For or Against: and Why!

SladeGT40

SladeGT40

Joined
Mar 20, 2007
Messages
1,252
this came up in another thread and sparked a quite interesting and rather civil debate about the benefits and/or drawbacks of a particular knife feature. in the case of the other thread it was the choil.

i would like to propose a thread where someone picks a feature of a knife and we debate the benefits and drawbacks of that feature. once the discussion has run its course someone simply chooses a new feature to discuss.

i will kick off the thread with the lanyard hole. some knives have them and some don't. not sure its as good as the choil as a topic, but what the heck. if the topic falls short i suggest everyone read http://www.bladeforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=570356 and then continue the choil debate here as its own thread.
 
Sounds good.

Okay, on lanyards, some of my knives have one, some don't. Some of my flashlights have 'em, some don't. It also depends on where I'm going to using them. For instance, most of my boat tools have lanyards, for obvious reasons.
 
Yeah, why not, right? Keep it there.

I've never used one without getting frustrated and taking it off a few days after putting it on, but I like the idea of using one if I'm ever on a boat.
 
I'm for the lanyard hole on a smallish folder and could take it or leave it on a large folder. When you have a 5 inch handle it's not like you are going to need help gettin it our o' yer pocket. However it is nice to have the opportunity to add a lanyard to something in the small - mid range size. I have big hands and a square knot lanyard makes a nice place to rest my pinky.

Slade, interesting discussion idea and an even better choice for a first topic. This one isn't too divisive an issue and could lead to some interesting (and civil) discussion.:thumbup:
 
I'm pro-lanyard. It (the lanyard) has saved me from losing many knives. It's also very decorative if you take your time. Something about a nice-looking lanyard makes a knife look more sheeple-friendly. It also gives you more of a grip (and more leverage to draw the knife) on a smaller folder. On my hunting knife, the lanyard is hung around my wrist in between cuts so I don't have to touch my knife to the ground while dressing a deer. Just my two cents.
 
lanyard holes huh? well, answer me this then: how come large knives (like the Offset for instance) have lanyard holes while some of the tiny ones, who really need it, dont? there isnt a point to a large knife having one really
 
I'm always for lanyard holes.They don't always need a lanyard attached,but it's good to have the option.
 
JTR357 said:
I'm always for lanyard holes.They don't always need a lanyard attached,but it's good to have the option.
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+1 I like a lanyard although the sinnet lanyards I tie are just for looks
 
offsetlover said:
lanyard holes huh? well, answer me this then: how come large knives (like the Offset for instance) have lanyard holes while some of the tiny ones, who really need it, dont? there isnt a point to a large knife having one really
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thats a good point. i bought a few lanyards from a fellow forum member a while back and i put them on my tizdp mini cyclone, my blur sg2, my ti/sg2 JYD2 and my offset. didn't really see the point on such a thick knife, cause the lead on the lanyard wasn't long enough to fit the knife. in addition, while i liked having the lanyard at work for the sheeple factor, some knives with lanyard holes are nigh on impossible to thread without dental floss or fishing twine. its my understanding that leather and paracord are the two most widely used materials for lanyards that end up on knives and the like. i don't know of any supplier of those materials in widths that would easily fit in some of those smaller holes; in those cases i don't find the holes necessary.
 
SladeGT40 said:
thats a good point. i bought a few lanyards from a fellow forum member a while back and i put them on my tizdp mini cyclone, my blur sg2, my ti/sg2 JYD2 and my offset. didn't really see the point on such a thick knife, cause the lead on the lanyard wasn't long enough to fit the knife. in addition, while i liked having the lanyard at work for the sheeple factor, some knives with lanyard holes are nigh on impossible to thread without dental floss or fishing twine. its my understanding that leather and paracord are the two most widely used materials for lanyards that end up on knives and the like. i don't know of any supplier of those materials in widths that would easily fit in some of those smaller holes; in those cases i don't find the holes necessary.
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Did you try the paperclip trick?With a pair of needle nose pliers,just pull that sucker through :)
 
SladeGT40 said:
thats a good point. i bought a few lanyards from a fellow forum member a while back and i put them on my tizdp mini cyclone, my blur sg2, my ti/sg2 JYD2 and my offset. didn't really see the point on such a thick knife, cause the lead on the lanyard wasn't long enough to fit the knife. in addition, while i liked having the lanyard at work for the sheeple factor, some knives with lanyard holes are nigh on impossible to thread without dental floss or fishing twine. its my understanding that leather and paracord are the two most widely used materials for lanyards that end up on knives and the like. i don't know of any supplier of those materials in widths that would easily fit in some of those smaller holes; in those cases i don't find the holes necessary.
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the knives you mentioned i wouldnt put a lanyard on because of there size alone. granted i have one on my Offset, but i dont really use the knife *safe queen i kno :D* so its a more looks type thing. if i were to use it more, then it wouldnt be there.

i have one on my mini-mojo. it needs it though as i can barely get a good grip without it. The lahar would look good with a lanyard though
 
I keep knives with lanyard holes in the garage hanging when I need them.
Like my Ontario machete hanging near the light switch.
On the boat because you just don't want to set a knife down in your boat.
My fillet knives hang inside a storage area so they're not sitting in water all day.
You boat guys know what I'm saying.

