all. The closest I have to that would be an oddball Colonial/Old Cutler 4 blade stockman with clip, sheepsfoot, spey and hawkbill blades.

[Trout Hound]

If I had to pick just one, it would have to be my Delica 4 combo-edge, but 99% of the time, when I have a box to open or a string to cut, the knife that comes out is the Buck Stockman I've had since I was sixteen. Absolutely love that knife.

[bdblue]

Every knife in my EDC rotation is "one hand operation", and I won't buy a new knife that is not. I've been using "one hand" knives for about 20 years now. I do have a few older knives that are not one hand but I don't carry or use them. I do have a Delica but I don't consider a lockback knife to be "one hand". One of the last ones that I tried using, over 20 years ago, cost me a LOT of blood and that is when I realized that a lockback knife was not one hand operable by me. (We've had discussions here on this before.)

[gbelleh]

I'm not much into traditional folders at all (though I do own a few), but I almost always carry a small multi-tool (Leatherman Squirt), and I find its small, non-locking, two-hand knife blade very useful, especially in public places. But, for my main carry knife, I always want a modern, locking, one-handed folder. Almost always a Spyderco. So, for me, two-handed slip joints still have their place, but I never want to give up my one handed lockers.

[Wanimator]

It's a system for me, my Victorinox Tinker in black happens to be a great part of it though. To me, It's very nice to have that one handed opening, not so much closing... I don't feel right without that ability.

[gbelleh]

Oh yeah, I almost forgot about the Victorinox SAK Classic always on my keychain. Another one that comes in very handy on occasion.

[Waco]

My Carhartt/Case XX Copperlock has a locking blade and I've discovered that I can flick it open open-handed with a little practice. Opening a Spydie is quicker and easier on my wrist.