I guess I just don't get neck knives...

R

Racerx2oo3

Joined
Aug 22, 2005
Messages
174
I'm not trying to slam anyone who chooses this particular method of carry, but I just can't seem to get my head around the idea of a neck knife. I'm not sure I see the advantage to carrying this way, however I'm interested in what other think about neck carry. Perhaps for me its the fact that I've never really worn things around my neck (with the exception of my Digital SLR, and I'm not super fond of that). The other thing is perhaps I've gotten a bad impression of neck carry after seeing several posts from people who claim to carry a neck knife 24/7 even in the shower. Posts of that nature tend to set my "tinfoil hat" alarm ringing at high volume.

For those of you who choose neck carry, what do you see as the advantages? One that I can think of as a possible is that carry method wouldn't change in regards to attire. I tend to carry a folder clipped inside a pocket and fixed blade on the belt. That would be a problem on pants without front pockets or a belt. The advantages of my carry style to me is that I can easily deploy and stow my blades one handed without getting a open blade near any of my vital parts (like my jugular!) I also think it would bother me to have something as large and heavy as even a small blade flopping around on my chest, and have the potential to catch up on something and possibly choke me.

Interested what others think of this carry method and how well it works for them.

Sean
 
I'm not much of a fan of neck knives either, simply because I find them uncomfortable. I've started using a Merc Harness style rig instead. It's much more comfortable even with a bigger knife, and just about equally as handy for me. Deploying blades quickly and safely with one hand is no problem with either method of carry, and while it does take two hands to re-sheath them, I don't think there is a safety issue there either.

For the record, I only wear a knife in this manner when I feel I need one handy for doing chores around the house or yard, and never in the shower!
 
I only carry a neck knife in the woods. In fact, a neck knife is arguably illegal in CA, so I'm better off only using one in the woods.

Neck knives in the woods are wonderful things. For one thing, if you're layering your clothing and therefore taking coats/sweaters/etc on and off as the temperature and your physical exertion changes, you don't have to worry about moving your belt knife around so that it can be gotten at.

I also like neck knives as a back up. I might lose my pack and my belt knife from a fall, but hopefully the neck knife is still there, safely tucked away inside my shirt.

Finally, my neck knife hangs at about my sternum, so I don't have to worry about it being near my jugular. :)
 
I like a neck knife when I'm sitting doing little tasks with a knife or carving. The knife is easy to grab and to resheath. I can't really resheath a knife sitting down, esp in a chair. Now I will say I don't wear any knife very often, they are usually in my pack. And I don't wear one in the shower. That is a new one! No foil hat either.
 
I find you have to be a pretty dedicated knifenut to wear neck knives around the neck. To regular folks, a neck knife seems to say "GEEK".

The only knife I've ever work around the neck was my Mora when camping. I have a deep mistrust of plastic sheaths that hold the knife by friction, upside down. That's probably the biggest reason I don't wear one more often.
 
I used top wear one all the time, but now i pretty much only do it for woods carry, its just an easy way to wear a knife, you dont need pockets, or a belt, just a neck and most people i know have those (to some extent anyway)
I usually only carry very small neckers, as a back up to a larger blade

They are handy in a car as they can be draw, while seated, and can be worn very easily under a sthirt and tie, in an environ where a pocket clip, or pocket bulge may be frowned upon.

I have worn them in showers on the beach when rinsing off after swiming (also rinsing the salt water off the knife), also while using truckstop showers , and some really questionable campground showers, while on road trips, I hung it over a hook inside the door (the tinfoil hat interfered with the conditionler I was using.)
 
The only time I use one is hunting with fanny packs or larger packs with a belt or when I'm moving quietly through heavy brush. And in those applications, a neck knife with a larger blade stowed in the back is great. If I'm carrying a fixed blade externally, it's behind my mid-point, tucked into my back pocket...and there have been some regrettable events when falling, weaving through brush quickly, etc. For various reasons, I like having one mid-sized blade and one small blade, and even a third in specialized contexts.
 
Why a neck knife?