For carry though, I don't want one. I either clip or pocket carry everything I EDC.
I think of a lanyard more as an accessory for my tools not part of them.

Good thread SladeGT40.

mike
 
Now that I've read all the posts, I'll chime in. Lanyards to me advertise the fact that I'm carrying a knife. Those who know me already know I always have one on me, so the extra advertising is unwarranted, IMHO. That said, on some of the smaller knives, a small lanyard can be an asset as far as grip goes.

When camping I will put a gutted reflective paracord lanyard on them. They really pop in the dark, and I've never lost a knife by doing this.

So, holes vs no holes: Yes, I like having the hole there. If I don't use the hole for whatever reason, so what? It's there if I need it.

Nice discussion Slade. :thumbup:
 
Did you try the paperclip trick?With a pair of needle nose pliers,just pull that sucker through
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yeah once, on my sg2 blur, nearly ruined the paracord. the lanyards i purchased were premade, so i had to thread the loop through and then come back on it to cinch it up. about 10 minutes of googling later and i found out about dental floss to pull through rather than attempt to push.


the knives you mentioned i wouldnt put a lanyard on because of there size alone. granted i have one on my Offset, but i dont really use the knife *safe queen i kno * so its a more looks type thing. if i were to use it more, then it wouldnt be there.
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yeah the decision to put one on an edc knife for me was more motivated by using the lanyard to either cover the pocket clip or to replace it completely. in the case of my sg2 blur or mini cyclone i wanted a lanyard big enough and colorful enough that it would look simply like a keychain (i put on on my keys as well) most people ignored the knife in my pocket oddly enough when i had a lanyard on it.

as for the JYD 2 i replaced the pocket clip with a lanyard and a 4inch lead. the knife sits deep in the pocket and only the lanyard shows. i don't use it much, which is good as another forumite pointed out because without the clip and just the lanyard i had myself a concealed weapon :eek:
 
Lanyards , I like the option. Especially for smaller knives. I made a lanyard for my Chive. Helps my pinky have something to grab.
As far as bigger knives, I probably wouldn't use a lanyard unless I was in a boat or on a ladder. It would suck to drop my knife in the water or fall out of my hand onto concrete , etc...
 
I believe that you don’t see lanyard holes on many small knifes because there is a point to which you can’t reduce the lanyard hole size and still have a tough lanyard fit through the hole
let’s say for us it’s usually around .1” So the difficulty is when designing a small knife you have to try to fit that .1” hole and keep it from blowing into the fillet on the edge of the handle as well as put it in an area where the blade won’t chop off the lanyard. All this without growing the handle just to include the lanyard hole. It can be tough to impossible on some small knives.

I can say from a production standpoint the lanyard hole is almost imperative, because it gives the machinist two points of reference (pivot hole and lanyard hole) to pin down the handles for machining.
 
tommie said:
I can say from a production standpoint the lanyard hole is almost imperative, because it gives the machinist two points of reference (pivot hole and lanyard hole) to pin down the handles for machining.
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That is a great point that had not occurred to me.:thumbup:
 
I have a small lanyard on my climbing knife. It gives me something to hold on to and the ability to clip the knife to a carabiner when I want easy access.

I think that a lanyard would bug me for anything but climbing. When I'm on the ground, a dropped knife doesn't mean anything, I can just pick it back up. I do appreciate the extra security when I'm at a height, however.

I have a buck whittaker that fell 2 pitches to the desert floor. It had a little cheapo wiregate clip that I trusted too much; the knife just jumped off my harness. Now, if my knife isn't zipped in a pocket, it's clipped to a real biner.

Losing a knife while climbing isn't usually dangerous, but it is annoying. Not having a blade makes anchor building and tattered sling removal difficult. That's why I use the extra security of a lanyard.
 
JTR357 said:
I'm always for lanyard holes.They don't always need a lanyard attached,but it's good to have the option.
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I think this pretty much sums it up. It is nice to have the option if you
like/dislike or do/don't use them. I personally don't use them. I clip'em to my
pocket. If people want to be sheeple, that's there problem. As long as I'm
legal in what I carry, It's clipped to the pocket for me.

Great thread Slade!! :thumbup:
 
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