To me, the secret of descrete carry in dress pants is to find a way to comfortably carry inside the pocket without a clip showing, and this is not simple. Carried loose in the front pocket, a large pocket knife will drop to the bottom of the pocket and lay sideways across the front of your thigh and this is uncomfortable and also makes a visible lump in your pants (it "prints" through the pants). The back pocket is not much better and is uncomfortable to sit on.
I have come up with a way to make the knife stand upright in the front pocket and stay against the side of the pocket near the side seam of the pants. In that position it is comfortable, does not print much or at all, and is easy to access. The method requires you to divide the pocket into two smaller sub-pockets by either sewing a seam through the pocket, or more simply to install a row of safety pins to divide the pocket. In this way, you can make a small-sub pocket along the outer seam just the right size for a knife. I have tried to make a text art diagram showing the outline of a pocket below. The letter K shows the position of the knife. It's easier to do than explain. Here's the diagram:
************
Dress Pants,
Right Front Pocket,
As seen from inside the pants.
Knife "k" is in a sub-pocket near the side seam of the pants.
The opening on the upper right is where your hand goes into the pocket.
...________
..|
..|
..|
..|. . . . . . . |
..|. . . . . .|k|
..|. . . . . .|k|
..|. . . . . .|k|
..|______|_/
. . . . . . . ^
. . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . |_ A row of safety pins goes here along the side of knife.
It works well up to about a 4.5" knife (folded length) depending on the pocket and the knife. Flatter knives obviously print least, for example, Benchmade 530 and many Kershaw and Spyderco. Removing the clip helps, too. For me, this has worked well for a couple of years and is more discrete than IWB or pocket clipping. The legality of concealing is an issue, so know your laws. I like this method for my casual pants as well (but not jeans). Maybe it's just me, but I don't always want anyone and everyone to know what I am carrying.
What do you think? Useful or is there a better/simpler way to conceal?
I have come up with a way to make the knife stand upright in the front pocket and stay against the side of the pocket near the side seam of the pants. In that position it is comfortable, does not print much or at all, and is easy to access. The method requires you to divide the pocket into two smaller sub-pockets by either sewing a seam through the pocket, or more simply to install a row of safety pins to divide the pocket. In this way, you can make a small-sub pocket along the outer seam just the right size for a knife. I have tried to make a text art diagram showing the outline of a pocket below. The letter K shows the position of the knife. It's easier to do than explain. Here's the diagram:
************
Dress Pants,
Right Front Pocket,
As seen from inside the pants.
Knife "k" is in a sub-pocket near the side seam of the pants.
The opening on the upper right is where your hand goes into the pocket.
...________
..|
..|
..|
..|. . . . . . . |
..|. . . . . .|k|
..|. . . . . .|k|
..|. . . . . .|k|
..|______|_/
. . . . . . . ^
. . . . . . . |
. . . . . . . |_ A row of safety pins goes here along the side of knife.
It works well up to about a 4.5" knife (folded length) depending on the pocket and the knife. Flatter knives obviously print least, for example, Benchmade 530 and many Kershaw and Spyderco. Removing the clip helps, too. For me, this has worked well for a couple of years and is more discrete than IWB or pocket clipping. The legality of concealing is an issue, so know your laws. I like this method for my casual pants as well (but not jeans). Maybe it's just me, but I don't always want anyone and everyone to know what I am carrying.
What do you think? Useful or is there a better/simpler way to conceal?
And that's fine by me!
