Help me pick out a sheeple-friendly folder

[Twindog]

...basically what I'm looking for is a knife that nobody could ever feel intimidated by.

There ain't no such knife. If you expect to find one, you are setting yourself up for frustration and anger.

But a good attitude and a proactive attitude with people who are most skittish around knives will get you 90 percent of your goal.

And a small knife with a colorful handle will take you another 9 percent. The Cricket is a great knife. Spyderco has a lot of very, very good small knives. The Lava is a great knife. The Benchmade Benchmite is good, too.

 

[Rich357]

At a couple of parties I used my small Sebenza to cut the foil on a bottle of wine. One woman got those big eyes and said something like, "You have a knife".
I smiled and said, yes, and it's smaller than any of the knives in your kitchen. Things went well at the party.

 

[cutter17]

Check out a Bladetech Mouse. They make a couple of models; a standard model with S30V and G-10 handles($60 +), standard with carbon fiber handles($80~), and a Mouse Lite model with zytel and 440C($30~). All have a 1 15/16" blade that is very non threatning. This is a Tim Wegner designed knife that Spyderco used to produce until Tim started Blade-Tech's knife division. Worth a look.

 

[Dekz]

the big bold letters in the original post that said "I am not looking for a SAK or slipjoint,..." a SAK is a swiss army knife.

rainbow or pink leek in regards to the original question.

Apparently you missed the part in the original post where I said I have a Rainbow Leek and the AO sometimes freaks people out I am sick of having to explain to every person that sees it that it's NOT a "switchblade" and that it is in fact legal to own.

Although it appears more than a few people perhaps misunderstood my first post and think I am trying to choose out of the 4 knives I currently own.

I am in fact looking to purchase a new knife.

Spyderco Kopa is nice, but (in the best tradition of BladeForums knife enablement) a little out of your range.

Hehe, nice try, but sorry, that's more than I can spend

Check out a Bladetech Mouse. They make a couple of models; a standard model with S30V and G-10 handles($60 +), standard with carbon fiber handles($80~), and a Mouse Lite model with zytel and 440C($30~). All have a 1 15/16" blade that is very non threatning. This is a Tim Wegner designed knife that Spyderco used to produce until Tim started Blade-Tech's knife division. Worth a look.

boker subcom and trance are both good options imo

Thank you for these two suggestions. They both meet the requirements I laid out, however I think I still like the Cricket more than anything suggested so far.

 

[Bookworm]

Unfortunately it is called a butter knife...........

if someone can tell me how to edit my sig that's going in it.

I've got the answer!

you can even take it through the airport!

 

[Uncle Timbo]

Dekz, I for one have not misunderstood anything. You will have to learn that the largest majority of people DO NOT carry knives. When they see one they freak out. They get scared. Any knife will bring this reaction. Some more than others. You have to be discreet. I carry 2 knives. A Sebenza and a Buck slipjoint. Most of the people only see the Buck. It is my do everything/beater.

 

[raindog101]

+1 for the Fallkniven U2. Fantastic little cutter, and nice in the hand. About as plain and unintimidating a blade as you can get, IMHO.

 

[Dekz]

Dekz, I for one have not misunderstood anything. You will have to learn that the largest majority of people DO NOT carry knives. When they see one they freak out. They get scared. Any knife will bring this reaction. Some more than others. You have to be discreet. I carry 2 knives. A Sebenza and a Buck slipjoint. Most of the people only see the Buck. It is my do everything/beater.

I am simply trying to find the least threatening knife possible, while still being one that I like and enjoy.

+1 for the Fallkniven U2. Fantastic little cutter, and nice in the hand. About as plain and unintimidating a blade as you can get, IMHO.

No disrespect to the knife at all, but it's just really not my taste. Asthetics is a big part of a knife for me, I think there are some cool looking knives that fit my requirements. IMO the U2 looks like a $10 junk knife to me. Again, I'm sure it's a great performer and very high quality, I just don't like how it looks. But thank for you a suggestion that meets all of the criteria :thumbup:

 

[Rich357]

If the AO feature on your Leek is bothering some people, open it slowly with two hands when you are around people you don't want to scare.

New knife, I'll also vote for a Mini-Grip.

 

[raindog101]

IMO the U2 looks like a $10 junk knife to me.

LOL! It does look like a piece of junk! I thought that too when I pulled it out of the box. It takes a little getting used to how it looks, but after a while, it grows on you. But if more stylish blades are what you're looking for, more power to ya. I just don't think stylish necessarily marries well with "sheeple-friendly". YMMV.

 

[jaislandboy]

sheeple friendly: Spyderco Cricket (esp. plainedge), Boker Subcomfolder/Wharcom, Bladetech Mouse....If you want something even smaller....the Spyderco Ladybug, Byrd Finch/Starling
If you want somethin w/flat profile ....I like the Flatbyrd

 

[popedandy]

A few that appear to meet your criteria are the Kershaw Squaw Creek, the A.G. Russell 2.5 Titanium Lockback Folder, the Al Mar Osprey (stainless handled because of the price), and the Spyderco "S".

 

[Dekz]

sheeple friendly: Spyderco Cricket (esp. plainedge), Boker Subcomfolder/Wharcom, Bladetech Mouse....If you want something even smaller....the Spyderco Ladybug, Byrd Finch/Starling
If you want somethin w/flat profile ....I like the Flatbyrd

I think I'm going to go with the Byrd Finch. Thank you very much for the suggestions everybody. I like the Cricket more, but it is 4 times the price, and I'd rather not spend that much on a knife that is more for other people than myself.

Plus I like the idea of using the Finch as a keychain and then also carrying one of my bigger knives to use if necessary.

Thanks again everybody, I knew I could count on this place!

 

[neeman]

Boker Subcomfolder/Wharcom is flat and square, therefore does not scan the eye as a knife.
Peoples reaction to it is more of interest than fear.

 

[Will Power]

How about an EKA lockback? Traditional wood handle plus a useful blade and not much cash.

 

[Uncle Timbo]

Dekz, I truly wish you all the luck in the world. But in my travels I've seen that if you can open the knife with one hand, people will take a step back and get big-eyed.

 

[DITCH]

Mcusta makes some nice, blingy folders for not too much $.

 

[nodh]

I would say the Fallkniven U2, or the U1 if locking blade is Verboten.
To me the Buck 110 has a too pointed blade to look sheeple enough. Also the 110 has been copied so much that people can not tell if it is a fake or real.

The U2 is a wolf in sheeps clothing. It looks like a piece of crap but has cutting abilities and edge retention that outperforms most knives in that size and many bigger ones.
It is a good EDC and can also serve as a survival knife.

Whatever you choose good luck.

 

[SplittinHairs]

Sounds like the choice is made but I agree - anything that has a small and unique shape like the Cricket goes over better. Someone in a similar post mentioned that any knife combined with other tools or on a key ring seems less threatening. I tend to agree. That said - common sense, minimal attention draw and a healthy dose of "ignore those sheeple" is a good mix.

 

[Franciscomv]

If you're looking for something one hand opening, a Spyderco Dragonfly might work. It's big enough to be useful, and small enough to be non-threatening. I use one with a stainless steel handle and ATS-55 blade quite often and I'm in love with it.

If you want something more traditional, try a small Opinel (a #7 for example).