How important is one hand open and close?

JDRanger said:
I would add that one handers that don’t require a wrist flick to assist in opening are very much better.

Assisted openers that can’t easily be closed with one hand are a deal breaker for me.
Click to expand...

Requiring wrist flick should be a deal breaker on its own. A flipper should only require a finger. A thumb stud should only require a thumb. Needing anything more is a defect.
 
One hand openers are not a priority for me even though many of my modern knives are one hand openers. With a lock, I generally use two hands to close them. Speed is generally not a significant priority. Safety takes a higher priority.
 
Chronovore said:
A thumb stud should only require a thumb. Needing anything more is a defect.
Click to expand...

This particular point depends on your preferred method of deployment though. If you want to flick open a thumbstud knife that's meant to be opened slowly, that's not something I would classify as defective - you're just not using it in the way it was intended.
 
sabre cat said:
What are you down to now? A total of three knives? One fixed and two folders?

I have to admit that I have admired the way you trimmed down your collection. Maybe someday I will have the courage to do the same.
Click to expand...

Actually it's changed. Since October 2018 my collection has been two folders and one fixed, but a week ago I purchased a third folder (another Bugout, the ranger green & grey blade version). So now my collection sits at four :)
 
Very important to me at times (whenever working). Assisted open/Axis lock for me then, thank you very much.
 
For day to day EDC, I always carry a multitool of some sort(SAK, LM, etc) and if I were to carry an additional blade that day, I would much rather it does offer one hand opening so as long local law allows it.
 
I liked to have one that opened with one hand when I was doing A/C work, but I got by woth a stockman most days and didn't have an issue. I'll carry a knife I really like whether it is one handed or not. Most days my main knife is a Victorinox Huntsman and I haven't been in very many situations where I just wished I could open it faster. None that come to mind actually. Alot of the time when I'm home or in the woods I've got a fixed blade on me.
 
One handed opening is very important to me for EDC as a matter of preference, convenience, and (admittedly) cool/fidget factor.

Therom said:
By the way backlocks are usually not a problem. I never had problem to close my Delica or my native 5 with one hand
The cold steel pro lite is not has easy but I manage to close it with one hand
In the worst case I push the back of the blade on my thigh and it does the job
Click to expand...

I agree, no Spyderco back lock has ever given me any difficulty closing it one handed. The pro lite, on the other hand, really surprised me with its stiff spring. It was no problem to take the spring out and bend it a bit, and now it opens and closes one handed without a problem, and still locks up like a vault.

JBC6650 said:
One note about Cold Steel knives; once the triad lock breaks in and you get the movement down, they are all one hand close. You just have to make sure to keep a finger far forward as a blade stop or you have a nice finger guillotine.
Click to expand...

Absolutely. Every triad lock folder I get now gets adjusted if it gives me any trouble. A bent spring here, chamfered lock bar there. They are all not only easy to close one handed, but comfortable to as well.

Quiet said:
Most week days, I don't even have any real opportunities to cut anything at all.
Click to expand...

You have my heartfelt condolences!

Chronovore said:
Requiring wrist flick should be a deal breaker on its own. A flipper should only require a finger. A thumb stud should only require a thumb. Needing anything more is a defect.
Click to expand...

Therein lies the genius of Spyderco!
 
How important..
I might be stating the obvious, but this is only a sub parameter of how important the actual knife is. As in, how it deploys and retract can never be more important than the actual reason we carry.
Which brings me to the reason I carry, and that is mainly the joy of appreciating a good knife and the joy of being self reliant. Most days would go by pretty OK even without a knife, but something would be missing for sure.
Being as it is, with a knife clearly not being of great essence to my well being, I still prefer one hand opening and one hand closing. In many cases it is really therein I find the advantage of carrying. If I was to set down whatever I was cutting, I could just as well get a stanley or a pair of scissors which are usually not far away anyhow (in a at work or home scenario at least).
For me, that don't engage in cutting tasks on a regular basis, an EDC folder is really just a means of preparing for the things I didn't plan or expect, and not knowing what I'll cut, I also don't know if I'll have both hands available when the time comes.
Like others have stated, I also like to point out the safety advantages of one hand closing folders.
Even when I carry a fixed blade for outdoor activities, I often carry a one hand operating folder as well, because I can always put it away safely. A typical scenario is when I'm working with fishing lines, I often carry a Dragonfly II. It is very suited for precision work and very safe to operate. I close it whenever I put it down, and when I'm finished I can always put it away safely in any of my pockets or even my bag. Whereas if I use my fixed blade I will often experience that my jacket or other garment slips over the sheath, or that I can't safely locate the sheath without taking my eyes off what I'm working on.
The examples are endless, but as many others I also enjoy classic designs, and try to carry slipjoints and such whenever I don't expect it to be of any annoyance or safety issue.
 
Wondering how hard it is for people to find ambidextrous or left hand knives so they can go one-handed.
 
I have quite a few "gents" knives that are smaller than 3".
I have very few flippers. I generally don't buy frame locks, liner locks.
(Most) Lockbacks and slip joints don't lend themselves too well to one handing.

JD a (custom) lefty for you
NUXhuXY.jpg

oCRV0NK.jpg
 
Those features are very important to me, I almost never buy or carry a lockback knife. Pocket clips are also very important. Most of the time when I use a knife as a tool, one of my hands is occupied with the task and I only have the other hand available to pull the knife out, open it, use it, close it, and put it back.
 
I grew up with a kid who burnt off all five digits off his left hand. He’s now an avid knife user but can only use fixed blades and one handed openers. He prefers Reate.
 
Not important at all. I carry slipjoints and never feel I need anything else. From seeing multiple threads similar to “show what you’re using your edc for”, most others don’t really need one hand opening either, they just prefer that style knife and probably only truly need one hand capability 1% of the time.
 
JDRanger said:
I enjoy and prefer folders that can be opened and closed with one hand. The easier the better.

There are some great knives with locking systems (Cold Steel, many Spyderco, slip joints, etc...) that realistically require two hands to open and/or close.

I thought I’d start a conversation to see how important one hand opening folders are to you?

Note: I am not dissing Cold Steel and others. They are good products.
Click to expand...
Interesting discussion. There were times in my career, and now my daughter’s, that opening and closing one handed was/is critical. I was, and she is a firefighter. Now, add to the mix that you wear heavy gloves. Opening one handed is obvious, but what do you do with the knife when the task is over? You must be able to close it. The Spyderco Autonomy did not come along until too late in my career, but my daughter carries one now and it works just like it was designed.
 
Lesknife said:
Like most things, it’s not important until you have an experience that shows you why it’s important. Yes I don’t always need a one hand open and close but the times I’ve been caught with a two hand knife and still needing to hold or secure an item and cut something made me consider to always have a one hand open knife. Now I do!
Click to expand...
This exactly.
I’ve never understood the “if I don’t need it, no one does” mentality.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top