Hatred of AO knives

I have an auto, many A/O's, some flippers, and a couple manuals.

I like them all, they're just a different kind of knife. Rounds out my collection nicely.
 
I, as the starter of this topic, love my kershaw blur. I love ao because it's just cool. As far as laws catching up to them, I think that knives in general would get banned first. If there is no difference in deployment speeds then I think they will just ban all of them or leave it how it is. With socialism being elected a week ago who knows what could happen at this point.
 
I like a knife that I can open with one hand, without to much motion. If AO helps in a design I like then I am all for it.
 
I have a couple of auto's, a lot of AO's, a lot of flippers and a few manuals.
I like the option of a variety of knives to carry. They all open reliably and
close easily, and they cut. AO's have there place as well as flippers , auto's
and manuals. Buy what you like and leave what you don't like on the shelf.
No one is forcing anyone to buy any of the above mentioned over the other.
Why make such a big deal over it?
 
I am not a fan of AO, although I'll admit that there is a satisfying gadget-effect to them. But on the practicality side, unless you are severely arthritic, why would you need "assistance" to open a one-handed folder? most of the non-assisted ones seem to slide or even flick open quite easily with a simple twitch of the thumb.
 
As Thomas has said it's now how fast the blade comes out it's that it positively comes out, meaning that it comes out and locks everytime (as long as the torsion bar and lock is working) so when you need it, it doesn't come half way open then you need to flick it the rest of the way, it's that you know that it locks open upon activation. And as a proud Texas resident I am in fear that I won't be able to carry my new BM 913 when I finaly receive it or even worse.
 
Foilist said:
why would you need "assistance" to open a one-handed folder? most of the non-assisted ones seem to slide or even flick open quite easily with a simple twitch of the thumb.
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Have you seen a newb with a knife that has a stud, hole or otherwise? :eek:
 
Thomas W said:
Have you seen a newb with a knife that has a stud, hole or otherwise? :eek:
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Ha yeah that's funny to see.
Even funnier is when they try to close a knife with a frame or linerlock.

On the other hand, a newbie with an AO wouldn't be the best idea either..
I know, I needed stitches the second time I opened my AO..:p
 
When it comes down to it, I'm just not used to assisted open. It's new to me and therefore I'm suspicious of it. Maybe if I owned one for a long time I'll get used it it, but for now I like having complete manual control.
 
I enjoy the cleverness of the engineering, but the only AO I ever carried for very long was my original Random Task. I don't carry it anymore because all of the clip screws pulled out and the clip fell off.

I have a Leek, a ZT 0302 and a Ti Bump and I've never carried any of them except for a day or two. Maybe one day...but I'm so used to the Spyder hole I doubt I'll ever give it up.
 
I also don't care for AO knives. From the durability standpoint it seems like something else that can fail on your knife as a tool. Seems to be a gimmick for someone to have a psuedo "automatic" knife.

I think a one handed manual opener is as good as it needs to get.
 
Thomas W said:
Have you seen a newb with a knife that has a stud, hole or otherwise? :eek:
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Almost every time I hand my knive to someone to use, they try to open it with two hands by either grabbing the spine or thumbstuds.

With an AO the result is usually almost getting stabbed in the palm.
 
Okay, I have been sitting here reading a bunch of these post tonight and it has just now hit me. I guess being unemployed for the last 7 weeks has caught up to me. That and the last several shots JW Blue I have, SAD!!!:( It's weird but I almost never use the word Hate. It's a very strong word and gets used out of context far to often. If a knife design or Car or Truck design come along that I don't care for I move on. If my neighbor buys that design I didn't like and is happy about, good for him. I don't say "I Hated it". It's unintelligent statement. You like but not need one. You dislike and not want one. But to Hate and tell everyone you hate it and to post that you hate it is silly at best. The OP had their reasons for posting as they did but if we didn't have folks who thought the sun sat and rose with their thoughts on any given subject regarding if they Loved or hated any particular item. The OP might have been able to post "A/O's your thoughts, pros and cons please" That would have been a cool thread.
 
I don't like 'em because I like simple things. It's just one more thing to go wrong with a knife. I have never needed to open a one handed knife "faster". I just don't get it really.

hardheart said:
It sort of seems like a solution to a problem nobody had. Opening knives quickly with one hand was easily done before Ken developed speedsafe. Law tends to lag behind technology, and the old definitions of auto and gravity knife are going to catch up to us eventually, it'll just take one media-worthy event with a knife that opens fast, however it's accomplished.
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And that's exactly how I feel too.
 
lpd10574 said:
I also don't care for AO knives. From the durability standpoint it seems like something else that can fail on your knife as a tool. Seems to be a gimmick for someone to have a psuedo "automatic" knife.

I think a one handed manual opener is as good as it needs to get.
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Is this your position as a citizen, or as a LEO. Recently you said:

...but in all my 10 years as a police officer I have never seen one instance where I was relieved a civilian had a manual opener rather than an auto...
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Just curious.
 
I actually took the torsion bar out of my blur earlier (an made a video) to show someone on another forum that removing the AO feature would not interfere with the blade retention whilst closed.....It actually feels rally nice. I think i am going to try it out manual for a few days. But in general i like AO a lot.
 
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2brothers said:
There is a lock on the SpeedBump for keeping the blade in place when closed. Either the standard or the ALBLK.
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That is true, and I did use the small safety lock when my torsion bar broke (so I could safely get it home). The lock, though, is small and fiddly. I would hate to have to rely on it for an extended period of time.

The Studlock Mojo solved this problem rather elegantly with the integral flipper-safety. The knife still works in (almost) full capacity even without the torsion bar.

Other Speedsafe knives with liner or frame locks will retain the blade by friction in case of torsion bar failure. They will, however, not flip without a detent in the blade (or a whole lot of wrist).

Phillip
 
Even If there is a reliablility issue, companies like Kershaw will fix you up real fast.. For example my Kershaw Chive's torsion bar was rattleing around.. I simply asked them for a new one and they sent it in 3 days.. I installed it and it crisply opens!
 
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