> It's easy to carry a fixed blade, especially if it's light like a Mora
> Less chance of getting lost
> Easier to access and replace
> Multi-use of the 550 cord, plus I carry other stuff with the knife
> Doesn't get in the way as much as if I had it on my belt
> And I don't usually wear a belt. I am in shorts with a drawstring if it is above 50 degrees, sometimes colder if it is not too windy.
 
Fonly said:
Is 550 a good idea to wear around your neck?
Click to expand...

I think that's why a lot of neck knives come with the bead chains. If the knife or chain snags on something it will break before doing any major injury or outright hanging you. That being said, I think the chances of the knife snagging in such a way are fairly slim and I wouldn't be too concerned with having a piece of paracord around my neck if I were inclined to wear a neck knife in the first place, unless I were in a specific situation where chances of a snag were more likely, such as climbing a tree or hiking in steep terrain where I might have to worry about a fall and/or tumble down a hill. Having that cord snag on something would not be a pleasant way to stop.
 
bulgron said:
I only carry a neck knife in the woods. In fact, a neck knife is arguably illegal in CA, so I'm better off only using one in the woods.

Neck knives in the woods are wonderful things. For one thing, if you're layering your clothing and therefore taking coats/sweaters/etc on and off as the temperature and your physical exertion changes, you don't have to worry about moving your belt knife around so that it can be gotten at.

I also like neck knives as a back up. I might lose my pack and my belt knife from a fall, but hopefully the neck knife is still there, safely tucked away inside my shirt.

Finally, my neck knife hangs at about my sternum, so I don't have to worry about it being near my jugular. :)
Click to expand...


very well said....:thumbup:

i am a neck knife fan and have an ever growing collection....:o
i also live in CA.. so i mainly carry them while out in the woods and as a back up, to bigger fixed blade..... :D

a friend of mine recently completed the PCT, and used an awesome murray carter neck knife as his primary knife.... he loved it, especially when your trying to go light and can't spare the weight, for a big fixed blade... a necker is ideal.....

mike

here's a few of mine....:D
IMG_0937.jpg
 
Quiet Bear said:
I have and will continue to take my chances. Haven't been hung up yet.
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The lanyard is the least of my worries when wearing a neck knife. I just think the chances of being throttled by it are extremely remote, compared to the already remote chance of being stabbed by my own neck knife after coming loose from the sheath.
 
It's a convenient but unobtrusive way to have a knife at hand, and a lot of the time I'm wearing shorts or sweats that don't take a belt and sometimes don't have pockets. The key is finding a knife that is big enough to do what you need, that carries comfortably, and is light enough that it isn't uncomfortable around your neck.

As far as the paracord is concerned, I'm not particularly concerned about catching it on something. However, I usually make something similar to Benchmade's neck cord because it is strong enough to hold the knife, but will come apart fairly easily if you need it to. To make mine I use a short chunk of aquarium hose as the connector and insert one end of the paracord (with the ends melted) into each end of the short hose section. I got the idea from someone on the forum and it works pretty well, plus I find it more comfortable than a bead chain.

And I think people who come up with lame reasons for not carrying a neck knife are pussies :-) Just kidding. They aren't for everyone, and I can see why some folks wouldn't care for them. Either you get it or you don't. I feel the same way about Swiss Army Knives. I don't understand the allure, but a lot of folks like them.
 
I never really liked the thought of a neck knife either. Eventually aquired a kydex neck sheath type-of-thingy for my vic SAK tinker. At first I found it odd and uncomfortable, plus a felt a little strange carrying a knife around my neck. Then I kinda gradually started wearing it more and more when I was bumming around in sweats or athletic shorts and the like. Now, I find I rather don't mind a lightweight knife hanging from my neck, although I gotta get a better chain/rope; right now I'm using or 3 or maybe 5mm cord that resembles mini-climbing rope and its just too thick and bulky, and the ends are scratchy...


All in all, I don't mind in the least carrying my SAK by the neck now, although I don't know if I would stand for the extra weight of something like my Becker Necker. Ironically, I'd like to make or find an IWB or small of the back type of rig. Texas Knife used to have a nice kydex loop for IWB, but I can't find it there any more, so I dunno :(
 
Neck carry is handy in the bush, or when you're canoeing or otherwise in a restricted boat, or when wearing waders. Kinda clumsy around town tho' IMHO.
 
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