Folding knife as a pry bar.

O

Odin's Son

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Aug 29, 2013
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Hi, new here. Reading through threads and seeing "use my folding knife as a pry bar" or such. I'm curious as to what you guys are prying open as I have never used my folding knife as a pry bar.
 
Knives are tools. But more specifically they're cutting instruments. Nothing more. Using a tool for anything other than its intended use is detrimental. So when it comes to opening paint cans I'll use a flat head.

Welcome to the forums. :)
 
Odin's Son said:
I have never used my folding knife as a pry bar.
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Good. You have proper understanding of using the right tool for the right job. The properties that make a knife a good knife are contrary to the properties that make a prying tool a good prying tool.
 
Remove weeds from the stone tiles in the backyard. Opening paint cans. Use it as a wedge and hammer it between a window and window sill which was stuck. Use it as a screwdriver. Use it as a small shovel to free the last bit of sand around a drainage pipe. Use it remove staples from a cupboard.
That's the beauty of a cheap knife. If it breaks, buy another. So far my Chinese Axis SRM 763 is still locking up solid as if it was new and hasn't closed on me once.
I'm gonna order another few.
 
Only once do I remember using a knife for prying, and it was a fixed blade (a RAT 3). I just don't seem to come across many things that need prying in my daily routine. And when I do, I use the flat screw driver on my SAK or multitool. It's not the right tool for the job either, but at least it doesn't have and edge to ruin and I won't suffer if I bend the liners on a $30 SAK (if I mess it up badly enough, I can use the warranty).

Perhaps other people with different jobs and needs have to use their folding knives harder than I do.
 
Moxy said:
Knives are tools. But more specifically they're cutting instruments. Nothing more. Using a tool for anything other than its intended use is detrimental. So when it comes to opening paint cans I'll use a flat head.Welcome to the forums. :)
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I guess the clue was in the name, huh?
 
I use a 5 in 1 painters tool to open paint cans. As for a pry bar, a folding knife is not the best choice. If you need something small to pry with I would suggest a ti pry or something similar.
 
the kid said:
Remove weeds from the stone tiles in the backyard. Opening paint cans. Use it as a wedge and hammer it between a window and window sill which was stuck. Use it as a screwdriver. Use it as a small shovel to free the last bit of sand around a drainage pipe. Use it remove staples from a cupboard.
That's the beauty of a cheap knife. If it breaks, buy another. So far my Chinese Axis SRM 763 is still locking up solid as if it was new and hasn't closed on me once.
I'm gonna order another few.
Click to expand...


Yep, looks like the things a kid would do with a knife..... Get a friggin screwdriver, or, heck, a mini prybar!!!!! They make those.

Knives have blade for a reason. If you notice the thin, pointy part at the end, it's called a tip. It's for fine cutting and piercing. Look at the flat part of a screwdriver now. Look at it, think about it, and compare it to the knife. You might now start seeing the difference, and why.

Unless you want them to look the same in very short order, DON'T PRY WITH A KNIFE!
 
OCCASIONNALLY opening paint cans, cutting a can of beans, popping a beer, loosening a screw or tightening a protruding screwhead (with the spine, not the tip or the edge, Ha, ha,..) are all things you can do in good friendship with your pocket knife. Use common sense, be smart and delicate. It will work. But don't do it all day long, please ! They make dedicated tools for that stuff.
 
jimh0220 said:
Yep, looks like the things a kid would do with a knife..... Get a friggin screwdriver, or, heck, a mini prybar!!!!! They make those.

Knives have blade for a reason. If you notice the thin, pointy part at the end, it's called a tip. It's for fine cutting and piercing. Look at the flat part of a screwdriver now. Look at it, think about it, and compare it to the knife. You might now start seeing the difference, and why.

Unless you want them to look the same in very short order, DON'T PRY WITH A KNIFE!
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Bit upset I can do things with my $12 knife you dare not do with your $120 knife?
 
It cost you only 12 $ so you can mess it up big time and feel so very smart ? (and that's worth 12 $, no question...) I do anything a knife can do with all of my knives (ranging from 20 to 200 $). Except maybe popping beers, because there are so many ways to do it I don't need to scratch up a blade I love.
 
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I have only had to use a knife for other than its inteded purpose, a handful of times. And I learned from those few times. I now carry a Leatherman wave on my belt while at work and have one in my car as well as my wifes car. If I need a (insert tool here) and I am at home, then I go get it.
 
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It depends on what kind of knife you own and how willing are you to sacrifice it to do the prying job. If it is a cheap beater and it is absolutely necessary to pry, then the decision is all yours. But for regular prying job, do consider a micro pry bar(think countycomm) or at least get a good multitool for light prying.
 
Do what you want because it belongs to you and no one else's opinion really matters. Just like... Don't let it snap and fling into your eye.
 
Between "trashing things" and walking around days in days out with "a complete toolbox", there is something called "skills" or "understanding (what you can and cannot do)". My grandpa used his small pocket folder for cutting, stabbing, piercing, scraping, drilling, reaming and it was always in mint condition. Not a high end item, mind you, but he had a lot of understanding. Get me right, I'm not telling you to do weird things with your knife. I'm just saying the problem is not in the knife, it's in you. If there is a problem at all...
 
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