Assisted openers - really needed for EDC?

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mantzao

Joined
Jun 16, 2011
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Hello guys:)

Let me start by saying that i'm not a big fan of assisted opening knives.
I totally respect people who like it but really what's the point?
I understand people in the military that may need it but for us, regular folks, is it really needed for EDC?
I like the flipping aspect on folding knives but i can do it just as fast with my manual ones. I'm sure you can do it too:)
I flip my knives constantly when playing, no, not my CRks:D;), however for EDC it doesn't seem imperative. I mean, i rarely have the chance to use my knives, like some on here i believe, but when i do need it i can open the knife slowly or i can give it a thumb push and it flies right out.
So what's the fuss about? Is it just to play around?
Only once have i bought one. It was a volcan coronado and immediately sold it.
I know that's not the best example of an assisted knife but it gave me the sense of what most are like.
I didn't really liked it!
They are harder to close, make a loud sound when opening and to tell you the truth i consider the spring, torsion bar or whatever, a weak link in the overall construction of the knife.
There have been knives i really liked that have some kind of assisted mech but never bought them because of that, specially Kershaws/ZTs.
I know that there are some that can be removed but doesn't that affect the overall "performance" of the knife?
So, what do you say guys?
Really needed for EDC?

Thanks for looking:)
 
I'm the same way about 'em. I've had autos and A/Os and just don't see any advantage to 'em for me. I also consider the mechanisms to be a potential trouble spot even though I've only had one auto fail on me in 55+ years. The only one I have now is a ZT350. I bought that one for the rest of the knife, not the A/O.
 
I too am on the fence. Never having owned one, but handling one.

I really want a thin, thin m390 or s90v blade as a user, so I'm looking at sprint run Para 2's (too expensive for now) and a Benchmade 518 barrage that I've found for $150.... do I dare give it a shot?
 
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Some people do indeed need it.
Some people do jobs where they need to be as fast as possible, so the assisted mechanism helps here.
Some people need to be able to just easily open their knife without doing it all manually so the assisted mechanism helps here as well.
I personally don't need it but some do.
I only like it on smaller knives, and even then I don't like it a lot.
When I am able to get rid of the assisted mechanism, I do.

It also depends on how much you like the knife. Some knives (ZT 030X, Kershaw Blur) are only available in the assisted mechanism and don't have a ball detent. So they get that knife.

Other people just enjoy it. Some people like that easy opening and that Thwack.

Different people have different needs as well as preferences.
 
If spring assists bother you, you can always open up the knife and remove the spring. Personally, I don't like wasting time fumbling to get my knife open, so I get mine waved.
 
What's the point of automatics? Or Fixed Blades? Or Slipjoints? Or balisongs? Or Friction Folders?
Variety and the evolution of the technology,. Common sense is, well...the answer.
 
I don't see it as particularly helpful for EDC, but I did like it when I was working EMS. My first run as a student I failed to fully deploy my knife (combination of stupidity and adrenaline) and became another patient instead of a rescuer. A/O isn't any faster, but it does make certain that a knife is fully deployed when you use it.
 
I agree that 99.9% of the time nobody NEEDS an A/O, and if you looked at my EDC rotation you would see that figure reflected upon it.

BUT, I would have to say that in the case of an emergency, like a car accident (especially in the case of a submersion or something) where I needed to cut a seatbelt. It is very reassuring to know that if I am carrying my 580 barrage, no matter I how deploy the blade, nothing will stop it from opening.
Even if the blade encounters an obstacle, the moment that there is a clear path, the blade will continue to open until it hits the lockbar.
 
I can do without them. If you have a liner or frame locking knife with a flipper, you don't really need assisted opening, because all you need to do is open the knife beyond the ball detent and from there you can just flick the knife open. The flipper doesn't even need to be that big.
 
mantzao said:
Really needed for EDC?
Click to expand...

Well, we don't really "need" 99% of our stuff, do we? :) I like assisted openers. They're fun. Thats pretty much all there is too it for me.

tremor-1.jpg

Kershaw Tremor.
 
Some people don't feel the need for "modern" folders, some people don't feel the need for "supersteels", some people don't feel the need for overbuilt folders. So yeh, I'd say 99 percent of what we get is preference.
 
I like both the A/O and manuals. I tend to get a/o if the knife appeals to me like others have said. Some I simply find to open like the Cyclone.
 
dalefuller said:
I'm the same way about 'em. I've had autos and A/Os and just don't see any advantage to 'em for me. I also consider the mechanisms to be a potential trouble spot even though I've only had one auto fail on me in 55+ years. The only one I have now is a ZT350. I bought that one for the rest of the knife, not the A/O.
Click to expand...

It's really easy to remove the torsion bar from the ZT 0350 and turn it into a manual flipper. Been meaning to do it to mine, but just haven't gotten around to it yet.
 
Emphatically, yes! Have you ever tried to open a box while holding it? (Best done with a small box.) Just today, I was trying to open my Leatherman Freestyle CX's knife blade. Despite lots of practice flicking the blade open, I couldn't flick it open while holding a box. I have noticed that it can be very hard to open a manual knife when I thinking about something else.
 
Needed? For me, no. They are fun and handy, however, and I enjoy owning them. That's all the justification I need. Like Rev said, it's all about variety and the evolution of technology. One could make a pretty valid argument that many of us here don't "need" 99% of the knives we own. Heck, many of us could probably get by quite well with a shard of knapped obsidian or a piece of mild sheet steel sharpened on the sidewalk in our pockets, but where's the fun in that? :D Variety is the spice of life, as the old saying goes. :thumbup:
 
Squashfan said:
Emphatically, yes! Have you ever tried to open a box while holding it? (Best done with a small box.) Just today, I was trying to open my Leatherman Freestyle CX's knife blade. Despite lots of practice flicking the blade open, I couldn't flick it open while holding a box. I have noticed that it can be very hard to open a manual knife when I thinking about something else.
Click to expand...

There are lot's of one handers out there if that's your only problem. Thumbholes(on Spydies) work especially well. ;)
 
I don't see a correlation between everyday carry and the opening mechanism; one handed opening is easier for workaday tasks where one might have only one free hand when needing to make a cut, but it makes little or no difference if the blade is deployed with assist or with a flick/flipper/thumbstud/thumbhole.

I don't mind ao, but I don't prefer it either.

With the advent of ball-bearing pivots, I think ao is superfluous.

best

mqqn
 
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