Got a nice knife? Let's see it.

I had the day off yesterday so for giggles I decided to spread out the collection and get a pic. My old Benchmade AFCK was in my pocket and missed out on the group photo.

click for full resolution

Can you tell me more about the japanese tanto with the beige handle in the top right quarter of the picture?

Wow - there are a lot of nice knives in that collection.

Spyderco does well by you.

I think my wife will have words for me if my collection gets that expansive...

Something like, "It's no wonder I love you!", I presume.

Yes. Exactly that. Ha.

Ah, that one is a beauty! It was made by Chuck Hawes and has a clay-hardened W-2 blade, damascus double guard and ivory micarta handle.

The only other photo I have of it so far is this white paper shot that I keep for insurance purposes:



Hopefully, some day I will think up a more flattering scene for it (most of these are unphotographed except for the white paper BGs).

.

Any inmates in SoCal next month? Been several years since I attended but lots of good stuff
http://www.knifeexpo.net/

Right hand side, below the UDT ,above the KofA and between the Stretch(?) and the Socom, what is that? I've seen them before but I am blanking.

Thanks. BTW, enviable collection.

Dear knife aficionados of ADVRider:

I have always scoffed at those gentlemen who found it necessary to wear a knife that clipped to the pocket of their trousers. I believe this is referred to as the "clip knife" or "EDC knife". However, for Christmas I myself received, as a gift, one of these knives. I seem to have promptly lost the knife, or else my wife has confiscated it. In any event, in the short time I wore the knife clipped to the inside of my pants pocket, I found that I did indeed find occasion to use it. I have, for the last 26 years, always carried a Victorinox Executive knife in my pocket. Having the larger clip knife was useful for the various tasks that the swiss army knife was really too small for.

Considering the above, I went out and bought myself a Gerber Paraframe I. The knife is... acceptable. The quality seems fine, but the function is lacking. I consider the primary function of these knives to be the ability to deploy the blade with one hand. "Deploy" means being able to remove the knife from your pocket and then to flip the blade to the open position. This knife fails on both accounts. The skeleton-esque design of the knife body has a protrusion that, with the help of the spring clip, catches on the hem of your pocket. In addition, the thumb knob (probably not the correct term) is so prominent that it too manages to catch on your pants pocket, further exasperating the difficulty of simply getting the knife out of your pocket. There are knobs on both sides of the blade, so it doesn't matter which pocket you carry it in, left or right; the thing just refuses to be extricated.

Then we come to the ability to deploy the blade with one hand. It can't be done. At least not easily. Granted, this is a new knife and so it is bound to be somewhat stiff, and I forgive Gerber for making a knife that has no wiggle or wobble. Unfortunately this tightness detracts from the usefulness of the tool. I find that I wear the knife regularly, but when it comes to attempting to use it my mind recoils at the thought. I fear this will eventually lead to the knife being listed here in the ADV Flea Market.

More to come...

So, I have been scanning the internet searching for a new, better, friendlier knife.

In so doing I stumbled across a breed of knife known as assisted opening. This caught my eye. It seems to solve the problem of opening the blade easily with one hand. Now, if one could couple such a feature with the ability to get the knife out of one's pocket with reasonable ease, I think we may have something that could rival my Victorinox in extracting loyalty.

So I put the question to my ADV brethren: What, in your opinion, is a good knife that solves my concerns? Are these assisted opening knives a good investment? I should add some criteria to help focus your recommendations. My desired price is around $50. I would contemplate going as high as $80, but such a knife would have to really catch my fancy. I'd like something that fits nicely in the hand (and I don't have overly large hands) but is not too bulky in the pocket. My Gerber has a blade length of 3.5 inches and that seems nice. I also shy away from knives that are too thick, as they too have too much "pocket presence", as it were.

I thank you in advance for your assistance.

Minnesota

Some commentary: I picked up a Paraframe about a year ago when I was traveling for work with no checked bags. It has all the right features for me (clip, decent size, liner lock), but the quality is lacking. Too stiff, both opening and unlocking. It lives in my toolbox now. I use it for abusive tasks.

I have a couple assisted opening knives. They are 'fun' but I rarely EDC (every day carry) them. I'm always afraid I'll open them in my pocket. They all have a lock to keep them shut, but that's stupid. I don't want to have to unlock my knife before opening.

I think you want a standard (non-assisted) knife, but from a bit more of a quality minded outfit than Gerber.

Do you like a liner lock? Or will a standard back lock?

My two favorite carry knives:
CRKT Lake 111. You can find it for as little as $20, so I don't mind abusing it a little. You can get it with a solid blade or half serrated. I carry this the most.
My real favorite is a CRKT Crawford Falcon. The rub...no longer made. There was recently one on ebay. http://www.ebay.com/itm/rare-crkt-n...492?pt=Collectible_Knives&hash=item3f219f7334

That knife is easy to open, liner lock, and just 'works' for me. Neither of those have fancy blade, but they get the job done.

Your best bet is to handle some in a store. Pretty much anything from CRKT, SOG, Spyderco (who have a budget minded line, called Byrd) will be better than that Gerber.

Goodluck.

I would urge you to re consider the Swiss Army as a daily carry. These knifes simply have too many uses, are inexpensive, and there is a world of options. I carry the Officer Suisse and use/abuse it all day long.

Perhaps I should clarify. I still carry the Swiss Army knife. Always will. I am looking for something bigger to supplement my EDC tool chest.

I always carry the Swiss Army knife, some Chapstick, and a lighter in my left pocket. I don't smoke but having a lighter handy comes in, well, handy. In my right pocket I carry the Gerber piece of junk, a 3 foot tape measure, and any spare change I have on me.

I do like the looks of that Lake 111, and since this is supposed to be a photo thread:



And my Gerber, which I have discovered to be a Powerframe, not a Paraframe, as I incorrectly identified it earlier.

i have the CRKT Lake 111 with no serrations. been carrying it daily for about a year or two after i found it on sierratradingpost for around $20.

it's not really a good one hander, too stiff. and the stud gets caught on the fabric of pants pockets. other than that, it's fine. you can double lock it open, or lock it shut

. it's not super stout, but it seems strong enough for every day tasks. i like it because it doesn't look tacticool, but i won't be too upset when i have to replace it.

i've mentioned this spyderco before, and i think it's the best bang for the buck. i carry it at work. good handle to blade ratio, easy to control. had mine for a few years, no complaints at all.

the sypderco persistence:

http://www.amazon.com/Spyderco-Pers...002IWWYS4/ref=pd_sim_sg_6/176-3450471-8104533



for $30 bucks, it's hard to beat.

if you need a bigger blade, the "tenacious" is a couple bucks more:

http://www.amazon.com/Spyderco-Tenacious-Handle-Folding-Plain/dp/B001EI7578/ref=pd_sim_sg_2


those spydercos are made in china and use cheaper steel, but i'm impressed. i bought one of their "Byrd" knives for around $20, and promptly returned the POS.

I'd like more information on the assisted opening knives. Anyone have more feedback on them?

While Google-ing around I found this little gem too.

More poking, more candidates.

Currently strongly contemplating this one.

That was my EDC and absolute favorite until I lost it while on a moto trip in eastern Oregon. How much did you find it for?

$84.00