Am I The Only One?

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bocephus549

Joined
May 10, 2015
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I think I can open my Paramilitary 2 faster than an automatic. Never understood the demonization of auto knives in general.
 
Back in the 1950's there was a wave of fear and hysteria regarding "juvenile delinquents". People were truly afraid of teenagers, a fear that would be fueled by movies, television, juvenile crime, and the news media. Scary teenage ruffians in movies and tv shows were often armed with switchblades. Many teens on the street also carried switchblades.

Between movies and television, actual teenagers using switchblades in fights or to commit crimes, news media fanning the flames of fear and hysteria, and politicians looking to make headlines and show the public that they are tough on juvenile crime, it's not at all surprising that many anti-switchblade laws were passed throughout the country.

Many of those laws are still in place today, but thanks to the efforts of Kniferights.org, and some state governors who actually applied reason and common sense to the subject of switchblades, some states have repealed their prohibitions on switchblades.
 
Most knives can be deployed pretty quickly...flicked, flipped, etc. Generally, I don't think it really makes all that difference.
OTOH, I have read an account where a deployed soldier used an automatic. carried in a necker rig, quickly enough to save his life in hand-to-hand combat. If it works for you, use it.
 
Wave is the fastest.
 
Charlie Mike said:
Wave is the fastest.
Click to expand...

It really is an amazing string of coincidences that almost every time I have brought up the silliness of automatic knife bans, I have had a waved knife on me.

I've done this maybe a couple dozen times:
"See, this is why the bans are silly. I am carrying a knife that opens faster than any automatic you will ever see."
(I proceed to wave the knife open out of my pocket)
"And that has never been illegal."
 
I always liked showing folks an assisted knife opening on its own (just nudged open and letting the spring do the work) and then flicking it open myself so fast it that it would outpace the spring.

Where automatics do have an advantage is in situations where dexterity is low, such as when you're cold or wearing thick gloves/mittens.
 
Wave is still faster than an auto in cold conditions. You might fumble to press the auto as much as pull out a waved knife in the cold.
 
HwangJino said:
Wave is still faster than an auto in cold conditions. You might fumble to press the auto as much as pull out a waved knife in the cold.
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The advantage is not about speed, but of reducing difficulty of deployment, and it does not require a surface to be snagged against.
 
bocephus549 said:
I think I can open my Paramilitary 2 faster than an automatic
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I've felt the same way. I owned a number of knives with thumb studs, and some with thumb holes. Since my state allowed automatic knives I bought one "just because". Coming out of my pocket the knives with large thumb holes are on the average quicker and more positive to open. The only exception is the Kershaw Blur and its large and sharp thumbstuds are easy to hit and positive to open the blade. My other knives with thumbstuds are less positive to open. If I don't carefully position my thumb then there is a chance that my thumb will slip off of the thumbstud. So this slows down opening the knife, and sometimes I have to make more than one attempt to open it. With a large thumbhole it is easier to hit the hole with my thumb and there is much less chance of slipping.
As for actual automatics, there is usually a button or some similar mechanism. My SOG automatic has a button on one side. I have to pull the knife out, feel around for the button, then push it. Maybe a lot of practice would help in this regards, but overall it is slower than the knife with large thumbhole.
 
Funniest thing about all this (to use NYC as an example) is that a fixed blade is faster than all the above-and if the length is right and it's concealed (wouldn't want to brandish, would we?) it's legal, where most lockbacks canget you a gravity knife charge.
 
Shhh let's keep quiet about how fast manual folders can be deployed we don't wanna give the lawmakers any ideas!
 
If we inject some reality into this discussion, fastest is almost always trumped by the reliability of opening a knife when under pressure....

Fixed blade wins that hands down.
After that, I would prefer something that didn't require grabbing the inside of my pant pocket to open...

The simpler the better. Think large holes as in any Spyderco.
Two hand opening would be preferred in a situation where it mattered. I would lose a second or two to know that my knife was locked fully....
 
I wouldn't automatically assume that fixed-blades are the fastest to deploy. A lot depends on the sheath and retention method.

Some fixed-blade sheaths have straps with snaps. Some of them have really tight snaps.

And then there's kydex. Some kydex sheaths hold the knife really tight. And if you attempt to draw the knife at an angle, either intentionally or unintentionally, it may not come out.

Some sheaths are rigid, but some hang loose and will move with the knife when you try to draw it. A loose hanging sheath can impede a quick deployment.

Some sheaths are "jump rated". Meaning they are designed not to let go of the knife during a parachute drop. These sheaths require a more concentrated effort to draw the knife.

I carry a fixed-blade every day. At work I use a kydex belt sheath. Away from work I use a rigid leather belt sheath with no retention strap (the body of the sheath is just tight enough to hold the blade firmly, but not so tight that I can't draw the knife fast and easy).

There are several variables involved in the deployment of any knife. The knife, clothing, how the knife is carried, where the knife is carried, the body position of the person when trying to deploy the knife, the ability of the person, etc.
 
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killgar said:
I wouldn't automatically assume that fixed-blades are the fastest to deploy. A lot depends on the sheath and retention method.

Some fixed-blade sheaths have straps with snaps. Some of them have really tight snaps.

And then there's kydex. Some kydex sheaths hold the knife really tight. And if you attempt to draw the knife at an angle, either intentionally or unintentionally, it may not come out.

Some sheaths are rigid, but some hang loose and will move with the knife when you try to draw it. A loose hanging sheath can impede a quick deployment.

Some sheaths are "jump rated". Meaning they are designed not to let go of the knife during a parachute drop. These sheaths require a more concentrated effort to draw the knife.

I carry a fixed-blade every day. At work I use a kydex belt sheath. Away from work I use a rigid leather belt sheath with no retention strap (the body of the sheath is just tight enough to hold the blade firmly, but not so tight that I can't draw the knife fast and easy).

There are several variables involved in the deployment of any knife. The knife, clothing, how the knife is carried, where the knife is carried, the body position of the person when trying to deploy the knife, the ability of the person, etc.
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A fixed blade will always be faster and safer then a folder man. Folders are not immune from the issues you describe and both can hang up on draw but, only the fixed will always be open once you draw it and always stay that way. There is a reason real operators, whether LE or Mil, almost always chose fixed blades.
 
I know one SWAT-cop, many yrs of service, who carries a waved Endura in his back pocket.
In the past, I've carried a waved Emerson, but it's not infallible. You need muscle-memory or occasionally you might "miss" the edge of your pocket. It happened to me once. Once could be enough.
 
Tachead01 said:
A fixed blade will always be faster and safer then a folder man. Folders are not immune from the issues you describe and both can hang up on draw but, only the fixed will always be open once you draw it and always stay that way. There is a reason real operators, whether LE or Mil, almost always chose fixed blades.
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Really? A fixed-blade is ALWAYS faster than a folder? Have you tested every fixed-blade and sheath against every folder? Can you point to any government or military testing where every fixed-blade and sheath were compared to every folder?

Yes, once a fixed-blade has cleared the sheath and is in the hand out in the open there is nothing to impede its use. But getting a fixed-blade out of it's sheath is not always a fast action.

As far as "real operators", I don't know any, so I don't know what most of them carry or why they carry what they do. I've never seen any polls taken among "real operators" regarding what knives they prefer or why they prefer them.
 
I live in Tennessee and they recently legalized automatics. They also did away with the 4 inch blade length limit on all knives. I got an h&k entourage drop point just because I could but since I got the Para 2 it doesn't see much pocket time. Now an automatic Para 2 would be interesting.
 
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